Arizona Telescope: Did Big Scopes See Pluto Conjunction?

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The discussion centers on whether large telescopes in Arizona observed a recent Pluto conjunction, specifically mentioning the 6.5-meter scope at Mt. Hopkins. Participants note that cloudy conditions may have affected visibility, but it cleared up the following morning. Clarification arises around the term "occultation," which refers to Pluto passing in front of a star, a significant event for studying Pluto's atmosphere. Confusion exists regarding the terminology, with some participants mistakenly using "conjunction" instead of "occultation." The event is highlighted as valuable for astronomical research, particularly due to its visibility from major telescopes.
interested_learner
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Does anyone know if the Pluto Conjunction was seen by any of the big scopes in Arizona?

I know the sky over Southern Arizona (and specifically Mt. Hopkins where the 6.5 meter scope was going to be used to photograph the rare event) was cloudy yesterday evening. This morning it was clear though. It might have cleared up in time... Does anyone have contacts with the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory and knows the answer?
 
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I'm not sure I'm following you - what is this celestial event that you're talking about? Pluto is currently nowhere near the sun or any planet - what is it having a conjunction with? A google turns up nothing but astrology sites that don't say anything useful.
 
russ_watters said:
I'm not sure I'm following you - what is this celestial event that you're talking about? Pluto is currently nowhere near the sun or any planet - what is it having a conjunction with?

Russ, I think interested_learner means a star or something... Wasn't there a conjecture a couple of months ago?
 
He's referring to this:http://www.space.com/scienceastronom...uto_watch.html
It's an occultation.

MadScientist 1000 said:
Wasn't there a conjecture a couple of months ago?
I heard it hasn't been proven yet. :-p
 
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neutrino said:
He's referring to this:http://www.space.com/scienceastronom...uto_watch.html
It's an occultation.


I heard it hasn't been proven yet. :-p

Occulation? Conjecture? I meant the same thing :smile: Yeah... I remember the occulation between Pluto and a star... It was not a few months ago, but a year or two ago. They used it to figure out Pluto's atmosphere.
 
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It's NOT conjecture, which roughly means a half-baked idea :P, it's a conjunction, which means 'close' gathering of celestial objects as seen in the sky. Btw, the one the OP is referring to occurred today.
 
Right. Occulation. Sorry. Wrong word. This was an especially valuable occulation because it was visable from the big scopes in Arizona.
 
Do I look like the type of person who will speeeellll words correktly?

My bad... I meant occulation...
 

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