Nationwide collaboration a resounding success!
Matt Quandt
 Members of the collaboration included:
Experts at these venues inspired and engaged visitors of all ages with an array of hands-on activities — like making a comet, presentations (like associate editor Michael Bakich's speech at the Adler Planetarium & Astronomy Museum), solar observing, and more. These events showcased the visually stunning and mind-boggling events of deep space. Each participating organization held a drawing for a Meade ETX-90 telescope. In addition, all the names from each drawing were collected and entered into a drawing for the grand prize: a state-of-the-art Meade 10" LX200GPS SmartMount Telescope. A fully equipped observing tool in and of itself, the telescope was signed by astronaut Buzz Aldrin, Apollo 11 moonwalker — and member of Astronomy's Editorial Advisory Board. We are excited to announce Lisa Franco of Sacramento, California, is the winner of the LX200GPS telescope. Beating all the odds, Ms. Franco also was the winner of the ETX-90 at the Chabot Space and Science Center in Oakland! Lightning, indeed, can strike twice. In an impressively generous gesture, she is giving both scopes to her brother, Rudy — an avid amateur astronomer. "If he hadn't brought me to Chabot, I wouldn't have even entered the drawing," Lisa said. "I told Rudy that if I won, I'd give him the telescope. I just never thought we'd win both!" This collaboration of nationally recognized astronomy organizations amplified the mission of bringing astronomy to the people — a mission also shared and carried out by hundreds of astronomy clubs, planetaria, and observatories throughout the country. The events hosted by these great astronomy organizations were just high-profile samples of the hundreds of Astronomy Day gatherings hosted by local astronomy clubs in cities nationwide. To learn more about Astronomy Day events held by local astronomy clubs, visit www.astroleague.org. Here are accounts from each of our Astronomy Day partners: The Rose Center for Earth and Space at the American Museum of Natural History Visitors to the Rose Center for Earth and Space at the American Museum of Natural History in New York enjoyed solar observing, planetarium shows, telescope demonstrations, comet-making sessions, and a variety of other educational astronomy-related activities during this year's Astronomy Day. Kids and adults alike marveled at the colorful, informative, and entertaining exhibits. When not wandering through the spacious planetarium, visitors picked up posters, booklets, and magazines from Astronomy. NASA also contributed material on the current Mars rover missions and the June 8 transit of Venus. The drawing for the Meade ETX-90 wrapped up Astronomy Day at the Rose Center. Jalrie Morris was the lucky winner of the Meade scope. — Matt Quandt, Astronomy magazine |
 A volunteer provides details of the martian surface with a Red Planet globe. Adler Planetarium & Astronomy Museum [View Larger Image] Astronomy Day at the Adler Planetarium & Astronomy Museum in Chicago was a resounding success! 1,205 visitors attended Adler's Astronomy Day activities, and the weather cooperated just long enough for most visitors to peer through telescopes and view a few sunspots. Activities occurred from 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. and included the ever-popular Create a Comet demonstration in honor of Comet NEAT; the Astronomy Tools Touch Table, which showcased replicas of instruments in Adler's world-renowned history of astronomy collection; and Martian Geology, a fun activity that featured microscope views of Earth analogs to rocks studied by the Mars rovers Spirit and Opportunity. At 2:00 p.m., Astronomy magazine associate editor Michael Bakich presented "How Big is the Universe?", a lively and informative talk to an overflowing crowd in Adler's Cyberspace gallery. The Adler's event would not have been what it was without the cooperation of local astronomical associations and groups. The Chicago Astronomical Society provided telescope observing for the event, along with Adler's own telescope volunteers. Matt Lowry of the Chicago chapter of the Mars Society facilitated a very popular activity table with Mars globes and Mars & Moon gravity bricks. The Adler is grateful for the assistance of these groups, and we are looking forward to Astronomy Day 2005, which promises to be even bigger and better! Vanessa Shkuda from Port Washington, New York, won the Meade ETX-90. — Michelle Nichols, Senior Educator, Adler Planetarium & Astronomy Museum |
 A youngster contructs a planisphere on at Miami Museum of Science and Planetarium Miami Museum of Science and Planetarium [View Larger Image] Miami Museum of Science and Planetarium celebrated National Astronomy Day 2004 with a stellar lineup of activities throughout the day and evening that was truly out of this world. Director of the Planetarium, Jack Horkheimer (PBS's Star Gazer) served as master of ceremonies for the duration of the event. Included in the lineup were lectures by husband and wife astronomical experts Janis and Carlos Hernandez, who spoke on "Introducing your child to astronomy" and "Saturn: the ringed planet," respectively. NASA space expert Jack Fox gave a well-received talk titled "Earth, Moon, Mars & Beyond!" The day's activities began with an observing session with The Southern Cross Astronomical Society, whose members provided a fantastic setup that included stunning live images of the Sun both inside the museum lobby on a monitor and out in the courtyard, where you could look through the telescope. Along with their display in the lobby was extensive literature on various topics related to astronomy and beautiful pictures for the public to view in addition to the planetarium's own. Director of the Weintraub Observatory, Mark Bennett, gave several telescope workshops and Star Gazer star wheel workshops throughout the day and night. In the planetarium dome, shows ran every hour throughout the event with the exception of the 8:00 P.M. slot, when none other than Stargazer himself, Jack Horkheimer, gave a lecture on the Moon, Saturn, and Venus. The program in the planetarium dome concluded with back-to-back classic laser light shows by the Beatles and Pink Floyd, but that was surely not the end. Once the Sun went down, the Moon and stars were up, and the night had a beautiful, clear south Florida sky. The bright blue of early twilight provided great views of Venus and the Moon, and as the night progressed, the telescopes all turned to the two largest planets, Jupiter and Saturn. At 9:00 P.M., Stargazer Jack Horkheimer drew the winning ticket for the Meade ETX-90 telescope being raffled. The winner was 6-year-old William Peterson, whose father and older brother both have telescopes. Young William was especially excited to be able to join them in stargazing with one of his own. This year's Astronomy Day proved to be a great success not only in running smoothly but also in spreading the word about naked-eye and telescopic astronomy throughout the community. — Mark Bennett, director of the Weintraub Observatory |
 A visitor peers through the historic 24-inch Clark telescope at Lowell on Astronomy Day. Lowell Observatory [View Larger Image] During an interview for Phoenix's channel 3 news, Lowell Observatory's Kevin Schindler conveyed the spirit of Astronomy Day remarking that, "astronomy is one of those neat things where you don't need any special equipment — just to go outside and look at the night sky and see the constellations — anybody can do that." Visitors to Lowell Observatory enjoyed great views of constellations from atop Flagstaff's Mars Hill on Saturday, April 24. They also were treated to a full slate of daytime astronomy activities, nighttime observing, and special programs. As a partner with Astronomy magazine and Meade Instruments, Lowell Observatory welcomed some 530 visitors during a full day of astronomy fun. Lowell offered viewing of solar prominences and sunspots through two specially equipped portable solar telescopes. There was daytime viewing of a crescent of Venus through the 24-inch Alvan Clark telescope (the same instrument that has been in continuous use since the mid-1890s, when Percival Lowell founded his outpost observatory in northern Arizona). Observatory staff set up Starlab, a portable planetarium used to introduce visitors to constellations and presented a telescope workshop. Staff conducted tours of the Clark telescope, the A. Lawrence Lowell Pluto Discovery telescope, and the Slipher Building rotunda museum. Observatory staff worked hard in preparation and were ready for the 31st anniversary of Astronomy Day this year with the premier of a "Nightvision" program by astronomer Jeffrey Hall. Dr. Hall's program covers our fascination with the Sun and describes long-term research underway at Lowell on the Sun and similar stars, complete with stunning visuals. Also right in time for the event, the Observatory had two new interactive exhibits ready in the Visitor Center: "Explore the Universe" and "Dark Skies." A major highlight of the day on Mars Hill unfolded as Dan Thompson of Mesa, Arizona, claimed the lucky ticket as winner of an ETX-90 telescope donated by Meade Instruments. Other lucky winners received subscriptions to Astronomy magazine. Dan's fun continued after the drawing that night, when Observatory staff assisted him in setting up his new telescope, putting it to immediate use. A clear, warm late April night greeted a second wave of visitors to the observatory that Saturday. The historic Clark telescope was focused on and tracking the giant gas planet Jupiter, and its four Galilean satellites were clearly visible. At the center of campus, local astronomy enthusiasts from the Coconino Astronomical Society were out in full force with their telescopes, giving visitors excellent views of the Moon, Saturn, and Venus. Astronomy Day activities at Lowell benefited from significant media coverage, as Arizonans across the Grand Canyon State learned of the celebration. In addition to channel 3 television news coverage, the Observatory's events were covered twice by the local NBC affiliate; mentions were made on radio stations KNAU-Arizona Public Radio, Arizona News Radio, KAFF, and KAZM in Sedona. Feature stories ran in the Daily Courier (Prescott) and the Arizona Daily Sun (Flagstaff), and a detailed calendar listing was published in the East Valley Tribune (Scottsdale). Flagstaff's Mountain Living magazine ran a special calendar listing, and the Observatory also placed National Astronomy Day ads and published a special photo feature about the history of the event in its daily astronomical feature, StarTales, along with a section on its web site. The 2004 Astronomy Day collaboration brought astronomy to the people, and Astronomy Day has a brilliant, dark-sky future. — Steele Wotkyns, Lowell Observatory |
| Chabot Space and Science Center
Astronomy Day activities at Chabot included the use of solar telescopes for daytime viewing of the Sun, the Moon, and Venus; locating birthday stars; telescope-making with Jell-O lenses; and learning how telescopes work. Of course, the first Astronomy Day was held at Chabot Space & Science Center in 1973, started by Doug Berger, an amateur astronomer who wanted to introduce the public to the hobby and science of astronomy. Thirty years later, hundreds of local astronomy clubs and science organizations celebrate Astronomy Day by reaching out to kids and adults alike to expose them to the infinite wonders of our universe. Berger is currently a member of the EastBay Astronomy Society in Oakland and has been since 1967. — Judyth Collin, Chabot Space and Science Center |
| AstroDay 2k4
AstroDay 2k4 enjoyed more than 15,000 visitors through advertising in newspapers, radio, flyers (to each and every public, private, and charter school, as well as to public libraries on the island), and on cruise ships. The biggest draws included: the scholastic robotics exhibits and competition, the Mauna Kea Exploration Rover challenge (where youngsters drove the MER via remote control and a video screen to find "water" and other targets for prizes), the infrared camera and portrait studio, liquid Nitrogen hands-on demonstration, Hawaiian slack key performances, remote observations from Mauna Kea, and the Solar System Stamp Rally (where youngsters hunted for planets placed scale distances around the mall to collect stamps and redeem them for prizes). This was the best event we've done, and we garnered front-page coverage in the local paper and on local news stations. Check out www.astroday.net for more highlights. — Gary Fujihara, University of Hawaii science education and public outreach |
