Recreational Astronomy Night (ONLINE)

Join us for our monthly recreational astronomy night meeting. This is where our members get to show their latest projects or give tutorials and tips on just about everything to do with astronomy.

Wednesday, August 4, 2021 - 7:30pm to 9:30pm

https://rascto.ca/content/recreational-astronomy-night-online-6

• Andy Beaton - The sky this month
• Ron Macnaughton – Weighing the Earth over two centuries ago
• 1 open slot - Contact Paul Markov if you would like to present

Who can attend: Everyone
Fee: Free
Registration: Not required
Organized by: RASC, Toronto Centre

Link: https://www.youtube.com/rasctoronto/live

Monthly Virtual Meeting

RASC Ottawa

Just a reminder of our upcoming virtual meeting on Friday, August 6th at 7:30 PM

They are looking for observation images. Please send these images to Dave Chisholm (meetingchair@ottawa.rasc.ca) and Chris Teron (chris@teron.ca) by end-of-day Monday, August 2nd for inclusion in the slides.

NOTE:  To allow more people to share, and keep our meeting from going on too long, we are now limiting observation reports to a maximum of 5 slides per presenter at 1 minute per slide.

If you would like to share more observations/content please contact Dave Chisholm (meetingchair@ottawa.rasc.ca) so that he can schedule you for a specific time at an upcoming meeting. 

They am looking for additional content and talks for our December, January and February meetings right now.

The agenda for this meeting is as follows:

- Ottawa Skies - Dave Chisholm
- Fred Lossing Observatory (FLO) 50th Anniversary Update - Gordon Webster
- Canadian Centre for Experimental Radio Astronomy (CCERA) Update - Marcus Leach
- Bob Olson - Astrophotography
- M&M Challenge (over the 5-minute break)
- Observations
- Observing Challenges

If you are NOT presenting a talk or observation you will need to register in advance for this Zoom webinar by clicking on the link below:

Register in advance for this webinar HERE!

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar.
If you are presenting a talk or observation Chris Teron will send you your own private "Panellist" link. You do not need to register.

REMINDER:  All are welcome at our meetings. 

Stellarium introductory course (ONLINE)

Wednesday, August 11, 2021 - 7:30 to 9:30 PM Mountain (Calgary) time

Stellarium is a powerful planetarium application available for Windows, Macintosh, and Linux computers. 

Class participants will learn how to setup the software for a specific location, date, and time. They will learn how to view the simulated sky, zoom and pan, and search for and select celestial objects. Features such as gridlines, the meridian, sky settings, and red light mode will be explored. This will provide an amateur astronomer a basic overview of the Stellarium program.

FOR MEMBERS ONLY.

Class sizes are limited. A waiting list is maintained for when courses are full.

This training is not for the paid Stellarium app on smartphones or the Stellarium web app.

https://rascto.ca/content/stellarium-software-introductory-course

Part of the Stellarium Training Series.

https://rascto.ca/content/stellarium-training-series

NOTE THIS COURSE IS FULL!

Who can attend: active RASC members
Fee: Free
Registration: Required

The Perseids Meteor Shower

RASC Toronto & David Dunlap Observatory (DDO)

Thu, August 12, 2021, 7:30pm– 8:30pm EDT - Online

Discover the history behind one of the most radiant celestial events in our hemisphere in this presentation by the David Dunlap Observatory: Learn how to spot the Perseids at its peak!

Register HERE!
 

Up in the Sky

RASC Toronto & David Dunlap Observatory (DDO)

Fri, August 13, 2021, 9:30pm to 11pm EDT - Online

Join us, from the comfort of your home! This program provides an illustrated one-hour presentation and discussion about what exciting celestial events to look for each season. The events and phenomena will be explained using simple language, with recommendations about how best to observe and photograph them. Only one registration per household is required. Please register by Wednesday, August 11, 2021 at 5pm EDT. Prior to the start of the program you will be emailed information on the virtual program links and any specific information relating to your program.

Register HERE!

Stellarium introductory course (ONLINE)

Monday, August 16, 2021 - 7:00 to 9:00 PM Eastern time

Stellarium is a powerful planetarium application available for Windows, Macintosh, and Linux computers. 

Class participants will learn how to setup the software for a specific location, date, and time. They will learn how to view the simulated sky, zoom and pan, and search for and select celestial objects. Features such as gridlines, the meridian, sky settings, and red light mode will be explored. This will provide an amateur astronomer a basic overview of the Stellarium program.

FOR MEMBERS ONLY.

Class sizes are limited. A waiting list is maintained for when courses are full.

This training is not for the paid Stellarium app on smartphones or the Stellarium web app.

https://rascto.ca/content/stellarium-software-introductory-course

Part of the Stellarium Training Series.

https://rascto.ca/content/stellarium-training-series

NOTE THIS COURSE IS FULL!

Who can attend: active RASC members
Fee: Free
Registration: Required

Insider's Guide to the Galaxy: Gas Giants Spectacular

Tuesday, August 17th, 3:30pm EDT

Register here!

We're taking a deep dive into the gassy atmospheres of the giant planets in our Solar System! Find out all about seeing the Great Red spot and the shadow transits, eclipses, and occultations of Jupiter’s moons. We’ll talk about Uranus' strange spin and Saturn's light and fluffy atmosphere. We’ll tell you how to view distant blue Neptune and its moon Triton. And we'll show you where to find them in the night sky, and share some telescope tips for observing this summer’s planets!

Clear Skies Ahead: Meteorological Techniques to Maximize Your Astronomy Experience

Presented by Jordan Witzel

RASC Calgary Centre 

Short synopsis: Clear skies are paramount to a great night of stargazing, and predicting those conditions isn’t as complicated as you might think. Jordan Witzel shares meteorological resources and techniques that will put you under the clear skies when that big event is happening.

Biography: Jordan Witzel holds a Mster's in Applied Meteorology from Mississippi State University and has been forecasting weather and climate in western Canada for 15 years. He also holds both a sociology degree and a communications diploma, believing that weather knowledge is useless if experts are unable to effectively communicate environmental details to the broader public. Jordan currently works as a communications specialist in the office of the Vice-President of Research at the University of Calgary, while also consulting private firms on weather and climate. 

This talk will take place Thursday August 19th, 2021 @ 7:30 pm MDT (9:30 pm EDT)

Join the talk via Zoom HERE!

Passcode: 217445

A Cosmic Treasury: Reviving a long-lost manuscript of astronomical poetry 
Guest of Honour Speaker: Mark Tovey
Adjunct Assistant Professor of History, Western University
Member of RASC History Committee

RASC London Centre

This event will take place Friday, August 20th, 2021 @ 7:30-9:00 pm EDT

Join the Zoom Meeting HERE!

During World War II, ace librarian Beatrice W. Welling assembled an anthology of poems about the heavens. Included in her manuscript were verses by some of the best-loved poets in the English Language. The voices and the cadences feel familiar, but the poems, since they are rarely anthologized, feel fresh.

Female poets are well-represented, as are Canadian poets. Welling attempted to provide as much variety to the verses as possible, consciously including “hymns, lyrics, sonnets, quatrains, rhyming couplets, blank verse”, and a number of other forms.

Welling organized the collection so that there would be at least one poem for each week of the year. Where it made sense, poems would appear at an apt time in the calendar year — the Orion poems are grouped in December, for example.

Had the manuscript been published in 1944, it would have been one of the world’s first anthologies of astronomical poetry. The manuscript was never published, and was forgotten.

In 2019, it was re-discovered by Peter Jedicke, who entrusted it to historian Mark Tovey to prepare for publication.

Join Mark Tovey, who is in the process of editing Welling’s manuscript into a soon-to-be-released book of art and poetry of the night sky. Tovey will tell the story of Welling’s remarkable life, and give a tour of the people and places that may have inspired Welling to assemble this collection.

Special guests include Peter Jedicke, Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, and David H. Levy, Co-Discoverer of Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9.

All interested are welcome to attend!
 

Speaker:

Mark Tovey did his BA at Western University, where he was the recipient of the Gold Medal for English & Linguistics. His PhD in Cognitive Science was from Carleton University. He was a Fellow at the Balsillie School of International Affairs, and is an Adjunct Assistant Professor in History at Western University. He has a particular interest in the ways in which public history can be combined with public astronomy. Tovey led the design of the three historical exhibit rooms in the Cronyn Observatory at Western University, and sits on the History Committee of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada. Mark Tovey edited the first book on the use of collective intelligence for solving global challenges.

Zoom Meeting ID: 719 353 982

Astronomy Speakers Night

RASC Toronto & David Dunlap Observatory (DDO)

Fri, August 20, 2021, 9:30pm to 11pm EDT - Online

Join us, from the comfort of your home! This program will feature live-stream views from the DDO's 74-Inch telescope (Weather permitting). Explore breaking news from space and current research into what lies beyond our home planet! Each night, we’ll take a virtual tour of the DDO, hear from our speakers about their own amazing space research, and ask them all our questions about what they know and what they’re discovering. Only one registration per household is required. Please register by Wednesday, August 18, 2021 at 5 pm EDT. Prior to the start of the program you will be emailed information on the virtual program links and any specific information relating to your program.

Register HERE!

Sunday Sungazing

RASC Toronto & David Dunlap Observatory (DDO)

Sun, August 22, 2021, 12:30pm to 1pm EDT - Online

Safely observe the sun with us, from the comfort of your home! During these family-friendly sessions, a DDO Astronomer will answer your questions about our closest star: the sun! Learn how the sun works and how it affects our home planet. Live-streamed views of the sun through small telescopes will be included, weather permitting. Only one registration per household is required. Please register by Wednesday, August 18, 2021 at 5 pm EDT. Prior to the start of the program you will be emailed information on the virtual program links and any specific information relating to your program.

Register HERE!

Stellarium intermediate course (ONLINE)

Monday, August 23, 2021 - 7:00 to 9:00 PM Eastern time

Stellarium is a powerful planetarium application available for Windows, Macintosh, and Linux computers. 

Participants will learn how to load additional catalogues, customise the application including setting up specific locations, check Jupiter's Great Red Spot position, load new comets, modify the toolbar, choose landscape textures, use stepping zooming, copy object information, configure eyepiece and camera views, and slew a telescope mount to a target. This will provide an amateur astronomer a deeper understanding of the Stellarium program.

FOR MEMBERS ONLY.

Class sizes are limited. A waiting list is maintained for when courses are full.

https://rascto.ca/content/stellarium-software-intermediate-course

Part of the Stellarium Training Series.

https://rascto.ca/content/stellarium-training-series

NOTE THIS COURSE IS FULL!

Who can attend: active RASC members
Fee: Free
Registration: Required
Organized by: RASC, Toronto Centre

Stellarium introductory course (ONLINE)

Thursday, August 23, 2021 - 7:00 to 9:00 PM Eastern time

Stellarium is a powerful planetarium application available for Windows, Macintosh, and Linux computers. 

Class participants will learn how to setup the software for a specific location, date, and time. They will learn how to view the simulated sky, zoom and pan, and search for and select celestial objects. Features such as gridlines, the meridian, sky settings, and red light mode will be explored. This will provide an amateur astronomer a basic overview of the Stellarium program.

FOR MEMBERS ONLY.

Class sizes are limited. A waiting list is maintained for when courses are full.

This training is not for the paid Stellarium app on smartphones or the Stellarium web app.

https://rascto.ca/content/stellarium-software-introductory-course

Part of the Stellarium Training Series.

https://rascto.ca/content/stellarium-training-series

NOTE THIS COURSE IS FULL!

Who can attend: active RASC members
Fee: Free
Registration: Required