Animations by a former NASA planetary scientist give another look at how our solar system works

James O’Donoghue, an astronomer with Japan’s space agency, makes video animations of the physics of the solar system. According to an article in Business Insider, he has won the Europlanet Society’s Prize for Public Engagement. Some of his most popular works illustrate how the planets spin, the true center of the solar system, and how long it takes light to reach the Earth from the Sun. The BI article features several of his videos; the entire collection can be seen on his YouTube channel.

Rabbit Mountain Star Party Report

LAS member Sarah Getty put together a collage of images from the night - Jupiter and its 4 Galilean moons, Saturn, and Venus from afar.

Last Friday’s Star Party at Rabbit Mountain was a success! The evening began as usual, with a presentation by Boulder County Open Space. This time the presenters divulged an array of interesting facts about the two biggest planets in the solar system, Jupiter and Saturn.

5 or 6 LAS members brought their telescopes to show the night sky to around 40 guests, all of whom were very excited and appreciative. After views of the moon, Jupiter and Saturn were seen,  guests were treated to more deep sky objects. LAS member Bill Tschumy, for example, sighted in on M11 (Wild Duck Cluster), M13 (Great Hercules Cluster), M57 (Ring Nebula), Albireo (Double Star), and M31 (Andromeda Galaxy).  He used SkySafari and the Our Galaxy app to supplement what they were seeing in the scopes.

NASA is looking for volunteers to live in a 3D-printed Mars Habitat (on Earth)

To prepare for living on Mars, the plan is to ship components that can be assembled into a 3D printer on Mars. The printer will convert local materials into a concrete-like substace which will be use to build the habitat. First, they want some people (four, aged 30 to 55, Masters in a STEM field, and 2 years of work experience) to try living in it here on the home planet for a year. You don't even have to be an astronaut. Read the article at Core77.

Donations Page Now Available

In keeping with our mission to support amateur astronomy in our community, the LAS's website now features a Donations page, under the Outreach menu item. People who have telescopes and related equipment to donate can use this page to announce it. People looking for equipment can also post notices describing what they are looking for.

Citizen Science opportunity for Amateur Astronomers and Astronomy Students

NASA is looking for people to participate in Exoplanet Watch, a new exoplanet citizen science project funded by NASA’s Universe of Learning and led by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

Exoplanet Watch relies on amateur astronomers and university astronomy students using ground-based telescopes to make observations of transiting exoplanets. This will help keep mid-transit times fresh. With more accurate timing, large observatories and space-based telescopes can make efficient use of valuable telescope time.

More information can be found on the Exoplanet Watch website. 

If you are interested in participating in Exoplanet Watch, please email exoplanetwatch@jpl.nasa.gov

Curecanti: Colorado's Latest Dark Sky Site

With help from the Park Service and several local partners, the Curecanti National Recreation Area has become the first national recreation area to earn Dark Sky Park designation from the International Dark-Sky Association (IDA). Curecanti is officially a Dark-Sky Park; the IDA also designates Communities, Reserves, Sanctuaries and Places.  

You can see the IDA's official announcement here. Our Light Pollution and Dark Skies page contains information on the IDA, Dark-Sky news for Colorado and related websites.

Colorado.com is recommending 15 places in Colorado for stargazing

The online newsletter promoting our state describes destinations with relatively dark skies. They are as close as Fort Collins and Fort Morgan, and as far as Dinosaur Monument and Silverton. Road trip anyone?

Fiske Planetarium at CU is now open with new shows

Offerings include 'Black Holes: The Other Side of Infinity', 'Habitat Earth', 'Capcom GO! The Apollo Story', and more. There are also shows for younger audiences, such as 'Secrets of Gravity' and 'Kaluokahina The Enchanted Reef'.

Peppa Pig

Peppa finds herself getting into all kinds of learning adventures. Join her on this one where she learns about stars.