"Get Cratered: Brought to you by the letter M (Moon, Mars, Mercury)”, an illustrated lecture by Dr. Pamela Gay of Southern Illinois University - Edwardsville, will be featured at the May meeting of the St. Louis Astronomical Society. The meeting will begin at 7:30 PM Friday, May 16, in McDonnell Hall, Room 162, on the Washington University campus, Saint Louis, MO 63130. McDonnell Hall is accessible from Forsyth Boulevard via Tolman Way. The event, cosponsored by NASA's Missouri Space Grant Consortium, is open to the public free of charge.
Centuries ago, research in astronomy was done mostly by amateurs – unpaid volunteers. Then telescopes got much larger, specialized instruments got very expensive, and professional astronomers took over. But with the rise of the internet and fast personal computers, amateurs can again play a big role in modern research – and do it at home! “Citizen science” projects in astronomy allow amateurs to download images from major telescopes and from robot spacecraft. Free software first provides the training and then provides the actual images for amateurs to work with. Pamela Gay has been deeply involved with a number of citizen science projects – classifying distant galaxies, searching for planets around other stars, - and examining craters on planets and satellites in our own solar system.
Dr. Gay is an Assistant Research Professor in the Center for STEM of SIU-Edwardsville. She is an astronomer, writer, and podcaster focused on using new media to engage people in science and technology. Her best-known project may be Astronomy Cast, a podcast co-hosed with Fraser Cain, Producer of Universe Today.
The St. Louis Astronomical Society is an organization for individuals interested in astronomy and telescopes. The public is invited to attend its meetings, telescope observing sessions, and special events. For more information about Astronomical Society events, please visit the website, www.slasonline.org , or call 314 - 935-4614.
Centuries ago, research in astronomy was done mostly by amateurs – unpaid volunteers. Then telescopes got much larger, specialized instruments got very expensive, and professional astronomers took over. But with the rise of the internet and fast personal computers, amateurs can again play a big role in modern research – and do it at home! “Citizen science” projects in astronomy allow amateurs to download images from major telescopes and from robot spacecraft. Free software first provides the training and then provides the actual images for amateurs to work with. Pamela Gay has been deeply involved with a number of citizen science projects – classifying distant galaxies, searching for planets around other stars, - and examining craters on planets and satellites in our own solar system.
Dr. Gay is an Assistant Research Professor in the Center for STEM of SIU-Edwardsville. She is an astronomer, writer, and podcaster focused on using new media to engage people in science and technology. Her best-known project may be Astronomy Cast, a podcast co-hosed with Fraser Cain, Producer of Universe Today.
The St. Louis Astronomical Society is an organization for individuals interested in astronomy and telescopes. The public is invited to attend its meetings, telescope observing sessions, and special events. For more information about Astronomical Society events, please visit the website, www.slasonline.org , or call 314 - 935-4614.
Date: Friday, 5/16/2014
Time: 7:30 PM - 9:00 PM Central
Location: Room 162 McDonnell Hall, Washington University [Meeting Site], Saint Louis, MO
