[The background above is part of an image by the Hubble Space Telescope of the Crescent Nebula.]

WHERE: AT EXPLORIT Science Center, 3141 5th Street, Davis.

Come join us Saturday, February 24th for a meeting dedicated to discovering telescopes. To many people, astronomy means telescopes, period. Of course, it is not necessary to have a telescope to make astronomical observations or to enjoy the evening skies, but most amateurs do own one. Why do we use telescopes? Basically, a good telescope accomplishes two objectives: it gathers light, and it magnifies the resulting image. Of the two attributes, gathering light is more important than magnification. In our presentation we will see examples of how telescopes gather light through lenses (refraction) and by mirrors (reflection). If the night sky is clear, we will then adjourn to view the mid-winter constellations, Jupiter and Saturn. Bring your own telescope and maybe we can give you some tips on how to use it better. If it is cloudy, we'll make models of Saturn. I hope we'll see you there!

Big Turnout for January Meeting. Approximately 45 eager amateurs braved cold and the north wind to convene for the Club's first meeting of the new millennium at Explorit. The topic was "Saturn and Perseus". The sky was clear and we spent some time outdoors looking at a wide variety of favorites: Jupiter and Saturn were well placed and so were the nearby constellations of Orion and Taurus. Regal Leo was rising in the East, while Cassiopeia, Perseus and Andromeda glittered in the northwest. We saw a slide show on the myth of Andromeda and Perseus and on how the position of the constellation Perseus helped make this figure a major icon of the ancient religion of Mithra. (See The Origins of the Mithraic Mysteries (1989) by David Ulansey.) We also considered one author's suggestion that Perseus was originally meant to represent an Octopus, and how attributes of the constellation might be present in the story of how Perseus slew the gorgon Medusa (see Jerome Y. Lettvin's "The Gorgon‚s Eye" (1979)). Our door prize was a copy of the book Orbit, published by National Geographic Society. Due to the large number of attendees and the clear sky, we deferred our Saturn "craft activity" - - making models of the planet Saturn - - to a later meeting. Once outside, Larry Snyder‚s large telescope was available for wonderful views of the Andromeda Galaxy and other delights of the winter sky. Thanks to Larry, Tim Feldman, and Joseph Roeper, who helped answer questions from our attendees, and thanks also to one other sky watcher, whose name I neglected to obtain, who shared night sky views through his nifty 90 mm Meade maksutov. Thanks to all of you who braved the cold to see and learn about astronomy; certainly our Club's second millennium has begun auspiciously!

Our "Stairway to the Stars" fund raiser is moving right along. The Grace Valley Christian Academy donated $70 and Cub Scouts donated $20; both gifts in appreciation for past Club presentations on astronomy. We are raising funds for an OSHA approved 8 foot ladder to make viewing through the Club's 18.5" scope safe and accessible. If you can assist us in obtaining such a ladder, please notify Tom Wickersham at Explorit or me. Or, if you would be willing to loan the Club such a ladder during the interim, please let us know.

What's Up in February. Venus dominates the evening sky, especially on Friday and Saturday the16th and 17th, when it reaches its greatest angular distance from the Sun. Its magnitude is ˆ4.6, and will it be visible at sunset in the west. Jupiter is nearly overhead at 8:00 p.m. with slightly dimmer Saturn just a short distance west. A fine sight is yours on February 1 and 2 when the first quarter moon approaches the two planets. Fred Schaaf in February's Sky & Telescope magazine reminds us that Jupiter and Saturn won't appear this close together again for two decades - - so don't miss them! Early morning risers will hope to see Mars high in the south, above the tule fog, and above the red star Antares (which means "rival of Mars") in the constellation Scorpius.

Big plans are being made for a second major astronomical festival in Davis! If you are interested in contributing time, money or your expertise to this effort, please contact me. The following is a description of this event.

The Davis Star Show is a festival of astronomy and related sciences to be held from Friday afternoon, August 24th, to Saturday night, August 25th, 2001, in Davis, California. The event is being presented to provide opportunity for visitors to experience and learn about the many facets of the study of our universe. Planned activities include noted speakers talking about exciting new discoveries in astronomy, a trade show featuring instruments and accessories appealing to a wide range of amateurs, an exhibit hall with displays and activities for all ages, daytime viewing of sunspots, flares, and other solar activity, astronomy club booths and demonstrations, public teacher curriculum training classes, and a star party at night with dozens of telescopes made available to our visitors. The festival will be free to all who wish to attend.

The event is being organized by (with the cooperation of the Davis Parks and Community Services office) various amateur and academic groups devoted to public awareness of astronomy and the night sky, including the Sacramento Valley Astronomical Society, Explorit Science Center, the UC Davis Astronomy Club, the Davis High School Astronomy Club, The American Association of Variable Star Observers, the Sidewalk Astronomers of Sacramento, the Astronomical Association of Northern California, Nightwatch Observatory, and the International Dark SkyAssociation.

The festival will again take place in and around the Veterans Memorial Center, 14th and B Streets, in Davis. The facility includes a large multipurpose room for the exhibit hall, smaller rooms for additional activities, an enclosed courtyard area for outdoor booths, surrounding patios for solar viewing, and a large auditorium for the speakers. It is but a short walk down the path from the VMC to the soccer fields where the star party will be held Saturday night.

Examples of speakers at last year's event include such notables as Alex Filippenko from UC Berkeley, who has a knack for explaining complex concepts and theories in language comfortable to anyone. We also heard from Jeff Hester, whose photograph of star forming clouds in the Eagle Nebula, taken with the Hubble Space Telescope, has since appeared on popular posters and postage stamps. Greg Laughlin, who collaborated on a book about the long term future of the universe, spoke about recently discovered extra-solar planets. Seth Shostak spoke about his work with the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence. Bob Becker of UC Davis spoke of his finding the most distant object yet detected. And SteveMaran, a 30-year veteran of the space program, talked about mysteries yet to be solved in our study of universe.

This year's trade show will be a departure from the last in that we are going to mix exhibits and displays in among the vendors and club booths. Visitors of all ages will find demonstrations and activities to hold their interest, right alongside the vendors' displays of the latest in equipment and books for both newcomers to the study of the night skies and the experienced amateur astronomer. During the day outside the exhibit hall and the theater guests will be able to peer through telescopes fitted with solar filters in order to watch flares and prominences lifting off the surface of the sun. Representatives of some of the most active amateur groups in northern California will be on hand to answer questions about all aspects of the heavens and how we observe them.

We are planning some hands-on activities especially for our younger visitors. These may include crater formation, comet-core simulations, and planisphere making.

For the more serious amateurs we are planning workshops directed towards subjects such as optical testing or electronic imaging, partly ingratitude for the opportunities they will be offering the other visitors at the star party.

The star party Saturday night will take place between the soccer fields behind the Veterans Memorial Center. Like last year, this will not be a dark-sky for serious observers. Rather we will enlist the cooperation of these same devoted amateurs who will set up their telescopes for the benefit of a less experienced public in order to show them the craters, mountains, and maria of the early moon as well as many of the brighter deep-sky objects. We will lay out the observing grounds so that people get to see as many of these wonderful things as possible through telescopes of many different types and sizes.

Last year's show attracted more than 2000 people, many of whom took the opportunity to hear some of the best known names in the scientific community describe their most recent work, and to see clusters, nebulae and galaxies with their own eyes for the first time. This year, with much more time for wide publicity and a date which coincides with an invitational youth soccer tournament in Davis, we can expect even larger crowds and a greater variety among the visitors. We are cooperating with the Davis Conference and Visitor's Bureau and the Chamber of Commerce to bring downtown visitors over to the show and also to make the crowds at the festival aware of the local businesses and services.