Stargazers to boldly go on their own way

Jun 3 2009 by Judith Tonner, Airdrie & Coatbridge Advertiser

STARGAZERS in Airdrie have branched out to create their own local association independent of umbrella body Astra (the Association in Scotland To Research into Astronautics).

They will now be known as Airdrie Astronomical Association following a vote at their annual general meeting, and will continue to run the town’s observatory and deliver their popular weekly talks.

Observatory curator Paul Clark said: “What we do will stay exactly the same, but this means that things will be more in our own hands.

“It means that we can make all our own decisions rather than sometimes having to wait for approval to be given in Glasgow or London.

“We’ll still be working from the observatory at Airdrie library and doing things such as today’s [Wednesday] rocket competition for schools.”

Airdrie Astronomical Association’s programme of talks for June begins on Friday with an unusual lecture on “crash diets”.

Doctor Helen Fraser, professor of physics at Strathclyde University, will speak about how sharks, weightlessness and stars are a ticket to travel the world in her talk at Airdrie Arts Centre, beginning at 7.30pm.

The following Friday sees Paul Clark talk about Saturn, considered by astronomers to be the most beautiful planet to view through a telescope.

His talk, particular suited to children and newcomers to astronomy, will focus on the huge contrasts of Saturn, including its famous ring system, moons, rains and water volcanos, as well as the current explorations of the planet by NASA and the European Space Agency.

Friday, June 19 sees Doctor Catherine Smith, author of The Stars of Robert Burns, discuss the Bard and an unexpected angle on astronomy.

This year is the 250th anniversary of Burns’ birth, but not many people realise that he had a lifelong fascination with astronomy and scientific advances, which can be found in much of his poetry and letters.

Finally, the association will hold its summer interactive computer quiz night, suitable for all ages and skill levels, on Friday, June 26.

The free meetings take place at the Arts Centre on Anderson Street and are open to all.For further information on the group, visit www.airdrieobservatory.com.

Meanwhile, Airdrie Astronomical Association are also currently monitoring the progress of their 144-year-old Cooke six-inch refractor telescope.

The precious and historic instrument is being overhauled in Ayrshire while roof works are carried out at its library home on Wellwynd, including replacing the landmark dome with a new copper version.

Paul added: “The roof works only started last week and we think it will be somewhere around 10-12 weeks before we’re back in the observatory.”