Description of Outreach Events

Lecture and Stargazing Nights

We regularly provide free 30 minute public lectures followed by 90 minutes of guided stargazing through telescopes on the North Field. Lectures occur in the Hameetman Lecture Hall (seats 150) in Cahill Astronomy and Astrophysics Building.

The lecture is given on some astronomical topic at a public level (appropriate for a layperson) by one of the members of the Astronomy department (faculty, staff, postdocs, grads, etc.). After 30 minutes, and a few minutes for general questions, attendees are invited to remain for an informal Q&A with members of the department or join us outside to view the stars through our telescopes on the adjacent fields south of Cahill.

Schedule of Event:
-00:30 - 00:00 - Setup for Lecture (Hameetman)
00:00 - 00:30 - Setup for Observing (Field)
00:00 - 00:30 - Lecture (Hameetman)
00:30 - 02:00 - Telescope Observing (Field)
00:30 - 02:00 - Q&A Panel or Slideshow (Hameetman)
02:00 - 02:10 - Shutdown and cleanup (Hameetman and Field)

We typically need ~10 volunteers for each event:

• 1 Lecturer
• 1 Lecture Captain - Announcements, organization, and panel
• 3 Lecture Volunteers - Lecture setup and panel
• 1 Telescope Captain - Telescope setup and organization
• 4 Telescope Volunteers - Telescope operation and answering questions

For full lists of the responsibilities for each role, click on the role itself. If you're interested in signing up for an existing event, contact outreach@astro.caltech.edu or Cameron Hummels.