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- Introduction
- The EAS consists of a group of about 45 individuals in and
around Everett and the Snohomish County interested in Astronomy.
- EAS History
- The group formed about 1980, after starting out as a few friends who
would call each other up on the spur-of-the-moment (clear weather) to go
observing.
- Reasons for joining
People join to learn about current astronomical topics, to go out
observing, to find out about telescopes, to meet and share experiences
with other people interested in Astronomy.
- Open to public
All our meetings and events are open to the public, and we try to
put on events specifically for the public, such as the ‘sidewalk
astronomy’ and Astronomy Day.
- Meetings
- We have monthly meetings where we have speakers or videos or
slideshows. We often have astronomers, especially from the University of
Washington, come and talk to us about their work or recent discoveries.
We try to have something for everyone, and have had a diverse range of
topics, including for example, such as archeo-astronomy of the
Egyptians, Maya, and Native Americans, or demonstration and
review of astronomy software programs. Our meetings are held
(generally) on the last Saturday of the month in the Auditorium of
the Everett Public Library.
- Newsletter
We publish a newsletter (The Star Gazer) for our members,
containing information about the club and its activities, about current
sky information, and about news of astronomical discoveries. A lot of that
information comes from many sources on the internet.
- Star parties
- One of our other main activities are holding ‘star parties’. A
star party, as you may know, is an observing session that brings many
people together at the same place and time to share knowledge of
interesting sky objects, and try out other types of telescopes.
- EAS regular star parties
- Different astronomy clubs have different approaches to this; most of
our star parties are small and informal affairs held at the homes of
some of our members who live deep enough into the suburbs to escape the
worst light pollution.
- Star party activities
- Observing interesting objects, trying to see all of the objects on
certain historical lists, such as Messier 102 objects, and Herschel 400
objects. Trying out telescopes, sharing knowledge are popular. Some
people concentrate on certain types of objects, such as the moon, or
planets like Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn, or deep space objects like faint
50 million light year away galaxies.
- Discount on magazines
- A benefit of club membership is a discounted rate for Astronomy or
Sky&Telescope magazines.
- Club telescopes
- Our club has 3 telescopes, the largest is a 10" Dobsonian that
are available to be loaned out to our club members. This can help
someone that has no scope, or just a small one, and give them experience
with what to expect before rushing out and buying a scope that might not
suit them very well.
- Sidewalk astronomy
- The EAS likes to share astronomy with the general public, and
although we don’t have a major organized activity in this area, we
have tried to take advantage of some of the dramatic events of the past
few years, such as Comet Hyakutake, Comet Hale Bopp, and a couple of
total lunar eclipses to hold and publicize observing sessions located
where the people are, at parks and marinas and even shopping centers.
Most people are very surprised to see.
- Light pollution
- Light pollution is one of the two main problems confronting amateur
astronomers in the Puget Sound area. (the other is the cloudy weather).
The millions of outdoor lights light up the outdoor sky, and make all
but the brightest stars invisible. To escape it completely, you must go
60 miles or more from Seattle, and even stay somewhat away from small
towns. This means traveling to the Cascades or central Washington area.
This also helps avoid the clouds.
- Regional star parties
- During the summer each year, there are annual star parties held in
the northwest that attract a large group of amateurs to dark wilderness
sites far from city lights.
In our area is the Table Mountain Regional Star Party held just north of
Ellensburg WA at the 6300 foot level on Table Mountain, near the Lion
Rock campground. Each year usually attracts over 1200 enthusiasts, with
hundreds of telescopes, many with innovative designs, and some as large
as 41 inches in diameter. It late July or early August. Check the web page
here for this years details: http://www.tmspa.com/
Oregon has the Oregon Star Party at Indian Trail Springs in the Ochoco
National forest in central Oregon east of Burns. About 700 attendees
here, very dry, some of the best skies in North America. Usually in
early September 9-12. Good place for serious deep sky photography.
http://www.oregonstarparty.org/
Mt Kobau star party in British Columbia.
- Astronomy Day activities
- Once a year, there is a day established as ‘International Astronomy
Day’. For several years, our group has setup displays at the Everett
Public library during the daytime, and a star party at a park in
northern downtown Everett.
- Talking to groups
- We also have members that enjoy going out and talking to various
school classes, youth groups, and other organizations to present slide
shows and current astronomy information and to host special star
parties. This often puts an amateur with a lot of background knowledge
together with kids and others with lots of interest and questions.
Special Interest Subjects
- Observing
- Looking at the night sky with eyes, binoculars, and telescopes and
learning what is there.
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- Speakers
- Listening to presentations by astronomers and hobbyists.
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- Imaging
- Photography and electronic imaging of sky objects. Imaging the Sky 2000
(Salem, OR).
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- Computer Astronomy
- Software programs that allow mapping, study, planning, and imaging. See
sites http://www.seds.org/billa/astrosoftware.html or http://www.physics.sfasu.edu/astro/software.html
for software download info.
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- Telescope making
- Building telescopes for observing.
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- KSER Radio Program
- E.A.S. members, Jim Ehrmin, Pat Lewis, Greg Donohue, Rubie
Sanborn and SAS member Ted
Vosk present the astronomy radio show, "It's Over Your Head", on
radio station KSER. The show is broadcast every Wednesday morning at 7:20 AM
to KSER FM 90.7. The six minute astronomy segment gives a weekly look of
what's up in the night sky over Snohomish County. Web page with lots of
archives and other info is available at http://www.itsoveryourhead.org
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- Pat would appreciate your suggestions about subjects for scripts that you
would find interesting. If you have information on a good subject, send her
a copy. If you think of a good subject but don't have the information, call
her; she may be able to research it. Send to Pat Lewis, 5307 30th N.E.,
Seattle WA 98105, or call (206) 524-2006. If you are a listener of the
program show your support by giving the program director of KSER a call!
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- KPLU 88.5 FM National Public Radio has daily broadcasts of "Star
Date" by the McDonald Observatory of the University of Texas at Austin,
Monday through Friday at 8:58 A.M. and 5:58 P.M. Saturday and Sunday). The
short 2 minute radio show deals with current topics of interest in
astronomy.
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- Astronomy Travel
- Traveling to far away places to see eclipses, comets, etc.
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- Community Outreach
- Club members give star parties and talks to local groups and schools.
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- Application
- To join the club, fill out the application
and send it in to us. The address is on the application itself.
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