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                             ASTRONOMY Network News
                AN ON-LINE NEWSLETTER FOR ASTRONOMY CLUB OFFICERS

Issue #4 - May/June 1992

        Published by ASTRONOMY Magazine
        PO Box 1612
        Waukesha, WI 53187-1612
        414-796-8776, Fax [phone]
        Compuserve E-Mail: 72000,2704; Internet:
[e-mail]

        Network News is an on-line newsletter for astronomy clubs
uploaded approximately every two months by ASTRONOMY
magazine. It is designed to provide a forum for clubs to share news
of their accomplishments and innovative programs, as well as discuss
issues all clubs have in common - how to raise funds, attract new
members, publish an interesting newsletter, among others.
        We hope the ideas in Network News will help other clubs
provide the best possible services to their members and to their
communities. Address comments, articles, and news of your club
activities to the editor, Tom Gill, at his address below, or contact
ASTRONOMY magazine via mail, e-mail, or the Compuserve
Astronomy Forum.

Tom Gill, Editor, 1391 N. 72nd Street, Milwaukee, WI 53213 (414)
476-6986

        From The Editor
        Welcome to all the "new" clubs in our network-I've noticed
many new newsletters in my reading pile. And thanks to the rest of
you for your continued correspondence.
        As this, our 4th issue, goes to press, I'm happy to see our
network in action. The message in "The Member Who Never Came
Back," (issue #2) was obviously important to many clubs: I saw it
reprinted in a lot of newsletters!
        For those clubs with ATMs and deep sky enthusiasts (everyone,
right?) two new publications have started to serve your interests. For
subscription and other information, write to them directly:

        ATM Journal, c/o William J. Cook, 16930 20th Drive SE, Bothell,
WA 98012
        Deep Sky Journal, 6210 Karjala Road, Aberdeen, WA 98520

        Kalmbach Publishing still has back issues of both Telescope
Making and Deep Sky which are excellent references for your club
library.
        As the summer public outreach and star party season
approaches, we remind you of our many free or low-cost materials
offered to help you spread the joy of astronomy. See the Product
Showcase in this and previous issues!

        ASTRONOMY Co-Hosts UNIVERSE 92
        If you're looking for a place to see the latest telescopes and
accessories and hear thought-provoking talks by well-known
scientists and science writers, look no further than the upcoming
UNIVERSE 92. It's the first-ever national astronomy expo and
product fair and will be held in Madison, Wisconsin June 20 and 21.
The weekend event, cosponsored by ASTRONOMY magazine, is part of
the 104th annual meeting of the Astronomi-cal Society of the Pacific,
a national organization of amateur and professional astronomers
dedicated to popularizing astronomy.
        Together, the ASP and ASTRONOMY have put together a
program of activities that promises a smorgasbord of cosmic delights!
Adopting a "hobby show" or "product fair" format, the weekend
event will feature several series of popular talks running
concurrently during both days, product displays from dozens of
manufacturers (including a special software demo room), a "show-
and-tell" room for amateurs, an evening star party, and lots
        of door prizes.
        The list of speakers lined up for UNIVERSE 92 reads like a
who's who of astronomers and science writers: John Brandt (comets),
Eric Chaisson (Hubble results), David Crawford (light pollution), Frank
Drake (SETI), Donald Goldsmith (extinctions), Timothy Ferris (the big
bang), Andrew Fraknoi (astrology), William Kaufmann (black holes),
Ed Krupp (ancient astronomy), Vera Rubin (dark matter), Stephen
Saunders (Magellan), and Maarten Schmidt (quasars).
        Completing the talks on the latest developments in professional
research will be presentations on the latest in backyard astronomy
from speakers such as Necia Apfel (astronomy for kids), Richard
Berry (image processing), Deborah Byrd (astronomy on the radio),
Terence Dickinson (the state of amateur astronomy), Alan Dyer
(buying a telescope), Dave Eicher (deep sky observing), Robert Evans
(supernova hunting), Alan Hale (selecting binoculars), Jack Newton
(astrophotography), and Don Parker (planetary observing)-an
impressive list!
        A big part of the UNIVERSE 92 schedule will be the product
fair. Many astronomy companies will be showing off their newest
telescopes, accessories, and computer software. With so many of
these products available only through mail order and known to
amateurs only through magazine ads, an event like UNIVERSE 92
provides backyard astronomers with a rare opportunity to see and
try the products first hand. Come with your checkbook in hand.
There should be some great show bargains!
        And UNIVERSE 92 itself is a bargain. The registration fee is
only $20 for a two-day pass, or $12 for a single day admission. You
can register in advance or at the door. The fair will be at the
Wisconsin Center, 702 Langdon Street in Madison, Wisconsin, and
will run from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, June 20 and Sunday, June 21.
Conference organizers have arranged for economical accommodation
and discounts on air travel.
        To request a registration packet, please write to:

        ASP Meeting Information, Astronomical Society of the Pacific
        390 Ashton Avenue
        San Francisco, CA 94112

        You can also call the ASP directly at [phone] or FAX
[phone].

        1992 Survey Results: More Good News!
        An article in Issue #1 of ASTRONOMY Network News featured
the results of the 1991 club survey. The bottom line was that our
hobby is growing, as noted by an increase in the number and size of
clubs. Our 1992 club survey brought even more good news.
        Of the clubs responding, 50% said their membership has
increased in the last 5 years and 40% said it stayed the same. Only
10% said that their membership has declined. The total population of
North American clubs is now estimated at 36,000, slightly higher
than last year's total.
        One likely reason for our healthy growth is your effective
public outreach programs. The survey showed that the total number
of people that clubs reach through public education programs is over
180,000. Each member, on average, reaches 5 members of the public!
        Future issues of the Network News will focus on specific ways
clubs attract and keep new members. By sharing success stories, the
recent increases will continue as an upward trend!

        Astronomy Names New Editor
        ASTRONOMY magazine recently named Robert Burnham to its
top editorial post. Readers of the magazine are used to seeing his
name because Robert has been with the magazine for 14 of its 19
years and has served as a senior editor since 1983.
        As the new editor, Robert is looking toward a stellar future for
both the magazine and the hobby of astronomy. He feels that
astronomy clubs play a critical role in that future:
        "There is a huge latent interest in astronomy among the
general public and it is our duty to develop that interest. By
introducing ordinary people to the subject of astronomy, clubs can do
an incredible amount of good for the hobby. I'd like to see the
number of active backyard astronomers double in the next decade,"
he said.
        Robert is a contributor to the ASTRONOMY Network News
"think tank" and is pleased to see that the philosophy and content of
the newsletter is well received by clubs all across North America.

        Club News Bits
        ...members of the Wehr Astronomical Society of Franklin, WI,
are celebrating the second year of production of their local cable TV
show called "The Sky Tonight," of which one segment, "The Starry
Messenger," has already spun off into its own program.
        ...the Northeast Wisconsin Stargazers had a multi-media recap
(photos, videos and memories) of 1991 club events-a great way to
show new members what the club is all about.
        ...Mark Torrens, of the Rochester Academy of Science's
Astronomy Section, NY, received a $500 grant from Eastman Kodak's
"Dollars for Doers" program for his club involvement.
        ...an oldie, but goodie-the Amateur Astronomers Association of
Princeton, NJ, reprinted a 1977 article which gave a transcription of a
grazing occultation to show members just how exciting those
"expeditions" can be.
        ...Bob L'Hommedieu of the Texas Astronomical Society of Dallas
wrote an article on mirror grinding for the club's newsletter (it's nice
to periodically remind newcomers of that craft).
        ...the Vandenberg Amateur Astronomical Society, CA, started a
letter-writing campaign to inform future tenants of a local shopping
plaza of the effects of light pollution.
        ...the Albuquerque Astronomical Society has a new column in
their newsletter, the Sidereal Times, for, about and by armchair
astronomers.
        ... after two years of effort by Central Florida Astronomical
Society members, a 26-inch, 3-ton Tinsley telescope was delivered to
the University of Central Florida and will be available for club use
every weekend.
        ...the Milwaukee Astronomical Society starts every public
lecture with, among other things, a short discussion of the effects of
light pollution, a subject that bears repeating.
        ...many clubs across North America spent clear spring nights on
Messier Marathons. Hope you all had successful hunting!

        Dear Member...Your Club Needs You!
        K. Lynn King, Secretary of the Delaware Astronomical Society
gives this response to "The Member Who Never Came Back" (ANN,
issue #2).
        "When you joined your club, did you go to star parties or
volunteer to help on committees? During Astronomy Day or other
public events, did you volunteer to help host a table, park cars, or
answer questions? Volunteers are always needed and welcome. Have
you learned how to use club equipment? Do you use it? Do you
observe with your family? You don't need expensive equipment to
enjoy the sky.
        "My son and I joined our local club 10 years ago thinking it
would be of interest only to my son. I had no idea of what was in
store for us. We learned how to use our club's 12-inch Newtonian
telescope and went out every clear night to observe. When the club
asked for help, we volunteered for Public Nights, and even helped
with the Halley Comet Watch program. It was a fantastic experience!
We've learned so much and made friends with many wonderful
people who always have time to answer our questions. Our interest
in astronomy has grown into much more than a hobby. To the
Member Who Never Came Back-go back. Take your family. Listen to
what is going on around you (that's how you learn). Get involved.
VOLUNTEER!"
        Club Profile
        Lehigh Valley Amateur Astronomical Society (LVAAS), 620 E.
Rock Rd., Allentown, PA 18103
        Founded: 1957    Members: 200
        Dues: $35 regular ( $5 off if paid early)
        Contact: Paul Hunsburger
        The LVAAS flourishes through its members' voluntary
contributions of talent and skill. The society's publicity pamphlet
boasts "superb facilities" and even that may be an understatement.
Their main facilities are located on a one-acre mountaintop site and
include three observatories, a meeting room, planetarium,
library/computer wing, workshop and optical room.
        In addition, their dark-sky research site (25 miles west of
town) has three more observatories! The club has literally too many
instruments to list but a partial list includes an
        8-inch f/15 refractor, 20-inch f/16 Schmidt-Cassegrain, 19-
inch f/4.5 richfield, and a spectrohelioscope.
        Many of the club's instruments were constructed and/or
donated by members. Their most ambitious project is currently
under construction: a microcomputer controlled, 40-inch f/15
Cassegrain telescope that will be housed in a 28-foot dome. The
installations and equipment at both sites allow the serious amateur a
unique opportunity to contribute meaningful scientific information to
the astronomical community.
        Many of the club's activities are education oriented. Visitors,
always welcome at meetings, benefit from professional or amateur
astronomer presentations or planetarium shows. Other activities
during the year are
        a 10-week observational astronomy course, two distinct
planetarium series, monthly public star parties and a gala Astronomy
Day open house.