NASA ASTRONOMY COMPUTER PROGRAMS USED TO RESEARCH THE CHRISTMAS STAR
I would not have been able to complete any research in the astronomy of the skies of 2000-years ago had I not received the shipment of astronomy programs from NASA. I used every one many times before beginning my research. I have been pleased to learn readers of my book, Unraveling the Christmas Star Mystery, have been able to confirm data in the book.
Below is the list of astronomy programs I received from NASA many years ago. They were used in my classrooms by students doing independent study, completing research for class or extra credit, homework/classwork, make up work, and as assigned work. When students were in study hall, they were given permission to come to my science classroom and use the NASA programs on the computers as long as they didn't disturb the class in progress. Many students took advantage of the few computers we had.
I did not know these programs existed until they were received from what is now the NASA Space Center-Houston educational office. NASA educational materials were often requested and received for my class use. They were kept on file and used year after year as class sets by many teachers. The school and public libraries kept many lithographs, photographs, booklets and Fact Sheets in their vertical files.
My students were thrilled with the materials received from NASA, especially the Fact Sheets and photographs. The astronomy programs were considered phenomenal for my students loved astronomy. There was one senior student who told me there had been only one person in his life with whom he could discuss astronomy. When I asked who that was, he responded, "You." That was a thrill. I was pleased to learn he planned to enter the field of astronomy. I understand he is currently a professional astronomer.
The titles of the programs received for public domain use from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) included:
Adjust Right Ascension & Declination for Precession
Altitude Azimuth
Altazimuth Calculator – Interpolator
Angular separation – Two Stars
Calendar
Calendrics
Close Encounters
Comet
Coordinates: Moon & Planets – Any Date
Conjunction
Dynamic Planet Orbit Plotter for different Solar Masses
Elongations & Transits of Polaris
Ephemerides
Ephemeris
Ephemeris computer
Equinoxes & Solstices
Galilean Satellite Positions
\ Great Circle Distance
Julian Day & Calendar Interchange
Lunar Eclipse/Umbra
Lunar & Solar Eclipse Calculations
Mars: Next Opposition & Data
Messier and NGC Catalogs
Moon: Eclipses for Any Year
Moon Finder
Moon: Phases for Any Date
Moon Phase Program
Moon Phases
Moon Plotter for Phases/Locations
North Sky: A Computerized Star Chart
Northern Star field
Observer
Planet Coordinates
Planet Data
Planet Finder
Planet Grand Tour
Planet Locator and Solar System Simulator
Planet Orbits
Planet views
Precession
RA & DEC ;Moon & Planets – Any Date
Retrograde Motion of Mars
Rise/Set/Transit & Star Time
Satellite Passage
Solar Eclipse #1
Solar Eclipse #2
Solar System Orrery
Solar system: Rise Transit Set
Spirografix – True Path Plotter
Star & Nebula Locator
Summing Stellar Magnitudes
Sun Azimuth & Maximum Altitude
Sunrise/Set
Sunrise/Set Version #2
Sunrise Sunset, Dawn & Dusk
Sunrise/Sunset/Sun locations
Text
Time Dilation
Time: Local Mean == Sidereal
Times of rising and Setting of Mercury and Venus For Any Date
Twilight times: any Location
Ursa Star Time
Year Sunrise/Set & Twilight Calculator
Zodiac Sunsigns
Private program :
TellStar – Your Computer Graphics Window to the Universe. Spectrum Holo Byte. 1982-1998. ( Scharf Software Systems, Inc., Suite 1068. 2111-M 30th Street, Boulder, Colorado 80301.)