Aug 16, 2008: Girl Scout Overnight Astronomy Camp (VI)
Michael Richmond
Sep 29, 2008
The RIT Observatory has hosted several special events
for local Girl Scouts recently:
Our latest overnight camp took place on August 16, 2008,
blessed by clear skies and comfortable temperatures.
There were only 23 scouts, since a couple of the
groups did not show up.
However, all the scouts, and their leaders,
had a chance to see the stars, the Moon, and Jupiter!
You can look at
our schedule for the night (and next morning).
Some troops arrived a bit early,
so we gave the Scouts
a little scavenger hunt
while they were waiting.
We arranged the Scouts into two groups and
rotated them through a set of four activities.
- Stacey Davis (NTID) helped the girls
to make "star wheels". After making the devices,
the scouts went outside and used their wheels to find
constellations.
- Christine Trombley (CIS graduate student)
explained why some of the planets (such as Earth and Mars)
are almost perfectly round, while others
(such as Jupiter and Saturn)
look slightly squashed.
The scouts built their own centrifugal spinners
to investigate ...
- Tracy Davis (Physics) and
Roger Easton (CIS)
gave the scouts a chance to see the Moon,
Jupiter, and
other objects through the Observatory's telescopes.
- Michael Richmond (Physics)
explained how scientists use the spectrum of a star
to determine its chemical makeup.
Just put on these magic eyeglasses ...
Early the next morning,
I put out the fixings for breakfast
and made several pots of strong coffee.
The scouts and their leaders
gradually woke up,
ate breakfast,
and headed home.
For more information
- Resources for making star wheels
- Resources for spectral analysis
Last modified 9/29/2008 by MWR