Astronomy.com blog : astronomy clubs

Local library gets an observatory

Matt Quandt — Fri, 22 May 2009 19:47:00 GMT

Amateur astronomer Ted Schaar, from nearby Brookfield, Wisconsin — not far from Astronomy headquarters — sent us a letter about an observatory that's part of a public library in Pewaukee, a village just a few miles west of Brookfield. We're thankful to Ted for letting us share this great story with all of you:

Like similar repositories, the new public library in Pewaukee connects people to the cosmos through its collections. Perhaps uniquely, it also does so with its own observatory. Pewaukee is about 20 miles west of Milwaukee on the shores of Pewaukee Lake. The name comes from a Potawatomi Native American word meaning “dusty water” or “lake of shells.”

The observatory's 12-foot Sirius Observatories fiberglass dome sits on the library's roof and shelters a 12-inch Meade LX200GPS-SMT. Visitors gain access by entering a secure door on the second floor and climbing a spiral staircase. The door helps isolate the telescope from the building's HVAC system, reducing turbulence and the loss of cooled or heated air.

The family behind Pewaukee-based Harken Inc. supplied the funding for the project. The company is well-known in competitive sailing circles for its yachting equipment. The Pewaukee Astronomy Club (PAC) operates the Harken Observatory. Club members volunteer to bring celestial objects to library patrons.

"Education is our mission," says Olaf Harken, who cofounded Harken Inc. with his brother Peter.

Amateur astronomers and professional engineers Scott Berg and Scott Jamieson helped specify the equipment, including the Mitty Industries Inc. wedge. "To work reliably, go-to needs a great wedge, and this one can be precisely adjusted," explains Jamieson. The pier is a section of heavy-duty aluminum round stock normally used to make pulley sheaves for sailing gear. A Harken craftsman adapted the material for the observatory. "It's very sturdy," Berg says.

Maxim DL software and the Meade AutoStar Suite operate the system. The main computer for the system sits on a landing off the spiral staircase. Because of accessibility and safety concerns, only club members are allowed into the dome.

During public viewing sessions, a Starlight Express SXV-H9C CCD camera captures an image of an observing target and sends the image to the computer. The computer then relays the image to a monitor in the library’s Community Room where it is projected onto a large screen.

It's top-drawer technology galore, but the real fun is in the “oohs” and “ahhs” that come from library visitors who often are seeing live telescope images for the first time. Olaf Harken understands. He became an enthusiast while serving with the U.S. Navy in Vietnam during the 1960s. "We were under dark skies, and I was captivated," he says.

Later, as he helped his brother build their business, he joined the Milwaukee Astronomical Society — which has a number of telescopes, including a 25-inch, f/15, classical Cassegrain — and ultimately installed a 10-inch Meade LX200 in a dome atop a home. "Our friends and relatives get excited when we show them Jupiter and Saturn," he says.

When his wife, Ruth, a member of the Pewaukee Library Foundation, became involved in the effort to build a new library, he attended a meeting and suggested adding an observatory. "We were enjoying ours so much, I wanted to take it to others, and funding a telescope for the library seemed like a great way of accomplishing that goal," he says.

David Carroll, project architect with Zimmerman Architectural Studios of Wauwatosa, Wisconsin, handled the design work. "We put the dome where the building's two rooflines meet," he says, "and integrated a heavy-duty metal deck into the infrastructure to support the pier." Shielded lighting is used on the building and grounds.

The PAC hosts a monthly astronomy session for the public. If clouds prevent using the observatory, a member gives a PowerPoint presentation. Sometimes the approaches are combined, as they were when club member Randy Buchwald gave a talk on exoplanets.

During the presentation, Buchwald displayed a sharp and steady live image from the telescope of the Orion Nebula, while he talked about the possibility that planets might be forming around some of the nebula’s stars.

PAC President Tim Walkowski says the observatory has showcased many objects, including several planets, the Moon, Andromeda, and other Messier targets.

Future plans include creating an instruction guide that will help library patrons use the telescope on their own. "We're a ways from that, but it's an important goal," Harken says.

Walkowski wants to enlist more volunteers to operate the observatory and to increase pubic showings. "From an equipment standpoint, we'd like to synchronize the telescope and dome motors, so the units move together,” he says. “This would be a big step toward a time when using the telescope might become nearly as easy as checking out a book."

Youth Services Librarian Jenny Wegener concludes, "We're all about promoting learning and exploration, and the Harken Observatory goes right along with our purpose — what a cool thing to have!"

Wisconsin and the International Year of Astronomy

Michael Bakich — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 20:30:00 GMT

I know what you’re thinking: People do astronomy in Wisconsin? Yes, indeed, and despite the usually miserable weather, astronomy continues to thrive as much as when Yerkes Observatory opened its dome in Lake Geneva more than 100 years ago.

If you live in Wisconsin, or may visit here in 2009, planetaria, observatories, and astronomy clubs are planning many activities for the International Year of Astronomy. Check out what’s happening at Wisconsin Astronomy’s newly launched web site, www.wisconsinastronomy.org.

There, you’ll find lists of astronomical organizations (looking for a nearby astronomy club?), upcoming events, and educational activities. The site is new, so check back often for updates.

A leader in astronomy outreach

Karri Ferron — Wed, 22 Oct 2008 13:41:00 GMT

In the past few days, I’ve had the pleasure to learn about a woman in Chicago who is truly taking the ideals of astronomy outreach and education to heart. Her name is Audrey Fischer, and she’s a member of the Chicago Astronomical Society. Currently, Audrey is working on two proposals to help spread astronomy education and get children excited about this science. And she’s allowed me to share with you one idea that I find just fascinating.

It’s called StarParks, and it’s a program for Boy and Girl Scouts to build awareness about light pollution and improve dark skies in their areas. In this program, scouts first would learn the basics of light pollution (i.e. understand its effect on people, nature, the environment, and the night sky; know how to identify a good light fixture versus one that contributes to light pollution). Then, they would choose particular sites that are of concern in their areas (ballparks, play grounds, national parks, parking lots, etc.) and petition to make changes to these locations so they can be dark-sky friendly (and become “StarParks”). All efforts would be recognized with certificates, but a telescope would be given in honor of an effort that had significant results. An additional goal would be to have a sponsor adopt one of these StarParks and build an observatory for the children there.

According to Fischer, a recent meeting has determined that StarParks will get its first introduction to scouts Saturday, October 25 at the Out of This World Webelos Campfire and Boy Scouts Camporall in Willow Springs, Illinois. Other members of the Chicago Astronomical Society will be there with their scopes, StarPals, and a computer hook up for robotic astrophotography in New Mexico.

I hope Fischer has great success with this outreach endeavor and her other projects as well. Her enthusiasm for astronomy is one I greatly admire.

Winner of the 2008 Out-of-this-World Award for public programming

Matt Quandt — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 20:12:00 GMT

Astronomy magazine selected the Cincinnati Observatory Center (COC) as the winner of the 2008 Out-of-this-World Award for outstanding programming.

COC separated itself from the pack with its “40 Telescopes” program. They intend to present forty 8-inch Dobsonian telescopes to local science teachers and high-school students. To receive a telescope, a teacher or student must submit an essay of how the telescope will be used, go through at least two training sessions with COC staff, and participate in at least two star parties. This program reminds me of the Chinese proverb, “Give a man a fish, and he’ll eat for a day. Teach a man to fish, and he’ll eat for a lifetime.”

"Winning this award," COC Outreach Astronomer Dean Regas said, "puts us well on the road to achieving our goal — getting telescopes to those that will not only use them, but will also conduct outreach themselves."

"Astronomy magazine will have helped place 10 superb telescopes with deserving and budding astronomers."

Astronomy's Out-of-this-world Award focuses on ongoing programs — not one specific event — by an educational or civic organization, according to Editor David J. Eicher. The award recognizes a group's sustained efforts to involve its local community in the science and hobby of astronomy. COC is the third winner since the award debuted in 2006. The 2007 award went to the Aldrich Astronomical Society in Winchendon, Massachusetts. In 2006, Astronomy's editors selected Celestial North, Inc., an astronomy club in Freeland, Washington, to win the inaugural award. The winner receives $2,500 from Astronomy magazine.

COC’s 40 Telescopes program is just one example of the center’s commitment to outreach. The observatory employs one teacher who gives up to 35 presentations a month to students and teachers. More than 125 active volunteers conduct an additional 40 presentations per month. As Dean Regas, the observatory’s Outreach Astronomer, explained in the submission, “Volunteers, professional, and amateur astronomers contributed 5,446 hours of service in 2007.” Let’s see that’s 5,446 divided by 365...that’s nearly 15 hours of outreach a day!!

Here are a few other highlights from COC’s list of outreach programs:

Teacher workshops, including Starry Night training
Observatory University is an eight-session continuing-education course for adults
“Student astronomers” lets local students e-mail the observatory with questions
For-credit summer workshops for teachers through Xavier University

"As is the case every year, it was a difficult decision," says Eicher. "There's so much fantastic outreach going on throughout the country. Congratulations to all who entered, and thanks to everyone who dedicates time and energy to promote the hobby and science of astronomy."As is the case every year, it was a difficult decision.

We want to make sure we mention a few other clubs that finished near the top and highlight their unique approaches to outreach:

Riverside Astronomical Society
“Our outreach team has more than a dozen regular members. ... Our end of the year report for 2007 listed 60 outreach star parties, including 23 at local schools, and others at air shows, scout meetings and camporees, nature centers, and libraries.”

“During the last few years, one member has brought an older electronic eyepiece and connected it to a small television. Although limited, this has been a popular and useful tool. A video display has magical magnetism. People are drawn to it. Also, with a video display an astronomer can easily point things out to the group, and entertain questions. Observing becomes a group activity.” — Alex McConahay

Astronomical Society of Toms River Area (ASTRA), New Jersey
“The NASA Night Sky Network awarded us 15 certificates and pins for our efforts in 2006 and 30 in 2007. We accept every invitation from every organization that contacts us, we never charge a fee and are asked back year after year. This is our fifth year with the Lighthouse Encampment in Waretown, New Jersey, a research facility where graduate students study Terrapin turtles. ... We go to private and public schools, various scout troops, churches of many denominations, a camp for kids with cancer and it’s our third year with the air cadets.” — Bob Salvatore

Baton Rouge Astronomical Society, Louisiana
“During a recent year, there was a van donated to the observatory that has been outfitted for carrying telescopes and related gear to events. The interior of the van includes a completed floor, various tie-downs, air conditioning, and two entrances. The exterior is painted to show the planet Mars so it is affectionately referred to as the MARS van. MARS is an acronym for Mobile Astronomy Resource System.

“We have made presentations using the van at the Earth Day event, the National Hot Air Balloon Championships, and numerous school presentations. The MARS van is referenced on the NASA web site.” — Marvin E. Owen

Lake Metroparks at Penitentiary Glen Nature Center in Kirtland, Ohio
“Super Stars, an award-winning program; age 3 to 5, uses Commander Melvin, a monkey puppet, to engage the children in astronomy topics. Crafts, games and songs are used to explore each subject. Space Cadets, age 6 to 10, demonstrates how the universe affects everyday life. Each program uses experiments games, and projects. Sun, Moon and Stars, Orbit Odyssey and Lewis and Clark are all school programs that teach and reinforce astronomical principles such as rotation and revolution, the apparent movement of the star, sun and moon phases, constellations, mythology of the night sky and the solar system while also using the Star Lab. ... Out of this World, age 7 to 12, a week long astronomy camp, invites campers to become astronomers s they learn about the solar system, constellations, mythology and the space race through field trips to a planetarium, experiments, crafts and a sleep over for late night stargazing.” — Becky Parkin

Clayton Astronomy Club in Clayton, New Mexico
“Over the past year, we have reached out to the schools in our area, working with the Union County School District and the State Parks Dept., in a program called ‘No Child Left Inside.’ We have hosted star parties for all the grade levels in the Clayton schools, as well as even smaller communities like Desmoines New Mexico. The children from the Jicarilla Apache Reservation School have come twice now. We are working with the school districts within a 200 mile radius of Clayton, and districts as far away as Albuquerque, to schedule star parties during the upcoming school year.” — Arthur Griñe

Thank you, amateur astronomers

Liz Kruesi — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 18:49:00 GMT

My fellow editors and I are reading through entries for Astronomy’s annual Out-of-this-world award for outstanding astronomy programming. I’m impressed with how helpful you amateur astronomers are to your community. I’ve been to a few star parties (one at the Grand Canyon and another outside Austin, Texas), and both times everyone I encountered was more than willing to help me around the sky and let me look through their telescopes. I’m one of those “armchair astronomers” (I read books, work through the math, take university courses), but I’ve done little observing. That doesn’t mean I’m not interested in the night sky. In fact, I think the band of the Milky Way (observed at a dark location) is one of the most amazing sights. And M51. Wow. It’s gorgeous.

So, thank you to all you amateur astronomers who help your communities see the awesomeness of the universe.

Biggest public telescope east of the Mississippi

Daniel Pendick — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 14:39:00 GMT

Here’s some interesting news sent to us from Warren Westura, an amateur astronomer and member of the United Astronomy Clubs of New Jersey (UACNJ).

Seems they’ve got themselves a truly magnificent new telescope, a 48-inch reflector donated by the U.S. Air Force! Get this: It’s surplus equipment from the Reagan-era “Star Wars” missile defense research program. This is something any observer in Warren’s neighborhood should know about. Here’s his letter to us, lightly edited.

“We are a group of astronomy clubs, called the United Astronomy Clubs of New Jersey (UACNJ). It consists of about 14 clubs across New Jersey, and sometimes Pennsylvania and New York, dedicated to astronomical education and with a common observation site for the clubs situated at Jenny Jump State Park in New Jersey — one of the last reasonably dark-sky sites in the state.

“We provide weekly astronomy lectures on all Saturday nights, April through October, rain or shine, with stargazing following (weather permitting). Our site includes a 16" scope at our Greenwood observatory and other member clubs from the area maintain secondary or primary observatories at the facility.

“Recently, the New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) won a competition sponsored by the U.S. Air Force for a 48-inch surplus scope (used for missile identification in the Star Wars Missile defense program) and asked us if they could mount the thing at the Jenny Jump State Park site. We agreed, and it now appears that we will open this to the public sometime later this summer.

“This scope could be the largest one open to the public east of the Mississippi and the second largest after the Hale 60-incher at Mt. Wilson. We are also installing a visual solar telescope and rebuilding two other scopes — a 20-inch and 28-inch.”

Feel free to contact Warren directly if you need more information about the group or its new telescope:

Warren Westura UACNJ Public Relations wwestura@optonline.net

Thanks, Warren.

We've requested an image of the scope, and we'll post it as soon as we get it.

Warren's letter is a good opportunity to remind you to send us your club news. Also, if you haven't already done so, be sure to submit your group and post its public events to our online community.

Women in astronomy resource guide

Karri Ferron — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 15:15:00 GMT

I have to commend Andrew Fraknoi and the Astronomical Society of the Pacific on a great new web resource that came across my desk yesterday. “Women in Astronomy: An Introductory Resource Guide to Materials in English” is an excellent index for astronomy and history enthusiasts who want to learn more about how the female gender has impacted our study of the universe. It contains print and web references for the general topic of women in astronomy, in addition to references for 32 specific women. And Fraknoi is open to more. His only criterion is that the woman has to have been featured in a popular journal so that her work is explained in a version that students of astronomy can understand.

The web site may be focused on aiding students and educators who wish to cover the topic, but as a history enthusiast, I think it’s great to click on a few of the links in my free time and just read. It’s amazing to learn what some of these women accomplished and the obstacles they had to overcome to do so. And I’m proud to say we’ve covered many of them over the years in the pages of Astronomy.

Big Orange helps astronomy

Jeremy McGovern — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 18:47:00 GMT

I’ve never been a fan of Home Depot. My typical experience involves trying to locate an employee for assistance, only to find an apathetic teenager who doesn’t know a coupling from a chicken coop. I do my best to avoid Big Orange in favor for my local mom-and-pop hardware store.

Despite my disdain for Home Depot, I have to tip my hat to Big Orange. The chain recently agreed to provide a new roof for the Custer Institute in Southold, New York. The Long Island astronomy center hosts several outreach programs there. Donna McCormick, Custer’s president, recently sent an e-mail describing the ordeal:

We operate on a shoestring and have no endowment so we were unable to fund the repair ourselves. We've been trying to raise the money through donations or grants for several years but didn't have any luck. Then, this past spring, a windstorm blew off a batch of shingles and within days a dinner plate-sized hole appeared that went through the roof to the ceiling of the lecture hall below …

[Home Depot] will arrive on the morning of August 5, remove the old roof, replace whatever damaged wood they find in the underlayer, put on a new layer of shingles and, if there’s still time, install the gutters. They’ll even cart away the debris.

Thanks to its generosity, I’ll go to Home Depot next time I need a box of 100 zinc-plated washers.

The Astronomical League acknowledges webmasters

Jeremy McGovern — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 21:52:00 GMT

Bob Schneider, the administrator of the Astronomical League Webmaster Award, announced the winners of the group’s annual contest.

First place goes to Del Gordon of the Huachuca Astronomy Club. Besides providing information about the club and its events, he uses the site to promote the people in the club. “I believe that the people are what make the club,” Gordon told Astronomy.

In the future, he wants to improve the site’s interactivity and encourage members to participate in the message board and write news stories.

The runners-up include Chas Rimpo of the Howard Astronomical League and Richard Richins of the Astronomical Society of Las Cruces.

If you are a member of an organization that belongs to the Astronomical League and have a worthy web site, keep this award in mind. You can enter for the 2009 award between January 1 and April 30, 2009, with Bob Schneider.

Off Orbit

Jeremy McGovern — Fri, 23 May 2008 15:46:00 GMT

Back in March, I wrote about Astrocast, a non-profit web channel that produces videos on astronomy. The show is designed to reach anybody with an interest in the sky, who may have seen astronomy information on television or the web and wants to learn more.

This is an exciting time for the hobby. Before, interested people had to rely on magazines, books, newsletters, or group meetings as their resources. Now, we also can tap into video and audio files from web sites.

Because of technology and expertise, some productions are better than others. For one of the slicker examples, check out OffOrbit.tv. It launched its first video on solar observing with Greg Piepol (coincidently one of the experts behind Astrocast). Talk about a polished product! The content is on point and the camera work is more professional and artistic than anything else I’ve seen in astronomy-related web videos.

You can watch Off Orbit through its blog, iTunes feed, and YouTube. I’d advise watching it directly from the blog to avoid You Tube’s video compression.