Get Involved: Star Parties/Learn to Use a Telescope

Every month there are numerous opportunities to get involved with the fun and science of astronomy. The NASA Night Sky Network is a good place to start if you want to find a local event, and in this post I'll provide some local suggestions if you live in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Star Party

I love presenting the sky at star parties and giving talks about astronomy, so I signed up to do this for the Marin County "One Book One Marin" celebration happening this year. Check the calendar for dates, and join me at different libraries in Marin for an introductory lecture on the Solar System and constellations, and star gazing (if weather permits). The first two events are on February 11th and 12th. The San Francisco Amateur Astronomers will also host star parties on different nights in February and March.

The San Francisco Amateur Astronomers (SFAA) club has an open monthly meeting, where anyone may attend to hear very topical lectures on a variety of subjects related to astronomy and space research. The upcoming lecture and calendar are found on the website. And on Saturday February 16th the SFAA is hosting a Star Party and New Scope Forum where you can dust off and bring out your old telescope for a primer on how to use it, and then a chance to put it to work looking into the heavens.

The Peninsula Astronomical Society and the always-excellent Dr. Andrew Fraknoi put on star parties and outstanding lectures in Los Altos Hills. And the wonderful Chabot Space & Science Center has very fine telescope nights featuring their giant telescopes on Friday and Saturday nights year-round.

Get involved! You won't be sorry.