Jay Fergusonjay@deepcreekvacations.com301-501-0420
Menu

Backyard Astronomers Discover Black Holes and Other Wonders


Photo: VOA
Backyard astronomer Gus Johnson

Laurel Bowman | Swanton, Maryland

Amateur astronomer Gus Johnson didn’t set out to witness what scientists say is the first ever observed birth of a black hole. But that’s just what he did in 1979. His discovery of Supernova 1979c was only the third supernova in another galaxy ever detected by an amateur. But it has become one of the most important and studied since. Amateur astronomers have been making discoveries for at least 400 years, dating to Galileo’s spotting of Jupiter’s moons. The hobby helps professional scientists every day.

Johnson likes the quiet and he likes the dark. But clouds and sub-zero temperatures are working against him as he stargazes near his home in Western Maryland.

“Well, Jupiter went behind a cloud so we have the moon,” said Johnson.

Johnson has been stargazing for 50 years, and tonight he’s invited some kids to join him. He has a near photographic memory of hundreds of star positions and he loves to share what he knows.

Read the full article here.

If you are thinking of buying or selling real estate in Garrett County or Deep Creek Lake, Maryland, call Jay Ferguson of Railey Realty for all of your real estate needs! 877-563-5350

Deep Creek Do It All specializes in cleaning services in Garrett County & @ Deep Creek Lake. Give them a call (301-501-0217) or visit the website – competitive rates and quality results from a locally owned & operated company!

Md. stargazer's discovery keeps on giving


David Dishneau, Associated Press
In a Nov. 16, 2010 photo, amateur astronomer Gus Johnson, 72, checks out one of his telescopes at Deep Creek Lake State Park near Swanton, Md. Harvard researchers announced on Monday, Nov. 15, 2010 that a supernova Johnson discovered in 1979 is now believed to be the rarely observed birth of a black hole. Scientists at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics publicly announced the finding Monday.

By David Dishneau, Associated Press

SWANTON, Md. — The star that exploded into a supernova first spotted by amateur astronomer Gus Johnson more than 30 years ago may have caused a baby black hole in its wake.

Johnson, 72, a state park worker from Swanton in western Maryland, said he was amazed when NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory Center in Cambridge, Mass., called in early November to say that researchers believe the exploding star he found with his home telescope in 1979 marked the birth of a black hole 50 million light-years away —the nearest such observation yet made.

It was the third time that Johnson’s star, SN1979C, has made news. First came the discovery. A year later, radio astronomers found that it had begun emitting radio waves, advancing the theory that exploded stars evolve into pulsars. Now, there’s evidence it may be a baby black hole.

By continuing to follow the black hole, future astronomers will learn just how much material is left over from the star’s explosion, said Dan Patnaude of Harvard, a co-author of a new paper in the journal New Astronomy. This black hole is about five times more massive than our sun, and the star that exploded was maybe 20 times bigger than our sun.

Read the full article here.

If you are thinking of buying or selling real estate in Garrett County or Deep Creek Lake, Maryland, call Jay Ferguson of Railey Realty for all of your real estate needs! 877-563-5350

Deep Creek Do It All specializes in cleaning services in Garrett County & @ Deep Creek Lake. Give them a call (301-501-0217) or visit the website – competitive rates and quality results from a locally owned & operated company!