The Los Angeles Astronomical Society, 1926-2014

Los Angeles Astronomical Society

BULLETIN

Volume 88, Issue 3 March, 2014

Newslette

Table of Contents

General Meeting and Guest Speakers Information ............................................................................... 2

Peering at Planets by Katherine Kornei, Ph.D ...................................................................................... 3

Spring Skies Astronomy Class Schedule ................................................................................................ 5

A Guide to the Night Sky for March 2014 .............................................................................................. 6

Messier Marathon, March 29, 2014 .......................................................................................................... 7

Cosmos on TV ............................................................................................................................................. 7

John Dobson by Stuart Hubler ................................................................................................................. 8

Special Public Star Party Notice: Saturday, March 8, 2014 .................................................................. 8

AWB Communications Manager plays at being a "Marstronaut"by Elizabeth Howell………… .. 9

Garvey Nights – What’s It All About? .................................................................................................. 12

Mt. Wilson 60 Inch Nights Schedule ..................................................................................................... 13

Professional Advisors for the LAAS ..................................................................................................... 14

Meet Our New Members ........................................................................................................................ 14

2014 - Time to Update Your Info ............................................................................................................ 15

Comments, Suggestions, Ideas or Complaints? ................................................................................... 15

Tours For LAAS in 2014 .......................................................................................................................... 15

Volunteer for the LAAS .......................................................................................................................... 16

FYI: Upcoming Club Events and Holidays .......................................................................................... 17

The Loaner Program…………………………………………………………………………………….18

Club Contact Information ....................................................................................................................... 19

LAAS Phone List ...................................................................................................................................... 20

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General Meeting and Guest Speakers Information The General meeting will be on Monday, March 10, 2014. All members, families and guests are welcome to attend the meeting. Location: Leonard Nimoy Horizon Theater Griffith Observatory 2800 East Observatory Road Los Angeles, CA. 90027 Time: 8 PM to 9:45 PM (Please arrive early by 7:30 PM.) Please park in the public parking lot. There will be two guest speakers in March. The first speaker will be Liam Kennedy, CEO of ImageBEAM and the creator of the ISS-Above. Jade Kim, from the Griffith Observatory will be our second speaker.

Liam Kennedy Liam’s Websites: ISSAbove.com LookUpTonight.com twitter.com imagebeam.com linkedin.com

Jade’s Links: http://www.volunteerhq.org/volunteer-in-ghana http://griffithobs.org

Liam Kennedy Bio: I’m someone who has no formal training in astronomy. But that does not stop me from sharing my passion for spacey things with everyone I meet. ISS-Above is just one more expression of that. Over the years I have been a Griffith Observatory Planetarium Lecturer, I was the president of the Orange County Astronomers (one of the largest amateur astronomy clubs in the country), I have also been a NASA/JPL Solar System Ambassador. Back in 2003,2004 I produced a public access TV show in Orange County called Look Up Tonight (24 episodes). When I’m not spending time on spacey things – I run my own live event video production company called ImageBEAM. Occasionally I manage to connect the two passions together and I end up supporting events in the space field. That’s cool! I've been a programmer since high-school - which is over 36 years ago so the coding involved with ISS-Above is second nature. If you check out my LinkedIn profile you should see that I have worked as a technology lead for some of the largest web development companies out there - which basically means I have lots of experience with delivering high profile technology projects. That experience SHOULD help a lot with this project too. Liam will be giving us a talk about his latest project, the ISS-Above. Learn more about this device by visiting the following link: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1385270522/iss-above.

Jade Kim Bio:

I am full time college student currently working towards a Bachelor of Arts degree in

Public Relations at Cal. State Fullerton. I have an expansive history of work experience, as

well as a proven track record of academic excellence. I am a science enthusiast and hope

to be in the field of science communications in the future. I am also passionate about

helping others, in which I eventually plan to utilize my prospective degree to its fullest

capacity and beyond in order to focus my talents and passion into bolstering a non-profit

organization. My ultimate goal is to cultivate my acquired skills into a successful,

rewarding professional career while making a positive difference in the community.

Volunteer International Volunteer Headquarters

I volunteered in Ghana, Africa for three weeks at the Blessed Bright Future Orphanage.

During my time here, I took care of the wonderful children as well as provided science

education and materials (i.e. solar sunglasses, binoculars). It was truly the most

rewarding experience of my life and I plan on doing more trips similar to this.

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Astronomers and engineers recently completed building the Gemini Planet Imager (GPI) to study distant solar

systems. GPI will obtain high-resolution images of extrasolar planets by blocking the light of stars and detecting the

faint thermal glow of orbiting planets.

Since the first extrasolar planet was discovered in 1995, thousands of candidate extrasolar planetary systems have

been discovered. GPI will enable astronomers to study the properties of these new worlds, including their sizes,

temperatures, and surface gravities.

GPI will image planetary systems in the near-infrared part of the electromagnetic spectrum, where the thermal

glow of planets - left over from the energy of their formation - can still be detected. This process is far from easy,

however; stars outshine planets by a factor of 10 million. GPI will use technology that precisely blocks starlight to

reveal faint planetary companions. In addition to the complexities of observing dim planets next to bright stars, the

instrument is also designed to make use of adaptive optics - corrections for the turbulence inherent in the Earth's

atmosphere - in order to better resolve planets close to stars. GPI will be able to image planets and stars that

appear to be separated by as little as 0.2 arcseconds on the sky - an angular size equal to the width of a quarter

seen from 15 miles away.

The primary components of GPI are its coronagraph, which blocks the starlight, and its integral field spectrograph,

the camera that records data at 40,000 spatial locations separately. The large light collecting area of the Gemini

South Telescope (over 50 square meters) will enable GPI to observe planetary systems up to 240 light years away.

In August of 2013, GPI traveled from Los Angeles on a Boeing 767-300 jet to Santiago, Chile, where a team of

engineers and astronomers accompanied the instrument on its drive to the Gemini South observing site at an

elevation of 2,700 meters. “GPI's arrival at Gemini South has been full of excitement for all of the extremely

talented and tireless individuals involved in the project,” said Jeffrey Chilcote, a graduate student at the University

of California, Los Angeles who works on the instrument's integral field spectrograph. Chilcote has been traveling

monthly to Chile to help install and test GPI.

In August of 2013, GPI traveled from Los Angeles on a Boeing 767-300 jet to Santiago, Chile, where a team of

engineers and astronomers accompanied the instrument on its drive to the Gemini South observing site at an

elevation of 2,700 meters. “GPI's arrival at Gemini South has been full of excitement for all of the extremely

talented and tireless individuals involved in the project,” said Jeffrey Chilcote, a graduate student at the University

of California, Los Angeles who works on the instrument's integral field spectrograph. Chilcote has been traveling

monthly to Chile to help install and test GPI.

Peering at Planets

by Katherine Kornei, Ph.D.

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GPI had its "first light" on November 11, 2013 and initial science results were released at the January 2014 meeting

of the American Astronomical Society, held in Washington, DC. The first science results included observations of

Beta Pictoris, a star known to host a planet several times more massive than Jupiter. The planet - Beta Pictoris b -

appears clearly in the near-infrared image obtained by GPI, confirming the capabilities of the instrument. “We

hope that data from GPI will provide a statistical understanding of the processes that form these Jupiter-like

extrasolar planets,” says Chilcote. Continued testing of GPI is in progress and the instrument is scheduled to

become available to astronomers this year.

The GPI collaboration involves an international team of over 100 scientists and engineers. The project is led by

Bruce Macintosh of Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. "GPI and its competitors should revolutionize our

understanding of other solar systems," says Macintosh.

Katherine Kornei received her Ph.D. in astronomy in 2012 from the University of California, Los Angeles, where she

studied star formation in distant galaxies. Katherine works as a science writer and educator in Portland, Oregon.

Near-infrared image of Beta Pictoris b, an

extrasolar planet approximately 60 light

years away. The light of the host star,

Beta Pictoris, is blocked in this image to

reveal the much fainter light of the

planet.

Image processing by Christian Marois,

NRC Canada.

The GPI commissioning team assembles at

the Gemini South control room for the first

night of instrument commissioning on

November 11, 2013.

Image courtesy of Jeffrey Chilcote.

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Throughout the year Mary Brown, the LAAS President offers a series of free astronomy classes to our club members and the public. These classes are based on the seasons of the year. Friends and family members of the LAAS are welcome to join the classes and new LAAS members and beginners are encouraged to attend. Children over the age of 10 are also welcome to attend with a parent. The classes are held in the classroom next door to the Garvey Ranch Observatory. You will learn about the constellations and other celestial objects in the spring sky. You will learn how to use a planisphere and how to use a telescope. You’ll also enjoy observing through the 8 Inch refractor in the dome and through telescopes out on the lawn. There is a $10.00 material fee. Some of our other members may participate as instructors making all of the class interesting and entertaining for all. Class Schedule: March 12, 2014 March 16, 2014 March 26, 2014 Time: 7:00 PM to 9:00 PM Location: Garvey Ranch Observatory at the Garvey Ranch Park 781 S. Orange Avenue Monterey Park, CA. 91755 Sign up by sending your name and the names of your guests to: Coordinator@LAAS.org. For further information, please call the LAAS Message Phone and leave your name and number. The number is: 213-673-7355.

Spring Skies Astronomy Class Schedule

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Equinox! You’ve probably heard this word a lot especially when you were growing up. Like the Solstices, the Equinox is an event that happens twice per year, when the sun’s path in the sky crosses what’s known as the celestial equator. This month it signals the end of winter in the Northern Hemisphere and the end of summer in the Southern Hemisphere. The word “Equinox” is a Latin term, meaning “equal night” and there’s a good reason for this... If you were to get up early, go outside and watch the sunrise, you may notice that on March 20th - the Vernal Equinox (Vernal is Latin for spring), the sun rises exactly due east. That same day if you watch the sunset, you’ll notice that the sun will set exactly due west. While the position of the sun along the horizon is relatively interesting, the greater lesson here is that both the northern hemisphere and southern hemisphere receive equal amounts of daylight. This is due to the fact that at this point in its orbit around the sun, the Earth is neither tilted toward nor away from the sun. This will happen again when Earth is on the other side of the sun in mid-September, though at that point we will experience the Autumnal Equinox, or first day of Autumn in the northern hemisphere and the first day of Spring in the southern hemisphere. This month also sees the return of a God - Mars, the God of War. The red planet returns to our evening skies mid to late March. Look for Mars low on the eastern horizon around 9:00 pm towards the end of the month. Between March 17th and 18th the moon will slip past Mars. To find Mars on the 17th, look for the rust colored “star” just below the moon - on the night of the 18th, look for Mars just above the moon. On each night, Mars will be poised for satisfactory viewing just after 10:00 pm. The Moon is new on March 1st, full on March 16th and new again on March 30th, which is a perfect example of how we measure the period of time known as a month - or “moonth”. The term “month” comes from the word “moon” since a month is approximately the amount of time it takes the moon to orbit the Earth. Actually, you’ll find that all of our measurements of time are based on the astronomical cycles of the sun, moon and stars. As Orion the Hunter slips further and further west, springtime constellations begin to appear on the eastern horizon. Towards the month’s end, the bright star Vega rises in the northeast just after midnight, while the quintessential Saturn displays its subtle magnificence in the southeast. Lots of astronomical changes happening this month signaling the change in seasons as our beloved planet continues it’s 10 billion year journey around a small star we call the sun.And remember - the LAAS will be hosting its “Spring Skies” class on March 12th, 19th, 26th, which will include amazing information on the spring constellations, as well as the moon’s lunar eclipse in April, Mars, Jupiter and more!

A Guide to the Night Sky for March 2014

Written by Tre Gibbs

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Messier Marathon, March 29, 2014

This is one of the traditions in amateur observing. The goal is to try

and see ALL the objects in the Messier catalog of deep sky objects in

one night. This is possible ONLY around the Spring Equinox because

near that time, the Sun is positioned in a gap between Messier objects

which is JUST large enough so that the attempt can be made.

A check-off list and useful advice are just two of the things Herman

can provide to assist observers in this endeavor. Please

contact Herman if you plan on coming to the Lockwood Valley facilities

for the marathon.

Contact:

Herman Meyerdierks

310-276-9618 Email: meyerdierks@att.net

Follow this link for the Messier List from the Astronomical League: https://www.astroleague.org/al/obsclubs/messier/messlist.html

Messier Indexes: http://messier.seds.org/indexes.html

Clickable icons for all Messier objects in one screen:

http://messier.seds.org/icosheet.html

Cosmos on TV

Premieres March 9 on FOX. COSMOS airs Sundays

on FOX & Mondays on the National Geographic

Channel.

Description

COSMOS: A SPACETIME ODYSSEY: More than three

decades after the debut of "Cosmos: A Personal

Voyage," Carl Sagan's stunning and iconic

exploration of the universe as revealed by science,

COSMOS: A SPACETIME ODYSSEY sets off on a new

voyage for the stars. Seth MacFarlane (FAMILY

GUY, AMERICAN DAD) and Sagan's original creative

collaborators. Hosted by renowned astrophysicist

Neil de Grasse Tyson, the series will explore how we

discovered the laws of nature and found our

coordinates in space and time.

Visit http://www.Cosmosontv.com to learn more

about the series.

Thanks go to Luis Ashelford for submitting

the information!

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As reported in February's Bulletin, John Dobson died in mid-January at age 98, or as he might have put it, on his 99th orbit of the sun. Along with Carl Sagan and UK’s Sir Patrick Moore, he was a great popularizer of astronomy to the general public, a sidewalk astronomer. John would set up his homemade telescope on a street corner then announce , “look at Saturn, no charge.” He also toured the

country in his customized school bus that he named Starship Centaurus A with its own telescope. He appeared on television including the Johnny Carson show (himself an amateur astronomer) and was the subject of a documentary film “A Sidewalk Astronomer.” He wrote several books including “Astronomy for Children Under 80.” In this role, he invented the Dobsonian reflector telescope in an effort to design a simpler, less expensive design for anyone wanting to build their own. He had and used telescopes he constructed from items found in the trash. He built and helped people build thousands of telescopes. When asked why he didn't patent the Dobsonian design, he replied that these are “gifts to humanity.” Not just starter scopes, they have made important contributions like the discovery of the Hale-Bopp comet. Born in Beijing, China he lived most of his life in the bay area. In 1944 he joined a Hindu monastery as a monk in San Francisco, later Sacramento, living there for over 20 years. Upon joining he was given the task by the swami of reconciling science and religion, no small task. He was truly a unique astronomer with an equally unique path through life, making a primary contribution to telescope design and drawing thousands of new enthusiasts into the field.

Special Public Star Party Notice: Saturday, March 8, 2014

ISAN ( International Sidewalk Astronomy Night) is a global event created by the Sidewalk Astronomers. In honor of

John Dobson’s lifetime dedication to public outreach and astronomy, the Griffith Observatory along with Sidewalk

Astronomers around the world will participate in this year’s ISAN event.

Learn more about John Dobson by reading his biography on the Sidewalk Astronomers’ web site:

http://www.sidewalkastronomers.us/id32.html

John Dobson

Written by Stuart Hubler

“Remembering John Dobson” memorial and lecture will be held in the Leonard Nimoy Event Horizon Theater at the Griffith Observatory. Time: 4 PM to 5:00 PM Photo: John Dobson and Geovanni Somoza at PATS celebrating John’s 96

th birthday.

Sept. 19, 2011

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It's so hard to hammer in the stakes for a radio telescope while wearing a spacesuit. One after another, my crew members pounded metal into frozen ground, joking about how hot it felt with the sun beating down on us. It seemed everything was taking twice as long as it should have, which illustrates how hard a space mission can be. Crew 133 was not in space, however. We were spending two weeks at the Mars Desert Research Station, a facility

run by the Mars Society to simulate exploration on the Red Planet. A large part of our mission focus was

astronomy – a natural fit since we were in a desert far from any lights!

We built the aforementioned radio telescope, which will allow crews to watch solar activity and track flares on

Jupiter's moon Io. We also observed Jupiter moon transits using a Celestron 14-inch CGE1400 installed in a covered

observatory. It was cold observing in the observatory, but at least we were sheltered from the worst of the wind.

We lived all day and night in a 1,200-square-foot Habitat that was heated and even included small bedrooms for

six crew members. Water was limited, Internet shortages were severe, and our days were packed full of

"Marswalks", cooking, growing plants in the greenhouse and general Hab maintenance.

Every time we went outside, we had to don mock spacesuits to get the job done. That's because on Mars, you can't

head out the door unprotected – quite simply, you'll die. Even a pretend spacesuit takes a while to put on. First

you don the jumpsuit, then put on boots and "gaiters" to protect your lower limbs from mud. Next comes the

backpack, which includes a fan you'll need to drive circulation in the helmet, which you put on last and attach with

two hoses.

AWB Communications Manager plays at being a "Marstronaut"

Written by Elizabeth Howell, Science Writer

Members of Crew133 after a

simulated "Marswalk" at the

Mars Desert Research Station

in January 2014. Credit:

Elizabeth Howell

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The first time that helmet came down on my head, I had a moment of "Gosh, this feels so small." But you get used

to it very quickly because the focus is not on wearing the spacesuit, but doing tasks for hours upon hours while

wearing it. After a while, Spacesuit 8 became a second skin to me. I knew when I put it on, fun things were going to

happen and that we'd help move the science forward another increment for future crews.

These days, I browse the crew photos and think about the fun we had on the mission, at least when we weren't

getting all muddy or hot from doing work outside. This was a great example about how doing something unusual

will lead to professional and personal connections for the rest of our lives.

Crew 133's Elizabeth Howell

(left) and Pedro Diaz-Rubin

during a simulated "Marswalk" at

the Mars Desert Research Station

in January 2014. Credit: Matthieu

Komorowski

Crew 133's Matthieu

Komorowski (left) and

Joseph Jessup during a

simulated "Marswalk" at the

Mars Desert Research Station

in January 2014. Credit:

Elizabeth Howell

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Already, research collaborations have started and I am looking at changing my vacation plans to spend more time

with the amazing members of Crew 133.

Elizabeth Howell is the communications manager at AWB. You can read her accounts of life on "Mars" here:

http://www.space.com/24175-mock-mars-mission-complete-coverage.html?cmpid=514648

Crew 133 member Joseph Jessup

stands in front of the Mars

Desert Research Station in

January 2014. Credit: Elizabeth

Howell

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Garvey Nights – What’s It All About?

The Garvey Ranch

Observatory Garvey Ranch Park 781 S. Orange Ave.

Monterey Park, Ca. 91755 Every Wednesday night 7:00 PM to 10:30 PM

It’s a place to learn about astronomy, science and explore the night sky.

We gather here for educational

outreach and club events

throughout the year. Some of

these events are the New

Member Potluck and Open

House, Science Night and the

Cosmic Kids program.

Star Party! Bring along your

telescope on Wednesday nights

and join us.

Build a telescope, grind your own mirror and meet other club members.

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Mt. Wilson 60 Inch Nights Schedule

We have our dates for this year's Mt. Wilson 60" viewing sessions. We have five nights this year. Four are half nights, and one full night. For those of you who have never been to a 60" session, the half nights go from just before sunset until about 1:00 AM. And the full night goes from dusk until dawn, a full night of viewing through the 60" telescope. What a treat!!

To make reservations for the sessions, you must be a current member. Members can reserve spots for themselves and guests they are bringing with them. If there are still open spots two weeks before the session date, non-members may make reservations. The only way to reserve a spot for any session is to contact me first. I will maintain the session list for each session, including waiting lists for each session when they are full, in case of cancellations. Refunds for cancelled reservations will be made IF I can fill the spots in time. (Usually not a problem.) In case of sessions cancelled due to weather your spot can be moved to another session with room or you can get a refund for the night. I have information documents that I send to everyone before each session with more specific details for that session. Mt. Wilson’s Web Site: http://www.mtwilson.edu/ To pay for your reservations, you will need to send checks made out to “LAAS” and mail to: John O’Bryan/LAAS Treasurer P.O. Box 56084 Sherman Oaks, CA. 91413 John can be reached at: jobryan@thezenith.com The half nights are $45 per person and the full night is $85 per person. The dates for this year are: Friday, June 20, 2014 - Half Night Friday, July 18, 2014 - Half Night Friday, Aug 29, 2014 - Half Night Saturday, Sept 20, 2014 - Half Night Saturday, Oct 25, 2014 - Full Night I am looking forward to having some great sessions this year. If you have any questions and to make reservations email me at: mtwilsoncoordinator@LAAS.org Darrell Dooley Mt. Wilson 60" Coordinator Treasurer 06-07, Lifetime member

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Our Board of Directors does an excellent job managing the Los Angeles Astronomical Society. Occasionally, the club officers and board members appreciate advice from other business professionals. We hope that some of you will volunteer minimal time to help the club when needed. If you are interested, please send an email to Mary Brown at nwwrgz@yahoo.com or give her a call at home at 626-791-2740. If anyone has previous experience dealing with city management and planning or if you have experience as a Corporate Project Manager or Administrator, your expertise and advice would be greatly appreciated. I am going to create a list of those members willing to share their knowledge and work experience that could benefit the organization. This list will be private and shared with our current board members only. What are your talents and how could you help the club as an individual based on your years of experience? If you would like to participate, please send me an email. BIG THANKS to those members who sent in their information! Thank you, Andee Sherwood Coordinator@LAAS.org

Meet Our New Members

Dan and Beth Brown

Alina Aghajanian

Amin Rezapour

Dylan Johnson

Joe Phipps

John Helton

Edwin Mercado

Craig, Corinne, Eli and Azi Bendersky Boreth

Professional Advisors for the LAAS

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2014 - Time to Update Your Info

Moved to a new house, changed your phone number or email address? Need to change your membership

to a family, senior or senior family membership? Help us keep the club current with up to date

information by sending an email to the Club Secretary at Secretary@LAAS.org.

Comments, Suggestions, Ideas or Complaints?

There is always room for improvement and your feedback is important for the growth

of the club. Care to share a thought or two about the club? Want to see something added to the web site?

See something that needs to be corrected or updated? Have ideas for events? Want to help out with the

Bulletin? Just click on the box or send an email to coordinator@laas.org

Tentative Tours For LAAS in 2014

JPL

Lick Observatory – Road Trip to San Jose, CA! Mt. Wilson Mt. Palomar, N. San Diego county National Weather Service in Oxnard, CA CA Science Center SpaceX Carnegie Institute Suggestions for tours would be greatly appreciated!

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Volunteer for the LAAS The LAAS runs on volunteer energy and members like YOU keep this club active. Committees of dedicated volunteers help us achieve successful club events throughout the year. Our events and other activities can be planned ahead making each event fun for all members, including those on the committee. Being on a committee is also a great way to get to know other members and make new friends in the club. The following committees need YOU: Activities Committee: Help plan, schedule and organize various LAAS events throughout the year.

Awards Committee: Determine which members deserve awards for their outstanding volunteer work. Awards are received at our annual banquet each year.

New Members Welcome Committee: Welcome new members and help them learn more about the club.

Nominations Committee: Keep track of the nominations and help out with the ballots.

Outreach Program: Participate at our Outreach events and help the Program Coordinator when needed.

Speakers Committee: Help find and schedule guest speakers for general events, the banquet and other events when needed.

Youth Program: Assist the Youth Coordinator with the youth membership and any events, when needed.

The Lockwood Valley Improvement Committee: Spending an afternoon making improvements to the Lookwood property such as painting the telescope pads, filling gopher holes and more.

Annual New Member Potluck and Star Party: Assist the New Member Coordinator plan activities for the day, set-up and clean-up of facilities, grilling food, raffle prizes/tickets, greeting guests, taking pictures at the event, etc.. You say you’re not a team player and you don’t do well in committees? Consider some other ways to volunteer. Club Photographers and Reporters are always needed. Take pictures at various events and submit them to the web site, the newsletter or to be used on our Facebook page. We always welcome new authors, too! Writing an article for the web site is a brilliant way to share your knowledge with not only the club but the public. All of the above committees and other volunteer positions will only take a few hours of your time once a month and some, only once a year.

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FYI: Upcoming Club Events and Holidays Feb. 26, 2014 – Mar. 8, 2014 - Mark Your Calendars! Wed 2/26/2014 7:30 - 10 PM Garvey Nights Garvey Ranch Park Observatory Monterey Park, CA

March Sat 3/1/2014 5 - 11:59 PM Dark Sky Night Sunset: 5:53 Lockwood Valley Frazier Park, CA Wed 3/5/2014 7:30 - 10 PM Garvey Nights Garvey Ranch Park Observatory Monterey Park, CA Wed 3/5/2014 8 - 9:30 PM LAAS Board Meeting Garvey Ranch Park Observatory Monterey Park, CA Thu 3/6/2014 6:30 - 8 PM Outreach Sunset: 5:55 South Pasadena, CA Fri 3/7/2014 5:30 - 8:30 Outreach Sunset: 5:57 Los Angeles, CA Sat 3/8/2014 2 - 9:45 PM Public Star Party / ISAN John Dobson Memorial Griffith Observatory Los Angeles, CA Mon 3/10/2014 8 - 9:45 PM LAAS General Meeting Griffith Observatory Los Angeles, CA

Wed 3/12/2014 7 - 9 PM Spring Skies Free Astronomy Classes Garvey Ranch Park Observatory Monterey Park, CA Wed 3/12/2014 7:30 - 10 PM Garvey Nights Garvey Ranch Park Observatory Monterey Park, CA Tue 3/18/2014 5:30 - 8 PM Outreach Los Angeles, CA Wed 3/19/2014 7 - 9 PM Spring Skies Free Astronomy Classes Garvey Ranch Park Observatory Monterey Park, CA Wed 3/19/2014 7:30 - 10 PM Garvey Nights Garvey Ranch Park Observatory Monterey Park, CA Wed 3/26/2014 7 - 9 PM Spring Skies Free Astronomy Classes Garvey Ranch Park Observatory Monterey Park, CA Wed 3/26/2014 7:30 - 10 PM Garvey Nights Garvey Ranch Park Observatory Monterey Park, CA Sat 3/29/2014 5 - 11:59 PM Dark Sky Night Sunset: 7:17 Lockwood Valley Frazier Park, CA

April Wed 4/2/2014 7:30 - 10 PM Garvey Nights Garvey Ranch Park Observatory Monterey Park, CA Thu 4/3/2014 5:30 - 8 PM Outreach Los Angeles, CA Thu 4/3/2014 5:30 - 8 PM Outreach Los Angeles, CA Sat 4/5/2014 2 - 9:45 PM Public Star Party Sunset: 7:19 Griffith Observatory Los Angeles, CA Tue 4/8/2014 6 - 9 PM Outreach Los Angeles, CA

All events dates are currently posted on the LAAS Event Calendar which can be found on the club’s website. More events will be posted when finalized. Visit the calendar weekly to see what’s coming up for the club. If you are a registered member of the Night Sky Network (NSN), log in to your account to view the calendar for additional information posted specifically for club members. If you have yet to register on the NSN, please register today by following this link: http://nightsky.jpl.nasa.gov/club-apply.cfm?Club_ID=1344&ApplicantType=Member. Only current members of the LAAS may register on NSN. Need help with NSN? Call Andee at 310-670-2744.

18

The Loaner Program provides excellent telescopes and the needed accessories to help our members view the night

sky. Don’t have a telescope? Consider borrowing a telescope from the LAAS before investing in one of your own.

This is a club benefit for current members.

The following instruments are in our inventory and available for all current LAAS members. LAAS-1: Celestron 4.5" f/8 reflector on a genuine Polaris equatorial mount. LAAS-2: Upgraded Tasco 4.5" f/8 reflector on an Edmund equatorial mount with an internal clock drive. LAAS-3: Modified Coulter Dobsonian 8” reflector with Dobsonian mount. LAAS-4: Telescopics 6" f/5 reflector on a Dobsonian mount. LAAS-6: Discovery Instruments 10" f/4.5 reflector on a Dobsonian mount. This is a large instrument especially good for deep sky observation. It is rather large. Therefore anyone considering this instrument should have access to a small truck, van, or SUV. LAAS-7: Meade 80mm f/15 refractor on an Orion Sky-View Deluxe equatorial. LAAS-9: 80mm refractor on a Celestron heavy-duty camera tripod. This is a good Rich Field Telescope. For more information call David Sovereign at (626)794-0646.

Please return any unused loaner scopes so that other club members may use them.

The Loaner Program

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Club Contact Information

President: Mary Brown nwwrgz@yahoo.com

Vice President: Geo Somoza .

geovanni_somoza@hotmail.com

Treasurer: John O’Bryan, Jr.

Treasurer@laas.org

Secretary: Secretary@laas.org

Outreach Coordinator: Heven Renteria

outreach@laas.org

LAAS.org Webmaster: Steve Dashiell

Webmaster@laas.org

Communications Coordinator: Andee Sherwood

Coordinator@laas.org

Mt. Wilson Coordinator: Darrell Dooley

mtwilsoncoordinator@laas.org

Telescope Loaner Program: Dave Sovereign - 626-794-0646

Youth Coordinator: Marjory Gonzalez youthcoordinator@laas.org

Bulletin Editor: Andee Sherwood

Coordinator@laas.org

Mailing Address:

The Los Angeles Astronomical Society C/o Griffith Observatory

2800 E. Observatory Road Los Angeles, CA. 90027

To donate to the LAAS, please use the following

address:

LAAS Treasurer P.O. Box 56084

Sherman Oaks, CA, 91413

If you would like to donate a telescope for our

educational outreach program, please call Mary Brown at:

626-791-2740

Thank you for your donation!

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LAAS Phone List

LAAS Message Phone: 213- 673-7355 (All messages answered within 24 hours.) Griffith Observatory: 213-473-0800 Sky Report: 213-473-0880 Lockwood Site: 661-245-2106 (Not answered, arrange time with caller. Outgoing calls – collect or calling card)