Useful Astronomy Links



Transit of Venus 2012
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Transit of Venus 2012 at the JMO on KARE 11

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Life to the Max Show #121 - Star Struck
Jackson Middle School in Champlin, Minnesota, has the usual courses in core academic subjects -- the ones that make teenagers cringe and college guidance counselors jump for joy! But this school also has a unique program that has students reaching for the stars. Guest host Susan Commers introduces us to Mrs. McLellan, coordinator of the Jackson Middle School Observatory. This state-of-the-art facility is one of a few in districts across the country, allowing students to study the sky in an observatory and planetarium.

Visit us on the web: www.lifetothemax.tv
In the News
Champlin native takes virtual trip to his old junior high school

Article by: MARIA ELENA BACA , Star Tribune
Updated: March 6, 2012 - 7:28 PM

A former Jackson Middle School student, now a NASA jet propulsion engineer, pays a high-tech visit to students at his old junior high.

It's possible to reach for the stars from the neighborhoods around Jackson Middle School in Champlin.

That's the message students got Friday from someone who's done it.

About 60 seventh- and eighth-graders had a live video chat with John Ziemer, a former Jackson student who now is a senior engineer at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif.

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In the News
Moon rocks one small step to bolster reading

Article by: MARIA ELENA BACA , Star Tribune
Updated: September 16, 2011 - 8:28 PM

As short-term guardian of a sample of moon rocks and soil gathered during the Apollo 11 and 17 missions, it's been crystal-clear to Jackson Middle School teacher Dee McLellan that she is custodian to a national treasure.
Ensconced in a clear resin disk, the set of six samples resides all day in a bag slung over McLellan's shoulder. Before 4 p.m. each day, she has to transport the disk to the Champlin Police Department, where it is locked in a safe overnight.
After all, over the course of six manned missions to the moon, the United States has collected fewer than 850 pounds of rock and soil, about the mass of an adult polar bear or a large church bell.
She does it, she says, as part of a quest to inspire struggling eighth-graders to get excited about reading.

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In the News
App'd up and ready to learn

Published: Wednesday, September 14, 2011

While learning about NASA's most recent launch mission Jackson Middle School students perk up as they get their hands on some new learning tools, iPads. Jackson Middle School's Observatory Coordinator Dee McLellan believes the iPad's popularity with teens will help pique their curiosity in the learning process.

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In the News
Lunar learning

Published: Wednesday, September 14, 2011
As NASA prepares to launch the twin GRAIL spacecraft to map the moon's gravity field, students at Jackson Middle School have the opportunity to see real lunar material. Jackson Middle School Observatory Coordinator Dee McLellan was able to obtain lunar samples, which are on loan to her for two weeks.

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In The News
Celebrating the celestial at Champlin school

The Jackson Middle School Observatory in Champlin has a new director, and she and the operation are fueling students' interest in the stars, planets and space.

By NORMAN DRAPER, Star Tribune

November 16, 2010 - 5:17 PM

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In The News
Shooting for the stars: Jackson Middle School observatory provides cosmic experience for students

By Stefanie Briggs - Sun Newspapers
Published: Wednesday, January 19, 2011 8:39 PM CST

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Stellarium - Free Planetarium
Stellarium is a free open source planetarium for your computer. It shows a realistic sky in 3D, just like what you see with the naked eye, binoculars or a telescope.
It is being used in planetarium projectors. Just set your coordinates and go.


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Eyes on the Solar System
"Eyes on the Solar System" is a 3-D environment full of real NASA mission data. Explore the cosmos from your computer. Hop on an asteroid. Fly with NASA's Voyager 2 spacecraft. See the entire solar system moving in real time. It's up to you. You control space and time.


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Sun, Moon, Earth Applet
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Explore how the Sun, Moon, and Earth move.

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International Space Station Goes Together
See How the ISS was built over the past 10 years.

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UNCLE AL’S HANDS-ON UNIVERSE STAR WHEELS Northern Hemisphere
Uncle Al's Sky Wheels

Here is an astronomical tool that will help you find constellations of stars and other things in the sky. All you need to do is download the Starwheel file, print them, cut them out, and assemble them following the directions that are on the printout.

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NASA's Space Place Make a Star Finder
Learn your way around the night sky by finding some of the constellations. The pattern for your Star Finder is included as an Adobe Acrobat file.

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The Evening Sky Map
The Evening Sky Map (PDF) is a 2-page monthly guide to the night sky suitable for all sky watchers including newcomers to Astronomy.

Designed to print clearly on all printers, The Evening Sky Map is ready-to-use and will help you to:

* Identify planets, stars and major constellations
* Find sparkling star clusters, wispy nebulae & distant galaxies
* Locate and follow bright comets across the sky
* Learn about the night sky and Astronomy

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NASA's Solar System Exploration
This site provides content on missions, events, education, people and other things related to the exploration of the planets in our solar system. It also includes resources and information for the Year of the Solar System, a two-year initiative for the education and public outreach community and science community.

We strive to be a living encyclopedia of NASA's robotic exploration of our solar system updated in near real time.

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Spaceweather
Daily information about what is currently happening in astronomy.


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The NAAP Lunar Phases Lab
The NAAP Lunar Phases Lab demonstrates how the earth-sun-moon geometry gives rise to the phases of the moon as seen from earth. A distant view of an observer looking down on earth as well as a perspective of an observer looking into the sky are used in the the simulator.


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Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Astronomy, planetary exploration, Earth, etc.

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NASA
National Aeronautics and Space Administration


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Heavens Above
To find out when the space station, space shuttle, and other satellites will be passing over.


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The JASON Project
The JASON Project connects students with scientists and researchers in real- and near-real time, virtually and physically, to provide mentored, authentic and enriching science learning experiences.

JASON and its partners create these connections using multiple platforms and technologies, including award-winning, standards-based classroom curriculum developed with NOAA, NASA, National Geographic Society and others; after-school and out-of-school activities; camp experiences; and exploration programs for museums, aquariums, libraries and community centers. The result is a year-round continuum of classroom and out-of-classroom learning.

Founded in 1989 by Dr. Robert D. Ballard, JASON is a nonprofit organization managed by Sea Research Foundation, Inc. and governed by Sea Research and National Geographic Society.


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