SJAA: Status and schedule of school star parties

Imaging SIG: 6/21

General Meeting: 6/22

Public Star Party: 6/28

Beginner Astronomy Class: 6/28

Solar Observing: 7/7

Fix-It Day: 7/7

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Status and schedule of school star parties

List of assigned dates List of available dates Earliest start times

For SJAA club events, see the Calendar Hotline page.

Watch this line for final status on event day, after 1:00 pm.

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Watch this space for details of coming events


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Complete list of assignments, grouped by week. See the next section for available dates.
2013: 
 Jul. 15 -- Saratoga Library, Saratoga  

2014:
 Jan  31 -- Holding, Saratoga 
Available and desirable dates See the previous section for assigned dates.
Note: Many Friday nights are assigned to SJAA public star parties, so they are not available for schools.
Desirability is determined by the phase of the Moon. The moon is spectacular and well-liked, very desirable for a public event. Such dates are:
2013:
May 18-19.

Dates with no moon in the evening sky are more plentiful. There are many star clusters, colorful double stars, etc., so the sky is very rewarding. Consider:
2013:
May     28-29.

Too much moon (over 75% illuminated) makes it difficult to show anything but a few bright objects, so we try to stay away from the nearly-full moon. It's a poor show, and not fair to the students (nor to the astronomers). But we could use them if nothing else is available, such as a make-up date for a clouded-out evening.
2013:
May 20-22, 24-27.

Approximate starting times through the year:
   The earliest practical time is probably 6:30 pm, allowing parents to get home, eat, and get to school. That's as early as we prefer to start. But in late spring thru early fall, the sun sets rather late, and star parties must start late, too.
   On March 10, 2013 we advanced the clocks, and start times jumped to 8:15. By April 1, 8:30; April 14, 8:45; May 1, 9;00; May 15, 9:15; June 1, 9:30; June 15, 9:45; July 1, 9:45; July 15, 9:30; August 1, 9:15; August 15, 9:00; September 1, 8:45; September 15, 8:15; October 1, 7:45; October 15, 7:30; November 1, 7:15.
   DST will end on Nov.3, 2013, and the earliest start time will drop to 6:30 and will remain there for a few months. By February 8 the sun sets later, and start time moves up to 6:45 pm; February 22, 7:00; March, 7:15.
   And the cycle repeats.

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Latest update: 2013 June 8, 0317 hours, pdt.
Take down Corte Madera Elementary, Friday

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