Rainwater Observatory E-News 12/29/09
“BACKYARD ASTRONOMY” CRANKS UP AGAIN AFTER NEW YEARS
We’ll be sharing about the winter sky in four Friday programs in January and February. The programs are free to the public and sponsored by the Mississippi NASA Space Grant Consortium. All programs will begin at 7:00 pm and be followed by observing sessions with the observatory telescopes, weather permitting, or a planetarium program.
January 8: The Fabulous Orion Nebula, Edwin Faughn
January 15: The Winter Constellations of Shine Brightly, David Teske
January 29: Mars is Back Again! Tim Rich
February 5: The Life History of Stars, James Hill.
You can register for these free programs at http://www.rainwaterobservatory.org/programs/backyard.html
We’ll skip the weekend of January 22-23 to do a Galileoscope educators workshop for the Mississippi NASA Space Grant at Ole Miss.
SUMMER 2010 PROGRAMS
The dates for two summer activities are set. The “Astronomy for Teachers” college credit class for 3 semester hours credit through Ole Miss is scheduled for June 13-18. This is an intensive week and you must be enrolled in the university to take the course for credit. Call for more information.
We have scheduled a summer astronomy camp to be held June 20-26 in conjunction with the Camp of the Rising Son. This week long event will be for 13-16 year olds. Campers would be at the observatory mornings and evenings and have time in the afternoons for swimming and other camp activities. Astronomy campers will learn to use telescopes for observing and photography and learn about the discoveries of modern and ancient astronomy. If you know someone who would be interested, please have them contact us. Registration information can be found at info@campoftherisingson.com The cost will be $484.00 for the week.
HAPPENING ON THE HILL
Things are quiet on the hill this time before New Year’s. The Sangre telescope’s mirrors are nestled in crates and have been sent off to Iowa to be recoated and its mirror cell is on the way to Santa Barbara to be worked on.
The CPC-1100 is also in California being repaired and the kit to make the 32” is being prepared in Arizona. (We’re looking for a good name for the upgraded scope. Any suggestions?) We have only one unscheduled weekend before Easter so I guess a calm before the storm is a good thing.
COMING EVENTS: ATTEND A PROGRAM NEAR YOU
If you know a group that would like a program in your community or wants to set up a field trip to Rainwater, contact us. For the next two months indoor presentations may work best as the winter cloudiness takes hold.
January 8-9: Byram & Richland Cub and Boy Scouts camping at Rainwater
January 16: Madison Cub Scouts camping at Rainwater (We’ll need help for this large group)
January 19: Walnut Grove School presentations and star party
January 22-23: Mississippi NASA Space Grant Education Conference
January 28: Program at 1st Presbyterian in Jackson
February 19-20, 2010 “Hands-On Astronomy Activities Workshop” John Frassinelli will be our clinician. http://www.rainwaterobservatory.org/programs/handson.html
April 14-17, 2010 Mid-South Star Gaze Regional Astronomy Conference and Star Party. Flyers to previous participants will go out this week. Information and online registration can be found at http://www.rainwaterobservatory.org/stargaze/
April 16-17, 2010 “Mid-South Astronomy Conference Educators Workshop”. 1 CEU can be obtained by teachers.
GOOD NEW BOOKS IN THE LIBRARY
We’ve added to the library at the observatory and now have almost 2,000 books plus lots of videos and DVDs. Here are three that are highly recommended. “The Little Book of Stars” by James Kaler is a wonderful introduction to stellar astronomy by one of the world’s experts in the field. It is a short book full of anecdotes that keep your interest. Fred Watson of the Anglo-Australian Observatory has written a brief history of the telescope that is also a “page turner”. “Stargazer: the Life and Times of the Telescope” is a great way to wrap up the IYA and 400 years of the telescope. Finally, I recommend ”The Canon” by science writer Natalie Angier. It is subtitled a Whirligig Tour of the Beautiful Basics of Science.
IT’S TIME TO RE-UP
Renewal for Rainwater Astronomical Association membership ($15). If you subscribe or renew your subscription to Sky & Telescope magazine through the club, you get at $10 discount. (Make the S&T subscription checks out to Sky Publishing for $32.95.) We can use your support.
ASTRO NEWS: If you have info or links you’d like to share, let us know.
For the first time in about 20 years there wil be a full Moon on New Year’s Eve. http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2009/29dec_bluemoon.htm?list899987
Supernova remnants hold information about the star that exploded. http://www.astronomy.com/asy/default.aspx?c=a&id=8906
Hubble spies the smallest Kuiper Belt object ever seen. http://www.astronomy.com/asy/default.aspx?c=a&id=8903
Cassini sees a flash of sunlight reflected of liquid on Saturn’s moon Titan. http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2009/18dec_titanglint.htm?list899987
New study implies that low mass planets may be common around nearby stars. http://www.astronomy.com/asy/default.aspx?c=a&id=8893
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