Where science and tech meet creativity.

I’ll be giving a workshop and assisting in a panel discussion at the AAPT Greensboro meeting.

Workshop


Doing Real Science Projects with Small Telescopes
Pamela L. Gay
In this workshop participants will get resources on how they can get involved in real science using off-the-shelf telescopes to tour the skies. Divided into three parts, this workshop will overview current opportunities for professional-amateur-educational astronomy collaborations, and then go into the practical skills needed to do science through both visual observing and CCD observing. Participants will receive CD-ROMs containing practice activities, FAQs, and the basics on getting started. Particular emphasis will be given to variable star observing. Variable stars are part of the current Science Olympiad Division C program, and this workshop will go over the skills needed to understand observing these stars, and contributing data to the International Database of Variable Stars at the American Association of Variable Stars. Methods for observing planetary transits, microlensing events, and minor bodies (for instance asteroids) will also be discussed.