AIMS OF THE ALPO COMETS SECTION

Introduction:

      Members of the ALPO Comet Section have a long history of providing quality comet observations. In turn, the section coordinators have done an excellent job in publishing analyses in the ALPO Journal.
      My personal membership first began in 1976, while Dennis Milon was the coordinator. Early in that year I had watched comet West burst into the morning sky. West was only the third comet I had ever seen, but, with over 110 observed comets up to the present year, it still ranks as perhaps the most spectacular comet I have ever seen.
      My very first issue of The Strolling Astronomer was that of May 1976. It contained an article titled "Drawings and Photographs of Comet West (1975n)." Since I knew no one else locally who was interested in astronomy, not to mention comets, this article was a thrill to read just to see how others saw the comet. Later issues continued coverage of comet West and, very quickly, I found my interest in comets increasing.
      I began sending every observation I made to Dennis and imagine my surprise when I saw an article on periodic comet d'Arrest in the April 1978 issue that had my name in it. This was a very important moment for me, as it probably is for every comet observer, to see my name listed as a contributor to the understanding of a comet. My desire to observe comets went to new heights thereafter, as did my desire to learn more about comets. The former has led to over 1500 comet observations, while the latter has led to the publication of two books on comets and one on meteor showers. I even manage a web site called Cometography, which I began in 1995.

The Future of the ALPO Comets Section:

      Over the years I watched Milon, David Levy, and Don Machholz do excellent jobs filling the role of coordinator, and I certainly hope to continue to maintain the quality of the section. After being asked to become the new coordinator I began thinking of what I could contribute personally to the section.
      I certainly wish to continue collecting and analyzing observations sent in by members of the ALPO Comet Section. As I am in the middle of a four-book contract with Cambridge University Press, which is bringing me to analyze every comet seen throughout history, I have acquired the tools and even written a few programs over the years that help me with the analysis of comets.
      An area that I think will be unique during my upcoming time as coordinator will be the use of the WorldWideWeb. Although I liked David's newsletter and Don's Comet Comments that were sent out to inform observers of comet information, I think most people today rely on the WWW for up-to-date information, and that the days of newsletters are dwindling. Ultimately, however, I would like to conduct a survey of all active members of the Comet Section to find out how many use the WWW.
      One way I hope to use the WWW will be to link the ALPO Comet Section page to the "Current Comet" section of my Comets and Meteor Showers site. This will help provide observers with discovery information, up-to-date observations, images, and ephemerides for comets moving through or soon to move through our skies.
      Another use of the WWW will be for education. As a member of the St. Louis Academy of Sciences and St. Louis Astronomical Society I give several talks a year on comets to clubs and schools. I would like to bring that educational aspect of my life to the section through the use of the WWW. I already have the basic tools on my existing site and I would like to either create a more complete educational comet area on the ALPO site or enhance my existing site with obvious pointers helping to promote the ALPO. This WWW section could help enhance the interest of would-be comet observers and perhaps help draw more observers to the Comet Section, via membership in the ALPO.
      What do I expect from ALPO observers? Most important will be careful observations. I am still very interested in receiving magnitude estimates of the coma and nucleus/condensation. It is also important to give the diameter of the coma and the degree of condensation, i.e., estimate how strong the condensed area of the coma is. If there is a tail, measure the length and determine the direction it is pointing. General descriptions of the comet are always valuable, and, most important, please include details about the instrument that made the observations. The form published by Levy in the March 1988 issue of The Strolling Astronomer is still quite valuable as an orderly guide to marking down the details described above. I hope to place this on the web within the next couple of months.
      I would also like to receive contributions of photographs and CCD images from members to help illustrate the "Current Comets" section on the WWW or to be put directly on the ALPO Comet Section web site. In addition, there is always a place for such images in The Strolling Astronomer.

Conclusion:

      I look forward to working with the members of the ALPO Comet Section and, in particular, Jim Scotti, who has been the Assistant Coordinator for years. I hope you will all be patient with me as I take on this new job. I think that, together, we can maintain the quality of the section at the level it has been for years, and maybe improve upon it through the use of the WWW.