Spectroscopic observations of two very different objects are discussed: the first, SS433, is a wery massive binary system probably containing an unseen 0 or WR star and a black hole surrounded by a luminous precessing accretion disk (from which emanate spectacular relativistic jets); the second, GK Per, is a classical old nova consisting of a slightly evolved K2 star and an unseen white dwarf companion surrounded by an accretion disk which is less luminous than the K2 star.

The mixing and nucleosynthetic processes which occur in the main-sequence and red giant stages of evolution and which can affect measured PN abundances are discussed. It is suggested that samples of planetary nebulae contain a sufficient range of progenitor stars' initial metallicities, angular momenta, binarity, etc. so as to explain the large scatter always seen in abundance diagrams for PN samples. CNO abundances in the Galactic disk and in the Magellanic Clouds are reviewed. New results for nebular abundances and central star properties in the Clouds are given. The current red giant population in the Clouds mix out more 12C per star than their Galactic disk counterparts.

Cyclopropenylidene,, is a simple hydrocarbon, ubiquitous in astrophysical gases, and possessing a permanent electric dipole moment. Its readily observed multifrequency rotational transitions make it an excellent probe for the physics and history of interstellar matter. The collisional properties of with He are presented here. We computed the full Potential Energy Surfaces, and we perform quantum scattering in order to provide rates of quenching and excitation for low to medium temperature regimes. We discuss issues with the validity of the usual Local Thermodynamical Equilibrium assumption, and also the intricacies of the spectroscopy of an asymmetric top. We present the wide range of actual critical densities, as recently observed.

I believe it is very difficult to make any recommendations or give any advice for site survey expeditions except of a very general nature. When you start out anew, then, as Dr. Scorer has already stressed very strongly, the first thing you have to do is to contact the meteorological office or the local meteorologist. There is no need to go into detail for I think you all realize that the statistics presented by the weather bureau do not serve our purpose. They are made for a different purpose than ours, and you will always have to go back to the original records and pull out from them the data that may be useful. Suppose you have done this, and you have located either on a world-wide scale the country that is the most promising, or within the country the most promising place as far as cloudiness is concerned. Then what are the next steps ?

Simultaneous observations of 8 Seyfert 1 type AGN (Fairall-9, Mrk 590, NGC 4051, 3C 273, NGC 5548, Mrk 841, Q 1821+643 and 3C 390.3) obtained with ROSAT and IUE (RIASS program), and for 5 sources (Fairall-9, NGC 4051, 3C 273, Mrk 841 and Q 1821+643) with Ginga, have been analysed with the aim of describing the UV to soft X-ray spectral component in these sources.

The Berkeley EUV telescope flown on the Apollo Soyuz mission in July, 1975 established the existence of a measurable flux of EUV radiation (100 ≤ λ ≤ 1000 Å) originating from sources outside the solar system. White dwarfs, flare stars and cataclysmic variables were discovered to be relatively intense compact sources of EUV photons. Moreover, this and other subsequent experiments have strongly suggested the presence of a truly diffuse component of the EUV radiation field possibly due to thermal emission from hot (T > 105 K) interstellar gas located in the general vicinity of the sun (r ≃ 100 parsecs.) Closer to the HI, 912 Å edge, the effect of a few hot O and B stars has been shown to be very important in establishing the interstellar flux density. All these results imply that the local ISM is immersed in a non-negligible EUV radiation field which, because of the strong coupling between EUV photons and matter, will play a crucial role in determining its physical structure. Conversely, of course, the local ISM is expected to leave a strong imprint on the EUV field reaching the terrestrial observer.

The objective of this review will be to assemble and critically analyze the available information on the local ISM derived from the limited EUV observations carried out so far. These include measurements of the spectra of bright EUV sources that reveal clear evidence of H photo absorption at λ > 400 Å and of the He ionization edge at 228 Å. The EUV diffuse background is found to convey interesting information on the density, temperature and possible location of the hot ISM component that can be profitably compared with similar data on far uv absorption lines, principally OVI. The results discussed in this context will be shown to be quite useful in illuminating the path that future EUV sensitive observatories such as EUVE and Columbus might profitably follow in the near future.

Although numerous gaseous bars are observed, they seem to be much less common than stellar bars. This might be due to an observational bias, but gaseous bars could also be difficult to form and/or have short lifetimes. Gas morphology is strongly dependent on the resolution and the considered scale. A true bar-like shape (Maffei 2) should not be confused with either ring-like plus open arms (IC 342), or “twin peaks” (NGC 3351) morphologies. Typical observed gaseous bar characteristics are 2ag ~ 1 kpc, and Mg ~ 0.1–0.3Mdyn inside a few 100 pc. Below, three mechanisms of gaseous bar formation, as well as their evolution, are briefly discussed.

A third-order solution is developed for the motions of artificial satellites moving in the gravitational field of the Earth, whose potential includes the second-, third-, and fourth-order zonal harmonics. Third-order periodic perturbations with fourth-order secular perturbations are derived by Hori’s perturbations method. All quantities are expanded into power series of the eccentricity, but the solution is obtained so as to be closed with respect to the inclination. A comparison with the results of numerical integration of the equations of motion indicates that the solution can predict the position of a close-earth satellite with a small eccentricity with an accuracy of better than 1 cm over 1 month.

This paper describes the major sky surveys carried out with the large Schmidt telescopes and the sky atlases made from them. It also describes some of the science which has come from them and notes the importance of this work in almost every branch of astronomy.

Expected relative prominence of elements and ionization stages is estimated from existing recordings of the solar XUV spectrum. The following 3 groups of elements, apart from H and He, need be considered : (C, N, O), (Ne, Mg, Si, Fe), (Na, Al, S, Ar, Ca, Ni), the relative abundance descending by approximately an order of magnitude from one group to the next, and all other elements being at least another order of magnitude less abundant. Lines of low and medium stages of ionization are expected only from most abundant elements. The observed presence in the solar spectrum of lines from the neon-like Fe XVII suggests that very high stages of ionization must not be a priori excluded.

These considerations indicate that a discussion of laboratory data may be confined to atomic systems containing from 1 to 18 electrons. Observed data on these 18 isoelectronic sequences, and the possibilities of their extrapolation, are reviewed. It is concluded that required data for the first 10 sequences are well in hand, but considerable laboratory work remains to be done on the third-period sequences.

A comprehensive paper is being prepared for later publication.

HRCAM (High Resolution CAMera) is a Canon 50D 15-megapixel digital SLR camera equipped with a Sigma 4.5 mm f/2.8 fish-eye lens. It was installed at Dome A on the Antarctic plateau in January 2010 and photographs the sky every 15 minutes. Primarily functioning as a site-testing instrument, data obtained from HRCAM provide valuable statistics on cloud cover, sky transparency and the distribution and frequency of auroral activity. We present a first look at data from HRCAM during 2010, including an overview of how we intend to reduce the images. We also demonstrate the potential of stellar photometry by using linear combinations of the in-built Canon RGB filters to convert instrumental magnitudes into the photometric BVR bands.

We are finally on the threshold of obtaining a coherent morphological and physical picture for the local interstellar medium (LISM), especially the region within 300 pc of the Sun. The EUVE is playing a special role in revealing this picture. This instrument can provide direct measurements of the the radiation field that photoionizes both hydrogen and helium. It also can yield direct measurements of the column densities of hydrogen, but especially He I and He II toward nearby white dwarfs. These observations suggest that the ionization in the Local Cloud, the cloud in which the Sun is embedded, is not in equilibrium, but in a recombination phase. Heuristic calculations imply that the the present ionization is due to the passage of shocks, at times greater than 3 × 106 years ago. The origin of these shocks are probably linked to the supernova which was responsible for the expanding nebular complex of clouds know as the Loop I supernova remnant, of which the Local Cloud is a part, extreme- UV radiation field, that which ionizes both hydrogen and helium in the LISM. Of the ISM within 300 pc, the volume appears to be predominantly filled by hot (106 K) coronal gas. This gas is laced with six largescale shell structures with diameters ~100−150 pc including the long-recognized radio loops, Loop I−IV, as well as the Orion-Eridanus and Gum Nebulae are identified. An idea that has evolved in the literature for over two decades is that the kinematically-linked OB associations representing Gould’s Belt, plus the gas and dust of Lindblad’s Ring, require that previous supernova activity and stellar winds carved out a 400–600 pc diameter cavity some 3 to 6 × 107 yr ago. This activity produced a pre-existing low density region, into which the present young loop structures have expanded. The outer boundaries of the identified expanding loop structures, inside this preexisting cavity, delineate the periphery of the the mis-named “local interstellar bubble.” Thus, this picture naturally explains some of the problems often associated with the presence of this low density region exterior to Loop I.

In this review I present the binary model for the shaping of planetary nebulae (PNe) as I view it, in the context of historical evolution of other models for the shaping of PNe over more than 30 years. In describing the binary model, I concentrate on works published since the last IAU meeting on PNe. I think stellar companions are behind the shaping of bipolar PNe, i.e., having two lobes with an equatorial waist between them, and extreme elliptical PNe, e.g., having a dense equatorial ring, but no lobes. The question of whether a planet is required to spin the progenitor in order to form a moderate elliptical PN, or whether single stars can form moderate elliptical PNe, I consider to be an open question.

Optical fibres have been used extensively within the Australia Telescope to carry IF data, LO reference, timing signals and computer communications. This paper discusses the various options considered in the design of a system which should assist similar projects in making the best use of optical fibres.

Introductory remarks for IAU Symposium No. 84 are made. These include a brief history of previous symposia dealing with galactic structure, basic research problems in this area, and parallels regarding our galaxy which can be drawn from extragalactic research.

A review is given of continuing efforts to generate laboratory spectra at photon energies above 1 keV from highly ionized atoms. Emphasis is placed on the most easily-interpreted highest ion stages such as the hydrogenic, helium-like and lithium-like species. The close similarities to solar flare observations of certain signatures, such as the line and continuum X-ray spectra and microwave emission as well as their sequence of occurrence, are pointed out and scaling factors are given.

The initial results of a program to investigate the far-UV (500-1700 A) spectra of Be stars using the Voyager ultraviolet spectrometers axe presented. Observations of eleven Be stars, with spectral types from B0 through B7, obtained between March 1979 and July 1984 are discussed. The Voyager resolution (∼15 A) allows only limited spectroscopic studies; shortward of 1150 A C III λ977 and LyJβ λ1025 are the most prominent spectral features. Two stars, γ Cas and 59 Cyg, showed enhanced C III λ977 absorption. The flux distributions of the Be stars were intercompared with those of reference stars with low projected rotational velocities and, in a parallel study, to predictions from rotating star models. The model calculations suggest that the observable effects of a high rotational velocity (V≳ 0.9 of critical velocity) on the flux distribution are small except in the FUV (λ < 1150A). The Voyager flux distributions were found to be indistinguishable from those of the low v sin i reference stars. No evidence was found for critical rotation in Be stars. All observations were consistent with Be stars rotating at less than 0.85 of critical velocity.

We present an overview of recent stellar X-ray observations, with some discussion of the requirements for future observations. We argue that solar observations indicate that coronal X-ray emission is strongly related to surface magnetic field activity; we show that the interpretation of X-ray stellar coronal emission from late-type stars within the framework of models analogous to those developed for the solar corona is viable, and it is supported by many experimental results. The extension of this solar analogy to the early-type stars is quite questionable and remains an unsolved problem, while the working hypothesis of an X-ray phase, related to phenomena of magnetic field-related activity, as contrasted to a wind phase during the PMS evolutionary stage is suggested by the present status of observations.

Observational results of radio bursts at 35 GHz by the sixteen-element fanbeam interferometer in Nagoya are briefly discussed.