Amateur Astronomers Association of Pittsburgh

Your Bridge to the Stars

Events

Emerald View Park Star Party, Tuesday, May 29, 2018 from 9-11pm

by

Emerald View Star Party , 9 – 11 PM, Tuesday, May 29, 2018, is a free event is being run by the Pittsburgh City Park Rangers with the participation of Amateur Astronomers Association of Pittsburgh telescope operator volunteers. Park ordinances are enforced at all times. All ages event. Leashed dogs are permissible but must be under the direct control of their owners, and must remain a minimum of 10 feet away from the telescope at all times.If you would like help learning how to set-up and use your own telescope or binoculars, please feel free to bring them and arrive an hour early. AAAP telescope volunteers will share views through their telescopes.

Tuesday 5/29 (Emerald View)
Thursday 5/31 (Emerald View Makeup)

CANCELLED – Kunkle Star Party, Saturday, May 26, 2018

by

Kunkle Star Party is cancelled due to inclement weather

A public star gazing event is scheduled for 8 PM, Saturday, May 26, 2018 at Kunkle Park. Kunkle Park is located behind the Washington Township Municipal Building at 285 Pine Run Church Road, Washington, Twp., PA 15631. Look through the telescopes of Amateur Astronomers Association of Pittsburgh volunteers to view the craters and mountians of the Moon, Planets Venus and Jupiter, dissect double stars, see nebula, and more. Upcoming public nights at AAAP observatories include the Mingo Observatory June 8 and 9 Star Parties, Mingo Creek County Park, Washington County  and the June 22 and 23 Wagman Observatory Star Parties, in Deer Lakes Park, Allegheny County.

CANCELLED Murrysville Community Park Star Party of May 15, 2018

by

CANCELLED due to forecast of thunderstorms and soggy field conditions.

Murrysville Community Park May 15 beginning at 7:30 pm.

4056 Weistertown Rd. Murrysville Pa 15632.AAAP volunteers will engage in a star party at Murrysville Community Park on May 15. Free and Open to the Public. Another, is on the schedule for 7:30, Sunday, September 9, 2018.

New Horizons: Pluto and Beyond, by NASA Mission Specialist Mark Kochte, 7:30 PM, May 11, 2018, Amateur Astronomers Association of Pittsburgh May Meeting and Speaker Presentation

by

Amateur Astronomers Association of Pittsburgh will hold the May Meeting and Speaker Presentation at 7:30 PM, May 11, 2018 at the Science Stage, Carnegie Science Center, 1 Allegheny Ave, Pittsburgh, PA 15212.  The meeting lecture is free and open to the public. AAAP is excited to welcome back the most popular Mark Kochte, NASA Mission Specialist with the New Horizons Mission out of Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory.  This is one you do not want to miss. Mark will update us on the New Horizons Mission to Pluto and the upcoming invitation to spend New Year’s Day, January 1, 2019 with the NASA’s New Horizons visit to distant  Kuiper Belt Object 2014 Mu69, 44.2 a.u. from the Sun. Mark shares the behind the scene information that along with his excellent presentation skills make  his talks stand out. Be there on Friday to participate in the question and answer and to talk with Mark before and after his presentation. The presentation will be at the top of the evening followed by a break before the business meeting. The annual election of officers is held at this meeting. Members be sure to cast your vote. Afterwards, as always, those interested gather at Max’s on the North Side. Updates here and on AAAP’s Facebook Page. (Note: $5 per vehicle charge for use of parking lot.)

AAAP 2018 Star Party Season Kicks-Off This Weekend

by

The Amateur Astronomers Association of Pittsburgh kicks-off its 2018 Star Party Season this weekend with the added “fireworks” of the Lyrid Meteor Shower and the weather looks good to very good all weekend! Wagman Observatory will have a star party on both Friday and Saturday starting at 8:05 PM. Mingo Observatory will open on Saturday at 6:00 PM for Safe Solar Viewing. Also on Saturday during the day, there will be AAAP telescope viewing and astronomy activities at the Westmoreland Earth Day, 1-6 PM, Winnie Palmer Nature Center, Latrobe, PA. On Sunday, AAAP will be at the Mt. Lebanon Earth Day (SUNDAY, 22nd APRIL 2018,11am – 3pm, MT LEBANON PARK, 900 Cedar Blvd, Mt. Lebanon, PA15228) offering telescope safe solar viewing and astronomy activities.  At Laurel Hill State Park the Earth Day Celebration starts early at 9AM, Saturday, at the Visitor Center.

During the daytime events, enjoy safe solar viewing and astronomy activities.  Night sky observing begins at dusk. Look for Lyrid Meteors when the sky darkens. These meteors will be best seen before dawn on Saturday and Sunday mornings. See the planet Venus. View the Waxing Crescent Moon. Catch a last glimpse of the Orion nebula and other wonders of the Spring sky such as the galaxies in the Coma-Virgo Cluster, planetary nebulae and star clusters. These events are free and open to the public. Star party donations are appreciated. Be sure to obtain our 2018 Star Party Schedule, printed copies at our events and downloads on our website.  Contact AAAP via Facebook or our website calendar for more updates and more information.

AAAP Meeting, March 9, 2018, “Storms in Space – Ion Dynamics in the Earth’s Magnetosphere and It’s Implications on Earth” by Amy Keesee, PhD

by

Update: Due to the weather there will be no 6:30 PM Rooftop Stargazing.  The AAAP Meeting convenes at 7:30 PM inside the Science Stage. There is another group meeting at 7 PM inside the Science Stage for a brief orientation.

We wish to extend a warm welcome to AAAP members, guests, AAAP Facebook Fans, Wagman Star Party Fans, Mingo Star Party Fans, etc.! Join us as we kick-off the 2018 Astronomy Weekend with a pre-meeting Meet & Greet with Roof Star Gazing at 6:30 PM (weather-permitting) at the Carnegie Science Center Planetarium-Rooftop Observatory, 1 Allegheny Ave, Pittsburgh, PA 15212. Members may bring their telescopes. The meeting starts at 7:30 PM in the Planetarium. AAAP members remain for the business meeting after the lecture.

The meeting presentation features Dr. Amy Keesee, a Research Associate Professor in the Physics and Astronomy Department at West Virginia University. Dr. Keesee’s research focuses on ion dynamics in the Earth’s magnetosphere. As a member of the NASA TWINS Mission of Opportunity Science Team she studies ion heating during geomagnetic storms using Energetic Neutral Atom data from the TWINS and the MENA (from previous NASA IMAGE Mission) instruments. Additionally she works in Dr. Earl Scime’s Lab, using laser-induced fluorescence to understand ions and neutral atoms in helicon source plasmas. Through a collaboration with NASA IV&V Educator Resource Center she teaches workshops and a summer course for pre-service and in-service educators to learn about Sun Science and Space Weather using iPads. She is very involved with the West Virginia Chapter of the Association for Women in Science. Dr. Keesee has three sons she is raising in Bridgeport, WV where her husband is a hospitalist internal medicine doctor. Get ready to enjoy a talk on delving into current NASA heliophysics research on Sun activity at an ionic level and its implications to Earth as well as how school age children can learn Sun Science and Space Weather.

These AAAP events are free and open to the public.  There is a $5 Parking Lot Fee.