Filipino astronomer makes major discovery on planet Jupiter
Posted on March 23rd, 2008 under We are Pinoys!
A new astronomical discovery has been made in the far-away planet of Jupiter. A red spot was found on the red planet hundreds of millions of miles from Earth.
One may think, its was discovered by a world renowned astronomer or a leading astronomy or space agency.
But think again? It was discovered by Christoper Go. He’s not from China, Japan or the United States.
Christoper Go is a Cebuano amateur astronomer and astrophotographer living in Mandaue City.
He gained recognition from the local and international astronomy communities, including the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), for his recent discovery of a new red spot on the planet Jupiter.
Christopher Go, a member of the Astronomical League of the Philippines (ALP), found the spot on the planet using an 11-inch telescope and a CCD camera on Feb. 28 at 3:37 Philippine Standard Time (Feb. 27 at 19:37 Universal Time).
Go’s discovery, as captured in his photographs, was featured on various astronomy websites, such as spaceweather.com (on March 6), NASA’s website, Sky and Telescope (March 6 news) and space.com, among others.
In a NASA press release issued March 6, it featured Go’s discovery and the photographs he took. NASA acknowledged them as among the latest important developments in astronomy.
NASA has officially called the new red spot “Oval BA,” or the Red Spot Jr. Thought to be a storm over the planet’s cloud cover, Oval BA is about half the size of the famous Great Red Spot (GRS) and almost the same color.
With knowledge of the planet now expanded, Go’s discovery has put the Philippines on the map of the world’s astronomical community.
Go has been an amateur astronomer since 1986 and an astrophotographer since 1990. He began his career in astronomy during the last apparition of Halley’s Comet in 1998.
He organized the University of San Carlos Astronomical Society (USCAS) and went to Davao City to view his first total solar eclipse on March 18.
Go was also took photographs of the partial solar eclipse in Cebu City on June 11, 2002 and captured on film the Mercury and Venus Transit during the celestial event. He also took pictures of the sun’s spots, the moon and Saturn’s Red Corner.