Astronomy in DC

The National Capital Astronomers have a monthly meeting in Rock Creek Park in Washington DC. Typically they see around 50 people coming to their events, sometimes up to 100. Volunteers set up their own telescopes, and then invite visitors to see some of the wonders of the night sky up close. There was all sorts of equipment there on the evening we visited, including a replica Galileo scope which was used to see the Moon and some other, more up-to-date stuff. There was even, for the technologically advanced, someone with an iphone showing off Google Sky, pointing at a constellation and being told all about it there.

The man in charge, Joe, was an extremely amiable fellow and welcomed the meetup group that had come (as well as other stragglers like us) to the star party. I felt warmly engaged, well included and very informed, as well as reconnected to the beauty of the night sky being able to see Saturn and moons, Albireo and the double-double of Epsilon Lyrae. It is no wonder therefore that the observing sessions are described as one of the hidden jewels of DC.

There was another chance to use the telescopes at the University of Maryland's Astronomy Department, which hosts twice-monthly Open House evenings, which involve a talk and a tour of the Observatory. This year the department is hosting 'Learn the Sky' nights, with either a beginners' class or an advanced course, and this appears to be well worth the investment, if you're able to withstand the mosquitoes.

Capital Astronomers: www.capitalastronomers.org
Maryland Astronomy Department: www.astro.umd.edu/openhouse

At this point I would also like to point readers to the software Chromascope, which would have been extremely useful in the talk at the Observatory. It has been developed by a former postdoc at Jodrell Bank and combines data from sky surveys to create a map of the universe at each different wavelength. An incredible tool for science museums, centres and interested parties alike.