December General Meeting

Matt McQuinn will be speaking with us about the cosmic microwave background, that is, the relic radiation from the Big Bang. Matt is an assistant professor at the University of Washington specializing in theoretical astrophysics and cosmology.

Harun Mehmedinovic and Gavin Heffernan will be speaking with attendees about light polution and their fight to reclaim the night sky. After a grueling three-year journey of over 150,000 miles and 3,000,000 pictures, the SKYGLOW Project, which tackles the most light polluted cities and pristine Dark-Sky preserves of North America, has been completed. A blend of images, stories, essays, anecdotal captions and astro-timelapse videos, the SKYGLOW book and videos explores the history and ... more

In October of 2017, the Solar system received its first recorded visitor from another star system. This asteroid, named `Oumuamua, passed by the Sun and planets at a high rate of speed, giving astronomers only a brief chance to understand its mysteries. I'll discuss what we thought we knew before it's visit, what we learned, and what we hope to learn as we watch the skies for the next visitor.

This Battle Point Astronomical Society's Edwin Ritchie Observatory (general meetings event) scheduled for Mar 21, 2022, 08:30 PM is cancelled due to inclement weather.

Nik Joshi, from Raisbeck Aviation High School, and Oliver Fraser, from the UW Astronomy department will be speaking with us about local astronomy and space centered education through the UW College in their High School program and at Raisbeck Aviation High School, as well as some of the projects that the students have been working on. Learn more about our seakers at: http://www.nrjoshi.info/home/about-mr-joshi http://depts.washington.edu/astron/profile/fraser-oliver/

Michael Dempster is a retired science teacher formerly with the Olympia public schools. He will be presenting a new astronomy teaching and visualization tool of his own design, the Galactic Context Model. A version of this device is now in production and will presented in an upcoming article in Sky & Telescope Magazine and on the market in 2018. It has what he calls both prosaic and poetic functions. In the right hands, day or night, it adds a level of beauty to the study of our ... more

Recent detections of gravitational-wave signals by LIGO and VIRGO detectors from astrophysical sources have opened a new window in to the universe. UW Assistant Professor Krishna Venkateswara will discuss the LIGO detectors and the advances which have made this possible, and describe the most recent detections of a binary black hole merger and a binary neutron star inspiral by the global network of three detectors. Board elections will be held at the beginning of the meeting.

Find out how to get the most out of the Astronomy Picture of the Day APOD) website. NASA/JPL Solar System Ambassador John McLaren will demonstrate how APOD is more than just beautiful images. Through the associated and links, a single APOD image can become a 30-minute exploration of an astronomical topic. John will cover how to: navigate the website use a picture's associated web links and other web resources to further explore the day's topic develop mini-lessons ... more

Come out and see a selection of work by a number of astrophotographers from the Seattle Astronomical Society. The photographers will present their work, share stories about how they captured their images, and answer some audience questions.

This lighthearted yet informative lecture reveals the difference between expectation and reality. Stephen, an avid eclipse chaser and observer of more than a dozen total and annular solar eclipses shares what we should do (and what not to do) so that we can have the best eclipse experience possible - without encountering the foibles described in this lecture. This entertaining romp should help eclipse watchers in Oregon to prepare for the unexpected. Who knows, maybe by the talk’s ... more