Rob Burgess with news from Neptune (Drive)
SMA's President Rob Burgess, and where to find our offices at 179 Neptune Drive in Brunswick, Maine.
February 2025
At the risk of sounding like a broken record, we continue to grow! Since our January club meeting we have added 12 new members through late February. We will lose some members who choose not to renew at the end of February, but that expected attrition will be lower than in years past. And we continue to receive a number of telescope donations that will be put to good use in our telescope lending program, sold with funds going into our treasury, or given away to worthy recipients. All good signs we are offering a valuable experience to our members and the public.
11th Director added
Michael Green of Harpswell was appointed by the Board at our meeting on 2/19/25 as the club's 11th director, to fill an existing vacancy. This appointment brings our board to a full complement. Michael is a recently retired doctor who was looking to volunteer. Michael has had a lifelong interest in astronomy and has been observing for some time (and has some great equipment to prove it!). Michael will be working on our Membership Committee and brings some great ideas to enrich our membership experience. Thanks, Michael, and we look forward to your ideas and energy!
Citizen-Science Opportunity?
Paul Howell has offered to head up a group of interested members to undertake photometric measurements of various Delta Scuti stars such as Polaris. By measuring light curves of these star by photometry we can add to the body of knowledge on their variability. If anyone is interested in this project please reach out to Paul at howellrcp@gmail.com.
"Ready Team" of Volunteers Needed
The club has received a few inquiries from event managers about conducting star parties at corporate events at Maine and New Hampshire hotels. We've also received an inquiry about offering a similar event at a wedding. In response the club has developed a corporate pricing matrix in which we would promise at least three astronomers with scopes who would put on a scripted star party and laser pointer tour for the assembled guests for a two hour event. We'd like to develop a small group of members willing to serve as a "ready team" if such a request is received. Volunteers would be compensated for mileage and also receive a stipend of some $100 to $150 each for their time, equipment and expertise. The balance of any funds would then go to the club as a donation. If you are interested in playing this role please contact me (rburgess250@comcast.net).
Renewed call for good observing sites
We'd like to supplement the "dark sky sites" map on our website that shows good places to observe from. We have six to seven sites now but know there are plenty of other good sites, some of which may be in your neighborhood. There's a questionnaire on the website that will ask for basic information about the site (horizons, parking, bathrooms, public access, etc.) that you can fill out and then submit to Board Member Jeremy Wright (jfwright1@gmail.com) who devised a Google Maps feature to show these sites. We frequently get inquiries from folks looking for dark sky areas to do observing, see a meteor shower, or maybe see an aurora, so it's great to have this map for them - and for our members.
Community Matters More - Not too late to vote for SMA!
This is a program operated annually by the Bangor Savings Bank Foundation that's really a kind of popularity contest for non-profits. The Foundation awards about $140,000 per year to a variety of non-profits in the Bank's market area that have received the most votes from the community. This is our first year of trying to obtain votes. Anyone can vote (only once!), and all votes must be received by the end of day on 2/28/25. Go to Community Matters More | Bangor Savings Bank, click on Maine, Cumberland (County) and then "Other." Start typing our name and it will pop up. Who knows, we might win a grant!
Partial solar eclipse at sunrise - 3/29/25
Please come join us at an informal gathering on the southern end of the Eastern Prom in Portland at sunrise on 3/29/25. The sun will rise partially eclipsed and we will get to see about the last 40 minutes of the event as the moon moves across the face of the sun. If you've got a solar filtered instrument, please bring it. Last time we did this, also at sunrise, we had many interested folks stop by to look and talk and it was great exposure for the club. There's a total lunar eclipse two weeks earlier, on March 14 at 2 a.m., that you are on your own for!
Star Party Schedule - Need for Volunteers
Our schedule of star parties is on the News & Events tab of the website. We are always in need of volunteers to assist: sharing your scope or operating a club scope; conducting a laser-pointer tour of constellations; helping other members with their equipment; staffing a welcome table. Don't be intimidated thinking you are not an astronomy expert! Bring whatever you will but mostly excitement and enthusism. For those new to the hobby it's a great way to see a variety of equipment, to ask questions, and perhaps get some hands-on experience. Go to the "Us" tab on the webpage and click on the "Star Party Volunteer Form" to let us know you'd like to help, and how.
Star/Solar Party Schedule - More to Come
We will be supplementing our schedule with some other events once we get dates confirmed. We plan to offer some solar observing at the Family Fun Day in Cape Elizabeth in June, and on the Brunswick Mall in September. In addition, Jon Wallace of the club will be coordinating two to three events at our Neptune Drive headquarters in Brunswick, with those dates to be announced. These star parties will be rain or shine since we have indoor space at Neptune Drive for talks. Finally, we hope to have one or two "members only" events in June and/or July (when sunsets are late and its harder to host public events), that may include a cookout. This will be a great way to meet other members, talk shop and enjoy our kinship around astronomy!
March Club Meeting, Thursday, 3/6/25, at 7 p.m. - Zoom
Club VP Russ Pinizzotto will provide a fascinating talk on New England archeo-astronomy sites. If you like Stonehenge or Chaco Canyon you'll want to hear about things in our New England backyard!
Till next month - get out there and observe!
January 2025
Dear SMA Members,
As Garrison Keilor used to say in his weekly broadcast, “It’s been a quiet week in Lake Woebegone.” December at the club was relatively tranquil: efforts to schedule a last minute star party with Falmouth Middle School fell flat, due to the busy-ness of the season and weather. We had a great speaker at our December 5th meeting in Prof. Fe McBride of Bowdoin College (see Meeting Summaries on our webpage for details) discussing neutrinos. With no other events scheduled we followed our personal agendas for seasonal enjoyment.
January's club merting covered a number of topics from basic observing techniques, to an update on the Parker Solar probe, to the library telescope program and our new specialty subgroups, to most helpful books in astronomy. A detailed summary can be found on this site under News and Events/Club Meeting Summaries.
That’s not to say there weren’t some things happening. David Crocker attended the South Portland Tree Lighting ceremony, with scope, to carry the SMA flag and provide heavenly views to several dozen attendees. Thank you, David. Other activities will be highlighted below.
Club membership continues to grow!
The club has added six more members to our roster in December, bringing total membership to 122. Just a few years ago in drafting a budget, a membership at 100 was considered a pipe dream. If your membership is due for renewal (those who joined in the last quarter of 2024 are good for 2025), please use our convenient online renewal process and re-up! Thank you.
Special Interest groups begin to operate
Resulting from a survey the club undertook in 2024 members expressed interest in learning more about certain aspects of astronomy including solar observing, Astronomical League observing certificate programs, astrophotography and astronomy basics. Two groups have formed out of that “molecular cloud:” a solar observing group headed by David Crocker and an AL Observing Program headed by Russ Pinizzotto. The solar group stays in touch by emails on weekly and sometimes daily basis, with members sharing images and raising questions. It’s very informal but also very practical. If you’d like to learn more about solar observing, please contact David at dcc04444@gmail.com.
The AL Observing Program group has been meeting via Zoom about every two weeks on Tuesday evenings at 7, for an hour. Russ is an observing program coordinator for the Astronomical League and the perfect mentor for the 7 or 8 participants who are eager to develop their knowledge and observing skills through these AL programs. Participants are pursuing various observing challenges, following their particular interests and equipment. Russ can be reached at zzotto@#icloud.com.
Astronomy basics are being covered periodically throughout the year through dedicated club meetings, such as our January meeting, and prior to star parties when new members are encouraged to come an hour early for help with questions and equipment.
Ann Dobriko joins the Board
Ann Dobriko became our 10th director with her appointment to the Board by club directors, filling one of two vacancies we had. Ann has offered to work with Russ Pinizzotto on our Program Committee, finding speakers for monthly club meetings. Ann has also been our social media coordinator, posting events and monitoring our Facebook and Instagram pages and otherwise helping with Outreach. Welcome, and thank you, Ann!
Knit caps with SMA logo are available
For those interested in showing a little club flash, we now have a limited supply of knit caps with a small leather patch embossed with our logo. Caps are $25, which includes shipping. Please contact Paul Howell at howellrcp@gmail.com or order directly through the website. We are continuing to experiment with club logoed clothing options. If you have any experience in this area and would like to help, please contact Paul.
Club Acknowledges Bowdoin College for Dark Sky Compliant Athletic Field Lighting
Athletic field lighting is hardly not light polluting! However, given that outdoor sports events at night are a part of modern life there are ways to do it right, and Bowdoin College has done it right. The college recently undertook a major renovation of its multiple sports fields that included installing permanent lighting. In approving the project the Brunswick Planning Board encouraged the college to consider following Dark Sky International’s Community-Friendly Outdoor Sports Lighting program. The college did so and was recently awarded Phase II Certification of its outdoor lighting system. SMA sent a congratulatory letter to the college, thanking them for their commitment to dark skies, and noting that “the design of your field lighting does not trespass onto adjoining properties and that you limit, to the extent necessary for the sport, the amount of aerial lighting needed, thereby reducing sky glow.” Included in the certification is a commitment by the college to dim or turn off field lighting shortly after use. The upgrade also eliminated the use of numerous noisy and polluting diesel generators that had previously provided lighting. SMA commended the college stating that its action “will serve as a standard for other institutions and communities to apply when considering lighting outdoor playing fields” and thanked the college for its inspirational work to help preserve dark skies.
Partial Solar Eclipse at Dawn, March 29
There will be a partial solar eclipse the morning of March 29. In Portland the sun will rise approximately 64% eclipsed. The eclipse will end about a half hour after sunrise. The club may organize an informal gathering on the Eastern Prom in Portland that morning, so stay tuned! (There’s also a total lunar eclipse on 3/13/25. Totality will not occur until about 2 am, leaving this for individual members to enjoy from home!)
Star Party Schedule for 2025
The Club Outreach Committee of Carson Hanrahan, Mike Simmons and Anne Dobriko have proposed the following schedule for star parties in 2025. This list will likely have some additions or modifications, and confirmation with co-sponsors need to be confirmed; watch our website for final details:
· March 1, 6 pm, with Scarborough Land Trust at Fuller Farm (rain date 3/29)
· April 2, 7 pm, with MSAD 51 (Cumberland/No. Yarmouth schools) (rain date 4/4)
· May 5, 8 pm, with Brunswick Topsham Land Trust (to be confirmed)
· June & July – special club only star parties, perhaps with a cook out – a great opportunity for members to socialize and help each other
· August 16, 7:30 pm, with Prince Memorial Library, Twin Brook Rec Fields, Cumberland
· September 20, 6:30 pm, with So. Portland Land Trust at Bug Light Park, South Portland
· October 18, 5:30 pm, with Harpswell Heritage Land Trust, Mitchell Field, Harpswell
· November 15, 5:00 pm, at Kettle Cove State Park, Cape Elizabeth
In addition, there will likely be solar observing events such as at the Cape Elizabeth Family Fun Day in June and the Brunswick Community BBQ in September.
February 6 Club Meeting – e-scopes
Club member Greg Shanos will provide a comparison of various electronic-assisted telescopes on the market. If you are considering such a purchase, don’t miss this meeting!
Club Directors’ Meeting – third Wednesday every month at 7 pm
Club Directors meet monthly on the third Wednesday at 7 pm via zoom. All meetings are open to members, so if you are curious about club operations or have some new ideas to share, please consider attending. Contact me at rburgess250@comcast.net with questions or to obtain the Zoom link and an agenda.
Clear – and Dark – Skies!
Rob
December 2024
Dear Fellow Members,
This newsletter is overdue! Recognizing that most members are unable to attend our monthly meetings at which announcements and club activities are discussed, it made sense to add another way in which we could stay in touch. Hence this blog post on our website, appearing at least monthly. I hope it will prove useful, and I’ll appreciate your feedback.
Club Membership is soaring!
The club’s membership has grown dramatically, particularly in the latter months of the year. We are now at an all-time high of 116 with 9 additional memberships pending completion. We typically lose some members to attrition each year, but new memberships in 2024 have made up for that with 33 new members joining. Our membership includes 25 women. Our goal is to see that percentage grow.
November star parties rained/clouded out; look for a winter event
Our planned event for Bug Light State Park on 11/16 was cancelled, as was the back-up date, due to poor weather. However, we recently received an inquiry from a 7th grade teacher in the Falmouth school system for a star party with about 80 enthusiastic students. We are working to find dates that could work later this month or in early 2025. We will keep you posted.
Outreach numbers reach new high
So far, SMA outreach numbers in 2024 have surpassed results in 2021, 2022 and 2023. As of early December, 2024 we have engaged with 1,895 adults and children through our efforts. The final tally for 2024 should be higher when we fully account for our pre-eclipse speaking engagements earlier in the year.
January program to feature observing basics
We try to provide a mixture of speakers covering more complex developments in astronomy and cosmology with practical help regarding telescopes and equipment for members new to astronomy. At our January meeting we plan to do the latter, covering some basic telescope set-up and operation topics, but we could use your help. If you have questions, no matter how basic, please send them along – it would give us topics to cover. Also, if you would like to assist with a 5-10 minute presentation of a particular aspect of observing or telescope operation, please let us know – we’d welcome your help! January’s meeting is “members helping members” so please join in however you can!
Sale of excess club equipment
Club members Jeremy Wright and Dean Ostergaard have taken on the task of readying excess club equipment for sale. They are creating complete packages of most needed accessories, manuals, and the like and field testing the equipment. They will then announce what’s for sale as they complete each instrument. If you are in the market, watch for coming announcements. If an item does not sell within the club we will offer it to other astronomy clubs in Maine and nearby and finally offer it on Cloudy Nights or Astromart. Proceeds will be added to the club’s endowment fund.
Merry Christmas, and Happy Holidays, however you might celebrate the season!
Enjoy the holidays, stay well and be prepared to tell us all about any new toys that may have appeared under your Christmas tree!
Clear – and Dark – Skies!
Rob