Hi folks,

I've held off on posting until I got assorted ducks in a row.
They're now in something resembling a linear order, and I just put
updated software on the Web site. These are discussed a bit starting
on the 'history' page,

http://www.projectpluto.com/hist_idx.htm

The update provides a simple check-box option to switch images to a
"negative" mode. As was discussed on-list, you could do this anyway,
but it wasn't exactly simple or intuitive. Some other, mostly minor,
changes are included, all involving planetary display: airless objects
are now shown with sharp-edged terminators, new bitmaps are available
for Mercury, and I've fixed the display of Galilean moons.

Regarding this last: _Sky & Telescope_ included two interesting
images of Jupiter and moons in the September 2001 issue. To replicate
the image on page 79, you should use "Go To... Object Name" and enter
"Voyager 1". Then hit "<"; as was discussed earlier, doing so changes
your viewpoint to the last object. So you're now viewing the solar
system from Voyager 1 (and if you look back at Earth, you'll see that
you're pretty far out of the solar system right now!)

Set the time and date to 13 Feb 1979, 6:03 UT, and center on Io.
Just as in the _Sky & Tel_ image, you'll see Io on the Great Red Spot,
with Europa trailing. The match isn't exact, because I've no idea
what the longitude of the GRS was back then. But it's pretty good.

For the image on page 47, take the same steps, except use Cassini
instead of Voyager 1, and set the time/date to 1 January 2001, 10:00 UT.

Also: Owen Brazell sent me .TDF files to enable display of Herbig-Haro
objects and Shakhbazian compact galaxy clusters (sort of an extension to
the Hickson catalog).

http://www.projectpluto.com/extras.htm#herbig_haro
http://www.projectpluto.com/extras.htm#shakh

-- Bill