Summary of Completed Outreach Activities during 2008
Jan 18 - Lesson/observing session for students from the Bronx High School of Business
Volunteers: Gabe Perez-Giz, Neil Zimmerman
2 hours, 20 participants
Feb 1 - Public Talk by Gabe Perez-Giz: ''What goes up must come down -- but why?'' and Astrowall Demo
Volunteers: Cameron Hummels, Neil Zimmerman
16 participants
Feb 15 - Public talk by Marilena Loverde: ''Light, Shadows and Curved Space'' and Observing for 30 minutes
Volunteers: Cameron Hummels, Neil Zimmerman, Robert Morehead, Dan Meller, Destry Saul
40 participants
Feb 20 - Public talk by Cameron Hummels: ''Moon Miscellany: A brief introduction to our closest companion'' and lunar eclipse (roof and college walk observing)
Volunteers: Cameron Hummels, Neil Zimmerman, Robert Morehead, Lia Corrales, Christine Simpson, Tim Pennucci, Dave Spiegel, Colin McNally, Erika Hamden, Kyle Parfrey, Wenjuan Fang, Jeremy Carlo (physics), Joe Patterson
400+ participants
Feb 29 - Public talk by Stephanie Tonnesen: ''Galaxies in Clusters -- the New York Cities of the Universe'' and astrophotography slideshow
Volunteers: Cameron Hummels, Neil Zimmerman, Robert Morehead, Dan Meller, Jen Piscionere
25 participants
Mar 14 - Lesson session for high school students from HSES on telescopes, planispheres and observational astronomy
Volunteer: Neil Zimmerman
2 hours; 15 participants
Mar 14 - Public talk by Destry Saul: ''Finding Exoplanets: Many Needles in the Largest of Haystacks'' and astrophotography slideshow
Volunteers: Neil Zimmerman, Cameron Hummels, Robert Morehead, Kyle Parfrey, Destry Saul
35 participants
Mar 28 - Public talk by Neil Zimmerman: ''The Arrow of Time''
Volunteers: Cameron Hummels, Neil Zimmerman, Erika Hamden, Kyle Parfrey
35 participants
Apr 11 - Public talk by Lia Corrales: ''A Brief History of Black Holes'' and astrophotography slideshow
Volunteers: Neil Zimmerman, Robert Morehead, Cameron Hummels, Lia Corrales, Josh Schroeder, Erika Hamden
40 participants
Apr 12 - Activities on the moon and observing for Kindergarten class
Volunteers: Robert Morehead, Cameron Hummels
3 hours; 12 children
Apr 19 - Family Astro
Volunteers: Maria Pereira, Lia Corrales, Robert Morehead, Neil Zimmerman, Erika Hamden, Dan Meller, Adam Fuller
20 children ages 6-13. Photos: http://www.iscap.columbia.edu/pages_html/Family_Astro/
Apr 25 - Public talk by Jeno Sokoloski: ''Fountains from Exploding Stars'', cloudy sky Saturn viewing and astrophotography slideshow
Volunteers: Neil Zimmerman, Robert Morehead, Josh Schroeder
40 participants
May 9 - Public talk by David Helfand: ''Global Warming: What We Know and What We Don't Know''
Volunteers: Neil Zimmerman, Cameron Hummels, Robert Morehead, Erika Hamden
70 participants
May 16 - Astronomy activity with 7th grade students at The Anderson School: Q&A about astronomy
Volunteers: Cameron Hummels, Dave Spiegel, Neil Zimmerman
2*30 participants.
May 30 - Public talk by Duane Lee: ''Nuclear Star Clusters: The Nurseries of Supermassive Black Holes?''
Volunteers: Cameron Hummels, Andreas Svedin
30 participants
Jun 13 - Stargazing and Public Talk by Greg Bryan: ''Cosmic Catastrophes: 10 Astrophysical Events with Negative Consequences for Life on Earth''
Volunteers: Neil Zimmerman, Cameron Hummels, Josh Schroeder, Adam Fuller, Christine Simpson, Andreas Svedin, Lia Corrales
60 participants
June 27 - Stargazing and Public Talk by Holly Larson: ''Jantar Mantar: How Indian Princes Looked at the Stars''
Volunteers: Neil Zimmerman, Cameron Hummels, Robert Morehead, Lia Corrales, Holly Larson, Adam Fuller, Kyle Parfrey
40 participants
July 11 - Stargazing and Public Talk by Robert Morehead: ''Eight is Enough: The Great Pluto Debate''
Volunteers: Robert Morehead, Adam Fuller, Lisa Fishinfeld, Holly Larson, Geoff Banker, Nick Cummins, Christine Simpson, Colin McNally
60 participants
July 19 - Family Astro; solar-themed activities;
Volunteers: Lia Corrales, Robert Morehead, Destry Saul, Neil Zimmerman
2 hours; 20 children ages 6-12.
July 25 - Stargazing and Public Talk by Josh Schroeder ''Dark Energy: Mysteries at the Edge of the Universe''
Volunteers: Neil Zimmerman, Cameron Hummels, Robert Morehead, Josh Schroeder, Erika Hamden
80 participants for lecture +20 for observing
Aug 8 - Stargazing and Public Talk by Marcel Agueros ''Scavenging for Dead Stars: Neutron Stars and White Dwarfs''
Volunteers: Robert Morehead, Emily Rauscher, Duane Lee, Lia Corrales, Josh Schroeder
35 participants for lecture +30 for observing
August 22 - Stargazing and Public Talk by Kathryn Stanonik ''Large Scale Structure in the Universe: Walls, Voids, Filaments and the End of Greatness''
Volunteers: Robert Morehead, Josh Schroeder, Adam Fuller, Kathryn Stanonik, Christine Simpson, Kyle Parfrey, Emily Rauscher, Andreas Svedin
70 participants for lecture +20 for observing
September 5 - Public Talk by Erika Hamden: ''Strange Shapes: A Look at Fractals, Polygons and Spirals in the Universe'' and astrophotography slideshow
Volunteers: Neil Zimmerman, Cameron Hummels, Robert Morehead, Erika Hamden
45 participants
September 19 - Stargazing and Public Talk by Emily Rauscher: ''Alien Worlds: Exploring Planets outside of our Solar System''
Volunteers: Cameron Hummels, Neil Zimmerman, Robert Morehead, Andrew Brown, Adam Fuller, Kyle Parfrey, Erika Hamden
90 participants + 25 for observing
October 3 - Visiting Students from Columbia Secondary toured the observatory and heard a talk about Pluto
Volunteer: Robert Morehead
2 hours; 10 participants
October 3 - Stargazing and Public Talk by David Schiminovich: ''Robot Astronomers: A Day in the Life of NASA's Space Observatories''
Volunteers: Cameron Hummels, Neil Zimmerman, Adam Fuller, Robert Morehead, Maria Pereira, Joo Yoon
60 participants + 40 for observing
APPLAUSE AWARD WINNER for 2008
October 10 - Stargazing and Public Talk by Maria Pereira: ''The Colors of Life: Astrobiology through Newton's Prism''
Volunteers: Cameron Hummels, Neil Zimmerman, Josh Schroeder, Christine Simpson, Maria Pereira, Joo Yoon, Ian McGreer
65 participants + 20 for observing
October 24 - Public Talk by Jennifer Donovan: ''Getting to Know Elliptical Galaxies'' and Astrophotography Slideshow
Volunteers: Cameron Hummels, Robert Morehead
30 participants
November 7 - Public Talk by Sarah Tuttle: ''Where does Data come from? Groundbreaking Results from Ground-based Telescopes'' and Astrophotography Slideshow
Volunteers: Cameron Hummels, Robert Morehead, Andrew Brown
60 participants
November 14 - Visiting Girl Scout Troop
Volunteers: Robert Morehead, Kathryn Stanonik
November 15 - Family Astro; "Meteors, Asteroids, and Space Debris"
Volunteers: Andrew Brown, Lia Corrales, Eric Gotthelf, Duane Lee, Robert Morehead, Maria Pereira, Neil Zimmerman
3 hours; 15 children.
November 21 - Stargazing, Public Talk by Kristen Menou: ''In search of other Earths'', slideshow by Andrew Brown
Volunteers: Neil Zimmerman, Robert Morehead, Andrew Brown, Destry Saul, Adam Fuller
90 participants
December 1 - Telescope viewing from College Walk on the occasion of a planetary conjunction of Jupiter, Venus, and the Moon
Volunteers: Neil Zimmerman, Robert Morehead
80 passersby
December 5 - Intermittent stargazing, Public Talk by Caleb Scharf: ''Protons to Planets to Penguins: The Quest for our Biochemical Origins in the Cosmos'', and astrophotography slideshow on Moons and Galaxies
Volunteers: Robert Morehead, Adam Fuller, Andrew Brown, Nitza Santiago
140 participants
December 11 - Telescope/Optics workshop from 6:30 to 8:00 with students from Hunter College High School
Volunteers: Robert Morehead, Sarah Tuttle
20 participants
