B.C.A.A.S. MEETING MINUTES
November 11, 2004
The meeting was called to order by Melody Gardner at 7:35 with 23 in attendance. The Minutes of the October meeting were handed out with the agenda.
Linda Sensenig reported a balance of $6,840.66. She also noted that the bridge on Park Road has reopened.
Sky Report: Jupiter, Venus and Mars are visible at near sunrise – Mercury at sunset. Uranus, Neptune and Pluto can be seen in the evening. Saturn rises just after 9. The summer constellations are now setting at dusk, but the winter constellations are rising at the same time. Several members witnessed the auroras on November 7, 8 and 9. Mike Bashore noted that a comet will be visible in December. Barry brought photos of the Lunar Eclipse that he took. Barb watched the daylight occultation of Jupiter by the moon. It was clearly visible in binoculars and in the telescope, except a cloud went by just as Jupiter disappeared behind the moon.
Old Business: The fall star party at the Heritage Center was held Saturday, October 23. There were about ten visitors. Bret Cadmus gave a program for a Cub Scout pack in Wernersville on October 25. In spite of the clouds, a large crowd attended the Lunar Eclipse watch on October 27. There were enough glimpses of the moon to keep everyone watching. Barb was the only one who called in for the Night Sky Network teleconference on November 9. Larry Citro announced that there will be another occultation of Jupiter by the moon on December 7. He also noted that he taught a class for senior citizens at Alvernia that went very well. Dave Brown regaled us with a story about some observing he did in Tioga County at his nephew’s property. During his observations, a lot of photos were taken, which included some mysterious glowing orbs that showed up in the photos. Is the place haunted?!
Upcoming Events and New Business: The Leonid meteor shower will peak on November 19. The next club meeting will be December 11 for the annual holiday party and election of officers. Barry Shupp announced that there is one candidate for each position: Dave Brown – President; Bret Cadmus – Vice President; Linda Sensenig – Treasurer, and Barb Geigle – Secretary. Nominations will be open at the December meeting.
Barb Geigle gave a demonstration from the new Night Sky Network Toolkit entitled “Our Galaxy, Our Universe”. She used the PowerPoint presentation from the kit just as it could be used for a public event. After that, she showed some video clips from the Hubble DVD that s also included in the kit. Copies of the materials are available from her.
The meeting was adjourned at 8:50.
Barbara Geigle, Secretary