Astro
28D: Field Astronomy in the Eastern Sierra/Death Valley
This course will concentrate on observing and recording
a grazing lunar occultation near Lone Pine in the Owens Valley. We'll also
study and photograph the newly discovered Comet Ikeya-Zhang as it moves past
the Andromeda Galaxy, study the geology of the Owens Valley as it relates
to the planetary processes common to the inner planets, tour a radio telescope
observatory, and explore the dramatic landscapes and cultural history of this
area.
When:
I'd had the idea that we may want to leave
on Thursday April 4 and thereby gain an extra day. However, the astronomy club,
who will be helping us with the astronomy observing portion our trip, can't
leave on Thursday. So, the plan is for Friday. Friday afternoon we will
rendezvous in the desert, have the rest of the afternoon and evening for a bit
of sightseeing and astrophotography, then Saturday we'll do our main
exploration of some of the Owens Valley and some of the western part of Death
Valley, and Sunday after breakfast start our trek home, perhaps with a stop
along the way at a couple of interesting spots. I plan to leave early Friday
morning, at 8:30am from Cabrillo. If you'd like to caravan along with me, then
meet at the gate at the top of the hill above campus, where the Horiculture
facility is being built (see map on next page). It is also the entrance to the
observatory and I'll perhaps want to pick up a last item or two. It's about a 7
hour drive to our campsite near Lone Pine.
Where:
For Comet Hale-Bopp in '97 we camped at Movie
Flat, a beautiful rock garden in the Alabama Hills about 3 miles west
of Lone Pine. It's a spectacular spot in the spring, as we'll have a panaramic
view of snow capped Mt. Whitney and the highest mountains of the Sierras.
The rock formations are like a smaller version of Joshua Tree National Park;
weathered granitics in tall formations. The rocks provide lots of opportunity
for everyone to find their own little nook to set up their tent. However,
this spot is a primitive camp, and has no water or facilities. There is simply
no campground in this region which has a good western and eastern horizon
for comet viewing. Lone Pine is only 3 miles east, and Tuttle Creek Campground
is only about 3 miles southwest (but not nearly as interesting). The last
class really loved Movie Flat, but if everyone hates it or can't handle the
primitive conditions, we can instead go to Tuttle Creek. We'll decide this
at our on-campus meeting. Tuttle Creek campground is very flat and out in
the open; there's a small creek running through the camp, but little vegetation
and we'd likely have other campers with their lanterns and light pollution.
I (and I think you) will prefer Movie Flat. There's also an interesting history
to Movie Flat, a lot of old westerns in the 40's, 50's, and 60's were filmed
here. We'll bring along a couple of large tables, and we'll improvise a privacy
place among the rocks. Bring 'ur own TP!
Campsite at Movie Flat
When you get to Lone Pine, look for the left turn which takes you up towards Whitney Portal. You'll start heading up hill. You'll parallel a creek for a time, and pass through some rocky desert hills. After you leave the windy stretch through the creek canyon it'll get wide open again. Look for a dirt road on your right. If you reach the paved road on your left to Tuttle Creek campground, you've come too far. The dirt road is smooth and suitable for all cars. After about one mile you'll see branches to the right which head thousand yards or to into the rock area. We'll be in this area. Our exact spot depends on where we get the best east and west horizons, but it's a tiny spot and a few minutes of yelling or driving and you should spot us. If you arrive early, then just wait before you head into the rocks and I'll run into you when I arrive.
If
you get Lost!
Go to Tuttle Creek campground and check the
bulletin board. If you don't see a message there (who knows, maybe they took it
down?) as a last resort check the park service center at the south end of Lone
Pine.
Comet Ikeya-Zhang
The astronomy desert trips have been blessed
with incredible good luck over the years. This trip is starting out the same
way - a new comet was discovered last month and it's making a beautiful show
in the evening sky. I've done calculations and see that it will be crossing
right over the edge of the Andromeda Galaxy on Friday night. We're working
very hard to get ready for digital astrophotography, and you're encouraged
to bring along your own cameras and try for some shots too. Because this is
such a rare and beautiful photo-op,
Bring:
*
Plenty of water; there's no piped water at Movie Flat.
* camp
gear (tent, sleeping bad, ground pad, etc.)
*
toilet paper (we'll have a trowel) if you're adventurous, or just
drive over to Lone Pine or Tuttle Creek
campground to do your
business
*
eating utensils
* a
folding camp chair, and especially any extra folding tables!
* warm
clothes! It'll likely be in the 70's in the day and down to
the 30's at night. Will likely be cold while
observing, especially
if it gets windy.
*
camera and tripod - for awesome star trails pictures, and day shots
of your new friends!
SCHEDULE
Friday April 5.
8:30am
- leave Cabrillo (or you can leave at your own convenience; the
"official" class time doesn't start till the evening at camp)
There'll
be no official stops along the way. I'll have to stop for gas of course, but
it's vital to our photography mission (see below) to arrive well before dark,
and it'll be too slow if we have to wait for the slowest car and stay together.
You're welcome to stick with me, but start with a full tank and be prepared to
just drive.
~3:00-4:00pm
- Arrive at Lone Pine campsite. See enclosed map. Pick your campspot and set up
your tent.
5:20pm.
Dinner will be early, at 5:20pm sharp we'll start cooking. Some may not be here
yet, so this first dinner might be a little informal. I'll bring pasta, and
you'll bring along veges, sauce fixings, garlic toast, and lots of cookies to
get us fat and happy for the evening.
7:20 pm
- Twilight ends. Comet photography begins. The comet will have set by 8:15pm or
so. Then more observing of the planets Jupiter and Saturn, and the Orion
Nebula, star clusters, and some more digital imaging of the Milky Way area.
Saturday April 6
3:45 am
- Alarms go off; get ready for our graze trip! The graze path is about a 20
minute drive from camp, down near Owens Lake and Hwy 395. We'll set up 2 or 3
graze stations equipped with video cameras so we can both record the graze and
also so you can watch and practice getting graze timings with stop watches. The
graze is at 5:00am and lasts a few minutes, while the cresent moon and twilight
rise
over the Inyo Mountains. Then back to camp for an hour of sleep before...
8:20am
- Start breakfast; french toast or eggs 'n tortillas.
9:40am
- get ready for a Saturday of geological and historical exploration.
Officially, you're free to enjoy the area in any way you want. The class
doesn't begin again until evening. However, I've been studying the area and
plan to drive to some interesting spots and give a few impromptu "spews"
on local geology. I hope you will join me.
Tentative
Plan for My Saturday...
My
tentative plan: drive to the old ghost town of Darwin, on the edge of Death
Valley National Park, continue on to Saline Valley road and Talc City mining
district, then back into the Owens Valley and perhaps mineral hunting east of
Independence, then up for an end-of-the-day soak at Keogh Hot Springs. Then a
quick stop at Manzanaar Concentration Camp on the way back to our campsite.
Here
are some local spots of interest to consider...
* Hot
springs - the geology of the area makes for many hot springs. However, we
won't be very close to any of them. Saline Valley hot springs are supposed
to be quite nice, but are at the end of a 55 mile long dirt road which might
require 4x4's. We won't be going there. Keogh Hot Springs is the easiest to
reach and it's fairly nice; a series of hot pools in a creek coming down out
of the Sierras, not far from Hwy 395. It's about 70 miles north of Lone Pine.
* Owens
Valley Radio Observatory – This facility is owned by a consortium of universities,
including UC and Caltech. It’s main instrument is a 40m dish and is outfitted
for studying non-thermal processes in distant quasars and giant black holes
at the cores of massive galaxies. We definitely plan to visit here and get
a tour.
*
Whitney Portal - this campground and ranger station is at 8,000 ft and may
still have some snow. This is the starting point for the trails to Mt. Whitney,
highest mountain in the lower 48 states at 14,495 ft.
*
Darwin and Darwin Falls. Darwin is an old mining town in the mountains east of
Owens Lake. Nearby are mine tunnels and buildings. Darwin Falls is a 1 mile
easy hike up a desert canyon to a shady and very pretty water fall coming down
from China Garden Spring.
* The
western edge of Death Valley National Park includes Darwin Falls and also the
Talc City mining district, and the interesting historical and geological sites
along the entrance roads to Saline Valley and Hunter Mountain. The area has
dense Joshua tree forests, old mine sites, springs, and is one of the most
remote places in California.
*
Manzanaar - concentration camps? in California?! Yes, we placed
Japanese-Americans into Manzannar "camp" during WWII. Check out the
ruins of this camp a few miles north of Lone Pine.
*
Minerals and gems - The incredible geological forces which have been at work
creating this area have generated many precious and semi-precious gems.
Included in your packet is a run down of known gem sites. We will plan to visit
Crystal Ridge above Big Pine and search for smokey quartz. I’ll give a talk
about the process of crystallization and relate it to crustal processes common
on the inner planets.
Sunday April 7
*
8:30am - Organic gourmet granola and VitaSoy breakfast, with your fresh fruit
and yogurt and other fixings to start another beautiful day!
* Pack
up camp at your leisure.
* Our
final talk will be another planetary science talk, at the nearby spectacular
fault produced by the Great Quake of 1872, which produced a large vertical
offset in the main fault running along the eastern Sierra very close to our
campsite.
*
Alternative route possibilities to maximize wildflower views on the drive home.