[Peyton-observing] Hosting Cub Scouts on 10/21 for Public Observing

[Jegunn]

Hi, Sean.

Sorry for being so pokey. Yes, we can certainly do that. How many
boys will there be?

Given the general lack of understanding of even semi-technical terms,
I am a little unsure of what you mean by `focus'. To us, it simply
means adjusting the eyepiece so that the image you are looking at is
sharp ( ie `in focus' ). To others, it might mean more, like
acquiring a distant object (`pointing' to us). The latter we cannot
accomodate, since the telescope's pointing is computer-controlled,
though we could let the boys adjust the pointing with the control
paddle, which instructs the computer how to make small corrections.

--jim

On Thu, 9 Oct 2014, Gaffney, Sean wrote:

> 
> Hi Professor Gunn – just following up on my question below.  If you could
> let us know in advance if your staff could cover item #1 below, I would
> really appreciate it. 
> 
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> 
> Thanks.
> 
>  
> 
> From: Gaffney, Sean [Fin]
> Sent: Tuesday, September 30, 2014 12:42 PM
> To: 'jeg at astro.princeton.edu'
> Cc: 'pdankers at comcast.net'; 'barry.lydon at sanofi.com'
> Subject: Hosting Cub Scouts on 10/21 for Public Observing
> 
>  
> 
> Hello Professor Gunn – my name is Sean Gaffney and I am parent of a
> Hillsborough Cub Scout (Pack 189) whose Den is interested in earning their
> Cub Scout belt loop for Astronomy.  I was hoping the folks at the Astronomy
> dept at Princeton could help us out.  My son and I have been to the Peyton
> Observatory before and have had a wonderful time observing with your
> students and staff. 
> 
>  
> 
> In case you are not familiar with the Cub Scout program, our Webelos II
> scouts (all 5th graders) are working on achievements (badges) to earn their
> way into the Boy Scouts in 6th grade.  One of the achievements we are
> tackling is the Scientist achievement, where we learn about Newton’s Laws of
> Motion, Bernoulli’s Principle and Pascal’s law.  We also can earn an
> Astronomy belt loop if we can cover the following tasks:
> 
> 1.       Demonstrate how to focus a simple telescope or binoculars. (A local
> astronomy club may be a resource for this activity.)
> 
> 2.       Draw a diagram of our solar system—identify the planets and other
> objects.
> 
> 3.       Explain the following terms: planet, star, solar system, galaxy,
> the Milky Way, black hole, red giant, white dwarf, comet, meteor, moon,
> asteroid, star map and universe.
> 
> If you could help explain how the telescope works at the observatory and
> explain the terms for the kids, we will ask each boy to bring in their
> diagram of the solar system.  We were hoping we could meet during the 10/21
> open house (weather permitting) at the observatory. 
> 
> Could you let me know if you and your staff would be willing to host us on
> 10/21?  I appreciate your time and attention and look forward to your
> response.  Thank you in advance. 
> 
> Sean Gaffney
> 
> 908-262-7612 (h)
> 
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