The 18th March 2015 saw a visit from a local Brownie group. They had a short powerpoint presentation on astronomy, revamped to include the phases of the moon and how they work, forthcoming solar eclipse, shooting stars and meteorites – and a new sample piece was handed round for them to touch.
The blow up planet game proved popular, following the mnemonic “My Very Educated Mother Just Served Us Nine Pizzas” for the order of the planets, and then they told us they now use “My very educated mother just served us nachos” – a version which misses out Pluto!
Outside for Neil and Jim to show them some stars and planets in the telescope. Jupiter and Venus were both visible and bright, and then we could see Betelgeuse and Rigel, and faintly Polaris. Nibbling on biscuits kept the Brownies warm!
Inside the warmth again for a look at the differences between stars and planets, constellations, how to find the North Star, and a glimpse of astrophography – including local photos of the Orion nebula, Jupiter and Comet Lovejoy.
One of the helpers pointed out the large number of star names which are found in Harry Potter. Most notably Sirius Black, who can turn into a dog, is named after Sirius the Dog Star. More can be found here:
https://sites.google.com/site/knowleastro/basics/harry-potter-connections
And finally a few questions. There is always one on black holes!! I anticipated that and had two slides ready just after the main presentation! There was also one on Northern Lights – what makes them? – so I must include a slide on that.
Part of the remit of the club is to educate young people on astronomy, and we welcome visits by cubs, brownies, scouts and guides and any other interested groups. As the skies are now getting lighter later, now would be a good time to book dates for the Autumn term next year.
Please email us on
[email protected]
The blow up planet game proved popular, following the mnemonic “My Very Educated Mother Just Served Us Nine Pizzas” for the order of the planets, and then they told us they now use “My very educated mother just served us nachos” – a version which misses out Pluto!
Outside for Neil and Jim to show them some stars and planets in the telescope. Jupiter and Venus were both visible and bright, and then we could see Betelgeuse and Rigel, and faintly Polaris. Nibbling on biscuits kept the Brownies warm!
Inside the warmth again for a look at the differences between stars and planets, constellations, how to find the North Star, and a glimpse of astrophography – including local photos of the Orion nebula, Jupiter and Comet Lovejoy.
One of the helpers pointed out the large number of star names which are found in Harry Potter. Most notably Sirius Black, who can turn into a dog, is named after Sirius the Dog Star. More can be found here:
https://sites.google.com/site/knowleastro/basics/harry-potter-connections
And finally a few questions. There is always one on black holes!! I anticipated that and had two slides ready just after the main presentation! There was also one on Northern Lights – what makes them? – so I must include a slide on that.
Part of the remit of the club is to educate young people on astronomy, and we welcome visits by cubs, brownies, scouts and guides and any other interested groups. As the skies are now getting lighter later, now would be a good time to book dates for the Autumn term next year.
Please email us on
[email protected]