[AANC Contacts] Two Lecture Series for the New Year

[Kenneth Frank]

Happy IYA 2009!

On Wednesday, January 21, at 7 pm, Astronomer Anthony Colaprete of NASA's Ames Research 
Center will give a non-technical, illustrated talk on:

Prospecting for Water on the Moon: The Upcoming LCROSS Mission

as part of the Silicon Valley Astronomy Lectures in the Smithwick Theater, Foothill 
College, El Monte Road and Freeway 280, in Los Altos Hills, California.
Free and open to the public. Parking on campus costs $2. Call the series hot-line at 
650-949-7888 for more information and driving directions.
No background in science will be required for this talk.  Seating is first come, first served.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
This coming April, NASA will purposely crash two spacecraft into one of the Moon's polar 
regions. The impacts should raise huge plumes of material, visible even to smaller 
telescopes on Earth. Astronomers will search for evidence of water in the plumes to get a 
better sense of how much frozen water may lay hidden in the deep, shadowed craters of the 
Moon's North and South poles.

Dr. Colaprete, the Principal Investigator for this intriguing mission, will fill us in on 
why scientists believe there is water on the Moon (even though there is no air), and how 
we might put such water to use in future exploration.  He will preview the LCROSS mission 
and discuss the campaign to observe the plumes from Earth and space.

The lecture is co-sponsored by:
* NASA Ames Research Center
* The Foothill College Astronomy Program
* The SETI Institute
* The Astronomical Society of the Pacific.

This talk is part of the local events celebrating the International Year of Astronomy in 2009.

Past Silicon Valley Astronomy Lectures are now available in MP3 format at:
http://www.astrosociety.org/education/podcast/index.html

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&


20th Anniversary Benjamin Dean Lecture Series

Monday, 12 January
"Dark Energy and the Runaway Universe"
Dr. Alex Filippenko
University of California, Berkeley

Observations of very distant exploding stars (supernovae) show that the expansion of the 
Universe is now speeding up, rather than slowing down due to gravity as expected. Other, 
completely independent data strongly support this amazing conclusion. Over the largest 
distances, our Universe seems to be dominated by a repulsive "dark energy," stretching the 
very fabric of space itself faster and faster with time. The physical nature of dark 
energy is often considered to be the most important unsolved problem in physics; it 
probably provides clues to a unified quantum theory of gravity.

This lecture begins at 7:30 in the Morrison Planetarium at the California Academy of 
Sciences in Golden Gate Park.
Tickets are available at the door. Adults $10, Seniors $8, California Academy of Sciences 
Members $5

---

Monday, 2 February
"Asteroids, Evolution, and the Long-term Habitability of Earth"
Dr. David Morrison
NASA Ames Research Center

Long-term habitability of our planet is linked to external as well as internal influences. 
In particular, cosmic impacts are now recognized as a major factor in the biological 
history of the Earth. Most dramatic was the discovery that the end-Cretaceous mass 
extinction of 65 million years ago was caused by the impact of an asteroid or comet. Now 
that we recognize the importance of impacts, we can consider ways to protect our planet 
from future cosmic disasters. The first step is the Spaceguard Survey to discover and 
characterize potentially threatening near-earth-asteroids. We are also beginning to study 
technologies that could deflect future impactors before they hit. For the first time in 
history, we humans have the capacity to predict, and perhaps avoid entirely, the sort of 
catastrophe that wiped out the dinosaurs.

This lecture begins at 7:30 in the Morrison Planetarium at the California Academy of 
Sciences in Golden Gate Park.
Tickets are available at the door. Adults $10, Seniors $8, California Academy of Sciences 
Members $5
---

Monday, 16 March
"Iconic Images from the Hubble Space Telescope: Their Meaning for Astronomy and for Humanity"
Dr. Sandra Faber
University of California, Santa Cruz

Dr. Faber will tour the Universe using the most beautiful and notable images from the 
Hubble Space Telescope and will use these as a springboard to discuss the impact that 
modern astronomical images have had on our thinking about the history of our species and 
its role and future in the Universe.

This lecture begins at 7:30 in the Morrison Planetarium at the California Academy of 
Sciences in Golden Gate Park.
Tickets are available at the door. Adults $10, Seniors $8, California Academy of Sciences 
Members $5
---

Monday, 6 April
"Habitable Worlds in the Universe:  The Search Begins"
Dr. Geoff Marcy
University of California, Berkeley

Science fiction assumes that our Milky Way Galaxy abounds with habitable planets populated 
by advanced civilizations engaged in interstellar commerce and conflict. Back in our real 
universe, Earth-like planets and alien life have proved elusive. Has science fiction led 
us astray? In 2009, astronomers will launch the first searches for Earth-like worlds 
around other stars, using bizarre, extreme telescopes for the task. These telescopes 
fundamentally supersede Galileo's historic little scope for the first time. A wild race 
for signs of inhabited worlds and extraterrestrial life is about to begin.

This lecture begins at 7:30 in the Morrison Planetarium at the California Academy of 
Sciences in Golden Gate Park.
Tickets are available at the door. Adults $10, Seniors $8, California Academy of Sciences 
Members $5
---

Monday, 4 May
"Are we alone? We don't know, but we're trying to find out"
Dr. Jill Tarter
Center for SETI Research, SETI Institute

Throughout recorded history, humans have looked at the sky and wondered whether others 
exist elsewhere.  Until the middle of the 20th century, there was little we could do 
except ask the priests, philosophers, or other wise individuals what we should believe. 
Today we have new observational tools that allow us to try to do experiments to shed light 
on the problem.  This lecture summarizes the scientific exploration for extraterrestrial 
intelligence, and highlights the newest telescopes that may just provide an answer.

This lecture begins at 7:30 in the Morrison Planetarium at the California Academy of 
Sciences in Golden Gate Park.
Tickets are available at the door. Adults $10, Seniors $8, California Academy of Sciences 
Members $5
---

Monday, 1 June
"The New Mars: Habitability of a Neighbor World"
Dr. David Des Marais
NASA Ames Research Center

Mars is the planet in our solar system whose past climate most closely resembled our own. 
Recent missions have revealed richly fascinating landscapes and deeply important 
discoveries. Mars might have supported life sometime in the past, and perhaps supports 
life even today.

This lecture begins at 7:30 in the Morrison Planetarium at the California Academy of 
Sciences in Golden Gate Park.
Tickets are available at the door. Adults $10, Seniors $8, California Academy of Sciences 
Members $5

Katie Berryhill
Coordinator, Benjamin Dean Lecture Series
Planetarium Show Presenter
California Academy of Sciences
707-745-9059 (home office)
kberryhill at calacademy.org
www.calacademy.org
www.calacademy.org/events/index.php

Golden Gate Park
55 Music Concourse Drive
San Francisco, California 94118

&&&&&

Next AANC Board meeting is Sunday, February 8th at Chabot. See you there.