The October 28th meeting of the RASC Mississauga Centre will feature a talk on the status of amateur astronomy.
Talk Title: Amateur Astronomy - A Status Report
Speaker: Randy Attwood, Executive Director - The Royal Astronomical Society of Canada
Amateur astronomy has changed drastically over the past 50 years. Telescopes made in the basement have been replaced with high quality instruments capable of performing astronomical research. Those new to astronomy are confronted with computerized telescopes and unfortunately, disappearing skies due to light pollution
There is a great opportunity for amateur astronomers to reach members of the public and promote science literacy and critical thinking. Since young people are attracted to astronomy and space science, we have an opportunity to encourage young people to embrace “STEAM” and pursue careers in science and technology.
Randy Attwood stands in front of the telescope/camera used to discover Pluto in 1930.
Randy Attwood has been looking up for most of his life. His interest in space and astronomy was sparked during the summer of 1969 with the first moon landing. Since then he has observed and photographed the night sky, chased solar eclipses across the globe and witnessed several space shuttle and rocket launches. He often appears in the media to comment on various astronomy and space exploration stories. To recognize his contributions to science public outreach, asteroid 265235 was named Asteroid Attwood in 2012.
The meeting will be held from 8:00 to 10:00 p.m. at The University of Toronto,Mississauga Campus, in lecture hall SE2082 in the William Davis Building. The meeting is open to the public and is free.
Enter off of Mississauga Road. Park in lot 4 or the parkade, across from the fitness centre south of theDavis Building. Enter through the Fitness centre, walk up the stairs untilyou reach the main corridor then turn right. (If you need an elevator,follow the corridor to the right of the stairs, then go up to the mainfloor.) Look for the Mississauga Centre sign in front of the lecture room.
Post meeting plans: we usually continue the discussion post-meeting at a local bar – please join us!
