Regular Monthly Meeting

The regular meeting of the AAAA will be held on Saturday, July 17^th starting at 3:00 PM in the Story County Conservation Center, at McFarland Park .

Starbecue Picnic

We will begin set up for the picnic at 3:00, and start grilling by 4:00 PM. Meats, buns, condiments and beverage will be provided. Those at the June meeting passed a sign-up sheet to volunteer potluck items, and those of you who didn't attend last month are welcomed to bring a dish to share. Please bring your own table service.

The daylight activities will include solar observing, a scale model of the solar system and a number of hands-on activities provided by Night Sky. The meeting will also include the presentation rescheduled from last month. With luck we hope to wrap the night up with viewing at the observatory.

Topic: Update on the Kepler program

By this summer, the first results from Kepler should be public. Steve Kawaler will review what we've learned from monitoring the brightness of over 100,000 stars with such stunning precision. There will be planet discoveries of course, but he will also discuss what the subtle brightness changes seen in these stars can tell us about their insides, and their evolution.