The current gate closure time is 7 p.m. After that time, a code is needed for park entry (& access to the astronomy field).



2012 Chapter Outreach Events

  • 2012-12-13 Ison Springs Elementary Science Night
    This STEM event was well attended and parents, teachers and students also learned a few things about our night sky. It was new moon, so they could not take a look at our close neighbor, but they observed the double star Alberio and learned which one of the stars burns a lot hotter than the the other. Jupiter and four of its moons also received a lot of Wows. Click here for the gallery
  • 2012-12-04 and 05 Solar for Hightower Trail Elementary
    We keep returning to this great school. This time to show the fourth graders the Sun through our Ha and white light filtered scopes and teach them a bit about what the sun is, and does, and how it affects us here on earth. Click here for the gallery
  • 2012-11-24 Astronomy for Gokuldham-Haveli School
    Astronomy Night at Gokuldham Haveli in Norcross was a blast… Jack Fitzmier, John Towne and Jeff Rebitzke “cooked up a comet”, calculated how fast you are moving when sitting still, then went outside and observed a beautiful waxing gibbous moon and Jupiter. Click here for the gallery
  • 2012-11-15 The Night Sky for Grayson Elementary School
    We received a last minute request to participate in Grayson Elementary Science Night. The clouds just disappeared in time for this event but the humidity was terrible. Despite this, the students and parents were able to see a 2 day crescent moon, a planetary nebula, a globular star cluster and could make out which of the 2 stars of Alberio was the hottest. Click here for the gallery
  • 2012-11-10 How the Night Sky works for LGA
    6 Chapter members brought scopes out to Loganville Christian Academy to show the students and parents what’s up in the night sky. They were explained what was visible and than had the option to see some star clusters, blue and red stars, the ring nebula, the blue snowball, a galaxy and the second group also saw Jupiter with three of its moons. Click here for the gallery
  • 2012-11-03 Charlie Elliott’s “Becoming an Outdoors Woman” Program
    We were asked to help with astronomy outreach for a group of young adult women, who participated in Charlie Elliott Wildlife Center’s program. 7 Participated in this very successfull event. Thanks to all who helped. Click here for a picture
  • 2012-11-02 Astronomy for Scout Troop 554
    We were asked to give Scout Troop 554 some help to earn their astronomy merit badge. In a light poluted area, they learned about telescopes, and why telescopes and binoculars are important to astronomy, and Jeff gave a presentation on the sun and sunspots. Outside, they showed the troop red (Mu Cep), yellow (Capella), and blue-white (Pleiades) stars as well as NGC457, M31, and M42!
  • 2012-10-27 Astronomy Badge for Scout troop 282
    We were asked if we could help Scout Troop 282 with earning their astronomy merit badge. the scouts came to Charlie Elliott and we guided them through the things they need to know and do. Huricane Sandy send some thin high level couds which obscured some of the things they needed to look at. Other than that it was pretty successfull!Click here to go to the gallery.
  • 2012-10-26 Astronomy Club of Morgan County Middle
    We were invited again this year to address the astronomy club of Morgan County Middle school in Madison. We made a presentation about Curiosity, taught them about the sun, and let them observe the sun through our Solar Scopes. A great school and a great teacher!Click here to go to the gallery.
  • 2012-10-25 The Sun over Oxford College of Emory University
    We were invited to participate in an astronomy lab at Oxford College to let the students observe the sun through our H-alpha filtered scopes which they really appreciated.Click here to go to the gallery.
  • 2012-10-23 Star Party for Duluth Library
    The Duluth Library asked us to come out on one of their “Moon Nights” and let the visitors look at the night sky. 102 visitors attended our presentation and took a look at the moon, a star cluster and the Ring nebula. A very successfull evening. :-) Click here to go to the gallery.
  • 2012-10-20 Star Party and Orionids over Jon Wood Field
    Some students from Stone mountain Middle and Dunwoody Charter came to CE to observe the Orionids and to observe the sky through our telescopes.
  • 2012-10-18 Star Party for Heard Mixon Elementary School
    We went to Heard Mixon Elementary again, this time to let the students take a look at the night sky. The students took a look at some great details on the moon and learned about constellations and the summer triangle and they saw the satellite COSMO-Skymed! flare. Click here to go to the gallery.
  • 2012-10-10 The sun over Heard Mixon Elementary School
    Because it was cloudy when we reached out to the 4th grade students from Heard Mixon Elementary School in South Newton we went back to talk about our magnetic Sun and let them observe the sun with some prominences and sunspots! In addition, they learned how small we rally are even in our solar system. Click here for images.
  • 2012-10-09 Heard Mixon Elementary School
    It was cloudy when we reached out to the 4th grade students from Heard Mixon Elementary School in South Newton so the students learned about the Curiosity rover on Mars and took a flight through the solar system. Finally they learned about meteorites and became asteroid hunters. Very clever students and teachers! Click here for images.
  • 2012-10-04 Rocky Plains Elementary School
    It was cloudy when we reached out to the 4th grade students from Rocky Plains Elementary School in South Newton a few weeks ago, so we went back to let them observe the Sun through our Solar Scopes.
  • 2012-09-24 Harbour Oaks Montessori School at CE
    Harbour Oaks Montessori came back again to Charlie Elliott for a two day field trip. They requested again for us to participate and the students learned about the sun and could take a look at it through our solar scopes.  In the evening they learned about Mars and one of its moons Phobos,  the Mars Rover Curiosity and the pictures from LRO showing the landing sites of the Apollo missions.  They also learned about asteroids and other space rocks and on the Jon Wood Field they observed the moon and some very interesting night sky objects!!    Click here for pictures.
  • 2012-09-21 Stone Mountain Middle School
    This year we reached out again to the 6th grade students from Stone Mountain Middle School with in classroom presentations about Mars and one of its moons Phobos,  the Mars Rover Curiosity and the pictures from LRO showing the landing sites of the Apollo missions.  They also learned about asteroids and other space rocks.!!  and at the end they were able to observe the Sun through our solar scopes.  Click here for pictures.
  • 2012-09-18 Rocky Plains Elementary School
    We reached out to the 4th grade students from Rocky Plains Elementary School in Covington with in classroom presentations about Mars and one of its moons Phobos,  the Mars Rover Curiosity and the pictures from LRO showing the landing sites of the Apollo missions.  They also learned about asteroids and other space rocks.!!  click here for pictures.
  • 2012-09-14 & 15 Solid Rock Babtist church campers at the FFA camp
    Children of the Solid Rock Babtist Church who were camping at the FFA camp learned about astreroids, meteors and how the energy of the sun keeps things alive on earth.  On Saturday they learned about, and observed the Sun!!
  • 2012-09-15 Stone Mountain Middle School at CE
    A number of students and parents from Stone Mountain Middle School came out to the Jon Wood Field to observe the night sky.  Despite the cloudy weather they were able to see some interesting night sky objects.  This is what I call being interested!!
  • 2012-08-27 East Newton Elementary School outreach
    We reached out to the 4th grade students from East Newton Elementary School in Covington with in classroom presentations about the Mars Rover Curiosity and the pictures from LRO showing the landing sites of the Apollo missions. Following this they also observed the Sun through our Solar Scopes. Click here for pictures.
  • 2012-08-25 East Newton Elementary School, Covington Star Party
    The 4th grade students of the East Newton Elementary School in Covington came to CE for a star party. The clouds moved out for a large part and the students were able to take a close look at the Moon, including the “Straight Wall”, Saturn and Mars. Click here for pictures.
  • 2012-08-24 Middle Ridge Elementary School, Covington Star Party
    We went to Middle Ridge Elementary School in Covington for a star party at the school. Despite the clouds, the students were able to take a close look at the Moon, Saturn and Mars. Click here for pictures.
  • 2012-08-22 Middle Ridge Elementary School outreach, Covington
    We reached out to the 4th grade students from Middle Ridge Elementary School in Covington with in classroom presentations about the Mars Rover Curiosity and the challenges to get it from Earth to Mars. Following this they observed the Sun through our Solar Scopes. Click here for pictures.
  • 2012-07-17 The Night Sky over HLC
     We did an outreach event for the campers at the Dunwoody Methodist Church Camp “God is Green” at Hard Labor Creek.  Despite the clouds Frank managed to show them some nice objects in the sky.
  • 2012-07-16 RY Robotic Explorers outreach Roswell, week 2
     We did an outreach event for the campers at the RY Robotic Explorers Camp in Roswell.  They saw the sun through different filters and learned why sunspots look dark and explored the solar system through a planetary program.
  • 2012-07-10 RY Robotic Explorers outreach Roswell
     We did an outreach event for the campers at the RY Robotic Explorers Camp in roswell.  They saw the sun through different filters and learned about the Stereo mission and what’s involved in a complex robot like the Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity, what it will do and how it was launched and will land on Mars very soon.  Click here for some pictures
  • 2012-07-08 The Garden Club of Georgia at Charlie Elliott.
    The Chapter did another event for this club as we have done in past years. the campers learned about how to orient yourself based on the stars and were able to see Saturn, Mars, M57, M7 and other nice nightsky object resulting in many:”wow”s.
  • 2012-06-11 Gwinnett County Parks: “Space”.
    The Chapter scheduled three astronomy events for the attendees of Gwinnett County Parks with the subject “Space”. Three members went to three different parks for the presentations. The kids were very impressed with what they learned
  • 2012-06-05 The Venus Transit.
    The Chapter scheduled three Observing events for the general public, one in Grayson/Loganville, a second one in Lawrenceville and a third one in Covington. In addition, chapter members did participate in an event organized by the AAC at stone Mountain and several ad hoc events. The results were very successfull. Click the blue city names for pictures of the respective events or read the announcement in one of the local papers.
  • 2012-05-23 The Sun over Grayson Elementary.
    Thanks Mrs. Green for staying with us because of scheduling issues for these classes. The students of this school got treated to observing the sun on the last day of the school year.
  • 2012-05-16, 17, 18 The Sun over Memorial Middle School in Conyers.
    A three day Solar outreach event for 12 classes at Memorial Middle School. In the classroom, the 6th graders attended a presentation about how NASA helps study the Sun with satellites like SOHO, SDO and Stereo A and B. They also learned about how the sun can affect our lives on Earth. Click here for a few pictures.
  • 2012-05-12 Charlie Elliott’s JAKES Day.
    The Charlie Elliott chapter did participate in JAKES Day at Charlie Elliott Wildlife Center again this year. At the Discovery Buildijg the visitors were able to look through some scopes and learned about astronomy.
  • 2012-05-02 The Sun over Trickum Middle School, Stone Mountain.
    Our first event for this school. Mr. Patterson’s 6th graders as well as some other classes and administrative staff members observed the sun with some nice prominences, sunspots and filaments. In the class room we took them on a trip to Mars, where they could observe the conditions and topography of the planet. Click here for a few pictures.
  • 2012-04-27 KITES Stem Festival, Scott Elementary, Atlanta.
    The first KITES Stem Festival for this school. Over 120 students observed the sun with a few prominences and some nice filaments. In the library they attended did a presentation about the MSL mission, including how the rover Curiosity, how it was launched and how it will land on Mars in August of this year. Click here for a few pictures.
  • 2012-04-24 The Sun over East Newton Elementary.
    85 fourth grade students learned a little more about the solar system and space weather. They took a closeup look at Mars and its topography and learned what happens if the gravity on a marsian moon is very small. They also learned the different phases of a rocket launch and how NASA lands a mobil laboratory on Mars.Click here for a few pictures.
  • 2012-04-16 McConnel Middle School, Grayson
    The Charlie Elliott Chapter went to McConnell Middle School in Grayson for a solar program and a presentation about Mars and how Curiosity was launched and will land on Mars. The three 6th grade classes of Mrs Sandidge were very interested and learned about the topography of Mars and about its moons. Click here for a picture.
  • 2012-04-14 Kate’s Club at Charlie Elliott
    The Chapter did participate with a Solar event for Kate’s club. 85 Kids and adults took the chance to see both the sun and the moon. They also got a good feel for the relative sizes of both and the distance from Earth to the sun. Click here for a few pictures.
  • 2012-04-13 East Newton Elementary “Star Party at CE”.
    65 students and parents from East Newton Elementary attended our Starparty for these students. Smart and eager to learn more…. They saw 4 planets with some of their moons, Orion’s nebula, some double stars, star clusters and other galaxies. Thanks to Mrs. Thompson to bring the school out to Charlie Elliott Click here for a few pictures.
  • 2012-03-31 Our third Solar Event at Anna Ruby Falls State Park.
    eight Chapter members went to Anna Ruby State Park for the Third Annual Solar Day. Between 200 and 250 visitors looked through our Solar Scopes and learned about why and how we observe the Sun. A great day with excited visitors.Click here for a few pictures.
  • 2012-03-30 Astronomy “Field Trip” for Palmetto Elementary.
    Theo went again to Palmetto Elementary, this time to talk to the students about astronomical concepts and the challenges associated with launching and landing the MSL Rover Curiosity to Mars. The students really enjoyed the presentations and were very eager at the end to tell me what they learned that day Click here for a few pictures.
  • 2012-03-29 “The Night” over CE for Royston Elementary.
    The Charlie Elliott Chapter did an Night Sky event for Royston Elementary School at TODS. An inside program focussed on the challenges of launching and landing the Curiosity Rover on Mars. The clouds cleared up in time for the 85 students and parents did get to see Jupiter, Venus, Mars, the moon and some more objects. Click here for a few pictures.
  • 2012-03-29 “The Sun” over CE for Royston Elementary.
    The Charlie Elliott Chapter did a Solar event for Royston Elementary School at TODS. Even though the sky was covered with a thin layer ofclouds, the 85 students and parents did get to see the sun through our scopes. In addition, they learned about the relative distances in the solar system, when they learned about solar winds and walked a to scale earth to its relative distance in our orbit from a 6 foot Sun on the side of the SUV Click here for a few pictures.
  • 2012-03-20 “The Sun” over Grayson Elementary.
    The Charlie Elliott Chapter did a Solar event for Grayson Elementary School. This was a special event because the students could observe one of the tallest prominences I have seen on the sun. In addition, they learned about the relative distances in the solar system, when they learned about solar winds and walked a to scale earth away from a 6 foot Sun on the side of the SUV Click here for a few pictures.
  • 2012-03-17  Rock Eagle, Eatonton.
    The Charlie Elliott Chapter did a Solar event for Rock Eagle’s 4H spring sessions. The attendants young and old learned about the Sun and how it affects our lives on earth and why and how we study the sun.  Than it went outside to observe the sun through our scopes and despite the moving clouds, everyone got to take a peek.   A few pictures here.
  • 2012-03-10  Astronomy Night at Summerour Middle  School Norcross
    The Charlie Elliott Chapter participated in Summerour’s Astronomy Night for the third time.  We took three of the rotation slots with “Cooking a Comet”, NSN tools, and a close look at what is involved in sending a laboratorium to Mars.  The skies cleared and everyone got to look at the night sky through our Scopes.   A few pictures here.
  • 2012-03-05  ”The Sun” over Summerour Middle  School Norcross
    Frank, Chris and Theo did a Solar event for Summerour’s 6th grades of Ms Cooper. The students looked at the active sun, which had just ejected a Class X5 flare, they learned about the solar system and watched how that the tails of comets always point away from the sun because of the solar wind.  A few pictures here.
  • 2012-02-28,29 and 3-1 Astronomy and Space Exploration at Fairview Elementary School
    For three days in a row Frank and Theo went to Covington’s Fairview Elementary School to talk about Astronomy and Space Exploration. Using the NSN tool kits and the MLS presentation and video clips we showed them how exciting a job in Astronomy or Space Exploration can be. Since the weather was cloudy we were unable to let the students observe the sun, but according to Mrs Pelton we will be back for that For a few pictures click here.
  • 2012-02-23 Career Day at Princeton Elementary School
    Frank and Theo did participate in Princeton Elementary School’s Career Day. Using the NSN tool kits and the MLS presentation and video clips we showed them how exciting a job in Astronomy or Space Exploration can be. Many smiling faces showed us that we had achieved that goal A few pictures here.
  • 2012-02-16 Space Night at Memorial Middle School, Conyers
    Conyer’s Memorial Middle School, a NASA Explorer School did celebrate its second Space Night and we participated, because of cloudy skies, with a presentation about NASA’s MSL mission. Discussing the mission and how we execute it exposed the students to the numerous science jobs associated with space exploration. In addition, we expored using Celestis how astronauts and the cameras of space crafts approaching Mars would see it as well as its moons. Click here for a few pictures.
  • 2012-02-07 Science Night at Palmetto Elementary
    Over 150 students and parents showed up for the Palmetto Elementary’s Science night. All of them waited patiently to be able to see with their own eyes the half phase of Venus and Jupiter with its moons while they learned about our Solar System and the planets. Click here for a few pictures.
  • 2012-02-04 Student Success Expo/STEM Festival Savannah
    During the festival approximately 200 interested students (out of approx. 4000) learned a lot about astronomy and space exploration and many of them got to take a look at the Sun (mainly at the end of the event when the clouds started breaking). Altough at times it was hard to communcate with the students because of the laud music/commentary from the program on the main stage….. Many teacher asked if we could offer this to their schools, but the distance is too far. A few pictures here.
  • 2012-02-02 Science/Tech Nite at Puckett’s Mill Elementary School
    A great number of students and parents showed up for this. We had two slots in the rotation, one to teach about our current mission to Mars with Curiosity, and a second to look at the night sky through our scopes. They were fascinated by everything that’s involved in landing a rover safely on Mars, and to see the moons from Jupiter, as well as our Moon, with their own eyes through our scopes. Pictures here.
  • 2012-01-26 “Space Camp” at Hightower Trail Elementary school
    Eight Chapter members did participate last night in Hightower Trail’s Space Camp. This was the 8th year for the Chapter’s participation. It was a great event with one slot of the rotation programs in the school being provided by Theo. After the completion of the rotation programs, all students came outside to 5 telescopes and looked at the night sky, and Jupiter while Io was getting ready for its transit. Students liked it so much that many of them, after completing their turn to look, went back in line and wait for a second or third time. Thanks to Gretchen Gault for inviting us .Click here for pictures.
  • 2012-01-26 “Observe the Sun” for Hightower Trail Elementary school (Day 2)
    Wednesday we were back at HTE for the second day. Very interested students and very eager to take a look at the sun. Unfortunately the weather did not cooperate well with us, so, although some of the students could see what’s happening on the sun, clouds obscured it for others. I keep hoping that some day someone invents that Cloud filter. We will be back on Friday for the evening Space Camp program.Click here for pictures.
  • 2012-01-25 “Observe the Sun” for Hightower Trail Elementary school (Day 1)
    Tuesday we did the first of a two day solar event at Hightower Trail Elementary in Conyers. Great students and teachers! The students saw the sun, the active region which produced the largest CME impact since 2003 and learned about the satellites that help us study the sun. Back on Wednesday for the second day and Friday for the 8th Space Camp at HightowerClick here for pictures.
  • 2012-01-14 “Observe the Sun” for Panola Mountain State Park
    We had a great outreach event today. The sun did cooperate today. Clear crisp skies. By the time we finished the presentation inside about the Sun and the Stereo Satellites the temp. went up outside and 47 guests were able to take a closer look at the sun in whitelight and H-alphaClick here for pictures.