A heads up from Ed Ching For those who have been following the saga of the Optronic Techonologies, Inc., business, parent of both Orion Telescopes and Meade Instruments, the offices and storefront in Watsonville, California were shut down in July 2024. On July 31, the Orion website went offline. Apparently the assets of […]
Category: Newsletter
A New Year of Stargazing Adventures
Greetings to the Society, Here’s to a New Year and New Adventures! 2024 was an incredible year for astronomical events. Many members experienced the awe-inspiring total solar eclipse on April 8, 2024, with some traveling to witness this rare celestial phenomenon firsthand. Closer to home, parts of the Bay Area were treated to a dazzling […]
My Favorite Astronomer: Claudius Ptolemy
As someone who used to write an astronomy column for the San Mateo Daily Journal and a huge astronomy fan, I know most of the ancient astronomers but of course, not all. There was a name that kept reappearing in my research that I wasn’t familiar with. I’m not sure if he’s my favorite astronomer, […]
Familiar Faces Return to Crestview for Comet Gazing
San Mateo County Fire Department employees from left to right are Firefighter Matt Hoffmann, Engineer John Hollander, Fire Capt. Jordan Motts and Fire Capt. Chris Schaefer. If you’ve been keeping up on our newsletter, you might recall we had an unusually exciting Star Party July 3. The San Mateo County Fire Department came out to Crestview […]
SMCAS Annual Holiday Party!
Mark your calendars for an evening of fun, food, and fellowship at the San Mateo County Astronomical Society’s annual holiday party! 📅 Date: Thursday, January 18, 2018 ⏰ Time: 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. 📍 Location: Crystal Springs United Methodist Church 2145 Bunker Hill Dr, San Mateo, CA 94402 This year’s celebration is a potluck! […]
JWST shows that dark matter doesn’t exist!
OK now that I got you attention with that over the top headline like newspapers print, lets talk about the facts. The cosmos has always been a wellspring of surprises, and our understanding of its early days remains incomplete. For decades, we were constrained by our technological limits—telescopes couldn’t peer far enough to capture light […]
Speaker: Dr Bart De Pontieu
Presentation on September 5, 8:00pm PST in the CSM Planetarium Speaker: Dr. Bart De Pontieu, Solar Physicist Solar and Astrophysics Laboratory Lockheed Martin Advanced Technology Center Unraveling the Mysteries of the Sun’s Atmosphere Free and open to the public. Free Parking in nearby lots. The Sun, our nearest star, is more than just a blazing […]
Venus in the Teapot, Jupiter’s Brilliance, and Shooting Stars
Greetings to the Society, Venus in the Teapot of Sagittarius As we approach the end of the year, there’s a celestial treat worth observing: Venus is shining brightly in the “Teapot” of Sagittarius. While the Teapot isn’t an official constellation, this distinctive asterism of bright stars within Sagittarius is hard to miss once pointed out. […]
The Europa Clipper Mission: Unveiling the Mysteries of Jupiter’s Moon
Back in September my family when to an exhibit and talk at the Academy of Science in San Francisco by NASA on their mission to Europa. This mission is set to launch no later than 12:06 p.m. EDT, Monday, Oct. 14th. Where might we find life beyond Earth within our solar system? While Mars and […]
Celestial Events on the Horizon: Fall 2024
Greetings to the Society, A rare astronomical phenomenon is on the verge of unfolding—the nova nova T Coronae Borealis, which erupts approximately every 80 years, appears to be running behind schedule. When it does, it is predicted to be the brightest nova seen from Earth since 1975, and we are expecting this awe-inspiring event to […]