Micrometeorites and Clear Weather

Last night we had some beautiful weather for stargazing to accompany Lia Corrales' lecture entitled: "Meteorites: The Extraterrestrials in your Backyard." Lia talked about micrometeorites, very small particles originating in outer space which rain onto the surface of the Earth every day in significant amounts (estimated at 20,000 tons / year). She discussed ways where these come from, why they're important, and how you can find them in your own backyard. We followed her talk with a Galileoscope giveaway and lots of free NASA CDs for attendees.

We then opened up the telescopes for the attendees, both on the Roof and in front of Pupin. We observed Jupiter, the Owl Cluster (aka the ET Cluster), and the Andromeda Galaxy. Attendees also had the option of sticking around the lecture hall to see one of our various slideshows, watch Cosmic Collisions, or ask astronomers their burning questions at our Q&A. Overall it was one of our most successful nights of the year with over 200 people showing up to take advantage of this beautiful observing conditions.

--Cameron