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Looking Up

The sky is full of fascinating objects, night and day. James Durbano wanted to share his interest in astronomy with students, the general public, and other members of the Big Sky Astronomical Society in Vulcan.

"We have the best skies for observation but, unfortunately, regular astronomy of the night sky and school hours don't overlap," said James, a science teacher and president of the Astronomical Society. Thanks to a grant from the Lethbridge Community Foundation, James has found a way to provide students with first hand experience of the sun.

The Astronomical Society has purchased four Sunspotter telescopes, which provide a safe and convenient method of viewing the brilliant light of the sun. "They are well designed, well crafted, and use a series of mirrors and lens to project a bright solar image onto a white viewing screen," explained James. "They are portable and easy to use, so even younger students can use them." The telescopes enable a user to chart the progress of sunspots and view eclipses. "It's a great way to demonstrate that the sun rotates, and it lets the students confirm that rate. It's amazing what a difference it makes when students can do the experiment rather than simply being told about the phenomenon."

James is enthusiastic about the potential of these new tools. "We plan to use the telescopes as an educational outreach program of our Astronomical Society. In late October I took the telescopes to the elementary school in Cayley for an informal presentation over lunch. The students were quite impressed. In the spring I want to visit more schools in the region." James would also like to conduct workshops to train teachers in using the telescopes. "Once others are trained, we could possibly lend the equipment to a school so they could do research over a couple of weeks and track changes in the sun."

"I can imagine these tabletop tools being used by students and area residents for many years to come. We really appreciate the support our amateur Astronomical Society has received from the Foundation."

From LCF Report to the Community 2003.