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The advent of the personal computer, micro-processors and space exploration and technology have profoundly changed amateur astronomy as well as professional astronomy over the last decade. The tools now available have simplified and made more capable both the science and the art that we can do. At the June 7 general meeting, DACS member Parker Moreland will demonstrate software (free and commercial) and interactive web sites that casual and serious amateurs can use to find their way in the sky, and indeed control automated telescopes. Examples of imaging with CCD cameras on telescopes as both art and science will be given. Amateurs are doing beautiful astrophotography of deep-sky objects (galaxies, nebula, star clusters), detecting eclipsing exoplanets, and finding near earth objects (NEO”s). Several amateur projects carried out at the John J. McCarthy Observatory in New Milford will be described, each relying on PC technology and internet resources. We’ve measured the distance to an NEO and measured the distance to Mars in order to recreate the 1672 determination of the distance to the Sun. Finally, Parker will show us how the graphics power now available in PC’s permits some impressive astro-simulations — visualizations of the cosmos for fun and education — that are available as freeware. This is a great opportunity to see what can be done with a PC, telescope, and digital camera and an interest in astronomy. Don’t miss it. The DACS General Meeting is held at Danbury Hospital Auditorium, and is open to the public. Events begin at 7 p.m. wih casual networking and Random Access Q&A, followed by a business meeting at 7:30 and a short break at 7:45. The Presentation starts at about 8:00. |
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