Newsletter
Issue #5
Feb 18, 2012
Our mission is to inspire, inform and educate children, families, educators, and all West Virginians about our planet, our universe and the many benefits of scientific thinking, technological advancement and exploration.
Strong Attendance
The beginning of 2012 has brought us very strong attendance with many of our new customers coming from Elkins -- Thank You Elkins!
Halfway to a New Bulb
Our main star bulb is very expensive ($1100). Our admission prices are set so that we can afford a new bulb every year and we are about halfway to that objective.
Movie Licensing Renewal
We must be licensed in order to play movies in the planetarium. We operate under an umbrella license that costs about $100 annually as long as the admission fee only supports the operating costs of the planetarium. Our license is up for renewal in March.
Beautiful Conjunction Ahead
Conjunctions of planets have long held fascination for us and we have a beautiful conjunction of Jupiter and Venus coming up on March 11. Watch the two planets converge through February and into March. In the evening in early February, look west around 7pm for bright Venus about 15 degrees above the western horizon. Bright Jupiter resides about 40 degrees above and left of Venus. By the end of the month, the pair will be just 12 degrees apart. Keep watching them converge into March!
West Virginia Skies in March and April.
Grab a star map and follow along to find the Winter Circle of stars. Begin by finding the three belt stars of Orion (look south around 7:30 pm). Follow those belt stars down and left to the first bright star Sirius as our starting point for the circle. Move your gaze left and up about 25 degrees to Procyon, a bright star in Canis Minor. From there, look about 25 degrees up and a little left for two bright stars, Castor and Pollux in Gemini. From these "twins", look almost directly overhead for the bright star Capella in Auriga. From the zenith, move your gaze SSW about 30 degrees to the bright, ruddy star Aldebaran in the face of Taurus. (Orion's belt also points to Aldebaran.) About 30 degrees below and left of Aldebaran shines the bright star, Rigel, in Orion's knee. Proceed back to Sirius and you have traveled the Winter Circle.
Where is the Sun?
The Sun begins March in Aquarius. The Sun arrives at the March equinox at 1:14 am eastern daylight time on March 20th. This is when the Sun crosses the equator in the constellation of Picses, heading north for the year and marking the start of spring in the Northern Hemisphere and autumn in the Southern Hemisphere. By the end of April, the Sun finally crosses into Aries.
Back Issues
Issue #1, Jun 2011
Issue #2, Jul 2011
Issue #3, Sep 2011
Issue #4, Dec 2011