Newsletter of the Desert Foothills Astronomy Club
Issue #23: April 1st, 2008
Contact the Editor: Dan Heim, phone: 623.465.7307 or email:
DFAC Events for 2008-2009: | ||||||
Date | Time | Event | Location | |||
Jan 30 | 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm | DFAC Lecture
Meeting #4 Speaker: Tom Polakis of SAC Topic: The Transition from Film to Digital |
Boulder Creek High School, 40404 North Gavilan Peak Parkway, Anthem, AZ 85086 | |||
Feb 27 | 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm | DFAC Lecture
Meeting #5 Speaker: Jeff Hester of ASU Topic: Quantum Physics & Cosmology |
Boulder Creek High School, 40404 North Gavilan Peak Parkway, Anthem, AZ 85086 | |||
Mar 9 | 6:00 pm - 8:00 pm | Astronomy Night (DFAC fundraiser) | JW Marriott Desert Ridge Resort (north of Loop 101 on Tatum) | |||
Mar 26 | 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm | DFAC Lecture
Meeting #6 Speaker: JD Maddy of AVV Topic: A Personal Tour of Mauna Kea |
Boulder Creek High School, 40404 North Gavilan Peak Parkway, Anthem, AZ 85086 | |||
April 12 | 7:00 - ? pm | DFAC + BCHSAC Astronomy Night | Heimhenge | |||
Apr 30 | 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm | DFAC Lecture
Meeting #7 Speaker: Scott Loucks of DFAC Topic: Minor Planet Astrometry |
Boulder Creek High School, 40404 North Gavilan Peak Parkway, Anthem, AZ 85086 | |||
May 28 | 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm | DFAC Business Meeting | Boulder Creek High
School, 40404 North Gavilan Peak Parkway, Anthem, AZ
85086 Legends Sports Bar & Grill, 3655 W Anthem Way Suite D115, Anthem, AZ 85086 |
Next Meeting: Wednesday, April 30th, 2008 |
Our April meeting will feature DFAC member Scott Loucks, who will reprise his lecture on astrometry from last year. Scott does most of his work with minor planets, and has contributed formal results to the IAU Minor Planet Center at Harvard (see: http://www.cfa.harvard.edu/iau/mpc.html). He'll share his expertise, explain what is involved in actually doing astrometry, and show us some animations of those elusive points of light. We hope to see you all there. |
Last Meeting: Wednesday, March 26th, 2008 |
Dan Heim opened the meeting with about
10 minutes of club business, discussing our successful
fundraiser at JW Marriot Desert Resort, and our upcoming
"rent payment" of a private Astronomy Night for
the BCHS Astronomy Club on April 12th at Heimhenge. Read
more details in our State of DFAC section below. Our speaker for the evening was JD Maddy, President of the Astronomers of Verde Valley (see: http://www.astroverde.org/). JD spent one of his vacations touring the observatories at Mauna Kea, and shared photos and stories of his adventure. In addition to photos of the observatories, he also shared other Big Island sights, including volcanoes, flora, and the enigmatic Nene bird (you had to be there). There's much to see and do on Hawaii related to astronomy, and JD cautioned that careful planning is essential to fit it all in. JD proved to us that he's as adept at nature photography as he is at astrophotography. By the time his presentation was over, we all felt like we'd been there on the Big Island with him. JD also brought along some prints he had done of his astrophotography. We always enjoy "show and tell" features, and once the room lights were back on, he passed several prints around for the edification and enjoyment of our members. After that, we were still ahead of schedule, so JD fired up a cool CD planetarium program available with each issue of a British astronomy magazine called Sky At Night (www.skyatnightmagazine.com). The magazine is not generally available in the States, but you can occasionally find it at finer bookstores. JD says he got his copy at Barnes & Noble. If you're looking for an alternative, or supplement, to S&T, give this mag a look. Turnout was good this meeting, with 12 members in attendance. Speaker JD Maddy and his wife Karen are seen here seated at the center table. Karen is actively involved in their club (AVV), and often accompanies him to astronomy events and speaking engagements. Thanks again to JD for an outstanding presentation! |
State of DFAC: By Dan Heim, President |
|
Quote of the Month: |
"Two
possibilities exist: Either we are alone in the Universe
or we are not. Both are equally terrifying." Arthur C. Clarke |
Space Debris: |
Most of you are by now aware of the March 18th passing of Sir Arthur C. Clarke. For 91 years we were graced to share this planet with a true visionary. Clarke wrote science fact as well as science fiction, influencing a generation (or two), myself included. My personal interest in science was the result of several factors, not the least of which were stories by Clarke, Wells, Verne, and other classic writers. Sir Arthur, you will be missed. Thanks for the dreams. You can visit his Foundation at: http://www.clarkefoundation.org/,where the dream lives on. |