This shower should peak on May 5 or 6. It’s not the biggest craziest annual shower (you can expect to see a trail on average every 6-10 minutes) however in 2013 this is one of the few showers this year that will occur in the relative darkness of a quarter moon.
This meeting is a week earlier due to Mother’s Day. Our guest speaker is Dr. Madhulika “Lika” Guhathakurta. She’s a solar physicist, program scientist for the STEREO mission, and lead scientist of NASA’s “Living with a Star” program. She’ll be speaking about space weather and solar storms.
More information on our general meetings can be found at: http://www.novac.com/meetings/
1st talk at 7:30PM, same talk at 8:15PM, observing starts at 8PM until 9:30PM.
Campus Map – The George Mason University Observatory at the Fairfax Campus building Research Hall formerly known as Research I.
Buzz Aldrin will discuss his new book “Mission to Mars: My Vision for Space Exploration.” A book signing will follow the discussion. Tickets are free for NPC members and $5.00 for the general public. After the discussion, Dr. Aldrin will only sign copies of “Mission to Mars.” All books must be purchased through the National Press Club. No memorabilia or outside books will be permitted. Legendary “space statesman” Buzz Aldrin speaks out as a vital advocate for the continuing quest to push the boundaries of the universe as we know it. As a pioneering astronaut who first set foot on the moon during mankind’s first landing of Apollo 11 – and as an aerospace engineer who designed an orbital rendezvous technique critical to future planetary landings – Aldrin has a vision, and in “Mission to Mars” he plots out the path he proposes, taking humans to Mars by 2035. Aldrin boldly advocates continuing exploration of our solar system at a time when America stands at a critical crossroads in its space program. He outlines past triumphs, analyzes recent setbacks, and cheers us on to greater accomplishments, with a message that will ignite a new wave of support and participation across the country for a renewed and ambitious space program. Buzz Aldrin, best known for his Apollo 11 moonwalk, holds a doctorate degree in astronautics and, at the age of 82, continues to wield influence as an international advocate of space science and planetary exploration. This event is a fundraiser for the National Press Club Journalism Institute.
May’s Full Moon is the “Milk Moon”, “Flower Moon”, “Corn Planting Moon”, “Hare’s Moon”, or “Buddha Poornima”.
This event is cancelled by the site coordinator due to bad weather.
See front page of NOVAC Site for changes to event. More information about Great Meadow including directions and parking visit the Great Meadow Site page.