Did you know that the Astronomical League provides a way for you to get answers to your questions from astronomers who have done a good bit of observing?  We do.  It is the Master Observers Network.  It is a list server that sends an email to participating Master Observers, and they will respond to your querries.

To submit a question, use the Observe Tab and select Ask A Question.

If you are a master observer and would like to be added to the list of recipients, please contact Aaron Clevenson at aaron@clevenson.org.  We would love for you to join us.

The Astronomical League offers posters for clubs to download, then have printed for display at their public events such as Astronomy Day. They range in size from 20 x 30 inch sheets to materials that can be mounted on tri-fold project display boards. Some are available in 8.5 x 11 inch format. These documents can be printed at a local print shop at a rate of about $0.75 per square foot for black and white copies. Please visit https://test.astroleague.org//outreach

A few of the titles offered:

You Are Here — Illustrates our location in the Milky Way galaxy.

Navigating the Spring (or Fall) Night Sky — Gives the novice a tour of the sky.

How is Your Stargazing Knowledge? — Tests the public’s knowledge of the night sky in a friendly, interactive way.

Our Unnatural Night — Confronts the problem of light pollution.

What Telescope is Best for Me? — Guides the newcomer towards a suitable telescope.

How to Find Celestial Objects — Shows the methods amateur astronomers use to locate faint objects with ease.

The Need for Telescopes — Using the moon for comparison, the relative sizes of the planets are shown.

The ABCs of Stargazing — Explains the concepts of angular distance, brightness, and the altitude-azimuth coordinate system.

Is That a Planet or a Star? — Answers the question of how to tell a planet from a star.

If you would like to develop a set of downloadable materials in the style of those already available at Outreach Downloads, please contact Astronomical League President John Goss, president@astroleague.org.

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The Astronomical League is working with NASA to bring you some special
observing opportunities and awards.  The first of these is coming up very
soon.  It is to celebrate the flyby of Mars by Comet Siding-Spring.  The
target date is October 19, 2014.  Submissions must be made to the NASA
website by December 19, 2014.

In brief, you need to take a picture of the comet and/or Mars and submit it
to the NASA website.  You also need to do an outreach event related to this
event before December 19, 2014 and note it when you submit your
image.  There is no pin, this does NOT count towards a Master Observer
Certification, but there is a certificate signed by NASA and the AL leaders.

The NASA website address is:
https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/news/challenges.cfm

If you have questions, send them to Aaron Clevenson at aaron@clevenson.org.

Dear Illinois Astronomical League members and friends, and those who live in the neighboring states of Illinois:

In an e-mail conversation with Chicago Astronomical Society President Audrey Fischer, Elizabeth Norden of the Illinois Department of Natural Resources has requested input from the Illinois Astronomy community.

If this is something in which you’d like to participate, please fill in the survey below  email to:

Elizabeth.Norden@illinois.gov

Elizabeth Norden
Illinois Department of Natural Resources
(312) 814-3161

Thank you,

Robert Gadbois
Chicago Astronomical Society

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Illinois Department of Natural Resources

Illinois State Parks: Stargazing Evaluation Form 2014

1. At what Illinois state park do you stargaze?

2. What is the best location at the park from which to stargaze?

3. What existing elements at the park enhance stargazing?

4. What impediments exist to stargazing from the park?

5. How does the security lighting at the park affect stargazing?

6. In your opinion, what specific infrastructure at the park could be altered to

provide enhanced stargazing opportunities?

7. Is there a local stargazer organization associated with the park?

8. Have you previously held events at the park and/or worked with the site

superintendent/interpreter to promote stargazing? If yes, please describe.

Kansas City, MO)–The Astronomical League is pleased to announce the top finishers in its youth award programs for 2014. The first-place winner in the National Young Astronomer Award (NYAA) program is Pranav Sivakumar, from Tower Lakes, Illinois. A freshman at Barrington High School, Barrington, Illinois, his astronomical project uses a novel method developed to identify gravitationally lensed quasars from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. Understanding gravitational lensing can help decipher the properties of dark matter and dark energy.

The second-place winner is Katie Shen who lives in Potomac Falls, Virginia. Katie, a junior at Loudoun Academy of Science in Sterling, Virginia, titled her research project, “ Census of HII Regions in Sloan Digital Sky Survey.” These are regions of actively forming stars inside galaxies.

The top two finishers have each won an expenses-paid trip to receive their awards at ALCon, the national convention of the Astronomical League, being held in San Antonio, Texas, July 9-12, 2014. In addition, the first place winner will receive a special telescope from Explore Scientific, sponsor of the National Young Astronomer Award program.

The 2014 first-place winner of the League’s Jack Horkheimer/Smith Service Award, is Hagan Hensley, whose hometown is San Antonio. Hagan’s tremendous contribution to outreach activities for his astronomical society, the San Antonio League of Sidewalk Astronomers, earned him this award which is sponsored by the family of the late Jack Horkheimer, of the PBS astronomy program Jack Horkheimer: Star Gazer. In addition to receiving his award, Hagan will receive a $1,000 check in recognition of this special achievement.

GE Austin, is the 1st place winner of the Jack Horkheimer/O’Meara Journalism Award for 2014. The title of his essay was “The Mass of Life”. He lives in the state of Oregon and will be receiving his award in person at ALCon 2014. He will also receive a $1,000 check for his special 1st place essay.

Our NYAA and Horkheimer Service awards are open to high school age youth. The Horkheimer Journalism award is open to youth ages 8-14. For specific entry guidelines, please refer to the Astronomical League website test.astroleague.org.

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New Release

Kansas City, MO)–The Astronomical League is pleased to announce the winner of the 2014 Astronomical League Award. The Astronomical League Award is presented to any person, either amateur or professional, who has made worthwhile contributions to the science of astronomy on a national or international level. This year’s winner is David Hans Hough, Ph.D., professor of Physics and Astronomy at Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas. Dr. Hough is a longtime supporter of astronomy and the Astronomical League, including its National Young Astronomer Award program. The Astronomical League is honored to present this top award of the organization at its national convention, ALCon 2014, in San Antonio on July 12.

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Time Magazine asked the League to request from our astrophotographers their best photos for possible inclusion in its Astrophotography Gallery.

This was in connection with Astronomy Day 2014.  We had a great response, and here is the link to the gallery:  http://ti.me/1jJm0tp.  Congratulations to all who submitted an entry.  What talent we have among our over 15,000 members.

The magazine has also requested the League’s collaboration for its annual astrophotography contest.  More details will follow soon.  Time anticipates allowing much more lead time for the annual contest.