Public Observing Sessions
From March through October, the TCAA holds monthly observing sessions
that are open to the public. These "star parties" are held at our observatory at
the Sugar Grove Nature Center, a dark sky site southwest of Bloomington.
In 2012, we will hold the following observing sessions
Additional prominent sky objects such as planets, nebulae,
star clusters, and galaxies will be viewed when visible.
| Date | Featured Topic | Time |
| March 24 | Reasons for the Seasons | 7:30pm - 9:30pm |
|
At this time of quickly changing weather, we will look at how the Earth's orbit affects the days and the seasons.
|
| April 21 | Mars, the Red Planet | 8:00pm - 10:00pm |
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With Mars visible in the early evening, we will review the planet and view it through telescopes.
|
| May 19 | Saturn, the Ring World | 8:30pm - 10:30pm |
|
The ringed planet provides one of the most compelling sights you can view through a telescope. We highlight Saturn near its annual opposition.
|
| June 5 | Venus Transit | 5:00pm - 9:00pm |
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We will host an event to observe the last Venus Transit of our lifetimes. Join us as we safely view our sister planet as it crosses the face of the Sun!
|
| June 16 | Arc to Arcturus and Speed to Spica | 9:00pm - 11:00pm |
|
We look at the constellations and point out how some of the brightest stars are used as guideposts to help you find other constellations. We will also point out many of the bright deep-space objects that are visible in the sky at this time.
|
| July 21 | Asteroids, Meteors, and Meteorites | 8:30pm - 10:30pm |
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Some of the smallest bodies in our solar system have had the biggest impact on our understanding of how the solar system formed. Join our exploration of these curious members of our solar system and experience their impact on our understanding and on the planets.
|
| August 18 | Clusters and Nebulas of the Milky Way | 8:00pm - 10:00pm |
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The Milky Way contains a wide variety of celestial objects and we will look at some of these.
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| September 15 | Stories of the Constellations | 7:30pm - 9:30pm |
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The constellations have been recognized since ancient times. We will recount some of the familiar stories from those mythical times.
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| October 13 | Uranus and Neptune | 7:00pm - 9:00pm |
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Among the gas giants in our Solar System, Uranus and Neptune orbit far from the Sun.
|
A Typical Public Observing Session includes:
-
Lecture about the featured object.
This 20-30 min. presentation,
held in the SGNC picnic shelter, includes images of and details
about the featured sky object as well as information on other
interesting celestial objects that might be viewed that evening.
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Sky tour using a laser pointer.
We step out under the stars to
point out the major constellations and planets, and to designate
the location of the featured celestial object for the evening.
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Telescope observing session.
We use members' telescope at ground level to
observe the featured object and other wonders of the heavens.
You can download our 2012 Public Observing Session brochure.
If you would like to arrange a special event for your group, please follow this link to Request a Special Event.