[AANC Contacts] Art Exhibit Opening & Public Talk on the Top Tourist Sights of the Solar System Oct 11at St. Mary's College

[Andrew Fraknoi]

You are Invited to the Grand Opening of
"Out of this World: The Landscapes of Our Solar System"
a new art exhibition at the Hearst Gallery

and

"The Top Tourist Sights of the Solar System:
Where Bill Gates' Great-Granddaughter Might Go on Her Honeymoon"
A Free Public Talk by Astronomer Andrew Fraknoi
at the LeFevre Theater

both at St. Mary's College of California in Moraga

Sunday Oct. 11, 2009 starting at 2 pm.
(Talk and panel from 2 to 3:15 pm, reception 3:30 to 5)

For information and directions, see:
http://www.hearstartgallery.org
Parking is free.

A campus map is at: 
http://www.stmarys-ca.edu/community-and-visitors/docs/campus_map.pdf

The exhibit features the paintings of some of the best known artists, 
depicting scenes of alien worlds.  There will also be computer 
simulations, a scale model of the Mars Rover, films, Hubble, Mars 
Rover, and Cassini planetary images, and more.  The curators of this 
special show are Carrie Brewster, the Gallery Director, and Ronald 
Olowin, Professor of Physics and Astronomy at St. Mary's.

To kick off the exhibit, which continues through Dec. 13, astronomer 
and popular lecturer Andrew Fraknoi will explore the most intriguing 
future tourist destinations in our cosmic neighborhood in an 
illustrated talk for the public.

Stops on his tour will include the 4,000 mile lava channel on Venus, 
the towering Mount Olympus volcano on Mars (three times the height of 
Mount Everest), and the awesome Verona Cliffs on the moon Miranda 
(which are the tallest "lover's leap" in the solar system.) No 
background in science will be required for this non-technical 
talk.  The talk will be followed by a panel discussion with Brewster 
and Olowin, and then a reception.

Andrew Fraknoi is the Chair of the Astronomy Department at Foothill 
College and the former Executive Director of the Astronomical Society 
of the Pacific.  He was selected as the 2007 California Professor of 
the Year by the Carnegie Endowment.  He is a frequent guest on KGO 
radio and on the Forum program on KQED.  His children's book, 
Disney's Wonderful World of Space, came out in paperback in July 
2009.  Asteroid 4859 has been named Asteroid Fraknoi to recognize his 
contributions to the public understanding of science (but he wants to 
reassure everyone that it is a very boring asteroid, and not one that 
could hit the Earth.)

These events are part of the celebrations of the International Year 
of Astronomy 2009 (marking the 400th anniversary of Galileo turning 
the telescope to the heavens).