Restoring ‘dark sky’ would benefit birds, people and science, local advocates say By Robin HuebnerMay 22, 2023 Light pollution is harming wildlife, birds and humans, according to a delegate from Dark Sky International and the National Audubon Society. GLYNDON, Minn. — When one’s passion involves scanning the heavens for distant objects in the name of science or a hobby, a dark […]
Physics and Astronomy student Emily Watson submitted measurements of an exoplanet, a planet around a star far from Earth, to NASA’s TESS mission as part of its ground-based follow-up observers program. Emily took the data using MSUM’s Paul P. Feder Observatory at the MSUM Regional Science Center, operating the observatory remotely over Thanksgiving break. She observed the star dimming briefly […]
Department of Physics and Astronomy students Mara DeRung, Tanner Weyer, and Emily Watson presented an electronic poster at the 111th Annual Meeting of the American Association of Variable Star Observers. They presented the work they did this past summer automating MSUM’s Paul P. Feder Observatory and observing exoplanets and variable stars. The students are shown below with AAVSO Executive Director […]
Six MSUM students volunteered at the 10th annual Dakota Nights astronomy festival at Theodore Roosevelt National Park Sep 16-18, 2022. They set up several telescope for evening star viewing and gave visual tours of the constellations using laser pointers. Five of the students, Alex Niemi, Emily Watson, Izzy DiOrio, Mara DeRung, and Tanner Weyer, have majors in the Department of […]
MSUM students Mara DeRung and Emily Watson submitted observations of an exoplanet transit to NASA’s TESS mission as part of the ground follow-up group. A transit occurs when a planet orbiting another star passes in front of the star, briefly dimming its light. The green line in the graph below shows the tiny dip in brightness of the star as […]