Dave Eicher at Tucson star party, observatories, gem show, TV

Very early tomorrow morning, I’ll be leaving for the annual pilgrimage to Tucson, the capital of astronomy in the United States, for a multitask trip that will center on Astronomy magazine’s big public star party. This event will draw several hundred astronomy enthusiasts to Pima Community College, East Campus, this Saturday, from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. I’ll be speaking along with several other astronomers, including Scott Kardel, Mike Reynolds, and Keith Schlottman, and we’ll have solar observing going on all day and nighttime observing with a battery of telescopes along with the college’s observatory. Here’s more information on our star party.

I’ll also be touring several observatories while in Tucson, extensively photographing them and recording information for an upcoming story in the magazine. These will include behind-the-scenes tours of the Multiple Mirror Telescope and other Whipple Observatory facilities on Mt. Hopkins, south of the city, and a thorough tour of Kitt Peak National Observatory, west of the city. Many thanks to David Aguilar and Grace Alegria of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics for making the former happen. And big thanks to Kathie Coil and Robert Martino of Kitt Peak National Observatory for making the latter happen.

I’ll also be covering meteorites at the annual Tucson Gem and Mineral Show and seeing some old friends such as Geoff Notkin and Steve Arnold, TV’s Meteorite Men, and many other activists in the space rock field.

On Monday, February 10th, I’ll be privileged to be back on the air with The Morning Blend in Tucson, on KGUN, Channel 9, Tucson’s ABC affiliate. We’ll be talking astronomy, observatories, stars, and rocks, so tune in if you’re in town!

Simultaneously with the big weekend in Tucson, my colleagues and friends Brian May and Garik Israelian will be at U.K. Astrofest in London, making an announcement about the upcoming Starmus Festival, to be held this fall in the Canary Islands. I know many of you who will be there and regret I won’t be, but have a great time, and I’ll see you at Starmus!