In the spring of 2009, The Royal Astronomical Society of Canada - Edmonton Chapter will be hosting an astronomy workshop at a retreat in Alberta, usually within 2 hours driving distance of Edmonton. The event runs from Friday evening until Sunday afternoon.
For those that do not know what this event is, here is a description. It is basically an astronomy retreat for a weekend. We book a school or scout camp somewhere outside of city limits to take advantage of the dark skies. The event is fully catered; all you have to bring is your bedding, warm clothes and your telescope(s)/binoculars. If you do not own either a telescope or binoculars, you are still warmly welcome to attend. Several of the attendees will have their own equipment and would be more than happy to show you the wonders of the night sky. We bring in a high profile guest speaker, as well as featuring local talent from our Club to assist you in learning more about astronomy. The cost per person is around $100.00 for the entire weekend, but once the details are finalized, the final cost will be published.
We strive to bring in a high profile guest speaker who will talk about an area of astronomy that interests them. In the past, we have had Ivan Semeniuk (formerly with the Discovery Channel) and Dr. Jaymie Matthews from the University of British Columbia, the principal investigator with Canada s MOST space telescope.
We will also be featuring our round robin sessions with members of our Club giving presentations on different areas of astronomy designed to teach you different aspects of astronomy, which you might find useful. The following are some examples of round robin sessions, which have been presented in the past.
Teacher Session
A session designed to provide information for teachers using the Alberta Science Curriculum to assist teachers in their presentation of astronomy in the classroom. Our instructor will provide information and tips on how to present the different astronomical concepts to students in a fun and novel way. All teachers who attend the Workshop will also receive free a copy of Skyways: Astronomy Handbook for Teachers, which is published by The Royal Astronomical Society of Canada.
Digital Astrophotography
Astrophotography has come a long way in a short time. Our instructors will help you understand the finer points of digital astrophotography and show you the do's and don'ts.
Collimation Clinic
One of the members of our Club has an extensive meteorite collection and in the past has given a presentation on different types of meteorites. He also brings his collection to the Workshop with a microscope so you can view these meteorites up close.
Rocketry by Adrian Liggins
Adrian is President of the Edmonton Rocketry Club and has given a presentation on model rockets and everything you need to know about them. The Edmonton Rocketry Club will also launch a rocket during the Workshop (weather conditions permitting).
Providing the weather co-operates, we will be having night sky viewing through telescopes and binoculars. During the day, several of our members will have telescopes set up outside of the facility to do some solar observing safely through filters.
Our Club also has a telescope-lending program where teachers can sign out a 15cm (8") telescope for a week or two for free to give students an opportunity to learn the operation of a telescope for themselves and view objects in the sky. A "Kidscope" as they are called will be on display at the Workshop. Each telescope comes complete with instructions for assembly and basic operation.
As details are finalized, more information will be published on our website at www.edmontonrasc.com If you require more information, please feel free to contact Sherry Campbell at etagem@telus.net or (780) 433-1516.