President's Message - February 2005

Scott Mair

I'm a curious person.

I like to know new things: what bird is that; how do owls fly silently; why are birds dinosaurs? I particularly like it when I have a friend who can introduce me to something new, show me a new-side of something I all ready know, or remind me of something I've forgotten. It's so much more fun when you have someone to show you the tricks of the trade.

That's one of the things I get out of my RASC membership. In terms of all things astronomical, I have a bunch of new friends to help me get the most out of my stargazing.

If I want to see a faint, fuzzy nebula for the first time, Bruno will punch it into his new go-to Meade, and there it is! Bill will teach me how to find it with my dob. Brian will show me how good it would look if I had a better eyepiece. David will show me how to take a picture of it. Guy will teach me how to build a tracking platform so I don't have to keep nudging my telescope along. Larry will help me build it. Sandy will explain exactly what I'm looking at. Chuck will tell why I'd enjoy looking at M13 more. Roy will remind me how much fun it is to share the amazing wonders of the night sky with the public.

Get the most out of your RASC membership. Take advantage of the knowledge, experience and enthusiasm of your fellow amateur astronomers (they like to be taken advantage of) and share your own expertise in return. Taking part in the outreach activities of the centre is a great way to do this: drop-in to a star party at the Center of the Universe; let Sid (sid_sidhu@shaw.ca ) know you're interested in helping out at school program; or, join Blaire's (pellatt@telus.net) sidewalk astronomy.

On April16, our centre will host Astronomy Day at the Royal British Columbia Museum. It's a great day of displays, solar viewing, presentations, telescope demonstrations, kid's activities and evening stargazing at CU� tons of fun for the public and for our members, too. If you'd like to help, contact Sandy (sbarta@shaw.ca) - you'll be glad you did.