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Happening
at the Crossroads
April 25,
2008
by Coggin
Heeringa
"Here
Comes the Sun!" And we sincerely hope it will be sunny at Crossroads at
Big Creek this Saturday, May 3 from 1:00-4:00 PM as the Door Peninsula
Astronomical Society presents "Astronomy Day 2008."
This free
event will enable families and learners of all ages to visit our
facilities in the light of day. If you have never visited the
Stonecipher Astronomy Center, the Leif Everson Observatory and
the StarGarden, you will be amazed. The Astronomy Campus of Crossroads is reached from the Utah Street entrance.
In
selecting "The Sun" as the theme for the event, Crossroads joins
astronomical and educational institutions throughout the world in
celebrating the International Heliophysical Year. The term
"Heliophysical" is a broadening of the concept "geophysical," extending
the connections from the Earth to the Sun & interplanetary space.
And celebrate we will!
Using the telescopes of the Leif Everson
Observatory and smaller scopes in the StarGarden - all, of
course, fitted with special filters for eye safety - viewers
will be able to observe the Sun and perhaps see sunspots and
solar flares. Maybe. If they are occurring.
The Sun has
been remarkably inactive recently, which in many ways is good for
humans on Earth. Storms on the Sun can cause disruptions with
electrical transmission and telecommunications. Serious storms on
the Sun can damage aircraft and satellites. Sunspot activity
seems to influence weather is ways researchers do not fully
understand. The unusual quiet on the Sun may mean something,
though scientists do not as yet know what.
Exhibits and
demonstrations will help you learn what scientists do know about the
Sun and its solar system. In tents scattered on the observatory lawn,
participants will learn about the scale of the solar system,
see why the moon has phases, and view solar images through
3-D glasses.
In the Ray and Ruthie Stonecipher Astronomy
Center, visitors will experience the StarLab Inflatable
Planetarium. This recently purchased planetarium features a
custom fisheye lens capable of depicting an accurate,
high-contrast simulated night sky covering a full 180º on the dome. We
hope the short introductory sky show will give you a feel for the
extraordinary capabilities of the planetarium ...and hopefully
encourage you to return to the StarLab for each new Sky Show we offer.
Participants
will be able to see our radio telescope and weather station.
There will be a tent for young learners to experiment with shadows,
prisms, and and science toys.
An exhibit on Solar Energy will
demonstrate how the energy of the Sun can be captured and
utilized, reducing our reliance on fossil fuels.
And in honor of The Sun - every body's favorite star - free Ice Cream SUNdaes will be served.
Astronomy
Day 2008 is presented by the Door Peninsula Astronomical Society, with
help from the Friends of Crossroads, as part of an on-going effort
to "Bring Astronomy to the People"
As the astronomy folk
have turned their attention to the stars above Sturgeon Bay,
researchers from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Department have been
studying Lake Sturgeon. On Thursday, May 1, at 7:00 Fishery
Biologist Rob Elliott will present a PowerPoint presentation titled
"Lake Sturgeon-Gentle Giants of the Great Lakes."
Elliot has
been working with this species in area waters of Green Bay for the last
10 years in coordination with other biologists and researchers around
the Great Lakes. He will talk about the current status of lake
sturgeon in our local waters and about their unusual life history that
has sustained them in the Great Lakes for thousands of years, but also
makes them susceptible to extirpation in today's world.
He also
will share new findings and initiatives that are important to this
species recovery and explain why the future of lake sturgeon in our
area waters is looking brighter.
This lecture is free and open to the public. It will be presented in the lecture hall of the Collins Learning Center.
And
speaking of fish, the suckers are running in Big Creek. Trails are open
to the public. Visiting the spawning fish is a rite of spring.
Crossroads at Big Creek is located at 2041 Michigan (County TT) in
Sturgeon Bay. The Astronomy Campus can be reached from the turning left
at the stop sign on Utah Street, east of Highway 42/57.
The
Collins Learning Center at Crossroads is located at on County Highway T
across from Whitetails Unlimited. To reach the Leif Everson Observatory
and Stonecipher Astronomy Center, use the Utah Street Entrance. If
skies are clear, call 746-5896 for a recorded message announcing
whether the observatory will be open.
Many of the Past News articles may be retrieved from this directory,
indexed and named in the following manner: 080101-news.htm where
the first two numbers are the year, the second two the month and the
last two the date.
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