German Spanish French Italian Portuguese Japanese BETA Korean BETA Chinese (Simplified) BETA

TAO Public Stargaze

Where? See our map on the right!

When? Saturday July 18

1900 hours (7 PM)

Save Roane Starry Skies will sponsor the SRSS Bad Light SHOOT-OUT

On July 18

Astronomy Classes begin in September

There will be lots of telescopes available for viewing as this free public stargaze continues into the evening hours, including presentations in the classroom. This will be an excellent evening to visit and enjoy some astronomy. The observatory sponsors public Stargazes on the first and third Saturday evenings of each month. Amateur astronomers bring telescopes and binoculars and offer views of astronomical objects, while visitors are invited to bring their questions and food to share with the astronomers. We'll have presentations about the latest astronomy research and observations. Also 'What's Up in the Sky Tonight?' Don't miss it! We'll have nice views of the moon and Saturn if skies permit.

The 2009 Spring Semester at Roane State Community College will begin in September, and students are urged to sign up early for a course in Astronomy.

TAO supports light conservation and energy conservation. Too much light causes glare - a hazard on our highways. Directing light downward where it is needed conserves energy and gives us a safer, more secure community. It also keeps our observatory open for education and research. When was the last time that you could see our beautiful milky way? We are losing our Roane County Heritage in the glare of unshielded lights.

TAO is located just off Caney Creek Road between Midtown and Rockwood. Please check the observatory web site at www.roanestate.edu/obs for driving instructions and a map. The site is wheelchair-accessible.

Coming events:

July 4 -- no stargaze.

July 18 -- SRSS Bad Light Shootout.

From Saturday May 2, 2009:

From April 18, 2009:

Tamke-Allan Observatory hosted Radio Astronomy Society President on April 18

Our guest astronomer from Chiefland Astronomy Village, Tom Crowley, gave two excellent talks on Saturday. We had a full crowd for both. The first presentation, “Advances in Amateur Radio Astronomy” covered recent advances in radio astronomy that permit amateur astronomers to contribute actively to astronomy research. Current observations showing changes in solar output were discussed. After this excellent talk, part of the afternoon (geeky) crowd went to Gondolier and we had a great meal. Here's part of the afternoon crowd.

The night crowd was bigger but I haven't received anyone's photos yet. If you have any, please send me a copy.

Tom's second presentation, “Searching for Super Novas,” started at 7:30 PM. Tom is a member of the Puckett Observatory Super Nova Search Team and they have discovered over 170 super novas. This presentation covered different classifications of super novas; described how the amateur astronomer hunts them, and what procedures need to be followed to report their discovery. Besides super nova hunting with his homebuilt 24” telescope, Tom does visual observing, CCD imaging and radio astronomy. Most of their photos are made using Jack Newton's scope for remote photos. The night talk was packed, but outside skies were cloudy -- not even sucker holes.

Roy Morrow has a western home near Jack Newton's and was over there last week. Roy, Heather, and the rest of you who asked if someone could video tape Tom's presentations -- we had 2 video cameras going (thanks to Dick Castle and Bill Seymour, both of Chattanooga) so I think that we'll be able to get a copy. Thanks to both of you!

Come to think of it, we had more Chattanooga people there than SMAS people (yes, that's even including the fact that I'm a paid-up SMAS member). That's not the first time that this has happened. Chattanooga is an active place! I was there a few weeks ago, when they had my friend Chuck Higgins speaking about observing Jupiter. Here we are admiring the historic telescope on the UTC campus.

We meet irrespective of weather conditions. The observatory sponsors public Stargazes on the first and third Saturday evenings of each month. Amateur astronomers bring telescopes and binoculars and offer views of astronomical objects, while visitors are invited to bring their questions and food to share with the astronomers.

Too much light causes glare – a hazard on our highways. Directing light downward where it is needed conserves energy and gives us a safer, more secure community. It also keeps our observatory open for education and research. When was the last time that you could see our beautiful milky way? We are losing our Roane County Heritage in the glare of unshielded lights.

TAO is located just off Caney Creek Road between Midtown and Rockwood. Please check the observatory web site at www.roanestate.edu/obs for driving instructions and a map. The site is wheelchair-accessible.

Please leave the driveway up to the sidewalk clear except for setup, as we'll likely have a couple of handicapped persons tonight.

Bring your telescopes and binoculars, red flashlights, and snacks to share. This Public Stargaze should be an excellent evening for citizens of Roane County to visit and enjoy astronomy.

Astronomers and visitors have many difficulties lately from local lights that shine upward and threaten the ability to see anything beyond the brightest astronomical objects.

The Light Conservation citizen's group has a new website.

Our Meade LX-200 telescope is now mounted in the POD, compliments of DR, Roy and David. The telescope was a generous gift from Roy, while the POD is borrowed from DR. Thanks, Guys! Here's our first astrophoto from the LX-200 in the POD, after additional help from Larry and Katie:

Fortunately the ORION nebula shown here was well above the horizon. The depressing light pollution news continues -- we have had another temporary setback in trying to bring dark and starry skies back to our community and preserve our Tennessee Heritage of beautiful skies.

.......

Here's Larry Robinson's gazing ball image from 5/19. Note the heavy light pollution along the horizon and illumination of the classroom by the light trespass (click for full size image). This is a 11 PM photo and the light pollution prevents viewing around the horizon.

Tamke-Allan Observatory of Rockwood is a treasure of Roane County. It hosts free Public Stargazes on the first and third Saturday evenings of each month. These stargazes have opened the night skies, free of charge to everyone, for the past 10 years. Amateur astronomers bring telescopes and binoculars and offer views of astronomical objects, while visitors are invited to bring their questions and cameras and meet the astronomers. Kids are especially welcome.

Too much light causes glare – a hazard on our highways. Directing light downward where it is needed conserves energy and gives us a safer, more secure community. It also keeps our observatory open for education and research. When was the last time that you could see our beautiful milky way? We are losing our Roane County Heritage in the glare of unshielded lights.

Star Party Etiquette

* Bring a red flashlight and avoid using any white light after dark.
* Get to know the lighting controls for your vehicle and ensure as little white light as possible shines from your vehicle. If you cannot control the lights, choose to park as far away from the telescopes as practical.
* Carefully enter the observing location. Speeding into a parking area full of telescopes and observers is a recipe for an accident.

Astronomers from the Oak Ridge Isochronous Observation Network (ORION) and the Smokey Mountain Astronomical Society (SMAS) groups participate in most TAO events. TAO serves as the center for astronomy classes, optical astronomy and radio astronomy observing as well as and public stargazes on the first and third Saturdays of each month.

TAO Academic Associates are Colleges and Universities that have both faculty and students that share research and scientific goals. The emphasis is not just scientific -- this is a humanistic endeavor that encourages both cultural exchange and critical thinking.

Our Associate Groups: