Come to our meeting at Explorit, Saturday February 26 at 7:30p.m.
The topic will be the largest planet in the solar system: Jupiter.

We will begin the meeting viewing Jupiter, which will be above the western horizon. Weather permitting, we will see the "Great Red Spot," which Martin Ratcliffe of Astronomy magazine notes could be renamed the "Great Pale Spot" for its "washed out" appearance during the last 10 years. We'll also see the 4 major moons of Jupiter and perhaps witness the moon Io slip behind the planet at 7:59. The orderly rotation Jupiter's moons can be calculated so precisely that Galileo believed their motion could, someday, be used like the hands of a clock to allow sailors and explorers to determine their longitude. Speaking of "Galileo," when we adjourn to the Explorit classroom, our topic will be the space probe orbiting Jupiter, named for the man Einstein called the "father of modern of science."

Our slide presentation will be designed for the "younger" audience. The presentation, based on work by Sue Keintz for NASA, is in the nature of the adventures of a slightly anthropomorphic space probe. I believe everyone will enjoy the story, and -- we'll also have lots of numbers and graphs for the hard hat science buffs. You weren't expecting a technical lecture on Galileo's photopolarimeter radiometer, radioisotope thermoelectric generators and retropropulsion module, were you?

Another first, in keeping with the lighter mood at this meeting, we will have a "sing along" with lyrics supplied by JPL and NASA scientists relating to the Galileo probe's explorations of Jupiter.

You'll want to brush up on your karaoke stylings. We will be singing new words to tunes such as "Sunrise, Sunset" from Fiddler on the Roof, and "Free Fallin'" by Tom Petty. Sing for science! Here's a sample you can use for a warmup. The tune is from "When I'm Sixty-four" by Lennon and McCartney.

January Meeting. It was a dark and stormy night when approximately a dozen members appeared at Explorit for a slide show on "Our Future in Outer Space" and what it is like to be an astronaut. We learned some interesting facts about the current astronaut program and how these space explorers are chosen. Outside, the clouds were too dense for viewing, but as always, we had a good time learning and sharing our interest in outer space and astronomy. While my view of the lunar eclipse on Thursday January 20 was obscured by clouds, other viewers were more fortunate, and remarked on the brightness of the total eclipse, a pronounced change from the dark eclipses of the past 9 years following Mt. Pinotubo's eruptions in 1991.

February Skies in Davis. Usually we begin to emerge from the fog in February. Jupiter and Saturn continue to be conspicuous in the early evening sky. I've said this before, but If you are new to astronomy, this is a great time to begin to learn the constellations, because Orion and Taurus are prominent and easily recognized in the evening due to their bright constituent stars.

A beautiful strand of celestial gems. February 6, looking southwest around 5:45 to 6:00 p.m. approximately 10 degrees above the horizon, with binoculars, you should be able to see a thin crescent Moon to the left of a "star" that is in fact, Mercury. Go up another 20 degrees from Mercury and you should see the red planet, Mars. Another 30 degrees above that brings you to the vicinity of Jupiter, and another 5 degrees or so higher is Saturn, "Lord of the Rings." Four planets plus the Moon are within a span of 65 degrees. If you can watch the same area of the sky for the next 5 days you will see the Moon to the left of Mars (on the 8th), Jupiter (on the 10th) and Saturn (on the 11th). Clear skies to you!

School Star Parties. Member Larry Snyder has been working with contacts in the local school district to make sure that its science teachers know about the Club and our willingness to arrange star parties for them when needed. Thank you Larry!. If you would like to participate in some future star party, let me know, and I'll forward the message to Larry.

=============================================================

Those of you who are school teachers may be interested in this bulletin, which I have just received.

Would You Like an Astronomer in Your Classroom?

Apply to Be a Project ASTRO Teacher

Project ASTRO pairs Bay Area teachers in grades 4-9 with amateur and professional astronomers, who commit to at least four classroom visits. Teacher and astronomer partners train together at a free 2-day summer workshop where they learn to do hands-on inquiry-based astronomy activities that involve students in the process of science. Workshop participants also receive Project ASTRO's 800-page curriculum resource guide, "The Universe at Your Fingertips."

The project emphasizes ongoing teacher-astronomer partnerships, not just one-time class visits. Many Project ASTRO partnerships go beyond the classroom to organize stargazing events, field trips, or astronomy clubs.

Project ASTRO is a program of the nonprofit Astronomical Society of the Pacific and is funded by a variety of individual and corporate sponsors including Oracle Corporation, Mentor Graphics, the Clorox Company Foundation, and Lockheed Martin. This popular astronomy-teaching program began in the Bay Area in 1993 and has now expanded to 11 other sites around the country.

Applications are now being taken for the 2000-2001 school year. The deadline is April 26. Space is limited to 20-25 partnerships. All participants are required to attend the free training workshop, which will be held August 11-12, 2000, at the San Mateo County Office of Education in Redwood City. One unit of academic credit is available for the workshop. Teachers must commit to teaching astronomy during the 2000-2001 school year, but prior experience teaching astronomy is NOT required.

[Home] [Main Index and Search]

Send feedback to

Explorit Science Center
P.O. Box 1288, Davis, CA 95617, USA

Phone: (530)756-0191     Fax: (530)756-1227

Page last updated: July 23, 2005