October 2010

October 2010 Meeting Notes

During the October meeting, several business items were addressed, including election of officers, and changes to our dues. Daryl Doughty also presented another short talk in his series "Introduction to Constellation Mythology", and John Land, of the Astronomy Club of Tulsa, gave a presentation on the benefits of our membership in the Astronomical League.

Introduction to Constellation Mythology - Daryl Doughty

As part of his ongoing series on Constellation Mythology, Daryl Doughty presented the second in the series. He focused on four constellations, rising in succession in the northeast this time of year, Cepheus, Cassiopeia, Andromeda, and Perseus. Cepheus, and Cassiopeia were king and queen of Ethiopia, and Andromeda was their daughter, who was chained to a rock as a sacrifice to a sea monster terrorizing the coast. It was Perseus who killed the monster, freed Andromeda, and then married her.

Benefits of the Astronomical League - John Land

John Land has been an active member of the Astronomy Club of Tulsa for many years. Since BAS rejoined the Astronomical League earlier this year, John's presentation on the benefits and resources of the League was very timely. After giving an overview of the AL and its regions, John discussed benefits like the quarterly publication, The Reflector, book discounts and on-line resources. Of particular interest was John's description of the various AL sponsored Observing Clubs, their requirements and their awards. In conjunction with his presentation, John provided us with a set of observing templates, which have now been uploaded to our Yahoo Group Files section for access and downloading.

Near the end of the presentation, it was suggested that members of BAS might like an opportunity to visit the ACT observatory near Mounds, Oklahoma. John agreed that this would be a good idea, and a future trip will be coordinated between BAS and ACT.

Club Business

Officer Elections

October is election month for BAS. Since we hadn't elected officers in several years, this year's elections brought us back in to sync with our normal schedule. In preparation for the elections, Arden Strycker did an excellent job of serving as the nominations chairman, organizing the elections, requesting nominations and formalizing the ballot. At the start of the business meeting, one final call was made for nominations. But with no changes, a motion was made and seconded to accept the ballot, and it was approved by unanimous vote. The elected officers are:

President: John Grismore

Program Chair & Vice President: Daryl Doughty

Information Officer (Newsletter): Mike Woods

[Treasurer, non-balloted]: Milt & Vicky Enderlin

Club Committee Activities

While working on nominations, Arden also addressed the issue of volunteer positions in BAS. He created the following list of Club Committee Activities and associated volunteers.

Nominations: Arden Strycker

Publicity/Newspaper: Carroll Ritchie

Publicity/Public Website: Steve Plank & John Grismore

Member Observing Program: Steve Plank & Arden Strycker

ByLaws: Arden Strycker

Meeting Room Arrangements: StevePlank, acting

Membership: open

Yahoo Group: open

Astronomical League: open

Publicity/Public Events: open (Joyce Ritchie has provided support with the educational community)

BAS is benefitting from those already contributing in the list above, but there are still open positions in need of volunteers. The future success of the club is dependent on volunteer support.

Dues Increase

There was a reminder during the business meeting that the club voted in September to raise dues to $20 for adults and $10 for students. In addition, it was agreed that we will establish November as a club wide dues date to synchronize dues for all members and simplify collection. New members who join at any other time of the year will pay a full year's dues at that time, and then, at the following November dues date, will pay the prorated amount necessary to complete the upcoming year and synchronize their dues date with the rest of the club. All members are encouraged to pay their dues at the November meeting.

Public Events

With the acquisition of liability insurance, the club will now consider hosting public astronomy events. Joyce Ritchie stated that she has already spoken with Oak Park Elementary School, and they are eager for us to provide a star gazing event. Joyce will coordinate scheduling with Oak Park and report back to the club.

Next Meeting

Monday, November 1, Virgil Reese will present "Exobiology" in the Bartlesville Public Library Meeting Room. For more information, see the meeting announcement on our website home page at <http://sites.google.com/site/bartlesvilleastronomyclub/> .

BAS Public Website: http://sites.google.com/site/bartlesvilleastronomyclub/

BAS Yahoo Group: http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/BvilleAstro/

If you want to have your email address removed from the Bartlesville Astronomical Society mailing list, please send an email requesting removal to bvilleastro@gmail.com .