Solar System 2014 Presentation:
I gave a presentation on the Rosetta and New Horizons probes at the Nevada County Astronomers in December 2014. The slides from the presentation are available here as a PDF.Here are the slides for that presentation.
Planetary Nebulae 2013 Presentation:
I gave a presentation on Planetary Nebulae at the Nevada County Astronomers in February 2013. The presentation includes an update on Mars exploration since my talk in 2012.Here are the slides for that presentation.
Mars 2012 Presentation:
I gave a presentation on Mars at the Nevada County Astronomers in March 2012. Here are the slides for that presentation.
Buying a Telescope:
I have a blog where I talk about what to buy, what to avoid, how to buy, and how to budget for a telescope.
The advice is mostly aimed at a first-time buyer, but it's useful for anyone looking to buy a scope, especially if you've been burned in the past or want to refresh your mind with some things you might forget.
Telescope Buyer's Guide
Astronomy Basics:
I also have a blog where I cover the basics of astronomy. What things are, how to observe them, how to get started with the "simple" stuff that it seems so hard to pick up, especially when folks seem to think you already know it.
Astronomy Basics
Star Parties:
One of the greatest joys of astronomy is in sharing it. You can come to a star party and look through my scopes, and those of others. We like to show the beauty of the night sky to anyone who wishes to have a look.
I give a number of impromptu star parties each year (I may just pull out my telescope in the parking lot at McDonald's, for example), plus I help out at more formal star parties such as the ones given by these groups:
- Nevada County Astronomers, serving Nevada County and surrounding communities.
- Explorit Science Center, one of the greatest little science museums there is.
- Imaginarium of Nevada County, another great little science museum.
- Don Machholz, The Comet Hunter, Don Machholz, discoverer of 11 comets (by eye!), organizes frequent star parties along the I-80 corridor in the Sierra Foothills of California. My family and I alway enjoy being a part of these events.
- Placer Nature Center has frequent programs on astronomy for those with a casual interest.