Optimus Template

Sol date August 5, 2011
We had about six telescopes show up on Friday at Spark’s Marina. About 100 people were able to take a peek through our telescopes which included Girl Scouts to Rappers and everything in between. Everyone enjoyed taking a peek and having their WOW moment. My favorite group was the five rappers who looked at Saturn and its moons. I explained that Titan was like earth but instead of water as an erosion force it was comprised of methane I told them we had sent a probe to this moon and saw many mountains, rivers, and lakes carved by methane as rain, and the internet had these photos. At this time three used their smart phones to download pictures of Titan and the rough surface. That was my WOW moment and why I enjoy being an active member of ASN. Seeing the excitement on their faces and seeing their view of their universe change made my evening!

Jim Fahey

Yeah, these events are a great way to promote astronomy (and the ASN). Some additional things you can do before a public event like this:

1. Go to the Heavens-Above website to see if the International Space Station (ISS) will be transiting overhead during the event.
2. Print out some sky maps from www.skymaps.com. This is a great web site where free copies of the latest sky maps can be downloaded. Let folks know that the best way to get into astronomy (before they even buy a telescope) is to start picking out the constellations!
3. Carry some extra ASN membership forms. You never know if a potential member is looking through your scope.