2011 Events

Oct 22, 2011 Jasper Dark SKy Festival

Jasper celebrated having been awarded the designation of the World's Largest Dark Sky Preserve! The Jasper Dark Sky Festival was October 21-24 with themed events, activities and packages in and around Jasper. The festival was filled with plenty of events to celebrate our dark sky! Brochure. Jasper Dark Sky Website.

Oct 22, 6:00 pm-10:30 pm Star Party In the Park
Pyramid Lake and Jasper Park Stables
Visit the best sky viewing areas in Jasper National Park and join in the star-crossed fun at Jasper's Star Party! Wander through a myriad of activities and performances including Alberta Parks DSI: Dark Sky Investigator Theatre, astronomy presentations, telescope viewing hosted by members of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada, Pyramid Island Starlight Adventure, interpretive starlit wagon rides and guided night walks with Friends of Jasper National Park and Parks Canada.

Oct 8, 2011 International Observe the Moon Night

The RASC Edmonton Centre welcomed everyone who is interested in the Moon or the night sky in general to visit us at the TELUS World of Science Observatory to celebrate the 2nd annual International Observe the Moon Night.

Enter a contest to win a FREE telescope. Details here.

Sep 27 - Oct 2, 2011 Northern Prairie Star Party
Join us for an unforgettable autumn weekend under the stars. Bring your telescope and your sense of wonder for stargazing under seriously dark skies. Daytime activities abound - exceptional birding opportunities. Lakeshore campsites with canoeing and fishing at your doorstep.

 

Sep 30 - Oct 1, ISSET Space Symposium
The 8th annual Space Exploration Symposium features Dr. Chris Herd, University of Alberta, "Organic Matter in the Tagish Lake Meteorite", and Dr. Ronald Oremland, Senior Scientist at the US Geological Survery and lead researcher in the topic of "aresenic-based life". This was a FREE event. View poster. See the ISSET web page for program details.

Travel bursaries available for students outside Edmonton, courtesy RASC. Download the application form here.

Sep 12, 2011 7:30-9:30pm RASC Meeting
"The discovery of the planet Neptune on September 23, 1846, is justly famed as a triumph of reason, hard work, and the brilliant application of celestial mechanics" (ref) and one of the most remarkable discoveries in the entire history of science, let alone the history of astronomy. It also sparked an intense and hard fought controversy over who should get credit that led to acrimonious exchanges between British, French and American astronomers and wrecked the reputation of the then Astronomer Royal, George Airy. So with Neptune having just completed it's first circuit of the sky since it's discovery it was a timely moment to look back on these remarkable events. 

On September 12, Dr. Robert Smith of the Department of History and Classics, University of Alberta gave a talk on the discovery of Neptune. He spoke about  the lively story of the twists and turns that eventually led to the eight planet's discovery. After the meeting, we had hoped to open the Observatory and have a look at Neptune, but clouds foiled us.

Mar 5, 2011 6:00-9:30 Winterlight Star Party, CITY HALL
Anticipating extreme weather and road conditions Winter Light's Star Party was moved from Elk Island National Park to Edmonton's City Hall. The Star Party: Plan B event featured more than 20 astronomers and presenters who provided a fascinating glimpse into their star knowledge, expertise and enthusiasm. The festival component also continued, with a variety of cultural activities and displays. This event was FREE.

Feb 5, 2011 5:00-10:00pm Jasper Star Party
 Celebrate the David Thompson Bicentennial with a Star Party at the Jasper Activity Centre. Child (under 16) $5 Adult (16 and over) $11.