Starlight Astronomy Club Web Site

[Key Personnel    Upcoming Events    External Links]

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Next Meeting:  Thursday, May 17, 7:00 PM,  Penn-Mont Academy, Hollidaysburg.


Attention All Members
2012 Membership Fees are now due.
Please note the new membership classes, fee structure, and prices!

undercon.gif 40 x 38This page is always under construction!

Welcome to the Starlight Astronomy Club web site, hosted by the Web Space Outlet in State College, Pa.

 

Public Sky Watch

 May 18, 2012 
8:30 - 11:00 pm
Note the modified times!
Canoe Creek State Park
(Rain Date: Saturday).

 

Public Solar Sky Watch
and 
Transit of Venus


 June 5, 2012 
Noon to Sunset
(The Transit begins at 6:00 PM)

Blair County Convention Center
(No Rain Date on this Event!)

 

Plan your observing schedule around New and Full Moons

Download Sky & Telescope's monthly sky tour Podcast for your MP3 player

 

The address for the club's e-mail list-server is astroclub@alt3.com.

The club runs a Yahoo! chat group at http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/starlightastronomy/

Bill, one of out more active members, maintains a help page for the club.  It's address is
http://webpages.charter.net/paastroman/grouphelp.html

 

Celestial Almanac

Evening Events Morning Events


Apr 14  Saturn at opposition
Jun 5   Transit of Venus over the Sun
Jun 20  Summer Solstice, 7:09 pm EDT
               (summer begins)
            Longest day, 15 hours 01 minutes of daylight
Jun 24  Latest evening twilight
Jun 27  Latest sunset
Jun 30  Mercury at greatest eastern elongation,
                (26 degrees from the Sun)
July 4   Earth at aphelion, 11 pm EDT
                (94,505,850 miles from the Sun)
Aug 23  Neptune at opposition
Sep 28  Uranus at opposition


Apr 18  
Mercury at greatest western elongation,
                (27 degrees from the Sun)

Jun 4    Partial lunar eclipse, 5:59 to 8:07 am EDT
Jun 13  Earliest sunrise
Jun 17  Earliest morning twilight
July 9   Venus 0.9 degrees northwest of Aldebaren
Aug 15  Venus at greatest western elongation,
                (46 degrees from the Sun)
Aug 16  Mercury at greatest western elongation,
                (19 degrees from the Sun)
Sep 22  Autumnal Equinox, 10:49 am EDT (fall begins)

 


The table of New and Full Moons now includes the approximate time of sunset for your planning purposes.

 

Starlight_Astro_Club_2012.JPG  800x600
The Starlight Astronomy Club at their January 19, 2012 meeting.

 

Welcome to the Starlight Astronomy Club.  We are based in Altoona, Pennsylvania, with members active from all of the surrounding counties of south-central Pennsylvania.  You're welcome to join us and get involved as we continue to build the organization.  It's an exciting project.

Meetings are held monthly on the third Thursday of the month at Penn-Mont Academy in Hollidaysburg.  (See the schedule.)  Public sky watches are conducted on the third Friday of the month (the Friday evening after the club meeting) from April through October at Canoe Creek State Park.  (See the schedule.)  Cloud dates are the following Saturday evening.

Anyone with an  interest in astronomy is invited to become active in the Starlight Astronomy Club.  Even if you are just getting started in amateur astronomy or if your interest is only casual, you'll find that we're a group which is open to beginners.  (Our group has many members who are just getting started.)  Families are welcome!

One of the primary benefits of membership in the Starlight Astronomy Club is the opportunity for membership in the Astronomical League.  The League is designed to be an association of affiliated clubs.  Individual members enjoy the benefits of a quarterly newsletter, access to excellent instructional programs, observing clubs, and opportunities to participate in conferences, symposiums, and expeditions.

Below, you will find a schedule of upcoming events, and on the following pages you'll find our current bylaws, brief instructions for subscribing to our list server, and information on getting  started in amateur astronomy.  Your contribution to the dialog is greatly desired.  We want you to be involved in an organization that you can be proud of. 

 

Key Personnel:

Office Name E-Mail Address
President Tom Kasner  takasner@aol.com
Vice-President Scott Alter  domus93@hotmail.com
Secretary/Treasurer Diana Worley  pegasus0416@yahoo.com
   Harold Fultz  HFultzjr@aol.com

 

Upcoming Events:

Subscribe to and monitor the e-mail list server for any announcements of observing plans

Event Date Time Venue
Next Outdoor
Activity:

Friday
May 18

8:30-11:00 p.m.

Canoe Creek State Park
Rain Date: Sat.

 

 

 

 
Next Meeting

Thursday
May 17

7:00 p.m.

Penn-Mont Academy
Hollidaysburg
Next Indoor
Activity:

 

 

  
       
Future Meetings

Thursday
May 17

7:00 p.m.

Penn-Mont Academy
Hollidaysburg
  June 21

7:00 p.m.

Penn-Mont Academy
Hollidaysburg
  July 19
August 16

7:00 p.m.

Penn-Mont Academy
Hollidaysburg
  September 20
October 18

7:00 p.m.

Penn-Mont Academy
Hollidaysburg
  November 15
December 20

7:00 p.m.

Penn-Mont Academy
Hollidaysburg
       
Public Sky Watches

 May 18

8:30-11:00 p.m.

Location: Canoe Creek State Park
Rain Date: Sat.
  June 5  Noon - Sunset Solar Observations
Location: Blair County Convention Center
(No rain date)
  June 5  5:30 - Sunset Transit of Venus
Location: Blair County Convention Center
(No rain date)
  June 22

8:30-11:00 p.m.

Location: Canoe Creek State Park
Rain Date: Sat.
  July 20
August 17

8:30-11:00 p.m.

Location: Canoe Creek State Park
Rain Date: Sat.
  September 21 7:00-11:00 p.m. Location: Canoe Creek State Park
Rain Date: Sat.
  October 19 6:00-9:00 p.m. Location: Canoe Creek State Park
Rain Date: Sat.

 

NOTICE: Due to numerous abuses, online applications are no longer being accepted!
To join, you may submit an application in person at the next meeting.
(If you insist, you may join online by paying the $100 Online Application Fee
per application submitted within the past year!)

 

 

External Links:

SKY Online
Astronomical League
Heavens Above
Intellicast National Radar Map
Orion Telescope & Binocular Center

 

Discover the cosmos!
Visit the Astronomy Picture of the Day web site.

Each day a different image or photograph of our fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer.

 


Visit the Altoona Clear Sky Chart web site
configured for Altoona, PA

 

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Last Modified: Monday, May 14, 2012 11:32 PM

 

Web Site created and occasionally maintained by Eric Hilbert
mailto: ehilbert@outdrs.net

Last Revision: 05/13/12