NSP

NSP4 Home Page
Daily Reports & Photos
Welcome Letter
Schedule
General Info
Contests & Awards
Programs & Speakers
Door Prizes
Acknowledgements


Lodging
Activities
Site Info

Contact Us

Programs and Speakers

VIC WINTER “COMET HALE-BOPP”

Vic Winter is an amateur astronomer that has been interested in the sun,as well as other celestial wonders all his life. He is the holder of the Astronomical League's Sunspotter Certificate #001, as well as the Messier 110, Hershel 400 and numerous other observing awards. He is a past president of the Astronomical Society of Kansas City and was Observatory Director of Powell Observatory for two years. While he has helped built many telescopes, the dedicated Hydrogen-Alpha solar telescope is the first one he designed constructed by himself (and it works!) Vic works as an electronic imager and photographer for The Kansas City Star. The slide talk will be called "Photographing Hale-Bopp - Finding that Perfect Spot". Slides will show a variety of ways I shot the comet with foreground objects and different lenses. The H-Alpha telescope will be mostly a live demo with possible Q&A and a hand out.

BRENDA CULBERTSON “BINOCULAR ACTIVITIES FOR AMATEUR ASTRONOMERS”

Brenda Culbertson was a stargazer at a very early age when she would study the motion of the stars from her back yard. She began studying astronomy at Washburn University and graduated with a degree in natural sciences and mathematics. She has since gone back to pick up a degree in journalism. Brenda has conducted research involving a number of topics such as grazing occultation timings, planetary occultations, predictions for aurora sightings, and more. She has been published in many magazines including “Astronomy”, “Sky & Telescope”, and “Observatory Techniques”,is well as newspapers and newsletters. Currently, Brenda is involved in the Warner & Swasey Refurbishing Project, a project to re-work the hundred year old refractor at Washburn University. During this discussion, Brenda will tell how amateur astronomers can utilize binoculars to accomplish many observing activities. She will present types of objects, such as Messier Objects, that can be viewed easily through low powered binoculars. More challenging objects, such as NGC items, will also be presented. Lunar features will be covered as well. Brenda will talk about finding the field of view for your binoculars and limits of low powered binoculars. Limits for individual eyes will also be discussed.

DAVE SCHERPING “NAME THAT OBJECT” CONTEST

BOB LINDERHOLM “HUNTING FOR MINOR PLANETS (ASTEROIDS)”

Bob Linderholm lives in Cambridge. Nebraska. He received a BA from Nebraska Wesleyan in 1956. He served in the US 7th Army Europe 1956-1958. Bob retired from Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company (Lincoln, NE plant) in 1978 and moved to Cambridge, Nebraska. In 1983, he started a computer parts/upgrade business from which he retired in 1997. Bob has been interested in astronomy for many years and bought a 10” Meade LX200 and his first CCD camera in 1995. In December 1996, Bob directed two 8th graders from Cambridge, NE in measuring relative motion and brightness of asteroids using the 10” SCT and CCD at Lime Creek Observatory 721. One of the objects they observed (1996XD9) was confirmed to be a new discovery. Bob’s presentation will include history and descriptions of asteroids, where they are found, and details of their orbits. He will then describe the equipment, resources, and techniques available for amateur astronomers to use in detecting, measuring and reporting asteroids.

RICHARD WILDS “OBSERVING OCCULTATIONS”

Richard Wilds is Research Coordinator for the Heartland Astronomical Research Team (HART). He received a BA in History from Washburn University in 1975 and an MS in Special Education from Kansas State University in 1983. Richard is an active member of the American Astronomical Society and the International Occultation Timing Association. He was Assistant Editor and Staff Writer for Deep Sky Monthly from 1977-1982 and served as Assistant Editor and Staff Writer for Deep Sky - AstroMedia Corp 1982-1983. He has also written numerous articles for IOTA where he has been Grazing Occultation Coordinator since 1992 and Vice President for Grazing Occultations since 1995.

He began making regular astronomical observations for the U.S. Naval Observatory at the age of 15 in 1967. He led his first grazing occultation expedition in 1972 and by 1977, he had led 16 expeditions for IOTA. In 1977 he switched his efforts to writing in order to popularize observing deep sky objects with small telescopes. In the mid 1980s he returned to occultation work at the request of IOTA’s president - Dr. David W. Dunham. In the late 1980s he was joined by other amateur astronomers from the Topeka area with an interest in doing serious scientific research that would have a significant impact. Members of the HART have worked for years with the US Naval Observatory and IOTA on their Lunar Occultation Project. They helped map the Marginal Zone of the moon through observing over 100 grazing occultations and helped establish accurate stellar positions in star clusters for establishing parameters of galactic rotation. In doing so, they discovered 20 double stars. In 1988 they assisted NASA with their planned Cassini mission to Saturn by using a CCD imager to videotape Saturn’s passage in front of 28 Sagittarii and in 1991, they assisted the Galileo mission by videotaping Jovian Mutual Events. The high quality of their observations, timed to an accuracy of 0.03 seconds, will allow NASA to save precious fuel in its exploration of Jupiter and its moons. During the 10 May 1994 annular solar eclipse, they produced what NASA has called the best videotape of Baily’s Beads, which lasted 12 minutes. Their latest project was again for the Cassini Mission in which they produced accurately timed videotaped coverage of the latest Saturn Mutual Event series. This required building their own image intensified video system which they are also using for recording asteroid occultations. Richard’s presentation will discuss occultations, skills used by observers, the fun and excitement of research, and details on reporting observations. He will show videos of occultations and total eclipses, grazing occultations, asteroid occultations, and planetary mutual events. Also, you are invited to join Richard at the observing field on Friday night and Saturday night as he observes two Jovian mutual events each night.

Tom Gehringer - Telescopes in Education

The Telescopes in Education program is sponsored by the Mt. Wilson Institute and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California. I found out about the program from the Sky and Telescope article in July 1994. I thought that it could be interesting to try with my students. It didn't come to fruition until I started teaching astronomy at Burke High School in Omaha. After much frustration getting the software and hardware to work, along with scheduling time on the telescope and getting use of the building in the middle of the night during the summer, things went fairly well. We had our share of glitches with the hardware and software on the first night, June 11, and losing the phone number to contact the telescope technician at the observatory on the second night, June 26. However, the results were spectacular! Among the objects imaged are the Whirlpool Galaxy (M-51), the Hercules cluster (M-13), The Ring Nebula (M-57), and the planet Pluto! We also attempted to image Mars, but it was too bright! The process by which you can gain access to this telescope is not all that hard. I will be glad to explain it to anyone interested. It requires a PC / Windows computer, the Remote Astronomy Software (RAS) from Software Bisque and at this time two telephone lines, one for voice and one for data. In the near future, they hope to have new software and equipment installed at Mount Wilson to allow access over the internet. Access is free to educational institutions. The only problem is getting time on the telescope. They are booked rather far ahead.

Mike Ford - Star-Lab Demonstrations

Mike has been an active amateur astronomer for 36 years and have worked in various observing programs including the total and grazing occultation program (now named IOTA), Association of Lunar and Planetary Observers (ALPO) and American Association of Variable Star Observers (AAVSO). I have also been involved in binary star research during my time in college. Currently, I teach astronomy, general science and broadcasting at Holton High School, Holton, Kansas and have done so for 11 years. I also teach astronomy as an adjunct instructor for Highland Community College. I have done this for ten years. I have been involved in CCD imaging and presented papers at the National Science Teachers Convention in Kansas City and Anaheim, CA on this subject. I wrote a grant for a CCD imaging system in 1993, which was awarded to our school district in 1994. I am a member of the National Science Teachers Association, The Planetary Society, and the Northeast Kansas Amateur Astronomers League (NEKAAL). I will showing the Starlab developed by Learning Technologies in Boston, MASS. The Starlab is a portable planetarium that uses an inflatable dome (using a box fan), a projector and a series of cylinders that produce an artificial sky. I use it for public programs and intense star and constellation studies for high school and college classes. It will fit 20 people comfortably. In addition to astronomy, Starlab also has cylinders for the human cell, the Earth with ocean currents and plates. It has been a very useful tool for all grade levels in our district as well as college. The starfield is very realistic and rivals some of the more expensive permanent planetariums I have been to.

OTHER PROGRAMS

AT PUBLIC OBSERVING NIGHT: 10:00 PM- ? LORRI MAY CONSTELLATIONS TALK

DURING THE DAY ON FRIDAY:
12:15 - 1:00 & 2:45 - 3:30PM
MIKE FORD
STAR LAB DEMONSTRATION

As available VIC WINTER & DAVE KNISELY SOLAR OBSERVING Solar-Fitted Telescopes Welcome!

MIRROR GRINDING & MIRROR TESTING DEMONSTRATION