Welcome to the WAA

We are a not–for–profit organization open to people of all ages with the desire to learn more about astronomy and who share an interest in viewing the universe. We range from enthusiastic amateurs and educators to casual stargazers and families. Everything you need to know about our organization is outlined below. Current astronomy news, feeds and astronomy resources can be found on the right side of the page.

Little Girl and Mom at park. (M. Gondek)

Newsletters

Read the latest SkyWAAtch newsletters:

We also have archived newsletters.

Monthly Lectures


Please Note New Location for the February Meeting

Lectures are free and open to the public.

Friday, February 5th 7:30 PM – "Is There Life on Mars?”- Brother Robert Novak.

Please join us at Iona College for an exciting lecture where Brother Novak will discuss the possibility of life on Mars and the latest scientific discoveries to date. The lecture will be held at the New Rochelle Campus of Iona College, and begin at 7:30 PM in the 2nd Floor of the LaPenta Student Center, 715 North Avenue Avenue, New Rochelle, NY.

Enter the campus from the North Avenue entrance. There is a guard kiosk there; when coming in, inform the guard that you are attending the Astronomy lecture and you will be directed to the appropriate parcking area.

Directions and a campus map can be found here:

Directios to Iona College
Iona College Campus Map (click on the campus map on the lower right hand corner).

Join us at 7 PM for our "social hour", a WAA tradition! Light refreshments will be served.

Upcoming Lectures .

The time and location of future meetings will be announced shortly. .

Friday, March 5th – David High, a NASA Solar System Ambassador will speak on the the Chandra XRaySpace Telescope.

Jimmy at Stellafane (G. Gondek)

Starway to Heaven

Starway to Heaven is our monthly observing night at The Meadow, Ward Pound Ridge Reservation, Cross River, NY. WAA Directions. The observing dates are:

2010 Observing Schedule

Saturday, January 16th — 6:30pm to 9pm. Raindate: January 23rd.
Saturday, Fefruary 13th — 6:30pm to 9pm. Raindate: February 20th.
Saturday, March 13th — 7pm to 9pm. Raindate: March 20th.
Saturday, April 10th — 8pm to 10pm. Raindate: April 17th .
Saturday, May 8th — 8:30pm to 10:30pm. Raindate: May 15th.
Saturday, June 5th — 9pm to 11pm. Raindate: June 12th.
Saturday, July 10th — 9pm to 11pm. Raindate: July 17th.
Saturday, August 7th — 9pm to 11pm. Raindate: August 14th.
Saturday, September 4th — 8pm to 10pm. Raindate: September 11th.
Saturday, October 2nd — 8pm to 10pm. Raindate: October 9th.
Saturday, November 6th — 7pm to 9pm. Raindate: November 13th.
Saturday, December 4th — 6:30pm to 9pm. Raindate: December 11th.

"Starway to Heaven" is free and open to the public through the generosity of the Westchester County Department of Parks, Recreation and Conservation. We encourage you to bring your telescope — especially if you need help using or setting it up. Don't have a telescope? You can look through our members' equipment. Call 1–877–456–5778 for weather cancellations. A good rule of thumb: Don't show up if you can't count more than 10 bright stars. Please read our General Observing Guidelines. The WAA cannot guarantee the turnout of members and telescopes during the winter months.

Membership

Annual dues are $25.00 per family which includes discounts on subscriptions to Sky and Telescope and Astronomy magazines (see below). To join the WAA, fill out our application and send it along with a personal check or money order to our P.O. Box.

Inside the Andrus Planetarium (M. Gondek)

Magazine Discounts

For WAA members only. Sky and Telescope — $32.95. Make check payable to Sky Publishing. Astronomy — $34.00. Make check payable to Kalmbach Publishing. Please mail the completed renewal form, your payment and the return envelope (with proper postage) to our P.O. Box. If you subscribe to both magazines you need to fill out two separate renewals. New subscribers please enclose a note stating new subscription. Note any change of address.

WAA Staff

We'll be glad to answer all your questions; just send your inquiries to the appropriate officer — you'll have to manually type the addresses:

President Senior Vice President Treasurer V.P. of Membership V.P. of Programs V.P. of Field Events Newsletter Editor

The "W"

The constellation Cassiopeia in its familiar "W" orientation as it appeared just above the treetops on Thursday, June 13, 1991 — the night the WAA was founded.

The WAA Logo (R. Davidson & P. Shug '92).

What's up in Space

From Spaceweather.com

Night Sky Notes

From the Abrams Planetarium

  • Monday, February 8, 2010
    Mars is still about 3° north of the Beehive star cluster in Cancer the Crab. Look at Mars and the cluster in the late evening sky. Binoculars show many stars in this cluster. The Beehive, also known as the Praesepe or Manger, is about 500 light-years away. Galileo looked at the Beehive with his telescope 400 years ago and saw at least 40 stars.
  • Tuesday, February 9, 2010
    Jupiter and Mars are 150° apart. Look for Jupiter 45 minutes after sunset, low in the WSW. Mars will be a quarter of the way up in the east. The mid part of this month will be the last chance to see both Jupiter and Mars simultaneously until August. Jupiter is dropping fast into the glare of the evening twilight.

Astronomy Resources

Almanacs and Calendars

Astronomy News

Auroras

ATM

Charts and Maps

Clear Sky Clocks

Clubs

Databases

Earth

Light Pollution

Moon

Museums

Satellite, ISS and Shuttle Passes

Satellite Images

Stargazing

Sun

Space Exploration

Weather

Webcams

Additional

The WAA is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.