Starship Asterisk*

As happens every year around this time, an editor of APOD will be reviewing the Best Astronomy Images of 2008 in New York City at the American Museum of Natural History. This year the lecture occurs on Friday, January 2. The lecture begins at 6:15 pm and runs roughly one hour. The lecture will be held in the Kaufmann Auditorium and will be free for all to attend. A link giving details about the event is given here: http://www.aaa.org/index1.aspx?BD=9460 .

This year I will be giving the lecture. As usual, there have been many spectacular images posted to APOD during 2008, and it will quite a thrill for me to review the best of them. I will also be giving some of the science and stories behind these pictures as best as I know them. During past years we have had a good turnout, and so this will likely be a good chance for everyone to meet other night sky and APOD enthusiasts from the greater New York City area. Children are also quite welcome to attend. The event is hosted by the Amateur Astronomers Association of New York. If anyone has any questions, please post them to this thread and I would be happy to answer them.

- RJN

Any chance of a webcast (either live or recorded for later access)?

Go a couple of days early. Times Square is generally cold on New Year's Eve, but the crowd is partitioned and tolerable.

How long will you be in NYC? Would you be interested in coming to Long Island for an astronomy club meeting on Sun, Jan 4?

Hi
I'm from India. Just want to know whether this session will be available as a recorded version anywhere on the net for later access? It will be really great to have it online.
Sud

Unfortunately, I know of no plans to make or make available a digital recording of the lecture. Also unfortunately, I do not plan to be in the New York area on Jan. 4. Perhaps if you email me directly, we can arrange for another time, however.

- RJN

Sorry, but I don't know your e-mail. Could you respond to president@aosny.org please? Thanks.

suerose wrote:Sorry, but I don't know your e-mail.

I found it here under "Nemiroff".

Will the lecture be on the internet?

PrairieWalker wrote:Will the lecture be on the internet?

RJN wrote:Unfortunately, I know of no plans to make or make available a digital recording of the lecture.

Perhaps this latest question was about the possibility of a transcript, a list (with links) of the pictures discussed, or a brief summary.

I don't know if you have ten, hundreds or thousands of people who would be interested in getting a copy of your presentation; you'll have to evaluate if there are enough beneficiaries to make some effort worthwhile.

But, if you were to decide that yes, a little time and energy and money invested in that direction would be worthwhile, then you can purchase a digital voice recorder for not too much money, get a $10 clip-on microphone to attach to your shirt or collar, and record your entire talk. Then after the talk, you create a slide show of the pictures you discuss, and attach the voice clip(s) to the pictures.

I haven't done precisely this before, but have done similar things and would be happy to help. If you lecture frequently, you definitely should have a digital voice recorder so as to capture your talks. They could probably be used for a variety of purposes, including getting posted as educational material on APOD.

Please let me know if you'd like some help pursuing this idea.

I'm OK with someone making a recording and posting it, but please check with the American Museum of Natural History and/or the hosting NYC Amateur Astronomers Association to see if they have any policies or restrictions. If anyone does make a recording, please post it to this thread so others can find it. If the quality is high, I may even post a link to it from APOD.

- RJN

The Oklahoma City Astronomy Club says YES to a transcript, vid, or any format for a copy. We also wish you a Merry Christmas and hope that all of your sleigh rides and friends greet you in starlight.

The Desert Skygazers Astronomy Club from AZ would also enjoy a copy, any kind or type . We are there in spirit, even if it is too far away for us to attend.

RJN wrote:...Children are also quite welcome to attend...

One of the things I love about the astronomy field is how eager we all are to share what we know with younger generations! How cool is it that the kids of NYC will be able to attend this?! Kudos to you, have fun in New York, and Merry Christmas!

I'm sure C-SPAN would be happy to tape the program. http://www.c-span.org/

This to me could only mean one thing, the evidence of black stars..... .

I would hope that the American Museum of Natural History and/or the hosting NYC Amateur Astronomers Association would tape the event for those of us out of the NY area. This is a service they should provide for the chance to get you to speak at their gathering.

I should like to express an interest in a DVD of the talk, for possible showing to a local society. A webcast would be nearly as good, it it was possible to save it.

Roger (UK)

Perhaps there is enough interest to prepare for a streaming video for 2010's APOD presentation. That way, amateurs and pros alike from around the world can enjoy the presentation realtime even if they are not close to New York. It would be a kind of New Year's present...something to look forward to.

Best wishes for a fun and inspiring lecture and event. Hope to get some news or report about it. MEB

Hey everyone,

This is just a brief update on my "Best Space Images of 2008" presentation at the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH) on Friday, January 2, 2009. The AMNH talk was possibly the largest APOD talk yet, with perhaps 300 in attendance, by my wife's estimate. The Kaufmann auditorium holds about 350, and people were standing in the back. Still, there were a bunch of open seats up front. I thought the talk went well. The AMNH was itself quite crowded earlier in the day, and I think all the interest there and in the APOD talk was because many people took that Friday off since it was just after New Year's and before a weekend. Members of the host organization, the Amateur Astronomers Association of New York, said that this was one of the best attended talks of theirs in recent memory, which is good since many people took brochures and may attend future lectures and star parties. They also said that they would post my powerpoint presentation to their web site, but they did not give a time scale. I believe that one audience member made an audio recording, but I was not aware of anyone making a video recording.

My impression may well be biased, though, and of course anyone else who attended is quite welcome to post their impressions here.

- RJN

Excellent seminar. Looking forward to the 2010 event!

Ben
Teaneck, NJ

Yes, I think Jerry (Bonnell) is scheduled to give the next APOD NY talk on Jan 8 (Friday) in 2010. He might be too modest to advertise it on APOD, though. Here is a link: http://www.aaa.org/lectures

- RJN

Yes, I think Jerry (Bonnell) is scheduled to give the next APOD NY talk on Jan 8 (Friday) in 2010. He might be too modest to advertise it on APOD, though.

Wish I had known Bonnell was speaking..loved his "The Gamma-Ray Bursts of Doom". Checked the link to aaa lectures but didn't see anything current...

Actually, Jerry and I alternate every year. I am scheduled to give the next NY lecture coming up on Friday, 2011 Jan. 7. (Sorry.) If enough people are interested, though, maybe we can get some reservations at a nearby restaurant for an informal APOD / Asterisk dinner that night. - RJN