General Membership Meetings

Upcoming Meetings

General membership meetings are open to the public, and are held at  Enterprise Hall, room 80 (Room 178 in July 2009), on the campus of George Mason University (directions) in Fairfax, Virginia. The meeting hall is in the basement floor of the building. Paid parking is available in the Sandy Creek parking structure, which is a short walk from the building. Some members have also chosen to park across the street in the far reaches of the Patriot Center's parking lot, then walk up the path to the rear of Enterprise Hall.  

Meetings start at 7:00 PM, on the second Sunday of every month. If you come earlier you can do a little socializing. The first part of the meeting is club business, during which the officers make reports about their activities and areas of responsibility. The next part of the meeting usually includes:

• Show and Tell, where members share gadgets, books, techniques, etc.
• The Observing Report, describing the astronomical events for the next month.
• Q&A, where beginning astronomers are encouraged to ask questions to be answered by more experienced members.
• The Sky Tour, describing what's where in the sky for the next month.

The final part of the meeting is a program, usually by one of the members, but sometimes by "outside experts". We've had presenters from all aspects of Astronomy.

There's a good deal of socializing before and after meetings, allowing members to put faces with the voices they've heard in the dark.

Please Join Us For Dinner!
Since February, 1995, a number of NOVAC members have been congregating on the night of our regular meetings for dinner. Hopefully this assists in getting to know one another, at a more relaxed location than at the meeting itself. It's also nice to see who it is you're talking to for a change and be able to connect faces with names - unlike the usual observing situation. All are welcome to attend, whether NOVAC members or prospective members, guests or whoever - just be prepared to discuss a little astronomy or any other topic that pops up!

If you'd like to join us, stop by the Red, Hot and Blue restaurant at 5:30 PM. See you there!