Astronomy Day 2019

Theme: Bringing Astronomy to the People

Astronomy Day will be Saturday, October 19, 2019 from 1:00 PM to 10:00 PM in Monte Sano State Park

ASTRONOMY DAY COMBINES FAMILY FUN AND EDUCATION

On Saturday, October 19 from 1:00 - 10:00 PM, the Von Braun Astronomical Society will host its annual Astronomy Day at the VBAS facilities in Monte Sano State Park. For directions see this link. Events will include family fun activities hosted by local science groups, planetarium shows and telescope observing (weather permitting). All activities are free and open to the public.

Outdoor hands-on activities from 1:00 - 5:00 PM will be offered by VBAS, as well as local science enthusiasts. In the past we have had representatives from HAL5 (National Space Society Huntsville Chapter), U.S. Space & Rocket Center, and Lonnie Puterbaugh: Astronomy Van.

Short planetarium shows will allow guests to view the night sky indoors, while special solar telescopes outside will offer views of sunspots and solar flares. Visitors may tour both observatory facilities to hear stories about the construction and installation of the telescopes.

Evening activities will kick off at 7:00 PM with a special presentation indoors.  Following our evening presentation we will have telescopes set up to view the night sky, weather permitting.

Tentative outdoor activities include: The Astronomy Channel, a mobile multimedia astronomy exhibit presented by Lonnie Puterbaugh of Nashville, TN, along with the following activities:

• *Astrophotography
• *Meteorites
• *Solar Telescopes
• *Observatory tours
• *Pin the Payload on International Space Station, and Make and Launch Your Own Paper Air Rocket presented by HAL5.
• *Dry Ice comet making
• *Astronomy Van
• *Environment of Space (vacuum jar experiments)
• *Food Truck
• *Telescope Workshop at 5:30 PM (Bring your telescope!)
• *And many more

Please note that outdoor activities are weather dependent and may be canceled with little or no notice due to rain or high winds.

Afternoon Mini-Planetarium Show Schedule (TENTATIVE):

• 1:00
• 2:00
• 3:00
• 4:00

Evening Show

7:00 PM The Past, Present, and Future of Astrophysics: Chandra, IXPE, and Lynx

Presented by Dr. Martin C. Weisskopf NASA/MSFC, Chief Scientist for X-ray Astronomy, Project Scientist for the Chandra X-ray Observatory, and Principal Investigator for the Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer (IXPE) and Dr. Jessica Gaskin, NASA/MSFC, Research Astrophysicist and Study Scientist for the Lynx Mission, a proposed replacement for the Chandra X-ray Observatory.

Astronomy Day 2019 Sponsored By: