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  • Writer's pictureChuck T

September Newsletter

MSU is back in Session and summer is coming to an end! Seems like it was just Memorial day! We had a great weekend at Fox Park for the annual Star Party, from Aug. 25-28. We had folks come in from around the state to camp and view the sky. There were 3 large Dobsonian telescopes set up on the field along with a large Stellarview refractor, a Celestron Nexstar, and a few other astrophotography rigs. Tom from Warren set up his 28 inch!! Dob and the views were spectacular! The Ring Nebula, M57 was so amazing in the eyepiece. The "stars" of the weekend were Saturn and Jupiter. Looking thorough the different scopes there was not a bad view- only better and better views. Friday's views of the planets were sharper, but the Great Red Spot came around on Saturday night and in Tom's 28 inch, you could easily see the red spot along with details inside the cloud bands. Kevin K also was putting his new refractor to the test on Saturn and Jupiter and the views were on par with the 28- very sharp ring definition and you could easily make out the red spot. A great Astronomy weekend and we had clear skies! Thanks to those who came out.


We have a sneak peak of the new Planetarium show for our September 7 meeting. Join us at 7pm at Abrams to view the show. Afterwards we can discuss any future meeting ideas.


Some upcoming events to mark on your calendar:


Astronomy on Tap: Outdoors- Sept. 21, 7:30 pm at the Michigan Nature Conservancy in Bath. This is a great location with an outdoor patio to enjoy the speakers. There is Food and drink for available and we have been setting up telescopes afterwards for some stargazing.


Address is :6380 Drumheller Rd, Bath Twp, MI 48808


Astronomy on Tap: Special Event DART MISSION!!

Monday Sept. 26 6:00pm

I posted a webinar last September on the DART Mission- well the mission is about to reach its target!!


Join us on September 26th for a special event at UrbanBeat Lansing covering NASA's DART mission!! Event is between 6:00 PM and 8:00 PM ET.


NASA's DART mission is the first ever focused on planetary defense, and the first time that humanity will measure the controlled deflection of an asteroid in space. At this Astronomy on Tap event, DART mission team member Prof. Seth Jacobson will introduce and explain how the experiment that the DART mission is conducting will enable NASA and the scientific community to better protect Earth and its inhabitants including us. At 7:14 pm ET, the DART spacecraft will collide with the asteroid Dimorphos, and those at the event will watch live as the images leading up to the collision are broadcast by NASA. After the hopeful success of the impact, Prof. Jacobson will reflect on what we all witnessed and be available to answer questions.


MSU Observatory Open House:

September 30: 9:00-11:00 p.m.

October 1: International Observe the Moon Night, 7:00-10:00 p.m. with special activities.

The observatory can use the club's help to set up scopes outside for the public to view while waiting to go up into the dome. THese events have been quite busy and any help is appreciated


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