Calendar

To review our monthly calendar, please scroll down further.
Please note that our information (message only) phone number has changed. It is 970-613-7793

Public Star Nights, that are open to the public are generally held on the 3rd Friday of every month, except this October 2008, when we will have our star night on Saturday the 18th to avoid the large crowds and lights of a home football game. Start time is posted on the calendar, and Guest speakers start a half hour after opening.


Our guest speaker for Saturday, October 18 is Dr Larry Westrum, an active LTO boardmember, amateur actor, budding blogger, and professional chemist, who will try to explain how stars and planets might be formed. This will include an interesting hands-on demonstration as to how carbon compounds are formed. Great fun!
Our experience of the cosmos is inextricably connected to matter. We are material beings observing the cosmos through material senses as we live our lives on a spinning wet rock. But how did it come about that our mostly hydrogen and helium cosmos is salted here and there with heavier stuff? Even more interesting, what is this heavier stuff and how does it work? We’ll look at some examples of the heavier elements and what they can be made to do.


The doors will open at 7:00pm and the talk will start at 7:30pm. Weather permitting, the large telescope will be used to look at various celestial objects.
Regular public star nights are held every 3rd Friday of each month during the year, except July, when we are closed for our annual maintenance.
If you have any questions, please call the observatory information line at 970-613-7793 or check the LTO web site at www.starkids.org



For an appointment, please review the calendar and select an open evening. Then go to the "Appointment" screen to give us the details of your visit.

Please give us at least 1 weeks notice, when requesting a date.




October 2008
Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday

1

FRCC/Boulder County

7:30pm

 2

Private Thompson School District Group

7:30PM

 3

 4

CCY Architects

8:00pm
5

 6

 7

FRCC/Boulder County

7:30pm

 8

 9

Private Thompson School District Group

7:30PM

 10

Ridgeview Classical Schools

7:00pm

 11
12

 13

 14

 15

GEMS

3:30pm

 16

Foothills Gateway

10:30AM

FRCC/Boulder County

7:30pm

 17

Turner Middle School (6th Grade)

1:30pm

 18

Public Star Night

7:00pm
19

 20

 21

Town of Windsor, Windsor Senior Center

7:30pm

 22

 23

Private Thompson School District Group

7:30PM

 24

New Vision Charter School

8:30AM

 25

Laurel Beeken

8:00pm
26

 27

 28

LTO Board of Directors Meeting

7:00pm

 29

 30

 31

November 2008
Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday

1
2

 3

 4

Front Range community college

7:00pm

 5

Girl Scouts Troop 708 juniors

7:00pm

 6

Private Thompson School District Group

7:00PM

 7

 8
9

 10

 11

 12

 13

Private Thompson School District Group

7:00PM

 14

 15
16

6:30PM

 17

 18

 19

 20

 21

Public Star Night

7:00pm

 22
23

 24

 25

LTO Board of Directors Meeting

7:00pm

 26

 27

Closed

 28

Closed

 29
30

December 2008
Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday

1

 2

 3

 4

Private Thompson School District Group

7:00PM

 5

 6
7

 8

 9

 10

 11

Private Thompson School District Group

7:00PM

 12

 13
14

 16

 16

 17

 18

Private Thompson School District Group

7:00PM

 19

Public Star Night

7:00pm

 20
21

 22

 23

LTO Board of Directors Meeting

7:00pm

 24

Closed

 25

Closed

 26

 27
28

 29

 30

 31

Closed

Public Star Nights

June 18 1999: Astronomy basics, the LTO Facility. - Speaker Tom Melsheimer
July 2 1999: Constellations, history & mythology. - Speaker John Henderson
July 16 1999: Telescopes. - Speaker Randy Cunningham
August 6 1999: Meteor Showers & Solar Eclipses. - Speaker Andrea Schweitzer
August 20 1999: Archaeoastronomy - Speakers Carolyn Sackett & Heidi Short
Sept. 3 1999: Hubble Space Telescope & Next Generation Space Telescope - Speaker Dr. Dennis Ebbets
Sept. 17 1999: Deep Impact Project - Speaker Richard Reinert
October 31 1999: Halloween Fun Night - Speaker Heidi Short
November 19 1999: Chandra X-Ray Telescope - Speaker Dr. Steve Jordan
December 17 1999: Binocular Observing - Speaker Dan Laszlo
January 21 2000: Ancient Astronomy & Mythology - Speaker Ram Sreerangam
February 18 2000: Black Holes - Speaker Obie Williams
March 17 2000: Constellations:A History - Speaker Tim Baxter
April 21 2000: Archaeoastronomy - Speakers Heidi Short
May 5 2000: Celestial Navigation - Speaker Bill Walsh
May 19 2000: The Space Race - Speaker Chet Rideout
June 2 2000: Binocular Observing - Speaker Dan Laszlo
June 16 2000: Early Hubble Space Telescope Photos - Speaker Heidi Short
July closed
August 4 2000: No Guest Speaker
August 18 2000: TBA
September 1 2000:South Pole Observations - Speaker David Fisher
September 15 2000:Chandra X-Ray Telescope - Speaker Dr. Steve Jordan from Ball Aerospace
October 20 2000:Solid State Detectors in Astronomy - Gary Emerson from Ball Aerospace
October 31 2000: Halloween & Candy, Talk on Stonehenge
November 17 2000:The Denver Museum of Nature and Science
December 15 2000: The Hubble Space Telescope - Speaker Dennis Ebbets from Ball Aerospace
January 19 2001:Southwestern Archeoastronomy - Speaker Jeff Rautus
February 16 2001:3D Space Photography - Speaker Bryan White
March 16 2001:Stonehenge Then and now - Speaker Heidi Short
April 20 2001: Martian Mysteries - Speaker Dan Laszlo
May 18 2001: I Went to Neptune - Speaker Andrea Schweitzer
June 2001: TBA
July 2001: CLOSED
August 2001: Chandra X-Ray Telescope Update - Speaker Dr. Steve Jordan from Ball Aerospace
September 21 2001: Planet Finder - Speaker Dr. Dennis Ebbets from Ball Aerospace
October 19 2001: News from Beyond Earth - Speaker Dr. Laura Danly
November 16 2001: Leonid Meteor Shower - Speaker Andrea Schweitzer
December 21 2001: Nitescapes - Speaker Bryan White
January 18 2002: Binocular Observing - Speaker Dan Laszlo - Telescope Clinic
February 15 2002: NASA's Deep Impact Mission - Speaker Mike Ensminger from Ball Aerospace
March 15 2002: Mars topics - Speaker Larry Sessions
April 19 2002: Vulcanoes of our Solar System - Speaker Michael Hotka
May 17 2002: Mars Colonization - Speaker Krista Rudloff from Museum of Nature and Science
June 21 2002: It's about time - Speaker Tom Melsheimer
August 16, 2002: Asteroids - Speaker Brad Jarvis
September 20, 2002: Lunar Mapping and Charting - Speaker Dr Dan Laszlo
October 18, 2002 Cancelled
November 15, 2002: Aurora Borealis (Northern Lights) - Speaker Bryan White
December 20, 2002: NASA's Hubble Space Telescope - Speaker Dr Dennis Ebbets from Ball Aerospace
January 17, 2003: Binocular Observing - Speaker Dr Dan Laszlo
February 21, 2003: Astro Photography - Speaker Scott Kindt from Berthoud High School
March 21, 2003: Deep Impact Cameras - Speaker Mike Ensminger from Ball Aerospace
April 18, 2003: the Deep Impact mission - Speaker Rich Reinert from Ball Aerospace
May 16, 2003: WHEN THE SOLAR SYSTEM COMES TO VISIT - Speaker Dr Ed Friedman from Boeing
June 20, 2003: The Russian and Chinese space programs - Speaker Dr Suzanne Traub-Metlay from FRCC
August 15, 2003: The planet Mars - Speaker Brad Jarvis, president local chapter of the Mars Society and LTO volunteer
September 19, 2003: The planet Mars - Speaker Brad Jarvis, president local chapter of the Mars Society and LTO volunteer
October 17, 2003: Max Moe
November 21, 2003: NEAR EARTH ASTEROIDS-THREAT AND PROMISE - Speakers Dr. Clark Chapman and Dr. Daniel Durda from Southwest Research Institute)
December 19, 2003: Michael Hotka - the Mars Express mission from the European Space Agency (ESA).
January 16, 2004: Bryan White - Nightscapes, the Aurora Borealis and Major Comets 3-D slide show
February 20, 2004: Dr Dennis Ebbets - The James Webb Space telescope
March 19, 2004: Dr Andrea Schweitzer - Going to a NASA Launch (or, How I spent my summer vacation)
April 16, 2004: Michael Hotka - Venus transit
May 16, 2004: Scott Kindt - Astro-Photography
June 18, 2004: Dr Suzanne Traub-Metlay - The NASA Cassini Mission
August 20, 2004: Michael Hotka - NASA's Genesis Mission to collect solar wind particles
September 17, 2004: Dr Andrea Schweitzer: Project ASTRO to pair up teachers with professional astronomers
October 15, 2004: Dr Steve Jordan - The Chandra Telescope - an update
November 19, 2004: Scott Kindt - Astro-photography
December 17, 2004: Mike Hotka - NASA's Cassini-Huygens Mission to Saturn
January 21, 2005: Dr Dennis Ebbets - The Hubble Repair Mission
February 18, 2005: Steve Varlese: a 50 meter telescope
March 18, 2005: Bryan White: Aurora Borealis and Comets 3-D slide show
April 15, 2005: Dr John Spencer - The Cassini/Hugyens Mission Explores the Saturn System: The Story so Far
May 20, 2005: Job Burch - Solar Eclipses
June 17, 2005: Dr Suzanne Traub-Metlay: Venus
August 19, 2005: Meinte Veldhuis - History of LTO and its current Expansion Project
September 16, 2005: Meinte Veldhuis - History of LTO and its current Expansion Project
October 21, 2005 - Mars, Brad Jarvis (Mars Society)
November 18, 2005 - Deep Impact Mission results, Rich Reinert, Ball Aerospace
December 16, 2005 - New Planets, Hal Levison (SwRI)
January 20, 2006 - How to use your new telescope an dBinocular Observing by Dr Dan Laszlo
February 17, 2006 - The Orion Nebula and Star Formation, Henry Throop (SwRI) (postponed due to weather)
March 17, 2006 - Mission to Pluto, Leslie Young (SwRI)
April 21, 2006 - Aurora Borealis, Bryan White, Nightscapes
May 19, 2006: The Orion Nebula and Star Formation, Henry Throop (SwRI)
June 16, 2006: Dr Suzanne Traub-Metlay: NASA's MESSENGER mission to Mercury
August 18, 2006: Meinte Velhuis, LTO Expansion and acquisition of the 24" telescope from Mt. Wilson.
September 15, 2006: What happened to Pluto by Dr Andrea Schweizer from LTO
October 20, 2006: NASA's Dawn Mission - A Journey in Space and Time" by John Ristvey
November 17, 2006: Celestial Navigation and Attitude Determination" by Dan Runyan and Thomas Vaughan from Ball Aerospace in Boulder
December 15, 2006: Radio Astronomy at Colorado's Table Mountain, by Dr Jamie Riggs
January 19, 2006: Comet McNaught by Dr Dan LAszlo
February 16, 2007: The Mysteries of Venus, by Dr. Mark Bullock, SwRI
March 16, 2007: 3-D Aurora, Bryan White
April 20, 2007: How to use your new telescope, by Dick Mallot and Mark Wiley from the Longmont Astronomical Society.
May 18, 2007: How to use your new telescope, by Dick Mallot and Mark Wiley from the Longmont Astronomical Society.
June 15, 2007: Race to the Moon: Is America Being Left in the Dust? by Dr. Suzanne Traub-Metlay (Fiske Planetarium, CU)
August 17, 2007: Pre-screening of the PBS movie "Seeing in the Dark" by Timothy Ferris
September 21, 2007: "Mars: An Ancient Water World" by Keith Harrison, Southwest Research Inst.
October 19, 2007: Dark Matter and Dark Energy by Dr Steve Jordan, Ball Aerospace
November 16, 2007: Search for planets around other stars by Rich Reinert from Ball Aerospace
December 21, 2007: The next Space Shuttle Servicing Mission to the Hubble space Telescope by Dr Dennis Ebbets
January 18, 2008: 3D-Aurorae by Bryan White
February 15, 2008: Chandra Space Telescope, Steve Jordan, Ball Aerospace
March 21, 2008: Sundial-making with Solar Girl, a.k.a. Meredith Wills-Davey, Southwest Research Inst.
April 18, 2008: Berthouds Dark Sky Ordinance, Dr Andrea Schweitzer, Meinte Veldhuis
May 16, 2008: Visit to the Gemini-North observatory on top of MAuna Kea on Hawaii

Planned Events:
June 20, 2008: Dr Suzanne Traub-Metlay, Fiske Planetarium, CU-Boulder