Tonopah Astronomical Society

The purpose of The Tonopah Astronomical Society is to promote interest in astronomy and related sciences in the Central Nevada area for the general public and the club membership. We do this through scheduling telescope viewing session, commonly referred to as "Star Parties," in the Tonopah area and throughout the Central Nevada area and in cooperation with groups having similar interests in the State of Nevada.

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Solar Events for the summer of 2012

Annular Eclipse of the Sun, May 20th, 2012

In an annular eclipse of the sun, unlike a total eclipse, the size of the moon in the sky is less than that of the sun so the moon does not completely cover the sun. The sun appears as a bright ring of light around the moon as in the picture above. The path of a total or an annular eclipse is very narrow and we are very lucky to have it pass right over Tonopah! Make sure you show up because this will not happen in Tonopah again in our lifetime. We will be gathering at the Tonopah Mining Park in Tonopah for viewing. First contact is at 5:19 PM, the annular phase starts at 6:31 PM and lasts until 6:35 PM. The eclipse will be over at 7:38 PM.

Transit of the planet Venus, June 5th, 2012

Join the members of the Tonopah Astronomical Society to view a transit of Venus across the face of the sun on June 5, 2012. These transits of Venus come in pairs and the last one was not visible from our location. If you miss this one it will be over a hundred years before the next pair. We will be gathering at the Tonopah Mining Park to observe this event. First contact will be at 3:09 PM and the even will continue until after sunset.

The Seventh Annual Central Nevada Star Party (CNSP VII)

September 22nd to September 25th, 2011 at Monte Cristo's Castle was a resounding success!

In Memory of Lost Friends

Recently the Tonopah Astronomical Society suffered the loss of two of our charter members with the passing of Rich Logan and Kris Dean. You both were there during the formative months for the club and we will all remember your contributions. We miss both of you.

The summer of 2009 also saw the passing of another charter member, Dave Hamilton. Dave used to teach astronomy in Arizona and was the go to guy when we needed someone to give a lecture. No one in the club could match his knowledge of astronomy and things are not the same without him.

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Upcoming Events

Click on the Events tab for detailed info

April 11th to April 15th, 2012

Our annual spring star party at the Mesquite Springs Campground in Death Valley near Scotty's Castle. Catch the last views of Orion as it sets in the west soon after dark. Saturn is once again visible in the evening sky along with Venus, Jupiter and Mars. Galaxies are all over the place with Leo and Virgo well placed soon after dark. We will be joined by Scouts from Cub Scout Pack 17 and Boy Scout Troop 17 from Tonopah. Visit Scotty's Castle and other interesting sites during the day.

April 21, 2012

Member star party at the fire department training site behind the cemetery.

April 28th, 2012

Astronomy Day at the Scolari's parking lot. Or first public star party of the year. Drop by and see Venus, Jupiter, Mars and Saturn as well as the moon. We will also have eclipse glasses for viewing the Annular Solar Eclipse of the sun on May 20th. Get'em while they last.

May 19th, 2012

Member star party at Jim Heidman's house.

May 20th, 2012

Join us at the Tonopah Mining Park to see the annular eclipse of the sun. You will not see an event like this again in Tonopah in your lifetime. Things start happening at 5:19 PM, annular phase starts at 6:31 PM for just a few minutes and eclipse ends at 7:38 PM.

May 26, 2012