A young observer peers through the CAA's vintage Celestron 16 telescope.
PUBLIC EVENTS
The CAA hosts at least 12 Saturday Public Observing events featuring a guest speaker that is followed—weather permitting—by celestial viewings through telescopes at the facility. During viewing hours, society members will be available to answer questions and provide everyone with an opportunity to look through the Society's telescopes and those of our members.
This site will be updated through out the year as we assemble our speakers and events.
2021 Presentations
January 16, 7:30 p.m. Nancy Atkinson, contributing editor for Universe Today- www.universetoday.com Eight Years to the Moon: The History of the Apollo Missions "The stories of 45 engineers and scientists who worked behind the scenes to make it possible to land on the Moon. Many of these people have gone unheralded for their work, but their contributions were vital to meeting the challenges of such an audacious project. These are stories from the 1960's that you won't find anywhere else." This presentation will be virtual on Zoom: Join Zoom Meeting:
https://zoom.us/j/93847319363?pwd=cnpHQWxLQjFkUmVWendXUDJKNFRyUT09
Meeting ID: 938 4731 9363
Passcode: 492516
April 3, 7:30 p.m.
Presenter: To be announced
Title: To be announced
May 1, 8:00 p.m.
Presenter: To be announced
Title: To be announced
May 15, 8:30 p.m.
Presenter: To be announced
Title: To be announced
June 12, 8:30 p.m.
Presenter: To be announced
Title: To be announced
July 10, 8:30 p.m.
Presenter: To be announced
Title: To be announced
July 31, 8:30 p.m.
Presenter: To be announced
Title: To be announced
August 14, 3:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.
Presenter: To be announced
Title: Our Sun and Solar Activity Cycles
August 28, 8:00 p.m.
Presenter: To be announced
Title: To be announced
September 25, 7:30 p.m.
Presenter: To be announced
Title: To be announced
October 16, 7:30 p.m.
Presenter: To be announced
Title: Earth’s Moon: International Observe the Moon Night
October 30, 7:30 p.m.
Presenter: To be announced
Title: To be announced
November 27, 7:30 p.m.
Presenter: To be announced
Title: To be announced
2020 Past Presentations
March 21, 7:30 p.m. CANCELED DUE TO CORONAVIRUS
Prof. Steve Spangler, University of Iowa, Department of Physics and Astronomy
Lost Siblings of the Sun
Can we find some of the stars that were formed in the same Star Formation Region as the Sun, 4.5 billion years ago? Incredibly, some sober astronomers think the answer is yes, and published a paper to this effect in the Astrophysical Journal. The star is visible to binoculars and should be up at the time of the March public night.
April 25, 8:00 p.m. CANCELED DUE TO CORONAVIRUS
Dr. Jasper Halekas, University of Iowa, Department of Physics and Astronomy
The Parker Solar Probe Mission
May 16, 8:30 p.m. CANCELED DUE TO CORONAVIRUS
Mr. Brent Studer, Cedar Amateur Astronomers
TBA
June 13, 8:00 p.m.
Dr. Raymond Anderson, University of Iowa, Earth and Environmental Sciences
The Manson Meteor Impact Structure and the Decorah Impact Structure
The observatory will not be open, Presentation will be virtual.
July 11, 8:00 p.m.
Dr. Phil Kaaret, University of Iowa, Department of Physics and Astronomy
X-Raying the Milky Way with HaloSat
The observatory will not be open, Presentation will be virtual.
July 25, 3:00 p.m. -- Solar Day
Mr. Carl Bracken, Cedar Amateur Astronomers
Cycles of Change
Maunder, Dalton, Centennial…Eddy. A look at global impacts from long duration cycles of solar activity to try and understand the historical record and how it might inform us about the next extended activity cycle. What are some of the latest tools being used in the quest for understanding how our star works and impacts life on our planet?
The observatory will not be open, Presentation will be virtual.
August 8, 8:00 p.m.
Dr. Casey DeRoo, University of Iowa, Department of Physics and Astronomy
Exploring Beyond Our Galaxy with X-ray Astronomy
The observatory will not be open, Presentation will be virtual.
August 22, 8:00 p.m. Canceled due to ongoing power/internet outages in Cedar Rapids.
September 12, 7:30 p.m.
Mr. Ahmed Reda (TBC), Minnesota Astronomical Society
Stellar Evolution
Stars evolve from clouds of gas and dust treading different paths depending on their mass. This presentation explores these different paths throughout the stars' lifecycles.
The observatory will not be open, Presentation will be virtual.
September 26, 7:30 p.m. InOMN: Lunar Saturday
Mr. Doug Slauson, CAA Club Member
The observatory will not be open, Presentation will be virtual.
October 10, 7:30 p.m.
Dr. Jasper Halekas
University of Iowa, Department of Physics and Astronomy
The Parker Solar Probe Mission
The observatory will not be open, Presentation will be virtual,
November 7, 7:30 p.m.
Mr. Brent Studer, Kirkwood Community College
Meteorite Morphology: Classifying and Collecting Meteorites
Interplanetary vagabonds such as meteorites can tell astronomers a great deal about their parent bodies and the early solar system. In this talk we’ll learn about the origin of meteorites, how they are classified, and collecting these relics from the formation of the solar system.
The observatory will not be open, Presentation will be virtual.
December 19, 7:30 p.m.
Professor Steve Spangler, University of Iowa, Department of Physics and Astronomy
Lost Siblings of the Sun
Can we find some of the stars that were formed in the same Star Formation Region as the Sun, 4.5 billion years ago? Incredibly, some sober astronomers think the answer is yes, and published a paper to this effect in the Astrophysical Journal.
The observatory will not be open, Presentation will be virtual.
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Public observing events are held in the Eastern Iowa Observatory and Learning Center at the Palisades-Dows Observatory and Preserve through a generous agreement with the Linn County Conservation Department. For directions, please visit our Map to Pal-Dows page or download a pdf version (276 kB.)
The Cedar Amateur Astronomers, Inc. is a participating member of Night Sky Network.
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