Michael MATTEI #205
Letters to the Editor
from
Michael MATTEI
in CMO #205
@... I came back on Sunday after the ALPO meeting in Atlanta. It was nice to see all of my friends there. Since I have not been able to make it to the meetings for the last two years, it was a real pleasure to go to this one. A number of papers of work done on the Moon were presented which sparked my interest as I use the Moon to practice high resolution imaging of its surface so when planets come around I'll have a good feel as for what to do when imaging them. I enjoy meeting with people who are interested in the same objects and we did a lot of talking of techniques of observing. I asked Don Parker to evaluate my images of Mars which I think can be better, no reply yet.
It was very hot there with thunder storms in the afternoon, adding to the already humid conditions, we all had a good time in air condition comfort. When we arrived in Boston, just as the plane touched down on the runway one of the air-conditions caught fire. The plane pulled on to the taxi lane and sat there for fifteen minutes while the crew dealt with the fire. The pilot told us they were having a little trouble with the air-conditioner that started smoking and they were turning it off, and then said that some smoke is entering the cabin and we should not worry about it. Well, machines that smoke are on fire, they just don't just smoke. We could see and smell the smoke. But after fifteen minutes we taxied into the gate. We are now feeling the heat of summer, so Jan and I are keeping cool at night with fans, we don't have an air-conditioner. With no planets around I am doing the things that need taking care of that were left undone in the past. Good time to catch up.
(15 July 1998 email)
Michael MATTEI (MA, USA) mmattei@ma.ultranet.com