Astronomy events feature solar neighbor
Mars closest to Earth in recorded history

DAHLONEGA – An astronomy spectacle that won’t occur again in our lifetimes will take place the week of Aug. 25-29 – the planet Mars will be closer to Earth than at any time in recorded history.

The North Georgia College & State University Astronomical Observatory will open at 9:30 p.m. each night during the week, weather permitting, for public viewing of Mars through the 16-inch observatory telescope.

Public planetarium shows at the new NGCSU George Coleman Planetarium will begin Aug. 22 at 8 p.m., continuing every Friday, with the current season’s show titled “Rendezvous With the Red Planet.” 

Volunteers from a regional astronomy club, the North Georgia Astronomers, will provide several other telescopes for public viewing at the observatory during Mars Week. The observatory is located on Day Drive, off Hwy. 9 toward Dawsonville, about one-half mile past where Hwy. 9 and 52 separate. Parking is limited at the observatory and all flashlights should have red filters to help preserve the dark adaptation of visitors and staff.

“Getting a good view of Mars will depend on the weather, not only here on Earth, but also on Mars,” said Joe Jones, associate professor of physics at NGCSU. He said that observers have reported a dust storm beginning in the southern hemisphere of Mars.

“This is the season on Mars when global dust storms can develop and obscure many of the dark surface features normally visible when Mars is close,” he said. “One storm has already come and gone, hopefully this one will die out as well.”

During the week the major Martian features will be visible through a telescope and the planet’s luminosity or brightness will be at its peek. It takes 26 months for the relative positions of Earth, Mars and the Sun to repeat. Mars makes its closest pass to Earth during times of opposition when the Sun, Earth and Mars align directly with each other and Mars is “opposite” or 180 degrees away from the Sun as seen in Earth’s sky.

“Mars’ orbit is fairly elliptical and its closest approach to the Sun this time around happens to occur almost at the same time as its opposition with Earth, causing this year’s opposition to be the closest in about 60,000 years,” said Jones.

Mars will pass approximately 56 million kilometers from the Earth on Aug. 27, about two-thirds the average distance. The next time Earth will be closer to Mars will be on Aug. 28, 2287, according to astronomers.

This opportunity to observe Mars at its best from the observatory is open to the public. Mars is already visible to the naked eye rising in the east-southeast after the end of twilight. It appears as a very bright star shining steadily with a distinct reddish orange tint.

North Georgia’s George E. Coleman Sr. Planetarium was dedicated in 1991 with contributions from the Coleman family. George Coleman Jr. is a 1953 graduate of North Georgia. Previously located at the same site where the new Health and Natural Sciences Building stands on Sunset Drive off of Main Street, the planetarium was installed in the new sciences building in early 2003.

For more information about the planetarium and observatory, contact Jones, 706-864-1511 or 864-1471.

NGCSU Planetarium and Observatory stage special event

DAHLONEGA – The new planetarium at North Georgia College & State University will host a group of alumni from New Mexico State University, in addition to the public, for a special lecture and show on Aug. 23.

To “kick off” the upcoming “Mars Week” at North Georgia, which will take place Aug 25-29, the special Saturday evening event will begin with a reception for the NMSU alumni, North Georgia astronomy students and the public at 7 p.m. in the Atrium of the Health & Natural Sciences Building. The new building is located at the top of the hill on Sunset Drive, just off of Main Street in Dahlonega, about two blocks west of the historic town square.

The work of Dr. Clyde Tombaugh, discoverer of the planet Pluto, will be exhibited in the atrium, on loan from the Rio Grande Historical Collection.

At 7:30 p.m., Dr. Les Tofte, an alumnus of NMSU, will make a presentation about Tombaugh’s work, followed by a planetarium show featuring both Pluto and Mars.

After the show, weather permitting, the audience will be invited to drive to the North Georgia Astronomical Observatory to view Mars and many other astronomical objects through the observatory telescope and telescopes provided by the North Georgia Astronomers, members of a regional astronomy club. The observatory is located on Day Drive just off Highway 9 toward Dawsonville, about four miles west of the traffic light at Main Street and Morrison Moore Parkway.

On August 27, Mars will be closer to Earth than it has ever been in human history.

“During ‘Mars Week’, we hope to open the observatory to the public all week at 9:30 p.m., weather permitting,” said Dr. Joseph Jones of the NGCSU physics faculty.

More than 300 NMSU alumni living in Georgia have been invited to the event, and they may contact alumna Marie Stoy, 678-557-0072, for additional information.

For more information about the planetarium and observatory, contact Jones, 706-864-1511 or 864-1471.

NGCSU faculty member named a Fulbright Scholar

DAHLONEGA – Jeffrey Sommers, assistant professor of history at North Georgia College & State University, has been awarded a Fulbright Scholars grant to lecture in Latvia. The grant is awarded through the U.S. Department of State and the J. William Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board.

Sommers will teach in Latvia and develop curriculum on globalization studies during the 2003-2004 academic year. The country was formerly a part of the Soviet Union until the 1991 breakup of the USSR.

Sommers is among approximately 800 U.S. faculty and professionals who will travel abroad to some 140 countries this year through the Fulbright Scholar Program. Established in 1946 under legislation introduced by the late Sen. J. William Fulbright of Arkansas, the program’s purpose is to build mutual understanding between the people of the United States and other countries.

Recipients of Fulbright Scholar awards are selected on the basis of academic or professional achievement and because they have demonstrated extraordinary leadership potential in their fields.

This page last modified on: Friday, 05 November 2004 16:46:18 -0500 by University Relations    

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