{"674037":{"#nid":"674037","#data":{"type":"news","title":" Astronomy Club Lets Students Share Their Passion for the Stars","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cspan\u003E\u003Cspan\u003EThis week, 50 students from Georgia Tech\u2019s \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/astronomyclub.gatech.edu\/\u0022\u003EAstronomy Club\u003C\/a\u003E will \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.11alive.com\/article\/news\/world\/solar-eclipse\/georgia-tech-students-travel-path-totality-great-american-eclipse\/85-bbfcc9cf-7a2c-4129-bb62-b3f6ecfbf5b5\u0022\u003Etravel\u003C\/a\u003E to Missouri to view the solar eclipse on April 8. Georgia isn\u2019t in the path of totality \u2014 which occurs when the moon fully covers the sun \u2014 but Missouri is, and club members want to be there to experience the rare celestial event. While viewing the eclipse is the organization\u2019s biggest adventure of the year, it is just one of many events the club hosts every month. The group is a place for hobbyist astronomers and physics students to connect over their love of the solar system and the mysteries within it.\u003C\/span\u003E\u003C\/span\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cspan\u003E\u003Cspan\u003EEvery Monday, the club hosts meetings at which a topic of astronomical interest \u2014 such as black holes or stellar evolution \u2014 is presented; attendees then visit the Georgia Tech Observatory to see what the sky has in the store for them that night. \u003C\/span\u003E\u003C\/span\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cspan\u003E\u003Cspan\u003E\u201cI am completing the astrophysics concentration for my studies, so I can apply what I learn in class to the club and explain to people what they\u2019re actually looking at,\u201d said Ethan Atkinson, club president and a fourth-year physics major. They also take monthly field trips to the observatory at Fernbank Museum for a different view of the sky and the chance to use older telescopes.\u003C\/span\u003E\u003C\/span\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cspan\u003E\u003Cspan\u003EOnce a month, weather permitting, the Astronomy Club invites everyone to join in on the fun with \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/grad.gatech.edu\/events\/public-nights-georgia-tech-observatory\u0022\u003EPublic Nights at the Georgia Tech Observatory\u003C\/a\u003E. Club members place telescopes outside the Howey Physics Building, where anyone take a look through the lens at whichever planet is in focus that evening. The events are popular, not just across campus but also Atlanta. Most nights, almost 350 people attend. \u003C\/span\u003E\u003C\/span\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cspan\u003E\u003Cspan\u003EThe club\u2019s signature annual event for members is usually a field trip to dedicated dark sky area Deerlick Astronomy Village in Sharon, Georgia, to see constellations unadulterated by light pollution and capture them via astrophotography. \u201cThe main attraction for most people is seeing the Milky Way and counting shooting stars,\u201d Atkinson said. While this year\u2019s field trip is to Missouri for the eclipse, they are still bringing the cameras along.\u003C\/span\u003E\u003C\/span\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cspan\u003E\u003Cspan\u003EThe club wasn\u2019t always this popular on campus. Even though the organization started in 2007 when Tech built the observatory, membership had dropped to only 20 members by 2021. Covid-19 made hosting a lot of people in a small observatory challenging, so faculty advisor \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/physics.gatech.edu\/user\/james-sowell\u0022\u003EJames Sowell\u003C\/a\u003E recommended they move the telescopes outside, increasing the number of people who could attend and the interest in studying physics. \u201cSometimes students take my classes because the club let them know about my courses,\u201d Sowell said.\u003C\/span\u003E\u003C\/span\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cspan\u003E\u003Cspan\u003EAtkinson has also worked to make the club more accessible to every major and interest level. Computational media student Victoria Nguyen was one of those students. Although she has loved astronomy since childhood, it was just a hobby until she found the club in her first year. \u201cThe community is really great and relaxed,\u201d said Nguyen, who is incoming president of the club. \u201cWe\u2019ve created a safe environment to learn about space, and you don\u2019t even need to have your own telescope.\u201d\u003C\/span\u003E\u003C\/span\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cspan\u003E\u003Cspan\u003EAlthough solar eclipses don\u2019t happen annually, the Astronomy Club is stronger and bigger than ever. Whether someone gazes at the stars nightly or has never even looked through a telescope, the club is open to the campus community \u2014 so everyone can better understand what lies beyond our planet.\u003C\/span\u003E\u003C\/span\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n","summary":"","format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cspan\u003E\u003Cspan\u003EThis week, 50 students from Georgia Tech\u2019s \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/astronomyclub.gatech.edu\/\u0022\u003EAstronomy Club\u003C\/a\u003E will \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.11alive.com\/article\/news\/world\/solar-eclipse\/georgia-tech-students-travel-path-totality-great-american-eclipse\/85-bbfcc9cf-7a2c-4129-bb62-b3f6ecfbf5b5\u0022\u003Etravel\u003C\/a\u003E to Missouri to view the solar eclipse on April 8. Georgia isn\u2019t in the path of totality \u2014 which occurs when the moon fully covers the sun \u2014 but Missouri is, and club members want to be there to experience the rare celestial event. While viewing the eclipse is the organization\u2019s biggest adventure of the year, it is just one of many events the club hosts every month. The group is a place for hobbyist astronomers and physics students to connect over their love of the solar system and the mysteries within it.\u003C\/span\u003E\u003C\/span\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"The Astronomy Club is a place for hobbyist astronomers and physics students to connect over their love of the solar system and the mysteries within it."}],"uid":"34541","created_gmt":"2024-04-08 13:43:29","changed_gmt":"2024-04-09 20:26:20","author":"Tess Malone","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","dateline":{"date":"2024-04-08T00:00:00-04:00","iso_date":"2024-04-08T00:00:00-04:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"673645":{"id":"673645","type":"image","title":"24-R10400-P39-003-Web Use - 1,000px Wide.jpg","body":"\u003Cp\u003EPhoto by Rob Felt\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n","created":"1712583869","gmt_created":"2024-04-08 13:44:29","changed":"1712583869","gmt_changed":"2024-04-08 13:44:29","alt":"An Astronomy Club Public Night","file":{"fid":"257066","name":"24-R10400-P39-003-Web Use - 1,000px Wide.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/2024\/04\/08\/24-R10400-P39-003-Web%20Use%20-%201%2C000px%20Wide.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/2024\/04\/08\/24-R10400-P39-003-Web%20Use%20-%201%2C000px%20Wide.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":271210,"path_740":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/2024\/04\/08\/24-R10400-P39-003-Web%20Use%20-%201%2C000px%20Wide.jpg?itok=IxyodFIS"}}},"media_ids":["673645"],"groups":[{"id":"1214","name":"News Room"},{"id":"1188","name":"Research Horizons"},{"id":"1278","name":"College of Sciences"},{"id":"126011","name":"School of Physics"}],"categories":[],"keywords":[{"id":"187915","name":"go-researchnews"},{"id":"192249","name":"cos-community"},{"id":"192252","name":"cos-planetary"}],"core_research_areas":[{"id":"39501","name":"People and Technology"}],"news_room_topics":[],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003ETess Malone, Senior Research Writer\/Editor\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003Etess.malone@gatech.edu\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n","format":"limited_html"}],"email":[],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}