Please see this website in the United Kingdom (UK) to help spread astronomy with those who are less fortunate.
Telescopes for charity
Children with special educational needs and more vulnerable people should also be given the chance to look through a telescope and explore the Moon, the planets, and the stars. The idea comes from Jean Pierre Grootaerd and Harrie Rutten who started this initiative in Belgium and the Netherlands with the support of Volkssterrenwacht Armand Pien, Universiteit Gent, and KNVWS. The project is in the meantime rolled out in Germany, too. Why not in the United Kingdom? Joanne & Patrick Poitevin are taking up the challenge to roll out this initiative for the United Kingdom. Schools for special educational needs and institutions for children with disabilities could be donated a wonderful telescope through sponsorship. The telescope is a refractor Bresser 80/900 and will be delivered with a simple home built mount. The equipment is complete with telescope tube, viewfinder, zenith prism, two accompanying eyepieces, and the mount. See the webpages of the Belgian/Dutch/German initiators.
Each school or institution that will get this telescope will be brought in contact with an astronomy club in their neighborhood. The local astronomy club can help the school or institute with the use of the telescope. This particular action was made possible by BRESSER Germany/UK, which is the company that provides the telescopes. We are still working on support for the home-built mount, star maps, lunar maps, educational books, and any astronomical related materials. We have the aim to install one telescope with various materials per month for 2016. It is the aim that the telescopes carry signatures of important and famous people from the UK. The signatures will be from celebrities from an astronomical and aeronautic environment. Thanks to Bresser, we have already 12 telescopes. We would love your support in any of the above, such as maps, charts, books, ... signatures.
In addition to the 12 Bresser 80/900 telescopes, we now have as well:
- 25 meteorites donated by Aerolite Europe via Nick Howes
of which 13 iron Canyon diablos and 12 NWA 869 stone chondrites
- 12 Nightscenes 2016 donated by Astrospace Publications via Paul Money
- 12 Online Astronomy Courses donated by Online Astronomy Society Academy via Alastair Leith
- 12 Sun Catchers and Solar Rainbow Makers donated by Rainbow Symphony
- 100 Solar Safety Glasses donated by John W ONeal II & fb SOLARACTIVITY Group
- 12 Moongazer's Wheel and (amount still to be confirmed - aiming one each student) Solar spectroscopes by Astronomers Without Borders via Mike Simmons
- 12 Peterson First Guide to Astronomy by Jay W Pasachoff donated by Lisa White from Houghton Miffin Harcourt via Jay W Pasachoff
- 12 The Christmas Planet by Dave Dooling (donated by Dave Dooling, New Mexico Space Museum)
- 12 Welcome to Astronomy (donated by Kalmbach Publishing Company)
- 12 Different back issues, each 12 copies of the Griffith Observer (donated by Ed Krupp, Griffith Observatory)
- 12 Sky at Night 2016 Calendar and December 2015 back issue (donated by Sky at Night via Chris Bramley)
- 12 packs Twinkle Twinkle Super Bright Stars - The Ultimate Glow-in-the-Dark Stars - 49 Stars & 1 Moon donated by Daniela I Valdes
- 12 Night Sky posters and 12 Planispheres donated by Astronomy Now via Laurie Young
- 12 Space:UK winter edition magazines, leaflets and 12 Tim Peake postcards donated by National Space Centre via Rebeca Leggat
- 12 PHILIP'S Month-by-Month Stargazing 2016 donated by Opticron via Rob Laughton
- 12 London Stereoscopic Company OWL Stereoscope and 12 Series 2 Astro OWL 3-D Stereo Cards donated by Dr. Brian May
- Digital versions of the books "Easy Things to See With a Small Telescope (A Beginner's Guide to Over 60 Easy-to-Find Night Sky Sights)" and "2016 The Night Sky Sights (A Guide to Over 100 Astronomical Events to See Without a Telescope)" donated by the author Richard J. Bartlett
- Hyperion 68 degrees Modular 13mm eyepiece, Celestron 2x Barlow, H20mm eyepiece, SR4mm eyepiece, Barlow lens 3x, Celestron collapsable binocular, Multi coated 25 mm eyepiece, Dark Sky Discovery leaflet, Kennedy Space Center leaflet, Mylar Solar Viewers, Grey filter donated by Wendy Clark
- 17 giant posters Anatomy of the Sun and 15 giant posters Studying the Sun, and 13 each received 3 booklet posters The Sun, Big Telescopes, Big Bang donated by Science & Technology Facilities Council
- 2 Calendars 2016 The art of Nature by PROBA-V
and much more to come ...
Please do contact us for your support via email
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Please, support this charity! You also can support this great initiative by making a donation. Let us know, and we will share with you our bank details for a direct transfer. Your donation enables us to makes this project sustainable for several years and who knows we may offer an expensive telescope with a full range of accessories.
Thanks for your support! With your donation, you give children with disabilities or learning difficulties in a school or institute the opportunity to build their own telescope, in which they are helped by an astronomy club or a public observatory in the area. Also these children would like to see the Moon, the planets, the stars! If you are affiliated with an astronomical association or a public observatory, you may contact us.
Best regards,
Joanne & Patrick Poitevin
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