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

[Gaffney, Sean]

Jim - thank you so much for your hospitality.  We have 7 boys in our den, but not sure if they can all make it.  

Your idea on letting the boys use the paddle to control the scope will work for our purposes.  Also, I think a general overview of the telescope, including some simple explanations on the controls and how the computer helps navigate the scope, would be sufficient to meet our requirement.  

We really appreciate your help and look forward to seeing your staff on 10/21.  

Sean

-----Original Message-----
From: Jegunn [mailto:jeg at astro.princeton.edu] 
Sent: Thursday, October 09, 2014 10:26 AM
To: Gaffney, Sean [Fin]
Cc: 'pdankers at comcast.net'; 'barry.lydon at sanofi.com'; peyton-observing at astro.princeton.edu
Subject: RE: Hosting Cub Scouts on 10/21 for Public Observing

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. 
> 
>  
> 
> 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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