tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-58670741058467231982024-03-13T07:47:14.783-07:00Anandian Astronomical AssociationWelcome to the official website of Anandian Astronomical Association|AAA| Sri LankaDeshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15282687474083285001noreply@blogger.comBlogger39125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5867074105846723198.post-90413988223295282292010-01-18T07:52:00.001-08:002010-01-18T07:52:56.220-08:00Thank you !!<pre>It is with great pleasure that we inform you that Star Party 2009 | The
Largest IYA 2009 project of Sri Lanka concluded successfully, on the 26th
of September 2009. The 12-hour event was attended by as many as 600
attendees together with the students.
We also featured the live streaming with ustream.tv and we had following
statistics for the full show.
First Start Time: 10:01am on Sep 24, 2009
Last End Time: 7:07pm on Sep 25, 2009
Total Broadcast Time: 12 hours, 56 minutes
Viewer Hours: 52 hours, 18 minutes
Unique Viewers: 88
Total Viewers: 225
Average Number of Viewers: 4
Although Sri Lanka is a small island we believe in the fact that we could
contribute to the general theme “The Universe, Yours to
Discover” with the
success of Star Party 2009, in terms of national contribution.
Here are the final results of Star Party 2009
Champions: De Mazenod College, Kandana
Runners-up: Sangamitta College, Galle
Special Awards
Award for Theoretical Round & Spot Test : Dharmaraja College, Kandy
Award for Solar & Observation Astronomy : Royal College, Colombo
Award for Constellation & Deep Sky Observation: Sangamitta College, Galle
Award for Moon Mapping : De Mazenod College, Kandana
Award for Planetary Observation : De Mazenod College, Kandana
We would like to thank you for your support rendered in getting necessary
publicity over the internet and other appropriate sources. If it had not
been your corporation we would probably not have received such an exposure
and a viewership like this. Thus the organizers for of the Star Party 2009
Anandian Astronomical Association, of Ananda College and Astronomical
Society of Mahamaya Girls’ College, Kandy would be obliged for all the
support granted.
Thanking You,
Sincerely,
J D Prasanna Deshapriya
(International Co-ordination)
Star Party 2009 Team
Additional resources are available at:
<a href="http://www.starparty2009.com/" target="_blank">http://www.starparty2009.com/</a>
<a href="http://iya2009sl.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">http://iya2009sl.blogspot.com/</a>
<a href="http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=124941&id=597140918&page=8" target="_blank">http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=124941&id=597140918&page=8</a>
<a href="http://www.ustream.tv/recorded/2225545" target="_blank">http://www.ustream.tv/recorded/2225545</a>
<a href="http://www.skylk.com/index.php?option=com_phocagallery&view=category&id=11%3Astarparty2009&Itemid=36%E2%8C%A9=en" target="_blank">http://www.skylk.com/index.php?option=com_phocagallery&view=category&id=11%3Astarparty2009&Itemid=36〈=en</a></pre>Deshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15282687474083285001noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5867074105846723198.post-87686451008334461102010-01-18T07:49:00.000-08:002010-01-18T07:49:16.813-08:00Interschool Observation Competition & Workshop 2009 | Largest IYA 2009 Project of Sri Lanka by AAA & ASMGC<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://users3.jabry.com/iya2009/sp2009/Banner1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://users3.jabry.com/iya2009/sp2009/Banner1.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
</div><br />
<br />
<i>A grand celebration, phenomenal sidereal endeavor, 12-hour premium experience of all time…</i>.<br />
<br />
Since the early footprints of civilization, astronomy proved to be the blueprint of all the sciences.<br />
The prime etiquette of stargazing was the passion that our ancestry shared. Driven by the curiosity and evolving mind, our forefathers were path-finding through the unknown access towards the beauty of dark sky, which is considered a noble virtue today.<br />
<br />
Thus all those things resulted in 2009 being named the international year of astronomy. A new era of astronomy is now surely in progress with the IYA 2009 coming into the effect with the approval of the global community as well. Therefore many countries have contributed to the IYA 2009 by numerous means with both collective and individual efforts. We are glad to step into the arena with Sri Lankan identity, featuring STAR PARTY 2009. In fact this Observation Competition will be the major focus of IYA 2009 endeavors of Sri Lanka. On the 25th of September 2009, STAR PARTY 2009 is scheduled to take place at the grounds of University of Peradeniya.<br />
<br />
The elite passion of stargazing will continue on the very day from 6.00 pm onwards, lasting for almost 12 hours. Students from different parts of the island will have a scope on Observation Astronomy and will compete to be crowned as champions depending on how they utilize the talent they possess. Star Party 2009 will also be a resource center for the amateurs seeking the quencher for their taste on Astronomy. The workshop conducted in affiliation with the Observation Competition, will share the knowledge and will be delivered by accredited professionals.<br />
<br />
Furthermore it’s worth referring to the Anandian Astronomical Association, of Ananda College and Astronomical Society of Mahamaya Girls’ College, Kandy for the commitment and innovativeness; they have taken up when it comes to organizing such a massive event. This will be the 6th occasion they organize Star Party, starting from initial appearance in 2004, where the latter was the primordial Observation Competition held in South Asia. Hence, there will be lot of cherished memories to recall, while marching towards the 6th successive milestone.<br />
<br />
Be there, to eye-witness STAR PARTY 2009 The Rendezvous of Celestial SurveillanceDeshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15282687474083285001noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5867074105846723198.post-64343428844611547882009-04-02T21:58:00.001-07:002009-04-02T22:15:18.056-07:00Sir A C Clarke @ Anandian Astronomical AssociationHere are some unpublished images that are revealed, portraying images of SF writer, Scientist, Sri Lankan citizen Late Sir Arthur C Clarke. He graced the Sir Arthur C Clarke Challenge Trophy - An Interschool Astronomy Quiz Competition, Organized by us in previous years.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos-h.ak.fbcdn.net/photos-ak-sf2p/v169/80/44/504493807/n504493807_233215_2455.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 402px; height: 592px;" src="http://photos-h.ak.fbcdn.net/photos-ak-sf2p/v169/80/44/504493807/n504493807_233215_2455.jpg" alt="Sir Clarke entering the Olcott Library of Ananda College, as the chief guest to " competition="" title="Sir Clarke entering the Olcott Library of Ananda College, as the chief guest to " sir="" arthur="" c="" clarke="" challenge="" trophy="" interschool="" astronomy="" quiz="" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;"> Sir Clarke entering the Olcott Library of Ananda College, as the chief guest to "Sir Arthur C Clarke Challenge Trophy" Interschool Astronomy Quiz Competition.</span><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos-f.ll.facebook.com/photos-ll-sf2p/v168/111/22/560752726/n560752726_524309_3184.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 604px; height: 402px;" src="http://photos-f.ll.facebook.com/photos-ll-sf2p/v168/111/22/560752726/n560752726_524309_3184.jpg" alt="Sir Clarke lights the traditional oil-lamp to mark the official beginning of the quiz. The deputy principals od Ananda College, late Mr.Rohana Ponnamperuma and Mr.Dhammika Ranathungage, the MAster incharge of AAA are also present here" title="Sir Clarke lights the traditional oil-lamp to mark the official beginning of the quiz. The deputy principals od Ananda College, late Mr.Rohana Ponnamperuma and Mr.Dhammika Ranathungage, the MAster incharge of AAA are also present here" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">Sir Clarke lights the traditional oil-lamp to mark the official beginning of the quiz. The deputy principals od Ananda College, late Mr.Rohana Ponnamperuma and Mr.Dhammika Ranathungage, the MAster incharge of AAA are also present here.</span>Deshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15282687474083285001noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5867074105846723198.post-90027494208001567772009-04-01T22:39:00.000-07:002009-04-02T21:54:24.097-07:00Invitation<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos-b.ak.fbcdn.net/photos-ak-sf2p/v168/111/22/560752726/n560752726_525921_893.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 259px; height: 366px;" src="http://photos-b.ak.fbcdn.net/photos-ak-sf2p/v168/111/22/560752726/n560752726_525921_893.jpg" alt="Souvenir of Star Party 2007" title="Souvenir of Star Party 2007" border="0" /></a>Anandian Astronomical Association,<br />Ananda College,<br />Colombo 10.<br />06. 12. 2006<br /><br />The Principal,<br />……………………………………,<br />……………………………………,<br /><br />Dear Sir / Madam,<br /><br />STAR PARTY 2007 - OBSERVATION COMPETITION<br /><br />The Anandian Astronomical Association is one of the leading school based Astronomy society in Sri Lanka. We have been organizing the SIR ARTHUR C. CLARKE CHALLENGE TROPHY for six consecutive years, which has gained its reputation as the best school based astronomy quiz competition in Sri Lanka. Through this event our ambition of making Astronomy a more popular science in Sri Lanka has become a reality in the last few years.<br />Another main objective of our club is to make observational astronomy more popular among students. As a mile stone of our quest we have been organizing the “Star Party” the FIRST and ONLY observation competition in SOUTH ASIA as a combine effort with MAHAMAYA Girls College Kandy.<br />This prestigious event will be organized for the fourth time on the 9th February from 6.00 pm to 6.00 am next morning at the PERADENIYE UNIVERSITY GROUND with the participation of many leading school astronomy societies.<br />We cordially invite ……………………………………………………… to be a part of this event.<br />Thank you,<br />Yours sincerely,<br /><br /><br />……………… ………………<br /> President Secretary<br /><br /><br />………………<br />Teacher in charge<br /><br /><br /><br />………………<br />Principal<br />(Mr. B.A. Abeyrathna)Deshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15282687474083285001noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5867074105846723198.post-75038824035171705652009-04-01T22:32:00.000-07:002009-04-01T22:37:49.237-07:00DETAILED PROGRAMME OF STAR PARTY 2007/<!--[endif]--> <table class="MsoTableGrid" style="border: medium none ; border-collapse: collapse;" border="1" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"> <tbody><tr style=""> <td style="border: 1pt solid windowtext; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 59.4pt;" valign="top" width="79"> <p class="MsoNormal">1600 h</p> </td> <td style="border-style: solid solid solid none; border-color: windowtext windowtext windowtext -moz-use-text-color; border-width: 1pt 1pt 1pt medium; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 383.4pt;" valign="top" width="511"> <p class="MsoNormal">Primary checking by: <b style="">Jayan, Ruwanga and Kshithijaya <o:p></o:p></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=""> </span>Verify the auditorium, gym, ground and decorations.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=""> </span>Sounds, projector & screen readied @ auditorium.<span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Report to concerned. <span style=""> </span></p> </td> </tr> <tr style=""> <td color="-moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext" style="border-style: none solid solid; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 59.4pt;" valign="top" width="79"> <p class="MsoNormal">1645 h</p> </td> <td color="-moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext -moz-use-text-color" style="border-style: none solid solid none; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 383.4pt;" valign="top" width="511"> <p class="MsoNormal">Secondary and final checking by: <b style="">Jayan, Ruwanga and Kshithijaya<o:p></o:p></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=""> </span>Verify auditorium and fully scrutinized, Stage finalized.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=""> </span>Announcers readied, blazers readied</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=""> </span>Registration desk documented. </p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span>Educated ushers / usherettes dressed smart and sent off.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=""> </span>Souvenir, file, archives readied.<span style=""> </span></p> </td> </tr> <tr style=""> <td color="-moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext" style="border-style: none solid solid; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 59.4pt;" valign="top" width="79"> <p class="MsoNormal">1700 h</p> </td> <td color="-moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext -moz-use-text-color" style="border-style: none solid solid none; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 383.4pt;" valign="top" width="511"> <p class="MsoNormal">Registration begins </p> <p class="MsoNormal">Arrival of the chief guest.</p> </td> </tr> <tr style=""> <td color="-moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext" style="border-style: none solid solid; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 59.4pt;" valign="top" width="79"> <p class="MsoNormal">1800 h</p> </td> <td color="-moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext -moz-use-text-color" style="border-style: none solid solid none; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 383.4pt;" valign="top" width="511"> <p class="MsoNormal">Opening ceremony kicks off.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Lighting oil lamp.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">School anthems lined up.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Graphics in order.</p> </td> </tr> <tr style=""> <td color="-moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext" style="border-style: none solid solid; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 59.4pt;" valign="top" width="79"> <p class="MsoNormal">1805 h</p> </td> <td color="-moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext -moz-use-text-color" style="border-style: none solid solid none; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 383.4pt;" valign="top" width="511"> <p class="MsoNormal">School anthems played.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Principals informed.</p> </td> </tr> <tr style=""> <td style="border-style: none solid solid; border-color: -moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext; border-width: medium 1pt 1pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 59.4pt;" valign="top" width="79"> <p class="MsoNormal">1810 h</p> </td> <td style="border-style: none solid solid none; border-color: -moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext -moz-use-text-color; border-width: medium 1pt 1pt medium; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 383.4pt;" valign="top" width="511"> <p class="MsoNormal">Addresses by Principals</p> </td> </tr> <tr style=""> <td style="border-style: none solid solid; border-color: -moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext; border-width: medium 1pt 1pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 59.4pt;" valign="top" width="79"> <p class="MsoNormal">1817 h</p> </td> <td style="border-style: none solid solid none; border-color: -moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext -moz-use-text-color; border-width: medium 1pt 1pt medium; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 383.4pt;" valign="top" width="511"> <p class="MsoNormal">Main Graphic</p> <p class="MsoNormal">CG informed</p> </td> </tr> <tr style=""> <td style="border-style: none solid solid; border-color: -moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext; border-width: medium 1pt 1pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 59.4pt;" valign="top" width="79"> <p class="MsoNormal">1820 h </p> </td> <td style="border-style: none solid solid none; border-color: -moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext -moz-use-text-color; border-width: medium 1pt 1pt medium; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 383.4pt;" valign="top" width="511"> <p class="MsoNormal">Chief guest’s address</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Teachers informed</p> </td> </tr> <tr style=""> <td style="border-style: none solid solid; border-color: -moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext; border-width: medium 1pt 1pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 59.4pt;" valign="top" width="79"> <p class="MsoNormal">1830 h </p> </td> <td style="border-style: none solid solid none; border-color: -moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext -moz-use-text-color; border-width: medium 1pt 1pt medium; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 383.4pt;" valign="top" width="511"> <p class="MsoNormal">Speeches of teachers-in-charge</p> </td> </tr> <tr style=""> <td style="border-style: none solid solid; border-color: -moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext; border-width: medium 1pt 1pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 59.4pt;" valign="top" width="79"> <p class="MsoNormal">1840 h </p> </td> <td style="border-style: none solid solid none; border-color: -moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext -moz-use-text-color; border-width: medium 1pt 1pt medium; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 383.4pt;" valign="top" width="511"> <p class="MsoNormal">Speeches of Presidents</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Welcome drink served</p> </td> </tr> <tr style=""> <td style="border-style: none solid solid; border-color: -moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext; border-width: medium 1pt 1pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 59.4pt;" valign="top" width="79"> <p class="MsoNormal">1845 h</p> </td> <td style="border-style: none solid solid none; border-color: -moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext -moz-use-text-color; border-width: medium 1pt 1pt medium; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 383.4pt;" valign="top" width="511"> <p class="MsoNormal">Introduction to the competition by Chief judge/Quizmaster</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Souvenir, file, archives distributed by Jayan and Ruwanga. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">Closing of opening ceremony.</p> </td> </tr> <tr style=""> <td style="border-style: none solid solid; border-color: -moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext; border-width: medium 1pt 1pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 59.4pt;" valign="top" width="79"> <p class="MsoNormal">1855 h</p> </td> <td style="border-style: none solid solid none; border-color: -moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext -moz-use-text-color; border-width: medium 1pt 1pt medium; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 383.4pt;" valign="top" width="511"> <p class="MsoNormal">Summoning teams, allocation of telescopes and</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Directing teams towards observation premises (Ground)</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Separating those arrived for workshop. </p> </td> </tr> <tr style="height: 11.25pt;"> <td style="border-style: none solid solid; border-color: -moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext; border-width: medium 1pt 1pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 59.4pt; height: 11.25pt;" valign="top" width="79"> <p class="MsoNormal">1920 h</p> </td> <td style="border-style: none solid solid none; border-color: -moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext -moz-use-text-color; border-width: medium 1pt 1pt medium; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 383.4pt; height: 11.25pt;" valign="top" width="511"> <p class="MsoNormal">Lunar Observation & workshop begins. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">AAA members in scrutiny.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Organizers transferring the stuff to gym. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">Auditorium cleared, laborer satisfied. </p> </td> </tr> <tr style="height: 15.85pt;"> <td style="border-style: none solid solid; border-color: -moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext; border-width: medium 1pt 1pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 59.4pt; height: 15.85pt;" valign="top" width="79"> <p class="MsoNormal">2045 h</p> </td> <td style="border-style: none solid solid none; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 383.4pt; height: 15.85pt;" valign="top" width="511"> <p class="MsoNormal">Collection of observation reports, gym readied. checking by: <b style="">Jayan,<span style=""> </span>Ruwanga and Kshithijaya <o:p></o:p></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal">End of the first round, call a halt to Workshop.</p> </td> </tr> <tr style=""> <td style="border-style: none solid solid; border-color: -moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext; border-width: medium 1pt 1pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 59.4pt;" valign="top" width="79"> <p class="MsoNormal">2100 h</p> </td> <td style="border-style: none solid solid none; border-color: -moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext -moz-use-text-color; border-width: medium 1pt 1pt medium; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 383.4pt;" valign="top" width="511"> <p class="MsoNormal">Dinner @ gymnasium (interval), <span style=""> </span>sponsor clip lined up and played.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">AAA members in charge of telescopes : headed by <b style="">Eranga</b></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Presentation of sponsors and stalls in progress.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Chief guest, invitees, judging panel and quizmasters given supper. </p> </td> </tr> <tr style=""> <td style="border-style: none solid solid; border-color: -moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext; border-width: medium 1pt 1pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 59.4pt;" valign="top" width="79"> <p class="MsoNormal">2200 h</p> </td> <td style="border-style: none solid solid none; border-color: -moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext -moz-use-text-color; border-width: medium 1pt 1pt medium; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 383.4pt;" valign="top" width="511"> <p class="MsoNormal">Both workshop and competition participants back to grounds.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Deep sky 1</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=""> </span>Saturn observation ( Nescafé<span style=""> </span>& cups readied and arranged )</p> <p class="MsoNormal">AAA members in scrutiny & workshop in progress. ( Nescafé 1<sup>st</sup> session served by Mahamayians ) </p> </td> </tr> <tr style=""> <td style="border-style: none solid solid; border-color: -moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext; border-width: medium 1pt 1pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 59.4pt;" valign="top" width="79"> <p class="MsoNormal">2315 h<span style=""> </span></p> </td> <td style="border-style: none solid solid none; border-color: -moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext -moz-use-text-color; border-width: medium 1pt 1pt medium; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 383.4pt;" valign="top" width="511"> <p class="MsoNormal">Deep sky 2</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=""> </span>Jupiter observation</p> <p class="MsoNormal">AAA members in scrutiny & workshop in progress.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Gym readied, projectors and screens readied, sounds readied, stereo quality mikes readied, judges’ room readied, announcers readied, checking by: <b style="">Jayan, Ruwanga and Kshithijaya<o:p></o:p></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Report to concerned.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Singing equipments readied. Romesh & others informed.</p> </td> </tr> <tr style=""> <td style="border-style: none solid solid; border-color: -moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext; border-width: medium 1pt 1pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 59.4pt;" valign="top" width="79"> <p class="MsoNormal"><b style=""><span style="font-size:8;"><span style="font-size:85%;">24<sup>th</sup> Feb 2007</span><o:p></o:p></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal">0015 h</p> </td> <td style="border-style: none solid solid none; border-color: -moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext -moz-use-text-color; border-width: medium 1pt 1pt medium; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 383.4pt;" valign="top" width="511"> <p class="MsoNormal">Everybody back to gym with telescopes and entertainments begin. ( judges @ evaluation )</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Mahamaya song played. Romesh clip lined up.</p> </td> </tr> <tr style=""> <td style="border-style: none solid solid; border-color: -moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext; border-width: medium 1pt 1pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 59.4pt;" valign="top" width="79"> <p class="MsoNormal">0030 h</p> </td> <td style="border-style: none solid solid none; border-color: -moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext -moz-use-text-color; border-width: medium 1pt 1pt medium; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 383.4pt;" valign="top" width="511"> <p class="MsoNormal">Romesh items played. Audience applauded.</p> </td> </tr> <tr style=""> <td style="border-style: none solid solid; border-color: -moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext; border-width: medium 1pt 1pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 59.4pt;" valign="top" width="79"> <p class="MsoNormal">0100 h</p> </td> <td style="border-style: none solid solid none; border-color: -moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext -moz-use-text-color; border-width: medium 1pt 1pt medium; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 383.4pt;" valign="top" width="511"> <p class="MsoNormal">Next Mahamaya song played. </p> </td> </tr> <tr style=""> <td style="border-style: none solid solid; border-color: -moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext; border-width: medium 1pt 1pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 59.4pt;" valign="top" width="79"> <p class="MsoNormal">0115 h</p> </td> <td style="border-style: none solid solid none; border-color: -moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext -moz-use-text-color; border-width: medium 1pt 1pt medium; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 383.4pt;" valign="top" width="511"> <p class="MsoNormal">Invited school demonstration, if any.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=""> </span>( Nescafé 2<sup>nd</sup> session served by Mahamayians inside the gym premises )</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Lecture slides lined up, film exacts lined up, projectors, screens, Lecture notes readied, double-checked by <b style="">Hashan and Asela<o:p></o:p></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Reported to concerned</p> </td> </tr> <tr style=""> <td style="border-style: none solid solid; border-color: -moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext; border-width: medium 1pt 1pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 59.4pt;" valign="top" width="79"> <p class="MsoNormal">0130 h</p> </td> <td style="border-style: none solid solid none; border-color: -moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext -moz-use-text-color; border-width: medium 1pt 1pt medium; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 383.4pt;" valign="top" width="511"> <p class="MsoNormal">An interactive lecture delivered on Observation by an invitee.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Audience involvement guaranteed.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Ground readied for workshop checked by<b style=""> Miyuru, Ruwanga and Eranga.</b><span style=""> </span>Quiz documents & archives readied, quizmasters consulted by <b style="">Jayan, Kshithijaya and Asela.</b> <b style=""><o:p></o:p></b></p> </td> </tr> <tr style=""> <td style="border-style: none solid solid; border-color: -moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext; border-width: medium 1pt 1pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 59.4pt;" valign="top" width="79"> <p class="MsoNormal">0230 h</p> </td> <td style="border-style: none solid solid none; border-color: -moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext -moz-use-text-color; border-width: medium 1pt 1pt medium; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 383.4pt;" valign="top" width="511"> <p class="MsoNormal">Workshop continues outside the gym, </p> <p class="MsoNormal">Chief quizmaster educates the quiz teams.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Quiz begins<span style=""> </span></p> </td> </tr> <tr style=""> <td style="border-style: none solid solid; border-color: -moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext; border-width: medium 1pt 1pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 59.4pt;" valign="top" width="79"> <p class="MsoNormal">0345 h</p> </td> <td style="border-style: none solid solid none; border-color: -moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext -moz-use-text-color; border-width: medium 1pt 1pt medium; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 383.4pt;" valign="top" width="511"> <p class="MsoNormal">Quiz finished and off to the ground with telescopes</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Deep sky 3 </p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=""> </span>Starry skies</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Inform the schools about <b style="">star chat</b> thing & get nominees.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Sounds, music checked by <b style="">Ruwanga, Kshithijaya and Asela</b> & report concerned.</p> </td> </tr> <tr style=""> <td style="border-style: none solid solid; border-color: -moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext; border-width: medium 1pt 1pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 59.4pt;" valign="top" width="79"> <p class="MsoNormal">0515 h</p> </td> <td style="border-style: none solid solid none; border-color: -moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext -moz-use-text-color; border-width: medium 1pt 1pt medium; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 383.4pt;" valign="top" width="511"> <p class="MsoNormal">Competition officially concluded workshop ended. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">Gathering back @ gym with telescopes.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">( Nescafé 3<sup>rd</sup> session served by Mahamayians)</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b style="">Jayan, Ruwanga, Kshithijaya, Hashan</b> assisting judges in evaluation.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Certificates written as marks by <b style="">Jayan, Ruwanga, Kshithijaya, Hashan<o:p></o:p></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Supervision by<b style=""> Osura ayya.</b></p> </td> </tr> <tr style=""> <td style="border-style: none solid solid; border-color: -moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext; border-width: medium 1pt 1pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 59.4pt;" valign="top" width="79"> <p class="MsoNormal">0530 h</p> </td> <td style="border-style: none solid solid none; border-color: -moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext -moz-use-text-color; border-width: medium 1pt 1pt medium; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 383.4pt;" valign="top" width="511"> <p class="MsoNormal">Star chat : interviewing presidents and volunteers </p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=""> </span>Discuss on common interest.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b style="">Jayan/Sumudu </b>informed of vote of thanks</p> </td> </tr> <tr style=""> <td style="border-style: none solid solid; border-color: -moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext; border-width: medium 1pt 1pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 59.4pt;" valign="top" width="79"> <p class="MsoNormal">0600 h</p> </td> <td style="border-style: none solid solid none; border-color: -moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext -moz-use-text-color; border-width: medium 1pt 1pt medium; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 383.4pt;" valign="top" width="511"> <p class="MsoNormal">Awarding ceremony & certification</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Read out of the marks by chief judge.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Vote of thanks by <b style="">Jayan/Sumudu</b></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Trophy presented to champions with gift vouchers.(national anthem lined up)</p> </td> </tr> <tr style=""> <td style="border-style: none solid solid; border-color: -moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext; border-width: medium 1pt 1pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 59.4pt;" valign="top" width="79"> <p class="MsoNormal">0630 h</p> </td> <td style="border-style: none solid solid none; border-color: -moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext -moz-use-text-color; border-width: medium 1pt 1pt medium; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 383.4pt;" valign="top" width="511"> <p class="MsoNormal">Conclusion : national anthem</p> </td> </tr> <tr style=""> <td style="border-style: none solid solid; border-color: -moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext; border-width: medium 1pt 1pt; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 59.4pt;" valign="top" width="79"> <p class="MsoNormal"><st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">BATH</st1:place></st1:city> OVER</p> </td> <td style="border-style: none solid solid none; border-color: -moz-use-text-color windowtext windowtext -moz-use-text-color; border-width: medium 1pt 1pt medium; padding: 0in 5.4pt; width: 383.4pt;" valign="top" width="511"> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 250%;"><st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on"><span style=""><span style="letter-spacing: 36.45pt;">BATH</span></span></st1:place></st1:city><span style=""><span style="letter-spacing: 36.45pt;"> OVER</span></span></p> </td> </tr> </tbody></table> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>Deshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15282687474083285001noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5867074105846723198.post-8661100362185855942009-04-01T22:30:00.000-07:002009-04-02T21:45:03.289-07:00Co-sponsorship<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_2BXBu4QInc0/SUhZmZirmbI/AAAAAAAAAME/g4Iivapc4BM/untitled1.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 283px; height: 211px;" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_2BXBu4QInc0/SUhZmZirmbI/AAAAAAAAAME/g4Iivapc4BM/untitled1.JPG" alt="Anandian Astronomical Association" title="Anandian Astronomical Association" border="0" /></a><br />In accordance with fulfilling monetary requirements of “STAR PARTY 2007”,<br />the organizing committee has decided to seek the assistance and cooperation of a co-sponsor. The co-sponsorship will be Rs.25, 000/=. Therefore we would be extremely grateful if your establishment or authority could grant us the relevant co-sponsorship, enabling us to accompany “STAR PARTY 2007” to its climax. As the co-sponsor you are entitled to following benefits.<br /><br />• Displaying banners at P. W. Vithanage Lecture theater of Department of Geology of University of Peradeniya, University grounds and Gymnasium premises.<br /><br /><br />• Screening digital, video, stereo, and moving advertisements at P. W. Vithanage Lecture theater of Department of Geology of University of Peradeniya, University grounds and Gymnasium premises.<br /><br /><br />• Distribution of leaflets, and brochures to all the participants and beholders.<br /><br /><br />• Displaying your firm’s products/services in a stall, arranged beside to the Gymnasium.<br /><br /><br /><br />We would be obliged if your immediate priority could be applied on this matter.<br />Meanwhile we wish your esteemed establishment all the success and anticipate that you will be joining us on improving and enlightening Sri Lankan astronomy in the long run as well.<br /><br /><br />ANANDIAN ASTRONOMICAL ASSOCIATION<br />ANANDA COLLEGE<br />COLOMBO 10<br />SRI LANKADeshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15282687474083285001noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5867074105846723198.post-7571694077877566372009-04-01T22:29:00.000-07:002009-04-02T21:43:13.818-07:00Principal Sponsorship<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_2BXBu4QInc0/SUhZmZirmbI/AAAAAAAAAME/g4Iivapc4BM/untitled1.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 476px; height: 356px;" src="http://lh5.ggpht.com/_2BXBu4QInc0/SUhZmZirmbI/AAAAAAAAAME/g4Iivapc4BM/untitled1.JPG" border="0" alt="Anandian Astronomical Association" title="Anandian Astronomical Association" /></a><br />In accordance with fulfilling monetary requirements of “STAR PARTY 2007”,<br />the organizing committee has decided to seek the assistance and cooperation of a principal sponsor. The principal sponsorship will be Rs.50, 000/=. Therefore we would be extremely grateful if your establishment or authority could grant us the relevant principal sponsorship, enabling us to accompany “STAR PARTY 2007” to its climax. As the principal sponsor you are entitled to following benefits.<br /><br />• Screening digital, video, stereo, and moving advertisements and displaying banners at P. W. Vithanage Lecture theater of Department of Geology of University of Peradeniya , University grounds and Gymnasium premises<br /><br /><br />• Distribution of CDs/DVDs, leaflets, files and brochures to all the participants and beholders.<br /><br /><br />• Displaying your firm’s products/services in a stall, arranged beside to the Gymnasium.<br /><br /><br />• Printing your logo/trademark on quizzical archives and documents.<br /><br /><br />• Conductibility of commercial awareness programmes regarding your firm during the interval (dinner break) upon a pre-negotiated scenario.<br /><br />We would be obliged if your immediate priority could be applied on this matter.<br />Meanwhile we wish your esteemed establishment all the success and anticipate that you will be joining us on improving and enlightening Sri Lankan astronomy in the long run as well.<br /><br />ANANDIAN ASTRONOMICAL ASSOCIATION<br />ANANDA COLLEGE<br />COLOMBO 10<br />SRI LANKADeshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15282687474083285001noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5867074105846723198.post-71010391904611004492009-04-01T22:27:00.000-07:002009-04-02T21:38:38.184-07:00FUTURE AMBITIONS<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_2BXBu4QInc0/SOukyqcAhAI/AAAAAAAAAD0/jny-P36N3oE/s128/untitled1.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 179px; height: 134px;" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_2BXBu4QInc0/SOukyqcAhAI/AAAAAAAAAD0/jny-P36N3oE/s128/untitled1.JPG" alt="AAA" title="AAA" border="0" /></a><br />• To be internationally recognized as an association for the enhancement of Astronomy. Generally implementing projects in SOUTH ASIAN region.<br /><br /><br />• To launch a magazine for the betterment and improvement of Astronomical awareness.<br /><br /><br />• Implementation of affiliated projects along with NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration), ESA (European Space Agency) JAXA (Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency) and Planetary Society.<br /><br /><br />• Carrying out “STAR PARTY” inter-school observation camp as an integral and annual event of the Astronomy Calendar.<br /><br /><br />• Continuing “SIR ARTHUR C. CLARKE CHALLENGE TROPHY” inter-school astronomy quiz competition, annually.<br /><br /><br />• Weekly conduction of lectures series for the members.<br /><br /><br />• Organizing occasional night camps to cover the prevailing celestial and extraterrestrial objects.<br /><br /><br />ANANDIAN ASTRONOMICAL ASSOCIATION<br />ANANDA COLLEGE<br />COLOMBO 10<br />SRI LANKADeshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15282687474083285001noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5867074105846723198.post-82468139624443487252009-04-01T22:25:00.000-07:002009-04-02T21:35:46.580-07:00Rules and Regulations of STAR PARTY 2007<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos-g.ll.facebook.com/photos-ll-sf2p/v287/80/29/769613674/n769613674_534046_6272.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 329px; height: 506px;" src="http://photos-g.ll.facebook.com/photos-ll-sf2p/v287/80/29/769613674/n769613674_534046_6272.jpg" alt="Star Party Trophy" title="Star Party Trophy" border="0" /></a><br />• All the participants should be currently attending school.<br /><br />• All the participants should be present at the Peradeniya university ground on or before 5.00 pm 23rd February 2007 and should bring clothes for warming and a red light.<br /><br />• Every participating team should contain a maximum of 5 participants and two teams can only represent a school.<br /><br />• Every group participating should have a telescope with minimum aperture of 2 inches maximum aperture of 8 inches.<br /><br />• If you do not have a telescope, still you have a chance to participate. Please be kind enough to inform us before 15th of February 2007.<br /><br />• If you have more than one telescope we would be pleased if you give it to a brother or a sister school during the competition. If so, please be kind enough to inform us since there are many schools without telescopes.<br /><br />• The aperture of your telescope does not affect the final result of this competition, since the judging panel judges your skill and the quality of your work according to the telescope aperture you use, not on the size or the prize of equipments or apparatus you use.<br /><br />• We will have a session of moon mapping and we will proceed under the assumption, that you are aware of all the standard methods of moon mapping and how to make an observation report.<br /><br />• In this competition we will evaluate your ability of Practical Astronomy, Observational Skills, Deep-sky Observation, Constellation Observation, Lunar Observation and Planetary Observation.<br /><br />• On all issues regarding the observation competition, the unanimous opinion of the judging panel, inclusive of accredited astronomical personnel, will be the ultimate decision.<br /><br />• In the event of security, each participating school should be accompanied by a teacher, plus a parent with each girl school.<br /><br />• AAA will take entire responsibility regarding your personal security and your equipment as long as you obey the rules and regulations, imposed for STAR PARTY 2007.<br /><br />• For furthermore information please contact<br /><br />Prasanna Deshapriya 011-2606275<br /> 071-6202262<br />Jayan Karunarathna 011-2572940<br /> 077-5036650Deshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15282687474083285001noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5867074105846723198.post-68489146356062362632009-04-01T22:23:00.000-07:002009-04-02T21:32:39.533-07:00WHAT STAR PARTY IS<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos-a.ll.facebook.com/photos-ll-sf2p/v168/111/22/560752726/s560752726_524176_3922.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 127px; height: 191px;" src="http://photos-a.ll.facebook.com/photos-ll-sf2p/v168/111/22/560752726/s560752726_524176_3922.jpg" alt="Star Party Trophy" title="Star Party Trophy" border="0" /></a><br />As the name hints Star Party is a starry celebration or a stellar night.<br />It’s an event every stargazer is willing forward to participate at. Organized by Anandian Astronomical Association of ANANDA COLLEGE, COLOMBO along with Astronomical Association of MAHAMAYA COLLEGE, KANDY as an affiliated project, Star Party generally focuses on Observational Astronomy, rather than other equivalents of the field.<br /><br />When taken as a whole, there are sessions of deep-sky observation, lunar observation plus a quizzical experience for anyone participating in. Of course dinner and snacks are supplied and arrangements can be made to have an entertainment, when nece<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos-e.ll.facebook.com/photos-ll-sf2p/v168/111/22/560752726/n560752726_524308_2904.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 214px; height: 142px;" src="http://photos-e.ll.facebook.com/photos-ll-sf2p/v168/111/22/560752726/n560752726_524308_2904.jpg" alt="Star Party" title="Star Party" border="0" /></a>ssary. Therefore Star Party can be employed as an assembly and alliance filled with intellectual comprehension and spiritual enjoyment.<br /><br />How to take part is like this, each school can submit two teams, each inclusive of not more than five members, upon the approval of teacher-in-charge or chargé d’affaires, before the deadline, notified to each school.<br /><br />Telescopes, Binoculars and other related equipments are supplied by the past members of the Anandian Astronomical Association and accredited personnel, who are always guiding us towards the right path.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos-h.ll.facebook.com/photos-ll-sf2p/v168/111/22/560752726/n560752726_524175_3494.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 281px; height: 269px;" src="http://photos-h.ll.facebook.com/photos-ll-sf2p/v168/111/22/560752726/n560752726_524175_3494.jpg" alt="Star Party 2007" title="Star Party 2007" border="0" /></a>Be there to eyewitness “STAR PARTY 2007” observation competition under the theme “Enigma Continues, Scrutinizing Purified Cosmos”. For the forth consecutive year this extravagant event will be held on 23rd February, 2007 from 6.00 pm to 6.00 am next morning at the PERADENIYA UNIVERSITY GROUNDS with the participation of many students of leading schools and accredited professionals of Sri Lanka.<br /><br /><br /><br />ANANDIAN ASTRONOMICAL ASSOCIATION<br />ANANDA COLLEGE<br />COLOMBO 10<br />SRI LANKADeshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15282687474083285001noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5867074105846723198.post-14786465889577376352009-04-01T22:21:00.000-07:002009-04-02T21:25:15.308-07:00OUR ACHIEVEMENTS<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://photos-g.ll.facebook.com/photos-ll-sf2p/v287/80/29/769613674/n769613674_534046_6272.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 218px; height: 334px;" src="http://photos-g.ll.facebook.com/photos-ll-sf2p/v287/80/29/769613674/n769613674_534046_6272.jpg" alt="Sir Arthur C Clarke Challenge Trophy" title="Sir Arthur C Clarke Challenge Trophy" border="0" /></a><br />From the day our association was officially launched, we have been achieving many victories. Our deserved triumphs portray the potential and expertise, we are equipped with, to grant to the enhancement and pacification of Sri Lankan astronomy.<br /><br />• All-island inter-school astronomy quiz competition organized by Nalanda College.<br /><br />2000 – 1st place<br />2001 – 1st place<br />2005 – 3rd place<br /><br />• All-island inter-school astronomy quiz competition organized by Dharmaraja College.<br /><br />2004 – 1st place<br />2005 – 1st place<br />2006 - 2nd place<br /><br />• All-island inter-school astronomy quiz competition organized by Visakha Vidyalaya.<br /><br />2002 – 1st place<br />2003 – 3rd place<br />2006 - 2nd place<br /><br />• All-island inter-school astronomy quiz competition organized by Maliyadeva boy’s school, Kurunegala.<br /><br />2004 – 1st place<br />2005 - 1st place<br /><br />• All-island inter-school astronomy quiz competition organized by Isipathana College.<br /><br />2001 – 1st place<br />2002 – 2nd place<br /><br />• All-island inter-school astronomy quiz competition organized by Thakshila Vidyalaya, Horana.<br /><br />2004 – 2nd place<br />2005 – 2nd place<br /><br />• All-island inter-school astronomy quiz competition organized by Mahamaya Girl’s School, Kandy.<br /><br />2002 – 1st place<br />2003 – 3rd place<br /><br />• All-island inter-school astronomy quiz competition organized by<br /> St. Paul’s Girls school Milagiriya.<br /><br />2001 – 1st place<br />2002 – 2nd place<br /><br />• All-island inter-school astronomy quiz competition organized by Sangamitta College, Galle.<br /><br />2004 – 2nd place<br />2006 – 3rd place<br /><br />• All-island inter-school astronomy quiz competition organized by Ananda Balika Vidyalaya.<br /><br />2004 – 3rd place<br />2005 – 3rd place<br />2006 – 3rd place<br /><br />• All-island inter-school astronomy quiz competition organized by De Mazanod College, Kandana.<br /><br />2005 – 1st place<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />• All-island inter-school astronomy quiz competition organized by Mahanama College.<br /><br />2006 – 1st place<br /><br />• All-island inter-school astronomy quiz competition organized by Southland Girl School, Galle.<br /><br />2005 – 1st place<br /><br />• All-island inter-school astronomy quiz competition organized by Wesley College.<br /><br />2005 – 2nd place<br /><br />• All-island inter-school astronomy quiz competition organized by St. Peter’s College.<br /><br />2005 – 2nd place<br /><br />Therefore, we don’t hesitate to proclaim that our association has become one of the leading astronomical associations of Sri Lanka.<br /><br /><br />ANANDIAN ASTRONOMICAL ASSOCIATION<br />ANANDA COLLEGE<br />COLOMBO 10<br />SRI LANKADeshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15282687474083285001noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5867074105846723198.post-466424515925162892009-04-01T22:20:00.000-07:002009-04-02T21:20:48.736-07:00WHAT ANANDIAN ASTRONOMICAL ASSOCIATION IS<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_2BXBu4QInc0/SReXMF4e4mI/AAAAAAAAAKU/Q6pKUDb3nAk/untitled1.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 194px; height: 144px;" src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_2BXBu4QInc0/SReXMF4e4mI/AAAAAAAAAKU/Q6pKUDb3nAk/untitled1.JPG" alt="Anandian Astronomical Association" title="Anandian Astronomical Association" border="0" /></a><br />Since its official launch in 1998, our association has successfully contributed many events, and has rendered many great endeavors not only to Alma Mater of Ananda, but also to the whole nation, making the field of Astronomy more and more popular in Sri Lanka. Thus from its inception, Anandian Astronomical Association has become one of the few leading Astronomical Associations in Sri Lanka.<br /><br /><br />We are proud to mention that we were the pioneers at school-based astronomy by organizing the “SIR ARTHUR C. CLARKE CHALLENGE TROPHY” Interschool Astronomy Quiz Competition, initiating in year 2001. Thus we have been continuing this episode integrally and annually in order to promote and enlighten Sri Lankan Astronomy. In year 2006, when we marked the 6th anniversary of the quiz on 27th of November under the theme “Astronomical Expropriation of Exquisite Explication”, we were capable of expanding our aura beyond possible limits. Hence our attempt to etch Interschool Astronomy Quiz Competition a major event in the astronomy calendar of Sri Lanka has been feasible along with the participation of a great many school students and accredited personnel.<br /><br /><br />Therefore, we deserve being proud as a school astronomical association for, we are regularly and weekly continuing a series of lectures for improvement of astronomical intellectual of our members as well.<br /><br /><br />Anandian Astronomical Association is famous for organizing OBSERVATION CAMPS which many schools have been reluctant to implement because of the outstanding organizing ability needed. We are proud to note that we have organized two camps named OBSERVATION CAMP 2003 and THE MARS APPROACHES OBSERVATION CAMP, which were memorable nights to all the amateur participants and veterans as well. We are glad to highlight that THE MARS APPROACHES OBSERVATION CAMP was able to capture a lifetime experience, Martian approach, occurring once a 40,000 years, thus being extremely productive to all the stargazers, took part. <br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />And it is with great gratification that we recall the memories of “STAR PARTY” to be internationally recognized as the school-based pioneers of Observational Competition in South Asia as embarked in 2004. STAR PARTY observation competition has become another event in our calendar with a difference, as it is an affiliated project with The Astronomy Club of Mahamaya Girls School Kandy. Last year this was held on the 02nd of March at Peradeniya University Grounds with a large amount of circulation of schools, island-wide and was a grand success. The venue was same ever since the 2004 unveiling, providing the ideal surrounding and evident nature. <br /><br /><br />This is more than enough to show our perfection of the ANANDIAN ASTRONOMICAL ASSOCIATION. Our Association, which created its reputation, its own path, and its own destiny as genuine Anandians do, has always been outstanding and excelling. Both our superiority and excellence has never been challenged nor matched.<br /><br /><br />Our next step is “STAR PARTY 2007” observation competition under the theme “Enigma Continues, Scrutinizing Purified Cosmos”. For the forth consecutive year this extravagant event will be held on 23rd February, 2007 from 6.00 pm to 6.00 am next morning at the PERADENIYA UNIVERSITY GROUNDS with the participation of many students of leading schools and accredited professionals of Sri Lanka.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />ANANDIAN ASTRONOMICAL ASSOCIATION,<br />ANANDA COLLEGE,<br />COLOMBO 10,<br />SRI LANKA.Deshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15282687474083285001noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5867074105846723198.post-72106795419128365712009-04-01T22:18:00.000-07:002009-04-02T21:18:52.254-07:00Sponsorship of Planetary SocietyThe Head,<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_2BXBu4QInc0/SO1nu087L7I/AAAAAAAAAFg/_3FKBhAOCkY/s512/proposal%201s.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 179px; height: 252px;" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_2BXBu4QInc0/SO1nu087L7I/AAAAAAAAAFg/_3FKBhAOCkY/s512/proposal%201s.jpg" alt="Star Party 2007" title="Star Party 2007" border="0" /></a><br />Monetary Allocations,<br />PLANETARY SOCIETY<br /><br />J.D.Prasanna Deshapriya,<br />The President,<br />Anandian Astronomical Association (AAA),<br />Ananda College,<br />Colombo 10,<br />SRI LANKA.<br />24th January 24, 2007<br /><br />Dear Sir / Madam,<br /><br />SPONSORSHIP FOR STAR PARTY 2007 - OBSERVATION COMPETITION<br /><br />The Anandian Astronomical Association is one of the leading school based Astronomy society in Sri Lanka. We have been organizing the SIR ARTHUR C. CLARKE CHALLENGE TROPHY for six consecutive years, which has gained its reputation as the best school based astronomy quiz competition in Sri Lanka. Through this event our ambition of making Astronomy a more popular science in Sri Lanka has become a reality in the last few years.<br /><br />Another main objective of our club is to make observational astronomy more popular among students. As a mile stone of our quest we have been organizing the “Star Party” the FIRST and ONLY observation competition in SOUTH ASIA as a combine effort with MAHAMAYA Girls College Kandy since 2004 for three succeeded years.<br /><br />This prestigious event will be organized as an affiliated project with Astronomical Association of Mahamaya Girls’ School, KANDY for the fourth time on the 23rd February from 6.00 pm to 6.00 am next morning at the PERADENIYA UNIVERSITY GROUND, University of Peradeniya, Peradeniya, SRILANKA with the participation of many leading school astronomy societies of SRILANKA and accredited personnel.<br /><br />Therefore we’d be glad if you could contribute to our monetary requirements to make this glorious event a grand success. In accordance with this the Organizing Committee of STAR PARTY 2007 has decided to seek the assistance of sponsors at the event. The corresponding sponsorships are negotiable and we envisage that your generous cooperation will be granted to us.<br /><br />We shall be obliged if you could grant paramount interest on this matter.<br /><br />Wishing your esteemed establishment all the success,<br />Yours sincerely,<br /><br />J.D.Prasanna Deshapriya<br />THE PRESIDENT,<br />Anandian Astronomical Association (AAA),Deshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15282687474083285001noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5867074105846723198.post-1660186879443272842009-04-01T22:17:00.001-07:002009-04-02T21:17:48.094-07:00Sponsorship of JAXA<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_2BXBu4QInc0/SO1nu087L7I/AAAAAAAAAFg/_3FKBhAOCkY/s512/proposal%201s.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 179px; height: 252px;" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_2BXBu4QInc0/SO1nu087L7I/AAAAAAAAAFg/_3FKBhAOCkY/s512/proposal%201s.jpg" alt="Star Party 2007" title="Star Party 2007" border="0" /></a><br />The Head,<br />Monetary Allocations,<br />Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA)<br /><br />J.D.Prasanna Deshapriya,<br />The President,<br />Anandian Astronomical Association (AAA),<br />Ananda College,<br />Colombo 10,<br />SRI LANKA.<br />24th January 24, 2007<br /><br />Dear Sir / Madam,<br /><br />SPONSORSHIP FOR STAR PARTY 2007 - OBSERVATION COMPETITION<br /><br />The Anandian Astronomical Association is one of the leading school based Astronomy society in Sri Lanka. We have been organizing the SIR ARTHUR C. CLARKE CHALLENGE TROPHY for six consecutive years, which has gained its reputation as the best school based astronomy quiz competition in Sri Lanka. Through this event our ambition of making Astronomy a more popular science in Sri Lanka has become a reality in the last few years.<br /><br />Another main objective of our club is to make observational astronomy more popular among students. As a mile stone of our quest we have been organizing the “Star Party” the FIRST and ONLY observation competition in SOUTH ASIA as a combine effort with MAHAMAYA Girls College Kandy since 2004 for three succeeded years.<br /><br />This prestigious event will be organized as an affiliated project with Astronomical Association of Mahamaya Girls’ School, KANDY for the fourth time on the 23rd February from 6.00 pm to 6.00 am next morning at the PERADENIYA UNIVERSITY GROUND, University of Peradeniya, Peradeniya, SRILANKA with the participation of many leading school astronomy societies of SRILANKA and accredited personnel.<br /><br />Therefore we’d be glad if you could contribute to our monetary requirements to make this glorious event a grand success. In accordance with this the Organizing Committee of STAR PARTY 2007 has decided to seek the assistance of sponsors at the event. The corresponding sponsorships are negotiable and we envisage that your generous cooperation will be granted to us.<br /><br />We shall be obliged if you could grant paramount interest on this matter.<br /><br />Wishing your esteemed establishment all the success,<br />Yours sincerely,<br /><br />J.D.Prasanna Deshapriya<br />THE PRESIDENT,<br />Anandian Astronomical Association (AAA),Deshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15282687474083285001noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5867074105846723198.post-6007427747437826622009-04-01T22:14:00.000-07:002009-04-02T21:16:01.994-07:00Sponsorship of NASA<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_2BXBu4QInc0/SO1nu087L7I/AAAAAAAAAFg/_3FKBhAOCkY/s512/proposal%201s.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 187px; height: 263px;" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_2BXBu4QInc0/SO1nu087L7I/AAAAAAAAAFg/_3FKBhAOCkY/s512/proposal%201s.jpg" alt="Star Party 2007" title="Star Party 2007" border="0" /></a><br />The Head,<br />Monetary Allocations,<br />National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)<br /><br />J.D.Prasanna Deshapriya,<br />The President,<br />Anandian Astronomical Association (AAA),<br />Ananda College,<br />Colombo 10,<br />SRI LANKA.<br />24th January 24, 2007<br /><br />Dear Sir / Madam,<br /><br />SPONSORSHIP FOR STAR PARTY 2007 - OBSERVATION COMPETITION<br /><br />The Anandian Astronomical Association is one of the leading school based Astronomy society in Sri Lanka. We have been organizing the SIR ARTHUR C. CLARKE CHALLENGE TROPHY for six consecutive years, which has gained its reputation as the best school based astronomy quiz competition in Sri Lanka. Through this event our ambition of making Astronomy a more popular science in Sri Lanka has become a reality in the last few years.<br /><br />Another main objective of our club is to make observational astronomy more popular among students. As a mile stone of our quest we have been organizing the “Star Party” the FIRST and ONLY observation competition in SOUTH ASIA as a combine effort with MAHAMAYA Girls College Kandy since 2004 for three succeeded years.<br /><br />This prestigious event will be organized as an affiliated project with Astronomical Association of Mahamaya Girls’ School, KANDY for the fourth time on the 23rd February from 6.00 pm to 6.00 am next morning at the PERADENIYA UNIVERSITY GROUND, University of Peradeniya, Peradeniya, SRILANKA with the participation of many leading school astronomy societies of SRILANKA and accredited personnel.<br /><br />Therefore we’d be glad if you could contribute to our monetary requirements to make this glorious event a grand success. In accordance with this the Organizing Committee of STAR PARTY 2007 has decided to seek the assistance of sponsors at the event. The corresponding sponsorships are negotiable and we envisage that your generous cooperation will be granted to us.<br /><br />We shall be obliged if you could grant paramount interest on this matter.<br /><br />Wishing your esteemed establishment all the success,<br />Yours sincerely,<br /><br />J.D.Prasanna Deshapriya<br />THE PRESIDENT,<br />Anandian Astronomical Association (AAA),Deshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15282687474083285001noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5867074105846723198.post-80128027792495334082009-04-01T22:10:00.000-07:002009-04-02T21:12:51.013-07:00Star Party: Archives Unveiled 1<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_2BXBu4QInc0/SO1nu087L7I/AAAAAAAAAFg/_3FKBhAOCkY/s512/proposal%201s.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 196px; height: 278px;" src="http://lh4.ggpht.com/_2BXBu4QInc0/SO1nu087L7I/AAAAAAAAAFg/_3FKBhAOCkY/s512/proposal%201s.jpg" alt="Star Party 2007" title="Star Party 2007" border="0" /></a><br />The Head,<br />Monetary Allocations,<br />European Space Agency (ESA)<br /><br />J.D.Prasanna Deshapriya,<br />The President,<br />Anandian Astronomical Association (AAA),<br />Ananda College,<br />Colombo 10,<br />SRI LANKA.<br />24th January 24, 2007<br /><br />Dear Sir / Madam,<br /><br />SPONSORSHIP FOR STAR PARTY 2007 - OBSERVATION COMPETITION<br /><br />The Anandian Astronomical Association is one of the leading school based Astronomy society in Sri Lanka. We have been organizing the SIR ARTHUR C. CLARKE CHALLENGE TROPHY for six consecutive years, which has gained its reputation as the best school based astronomy quiz competition in Sri Lanka. Through this event our ambition of making Astronomy a more popular science in Sri Lanka has become a reality in the last few years.<br /><br />Another main objective of our club is to make observational astronomy more popular among students. As a mile stone of our quest we have been organizing the “Star Party” the FIRST and ONLY observation competition in SOUTH ASIA as a combine effort with MAHAMAYA Girls College Kandy since 2004 for three succeeded years.<br /><br />This prestigious event will be organized as an affiliated project with Astronomical Association of Mahamaya Girls’ School, KANDY for the fourth time on the 23rd February from 6.00 pm to 6.00 am next morning at the PERADENIYA UNIVERSITY GROUND, University of Peradeniya, Peradeniya, SRILANKA with the participation of many leading school astronomy societies of SRILANKA and accredited personnel.<br /><br />Therefore we’d be glad if you could contribute to our monetary requirements to make this glorious event a grand success. In accordance with this the Organizing Committee of STAR PARTY 2007 has decided to seek the assistance of sponsors at the event. The corresponding sponsorships are negotiable and we envisage that your generous cooperation will be granted to us.<br /><br />We shall be obliged if you could grant paramount interest on this matter.<br /><br />Wishing your esteemed establishment all the success,<br />Yours sincerely,<br /><br />J.D.Prasanna Deshapriya<br />THE PRESIDENT,<br />Anandian Astronomical Association (AAA),Deshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15282687474083285001noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5867074105846723198.post-17868552032886974212008-12-20T17:12:00.000-08:002008-12-20T17:13:44.142-08:00Solar Eclipse 2009Partial Solar Eclipse of 2009 January 26 in Sri Lanka<br />From 2:03 PM to 4:12 PM in Colombo<br /><br /><a href="http://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/OH/OH2009.html#2009Jan26A" target="_blank">http://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/<wbr>OH/OH2009.html#2009Jan26A</a><br /><br />Annular Solar Eclipse of January 26<br /><br />The first solar eclipse of 2009 occurs at the Moon's ascending node<br />in western Capricornus. An annular eclipse will be visible from a<br />wide track that traverses the Indian Ocean and western Indonesia. A<br />partial eclipse will be seen within the much larger path of the<br />Moon's penumbral shadow, which includes the southern third of<br />Africa, Madagascar, Australia except Tasmania, southeast India,<br />Southeast Asia and Indonesia.<br /><br /><a href="http://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/OH/OHfigures/OH2009-Fig01.pdf" target="_blank">http://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/<wbr>OH/OHfigures/OH2009-Fig01.pdf</a><br />The annular path begins in the South Atlantic at 06:06 UT when the<br />Moon's antumbral shadow meets Earth and forms a 363 kilometre wide<br />corridor. Traveling eastward, the shadow quickly sweeps south of the<br />African continent, missing it by approximately 900 kilometres.<br />Slowly curving to the northeast the path crosses the southern Indian<br />Ocean. Greatest eclipse takes place at 07:58:39 UT when the eclipse<br />magnitude will reach 0.9282. At this instant, the annular duration<br />is 7 minutes 54 seconds, the path width is 280 kilometres and the<br />Sun is 73° above the flat horizon formed by the open ocean. The<br />central track continues northeast where it finally encounters land<br />in the form of the Cocos Islands and onward to southern Sumatra and<br />western Java. At 09:40 UT, the central line duration is 6 minutes 18<br />seconds and the Sun's altitude at 25°. In its final minutes, the<br />antumbral shadow cuts across central Borneo and clips the<br />northwestern edge of Celebes before ending just short of Mindanao,<br />Philippines at 09:52 UT. During a 3 hour 46 minute trajectory across<br />our planet, the Moon's antumbra travels approximately 14,500<br />kilometres and covers 0.9% of Earth's surface area.<br /><br />Partial phases of the eclipse are visible primarily from southern<br />Africa, Australia, Southeast Asia and Indonesia. Local circumstances<br />for a number of cities are listed in Table 2. All times are given in<br />Universal Time. The Sun's altitude and azimuth, the eclipse<br />magnitude and obscuration are all given at the instant of maximum<br />eclipse.<br /><br />This is the 50th eclipse of Saros 131. The family began with an<br />unusually long series of 22 partial eclipses starting on 1125 Aug<br />01. The first central eclipse was total in the Northern Hemisphere<br />on 1522 Mar 27. It was followed by 5 more total eclipses before the<br />series produce 5 hybrid eclipses from 1630 to 1702. The first<br />annular eclipse of Saros 131 occurred on 1720 Aug 04. The series<br />will produce 29 more annular eclipses the last of which is 2243 Jun<br />18. Saros 131 terminates on 2369 Sep 02 after a string of 7 partial<br />eclipses. Complete details for 70 eclipses in the series may be<br />found at:<br /><br /><a href="http://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/SEsaros/SEsaros131.html" target="_blank">http://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/<wbr>SEsaros/SEsaros131.html</a><br /><br />------------------------------<p><wbr>----------------------------<br /><br /><a href="http://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/OH/OHtables/OH2009-Tab02.pdf" target="_blank">http://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/<wbr>OH/OHtables/OH2009-Tab02.pdf</a><br /><br />Table 2 - Local Circumstances for the Partial Solar Eclipse<br />of 2009 January 26 in Sri Lanka<br /> Eclipse Max. Eclipse Sun Sun Eclip. Eclip. Annular<br />Location Begins Eclipse Ends Alt Azm Mag. Obs. Duration<br />UT h m h m h m °<br /><br />Colombo 08:33 09:42 10:42 41 238 0.285 0.171<br /><br />Local 14:03 15:12 16:12<br />Time+5:30</p>Deshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15282687474083285001noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5867074105846723198.post-25757068989796114542008-12-16T17:36:00.000-08:002008-12-16T17:39:15.746-08:00Tribute : Waiting for the Ultimate Call<div class="post_meta"> By <a href="http://www.montagelanka.com/?author=45" title="Posts by Nalaka Gunawardene">Nalaka Gunawardene</a><span class="dot">⋅</span>November, 2008 <span class="dot">⋅</span> </div> <div id="attachment_914" class="wp-caption alignright" style="width: 310px;"><a href="http://www.montagelanka.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/11/tribute1.jpg"><img class="size-full wp-image-914" title="tribute1" src="http://www.montagelanka.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/11/tribute1.jpg" alt="Sir arthur c clarke: A true believer all his life. He ardently wished for a sign. That had nothing to do with religion...it concerned life elsewhere in the cosmos" height="402" width="300" /></a><p class="wp-caption-text">Sir arthur c clarke: A true believer all his life. He ardently wished for a sign. That had nothing to do with religion...it concerned life elsewhere in the cosmos</p></div> <p><strong>By Nalaka Gunawardene</strong></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">SIR ARTHUR C CLARKE, whose 91st birth anniversary falls on December 16, was a true believer all his life. He ardently wished for a sign from the heavens which, alas, he never received up to his death on March 19. No, this had nothing to do with religion, a notion Clarke publicly dismissed as a dangerous ‘mind virus’. Rather, it concerned life elsewhere in the cosmos — an idea that always fascinated him, and on which he wrote many stimulating stories and essays.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">It wasn’t surprising, then, that this topped the three ‘last wishes’ Clarke mentioned in a short video released in December 2007, on the eve of his 90th birthday.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">“I would like to see some evidence of extra-terrestrial life,” Clarke said wistfully in what turned out to be his farewell message to the world. “I have always believed that we are not alone in the universe. But we are still waiting for ETs to call us – or give us some kind of a sign.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">He added: “We have no way of guessing when this might happen –- I hope sooner rather than later!”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">That ultimate ‘call’ never arrived in time for Clarke. And we have no way of telling which of his wishes would materialise first (the other two being adopting clean energy sources worldwide, and achieving peace in Sri Lanka, where he lived for over half a century).</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">When it came to ETs, or extra-terrestrials, Clarke had a good idea of the probabilities of a positive result in his own lifetime. He knew how it had eluded at least four generations of seekers, including the inventor of radio telegraph itself.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Accepting the Marconi Prize and Fellowship in 1982, Clarke recalled how Guglielmo Marconi had been interested in this prospect. He quoted from a letter he (Clarke) had written to the editor of the BBC’s weekly magazine, The Listener, in February 1939: “…On other planets of other stars there must be consciousness; on them there must be beings with minds…some far more developed than our own. Wireless messages from such remote conscious beings must be possible.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">The letter ended as follows: “The only time I met Marconi, he told me of his search for such messages. So far, we have failed to find them.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><strong><span lang="EN-GB">Absence of evidence</span></strong></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">After a century of radio and 60 years since its inventor’s death, such proof has yet to be found. However, as Carl Sagan –- possibly the best known proponent of the subject — was fond of saying, the absence of evidence is not evidence of absence.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Clarke himself was widely attributed as saying: “Sometimes I think we’re alone in the universe, and sometimes I think we’re not. In either case the idea is quite staggering.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Clarke not only wrote and talked passionately about the subject for decades, but also supported — in cash and kind — various groups engaged in the search for extra-terrestrial intelligence, or SETI.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">In 1993, when the US Congress abruptly terminated government funding for NASA’s SETI programme (a scientific bargain at US$ 12 million per year), Clarke joined three dozen top astronomers and science fiction writers from all over the world who urged President Bill Clinton to restore it. Sadly, that call went unheeded –- raising once again a question Clarke had often asked: is there any intelligent life in Washington?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Determined astronomers sustained SETI as a private scientific enterprise sustained by private and philanthropic donations. Clarke lent his name and credentials to these efforts, while also donating personal funds to some groups.</span></p> <div id="attachment_915" class="wp-caption alignleft" style="width: 310px;"><a href="http://www.montagelanka.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/11/tribute2.jpg"><img class="size-full wp-image-915" title="tribute2" src="http://www.montagelanka.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/11/tribute2.jpg" alt="Clarke himself was widely attributed as saying: “Sometimes I think we’re alone in the universe, and sometimes I think we’re not. In either case the idea is quite staggering.”" height="392" width="300" /></a><p class="wp-caption-text">Clarke himself was widely attributed as saying: “Sometimes I think we’re alone in the universe, and sometimes I think we’re not. In either case the idea is quite staggering.”</p></div> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">“SETI is the most important quest of our time, and it amazes me that governments and corporations are not supporting it sufficiently,” he once said in a letter supporting public donations to the SETI@Home project at the University of California, Berkeley.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">When Steven Spielberg, director of ET: The Extra-Terrestrial (1982), donated US$ 100,000 for SETI efforts, Clarke applauded it saying, “It seems only appropriate that Steven… should put his money where his mouth is”.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">He welcomed ET’s box office success, as it departed from the Hollywood tradition of depicting aliens as malevolent. By showing a highly intelligent being as both benign and vulnerable, the movie stretched the public’s imagination to consider other possibilities. Not all aliens would arrive here to take over our world – or to serve humanity, medium rare…</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">But Clarke realised how the vastness of space would make interstellar travel difficult and infrequent. It was more likely that signals (not spaceships) from advanced alien civilisations would roam the universe at the speed of light.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Clarke completely poohpoohed popular claims that assorted space ships of odd sizes and shapes were regularly visiting our planet (the so-called UFOs). His stock answer to all such reports was: “They tell us absolutely nothing about intelligence elsewhere in the universe, but they do prove how rare it is on Earth.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">But he did not rule out the possibility that such alien visits might have happened during our planet’s long history. Indeed, that was the premise of his 1948 short story ‘The Sentinel’, about a cosmic ‘fire alarm’ buried on the Moon by advanced beings who came this way a million years ago. That concept was later expanded into the movie, 2001: A Space Odyssey.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><strong><span lang="EN-GB">Where do we fit in?</span></strong></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">In that iconic movie and elsewhere, Clarke always explored the philosophical implications of SETI –- and its eventual success. It should be the concern of every thinking person, he said, “because it deals with one of the most fundamental questions that can possibly be asked: what is the status of Homo sapiens in the cosmic pecking order?”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Clarke believed the detection of intelligent life beyond the Earth would forever change our outlook on the Universe. “At the very least, it would prove that intelligence does have some survival value –- a reassurance that is well worth having after a session with the late night news.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Clarke speculated that ETs may be continuously broadcasting an easily decoded “Encyclopaedia Galactica” for the benefit of their less advanced neighbours. “It may contain answers to almost all the questions our philosophers and scientists have been asking for centuries, and solutions to many of the practical problems that beset mankind.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">He was sometimes ambivalent about the value of such an influx of new knowledge, noting that even the most well intentioned contacts between cultures at different levels of development can have disastrous results – especially for the less advanced ones. He recalled how a tribal chief once remarked, when confronted with the marvels of modern technology: ‘You have stolen our dreams’.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">But Arthur C Clarke, the perennial optimist continued: “I believe that the promise of SETI is far greater than its perils. It represents the highest possible form of exploration. And when we cease to explore, we’ll cease to be human.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">Clarke’s interest in ETs remained undiminished to the very end. The topic featured even in his last media interview, given from his hospital bed to IEEE Spectrum online magazine in January 2008. Responding to a question he’d been asked hundreds of times before, he said: “I’m sure the ETs are all over the place. I’m surprised and disappointed they haven’t come here already… Maybe they are waiting for the right moment to come.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-GB">He then added, with a chuckle: “And I hope they are not hungry!”</span></p>Deshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15282687474083285001noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5867074105846723198.post-48672653183414923102008-12-13T17:52:00.000-08:002008-12-13T18:06:27.491-08:00Archimedes Rejuvanates<div style="text-align: center;"> <span style="font-size:180%;">Archimedes and the 2000-year-old computer"Antikythera mechanism"<br /><br /></span><img alt="http://www.newscientist.com/data/images/ns/cms/mg20026861.600/mg20026861.600-1_500.jpg" src="http://www.newscientist.com/data/images/ns/cms/mg20026861.600/mg20026861.600-1_500.jpg" /><br /><p>MARCELLUS and his men blockaded Syracuse, in Sicily, for two years. The Roman general expected to conquer the Greek city state easily, but the ingenious siege towers and catapults designed by Archimedes helped to keep his troops at bay.</p> <p>Then, in 212 BC, the Syracusans neglected their defences during a festival to the goddess Artemis, and the Romans finally breached the city walls. Marcellus wanted Archimedes alive, but it wasn't to be. According to <a href="http://www.math.nyu.edu/%7Ecrorres/Archimedes/Death/Histories.html" target="nsarticle">ancient historians</a>, Archimedes was killed in the chaos; by one account a soldier ran him through with a sword as he was in the middle of a mathematical proof.</p> <p>One of Archimedes's creations was saved, though. The general took back to Rome a mechanical bronze sphere that showed the motions of the sun, moon and planets as seen from Earth.</p> <p>The sphere stayed in Marcellus's family for generations, until the Roman author Cicero saw it in the first century BC. "The invention of Archimedes deserves special admiration because he had thought out a way to represent accurately by a single device for turning the globe those various and divergent movements with their different rates of speed," he wrote. "The moon was always as many revolutions behind the sun on the bronze contrivance as would agree with the number of days it was behind it in the sky."</p> <p>Until recently, historians paid scant attention to this story: the description suggests a sophisticated mechanical device, beyond anything the ancient Greeks were thought to have been capable of. Furthermore, Cicero had no technical training, and did not explain how the device worked. He could have made the story up for effect.</p> <p>Now, however, research on the battered remains of a mysterious ancient device suggests that Cicero was telling the truth. While the Antikythera mechanism is not the same one seen by Cicero - it was not made until a century later - it proves that clockwork mechanisms like the one he described really did exist, and that ancient Greek technology was far more advanced than thought. Freshly deciphered inscriptions on its dials also hint at the origins of this technology.</p> <p>The device was discovered more than a century ago by sponge divers from the Aegean island of Symi. In 1900, after a gale blew them off course, they took shelter by a barren islet called Antikythera. When the storm abated, they went diving. Instead of sponges, the divers found a large heap of bronze and marble statues. They had happened upon an ancient shipwreck.</p> <p>The Greek government immediately hired the men to salvage the wreck. It was dangerous work: during the 10-month expedition one of the men died and two were paralysed as a result of the bends. But they brought back incredible treasures: bronze and marble statues, jewellery, glassware and furniture, including an ornate bronze throne.</p> <p>In all the excitement, nobody noticed a corroded lump of rock dumped in a crate in the courtyard of the National Archaeological Museum in Athens. That changed a few months later when it cracked open, revealing traces of gearwheels, precisely marked circular scales and inscriptions in ancient Greek.</p><p><img alt="The image “http://www.newscientist.com/data/images/ns/cms/mg20026861.600/mg20026861.600-4_500.jpg” cannot be displayed, because it contains errors." src="http://www.newscientist.com/data/images/ns/cms/mg20026861.600/mg20026861.600-4_500.jpg" /></p> <div class="quotebx bxbg"><div class="quoteopen"><div class="quoteclose"> <div class="quotebody lowlight"> The lump cracked open, revealing traces of gearwheels </div> </div></div></div> <p>The battered artefact became known as the "Antikythera mechanism", and it caused excitement and consternation. Until then, not one gearwheel, pointer or scale had been found from antiquity. Nor have any been found since; the Antikythera mechanism remains unique.</p> <p>Some scholars thought it was a hoax, others that it had come from a modern ship that sank on the ancient wreck site by chance. The only clues to its purpose were a reference to the signs of the zodiac - used for astronomy as well as astrology - and the word "Pachon", which was a month name used by the ancient Greeks. As the years passed, the mechanism sank into obscurity. With no answers, historians of technology tended to mention it as an afterthought, if at all.</p> <p>In recent decades, however, a series of researchers have dedicated large parts of their lives to <a href="http://www.antikythera-mechanism.gr/" target="nsarticle">studying the mechanism</a>. From their combined efforts, including X-raying its internal workings, we at last have a fairly complete picture of what the Antikythera mechanism did. It turns out that it was a hand-wound clockwork device used to calculate the motions of the sun, moon and planets as seen from Earth, as well as to predict solar and lunar eclipses <a href="http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg20026861.600-archimedes-and-the-2000yearold-computer--.html?full=true#bx268616B2">(see "How it worked")</a>.</p> <p>The complexity of the design, and the fact that it incorporated state-of-the-art astronomical knowledge, suggest that the maker cared a great deal about the accuracy of the mechanism. So where did it come from, and what was it used for?</p> <h3 class="crosshead">Long-lost loot</h3> <p>Studies of the Antikythera wreck and the cargo it carried suggest the ship set sail in around 65 BC, heading west from Asia Minor. It was a Roman ship, carrying looted Greek treasures back to Rome. At this time, the fearless young general Pompey was sweeping his way through Asia Minor, so the ship could have belonged to him.</p> <p>The presence of supply jars from Rhodes suggests the vessel stopped off at the island shortly before sinking. The astronomer Hipparchus, whose theories are embodied in the mechanism's gearwork, worked on Rhodes just a few decades before, leading some scholars to suggest that the Antikythera mechanism was made on the island.</p><p><a href="http://www.newscientist.com/articleimages/mg20026861.600/5-archimedes-and-the-2000yearold-computer--.html"> <img src="http://www.newscientist.com/data/images/archive/2686/26861601.jpg" alt="The ancient mediterranean" /></a></p> <p>Cicero also visited Rhodes around this time. In fact, he wrote about a second bronze model of the heavens "recently constructed by our friend Posidonius, which at each revolution reproduces the same motions of the sun, the moon and the five planets that take place in the heavens each day and night". Posidonius was a philosopher with a school on Rhodes in the first century BC, just at the time the Antikythera ship sailed.</p> <p>General Pompey admired the teachings of Posidonius, and several times stopped off to see him. Perhaps Posidonius gave the mechanism to Pompey as a gift.</p> <p>But there is a twist in the tale. Researchers including Alexander Jones of the Institute for the Study of the Ancient World in New York and John Steele of Durham University, UK, are still deciphering the mechanism's inscriptions. They recently discovered that the month names used on the Antikythera mechanism are from a local calendar used only in western Greece (<i>Nature</i>, vol 454, p 614).</p> <p>One of the main contenders for the origin of the calendar is the powerful city state of Syracuse, founded by Greek settlers, hinting that the mechanism was made by - or for - someone there. This is puzzling because the ship was sailing west towards Sicily on its way to Rome before it sank <figref refid="mg26861601.jpg">(see map)</figref>. It is possible that the mechanism was made on Rhodes for a wealthy owner in Syracuse. However, the inscriptions on the device date it to around 150 to 100 BC, suggesting that it was already a few decades old when the ship sank. It now seems more likely that it was originally made in Syracuse then taken east - to show off to the scholars on Rhodes, perhaps, or simply because its owner moved there. Later, the Romans put it on a ship heading back west.</p> <p>The most intriguing thing about the latest finding, however, is that Syracuse was Archimedes's home city. He lived a century before the Antikythera mechanism was made, so he could not have created this particular device. But the link to Syracuse, plus Cicero's description of Archimedes's model, hint that he could have been the original inventor of this type of gadget, with the Antikythera mechanism part of a technological tradition that he started.</p> <p>We know from ancient texts that Archimedes pioneered the use of gearwheels to achieve different force ratios - to lift weights, for example. And one of the few biographical details we know about him is that his father was an astronomer. So it wouldn't be completely unexpected if he had the idea of using his gearwheels to model the motions of the heavens. Tantalisingly, one of his lost treatises was entitled "On sphere-making".</p> <p>The theory of epicycles was very new when Archimedes lived, if it existed at all, and astronomers had no way to model the elliptical orbits of the moon and sun. So his original design might have been relatively simple, perhaps a schematic model showing the sun, moon and planets rotating around the Earth at various but constant speeds. Later, other craftsmen could have built on this, coming up with more sophisticated gearwork to incorporate the latest astronomical knowledge - including that of Hipparchus - as it became available, with the designs being shipped across the Greek world. Hipparchus is chiefly known for his insistence on what now seems obvious to us: that astronomical theories should accurately match observations. Perhaps he or his work influenced a switch from a schematic spherical model to a mathematical calculator that displayed the precise timing of celestial events on flat dials.</p> <p>Modelling the heavens with geared devices ran alongside a parallel tradition of modelling living creatures such as people, animals and birds. These did not use gearwheels, but were instead powered by steam, hot air and water. This seems to have started with the engineer Ctesibius in Alexandria in the third century BC, who specialised in water clocks incorporating automated figures. Archimedes worked with Ctesibius in Alexandria before he moved to Syracuse, so perhaps the seeds of both traditions - modelling planets and living creatures - were sown there.</p> <p>The engineer Hero, working in the first century AD, continued their work. He built many automated figures, as well as inventing a steam engine, a vending machine that dispensed holy water, a wind-operated organ and a geared device for lifting heavy weights.</p> <p>Historians have often scoffed at the Greeks for wasting their technology on toys rather than doing anything useful with it. If they had the steam engine, why not use it to do work? If they had clockwork, why not build clocks? Many centuries later, such technology led to the industrial revolution in Europe, ushering in our automated modern world. Why did it not do the same for the Greeks?</p> <p>The answer has a lot to do with what the Greeks would have regarded as useful. Models of people and animals, like those of the cosmos, affirmed their idea of a divine order. Gadgets like Hero's were also used to demonstrate basic physical laws in pneumatics and hydraulics.</p> <p>It has been suggested, for example, that Hero built his steam engine, in which steam escaping from nozzles in a metal sphere caused the sphere to spin, to disprove Aristotle's argument that movement could only be generated by pushing on something "unmoved and resisting" - the Prime Mover. Despite Hero's demonstration, Christians later adapted Aristotle's argument as proof that their God exists.</p> <p>Rather than being toys, devices like the Antikythera mechanism were seen as a route to understanding and demonstrating the nature of the universe - a way to get closer to the true meaning of things. To what better use could technology be put?</p> <p>For more information, visit <a href="http://www.decodingtheheavens.com/" target="ns"><i>Decoding the Heavens</i></a></p> <div class="artbx bxbg"> <h3 id="bx268616B1">The players...</h3> <p><b>CTESIBIUS OF ALEXANDRIA</b><br />c. 285 - 222 BCGreek inventor and mathematician. His water clocks showed the movements of the sun and were adorned with whistling birds, moving puppets and ringing bells.<br /><b>ARCHIMEDES OF SYRACUSE</b><br />287 - 212 BCEngineer and mathematical genius. He built war machines and invented calculus, but probably did not run about naked shouting "Eureka!" after a bath-time brainwave.<br /><b>MARCUS CLAUDIUS MARCELLUS</b><br />c. 268 - 208 BCRoman general and conqueror of Syracuse. Was very upset that his men had killed Archimedes, and he ensured that the mathematician was buried in a suitably grand tomb.<br /><b>HIPPARCHUS OF RHODES</b><br />c. 190 - 120 BCA leading astronomer of the ancient world. He compiled the first star catalogue, developed trigonometry and discovered the precession of the constellations through the sky.<br /><b>POSIDONIUS OF RHODES</b><br />135 - 51 BCOne of the most revered philosophers of ancient Greece, and Rhodes's ambassador to Rome. He subscribed to the Stoic view that the cosmos is a single organism.<br /><b>MARCUS TULLIUS CICERO</b><br />106 - 43 BCA high-flying Roman lawyer, politician and author, who loved Greek philosophy. He clashed with Pompey and Julius Caesar, and was killed by Mark Anthony's men.<br /><b>GNAEUS POMPEIUS MAGNUS (POMPEY)</b><br />106 - 48 BCBold general and rival of Julius Caesar, Pompey was one of the most important men of the Roman Republic. In the 60s BC his armies swept through Asia Minor.<br /><b>HERO OF ALEXANDRIA</b><br />c. 10 - 75 ADGreek geometer and inventor. He invented many devices including a steam engine. He specialised in automated figures driven by air, steam and water.</p> </div> <div class="artbx bxbg"> <h3 id="bx268616B2">How it worked</h3><img src="file:///C:/DOCUME%7E1/PRASAN%7E1/LOCALS%7E1/Temp/moz-screenshot-3.jpg" alt="" /><img src="file:///C:/DOCUME%7E1/PRASAN%7E1/LOCALS%7E1/Temp/moz-screenshot-4.jpg" alt="" /> <a href="http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg20026861.600-archimedes-and-the-2000yearold-computer--.html"> <img src="http://www.newscientist.com/data/images/archive/2686/26861602.jpg" alt="The back dials" /></a><br /><br /> <p>The Antikythera mechanism was enclosed in a wooden box and driven by a handle on the side. As the user turned the handle, they could wind backwards or forwards in time to see the positions of heavenly bodies at any chosen moment.On the front of the box was a large bronze dial on which revolving pointers showed the relative position in the sky of the sun, moon and probably the five known planets, along with the date. A rotating black-and-white ball displayed the phase of the moon. Around the dial were inscriptions detailing the risings and settings of the stars at different times of the year.On the back <figref refid="mg26861602.jpg">(see diagram)</figref> were two spiral dials, each with an extendable pointer। Once the pointer reached the end of a spiral, it could be lifted by hand and reset to the beginning - a bit like the stylus on a record player. The top dial showed a repeating 19-year calendar used to track the motions of the sun and moon. This timescale was chosen because 235 lunar months fit almost exactly into 19 solar years. The bottom dial was used to predict eclipses, and showed the 223 months of an 18-year cycle over which eclipse patterns repeat. Inscriptions marked the months in which to expect a lunar or solar eclipse, as well as its exact time and duration.Incredibly, all of this was achieved by intermeshing bronze gearwheels, which multiplied the speed of rotation by precise mathematical ratios depending on the number of teeth on each wheel. Turning the handle drove a "mean sun", or date pointer, which revolved around the sky once per year. Three pairs of gearwheels then multiplied that speed of rotation by 235/19, to calculate the mean motion of the moon.Beyond that, things got more complicated. For example, the moon's speed as seen from Earth is not constant. The moon has an elliptical orbit, so it is sometimes closer to us (when it moves faster) and sometimes further away (when it slows down). The alignment of this ellipse rotates around Earth about once every 9 years. The idea of an ellipse would have been blasphemy to the ancient Greeks - they were convinced that celestial orbits, which they saw as divine, involved only perfect circles.Wheels within WheelsInstead, in the second century BC the astronomer Hipparchus came up with a theory to account for the moon's varying speed by superimposing one circular motion onto another with a different centre. The gears inside the Antikythera mechanism precisely model this theory. One gearwheel sits on top of another, but on a slightly different axis. A pin sticks up from the bottom wheel into a slot in the wheel above. As the bottom wheel turns it drives the top wheel round, but because the two wheels have different centres, the pin slides back and forth in the slot. This causes the speed of the top wheel to vary, even though the speed of the bottom wheel is constant.This pin-and-slot mechanism was carried around on a much larger turntable, with one rotation equalling 9 years, to model the shifting axis of the moon's orbit. This combined motion was then superimposed onto the mean speed of the lunar pointer, so that it matched the speed of the actual moon.The gearing for the sun and planets is lost, but the Antikythera mechanism almost certainly modelled these too. The planets' motions appear particularly erratic to us because they orbit the sun and not Earth. The Greeks accounted for this by superimposing small epicycles onto larger circular orbits. There is evidence that the Antikythera mechanism calculated these using what is still known today as epicyclic (or "planetary") gearing - small wheels riding around on bigger wheels.</p><p>http://brightcove.newscientist.com/services/link/bcpid1873822884/bctid4455141001</p><p><img alt="The image “http://www.newscientist.com/data/images/ns/cms/mg20026861.600/mg20026861.600-2_500.jpg” cannot be displayed, because it contains errors." src="http://www.newscientist.com/data/images/ns/cms/mg20026861.600/mg20026861.600-2_500.jpg" /></p> </div></div>Deshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15282687474083285001noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5867074105846723198.post-55227096956669949412008-12-09T10:32:00.000-08:002008-12-09T10:35:19.362-08:00Vote of thanksThank you very much for your support in participation of lectures and do contribute in future events of the IYA 2009 as wellDeshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15282687474083285001noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5867074105846723198.post-78093083885111363192008-11-30T19:35:00.000-08:002008-11-30T19:39:48.213-08:00Emeritus Professor J.V. Narlikar's itenerary on SLSRI LANKA ASSOCIATION FOR THE ADVANCEMENT OF SCIENCE<br />Committee For Popularization Of Science<br /><br />Public Lecture <br /><br />FACTS AND SPECULATIONS IN COSMOLOGY<br /><br />Emeritus Professor J.V. Narlikar<br /><br />Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics<br />Ganeshkhind, Post Bag 4, Pune - 411 007, INDIA<br /><br />Date : Wednesday 3rd December 2008<br /><br />Time : 4.00 p.m. onwards<br /><br />Venue : Prof.V.K. Samaranayake Auditorium<br /> University of Colombo School of Computing (UCSC)<br /><br />All Are Welcome<br /><br />******************************<p><wbr>******************************<wbr>****<br />POSTGRADUATE INSTITUTE OF SCIENCE (PGIS)<br /> University of Peradeniya <br /><br />LECTURE/discussion<br /><br />Facts and Speculations in Cosmology<br /><br />Professor Jayant Narlikar<br /><br />Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics<br />Ganeshkhind, Pune, INDIA<br /><br />Friday, 5th December 2008 2.00 p.m.<br /><br />PGIS AUDITORIUM (opposite the university cricket grounds)<br /><br />ALL ARE WELCOME<br />******************************<wbr>******************************<wbr>****<br /><br />Facts and Speculations in Cosmology<br /><br />This talk will discuss the present state of cosmology, the subject<br />dealing with the studies of the origin, evolution and end of the<br />universe in the large. In ancient times the thinkers had detailed<br />and complex notions about the cosmos but those were speculations<br />with no basis in real facts. With the progress of observational<br />astronomy, our understanding about larger and larger parts of the<br />universe grew and speculations gave place to more facts and science<br />based ideas. Modern cosmology is around a century old and it took<br />shape around Einstein's general relativity and the data on galaxies<br />from Edwin Hubble and his coworkers. Thus the concept of the<br />expanding universe was born. We will describe the successes of this<br />concept which have led cosmologists in modern times to be bolder and<br />apply their equations to find what the universe was like soon after<br />the big bang. It will be argued that despite the claimed results of<br />this approach, it is highly speculative and in many respects<br />unscientific.<br /><br />------------------------------<wbr>----------------------------<br /> University of Moratuwa<br /><br />LECTURE/discussion<br /><br />WHY STUDY ASTRONOMY?<br /><br />Professor Jayant Narlikar<br /><br />Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics<br />Ganeshkhind, Pune, INDIA<br /><br />Thursdy, 4th December 2008 11.00 a.m.<br /><br />Electronic & Telecomunication Engineering <br /> Seminar Hall 1 ENTC-1<br /><br />ALL ARE WELCOME<br /><br />WHY STUDY ASTRONOMY?<br /><br />It is often argued that astronomy deals with remote and esoteric<br />objects like stars and galaxies very very far away and so its<br />studies are irrelevant to mankind. In this lecture it is shown that<br />this is not the case. For example, the present day achievements of<br />communications technology are largely based on satellite<br />communication, which is based on Newton's law of gravitation. Newton<br />could derive his law because he had Kepler's laws of planetary<br />motion as the base data. Kepler obtained these laws by observing<br />planets over many years and analysing their motions. In short it was<br />astronomy that really started the revolution that we today identify<br />with IT. Other examples are given and finally it is shown that it<br />is astronomical survey of all solar system objects like meteors,<br />asteroids, etc. being carried out today that will alert us to any<br />possible collisions of such objects with the Earth.<br /></p>Deshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15282687474083285001noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5867074105846723198.post-79684980879049631072008-11-29T07:11:00.000-08:002008-11-29T08:25:31.800-08:00NAM 08 concluded a success<span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"></span><h2><img class="imageright" src="http://aalk.lakdiva.net/NAM08/images/NAM08.jpg" alt="fish1" /></h2>National Astronomical Meeting 2008 concluded successfully at 6.00 pm on 29th of November 2008 at the auditorium of SLAAS. The followings were proposed to be carried out as the Sri Lankan equivalent of IYA 2009 worldwide activities.<br /><br /><ul><li> A virtual network of School-based Astronomical Associations</li></ul><ul><li>Launch of a website for the functionality of IYA-09 based SL activities</li></ul><ul><li>Implementing a 100 hour observation session throughout the island from 02nd to 5th April 2009 in accordance with its international counterpart</li></ul><ul><li>Special workshop for school teachers in March</li></ul><ul><li>An advanced observation campaign, focusing the partial solar eclipse</li></ul><ul><li>Robortification of a telescope, enabling it to be remote-controlled via internet</li></ul><ul><li>Rocket launching competition</li></ul><ul><li>Subtitling Carl Sagen's "Cosmos" series to Sinhalese to be telecast in National TV in 2009<br /></li></ul>Below-mentioned school Astonomical Associations were represented by their repective school students at the NAM 08. Names of the Schools are as follows.<br /><br />1. Ananda College, Colombo 10<br />2. Royal College, Colombo 07<br />3. Visaka Vidyalaya, Colombo 07<br />4. Isipathana College, Colombo 07<br />5. Southlands Girls College, Galle<br />6. De Mazanod College, Kandana<br />7. Girls High School, Mt. Lavinia<br /><br />Present Invitees<br /><br /><pre style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: Courier New;"><tt style="font-family: Courier New;">Prof. Kavan Ratnatunga AALK/IAU </tt></pre> <pre style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: Courier New;"><tt style="font-family: Courier New;">Mr. Thilina heenatigala AALK </tt></pre> <pre style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: Courier New;"><tt style="font-family: Courier New;">Fr Mervyn Fernando Subodhi Institute </tt></pre> <pre style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: Courier New;"><tt style="font-family: Courier New;">Mr. Tharaka Gamage Journalist - Rivira</tt></pre> <pre style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: Courier New;"><tt style="font-family: Courier New;">Mr. Yohan Ferreira AALK </tt></pre> <pre style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: Courier New;"><tt style="font-family: Courier New;">Prof. Michael Snowden IAU</tt></pre><br /><br /><br />The professional New Zealand astronomer Prof. Michael Snowden delivered a special lecture on "Observational Astronomy" as well.Deshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15282687474083285001noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5867074105846723198.post-8648871233030122942008-11-26T22:16:00.001-08:002008-11-26T22:16:43.374-08:00A A A<div style="text-align: center; color: rgb(153, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size:130%;">WELCOME TO<br />ANANDIAN ASTRONOMICAL ASSOCIATION</span><br /></div><span style="color: rgb(255, 102, 0);font-size:180%;" ><blockquote><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_2BXBu4QInc0/SOukyqcAhAI/AAAAAAAAAD0/jny-P36N3oE/s1600-h/untitled1.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 202px; height: 151px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_2BXBu4QInc0/SOukyqcAhAI/AAAAAAAAAD0/jny-P36N3oE/s320/untitled1.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5254474580549993474" border="0" /></a></blockquote></span><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 0);"><span style="color: rgb(51, 102, 255);font-size:130%;" ><br /></span></span>Deshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15282687474083285001noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5867074105846723198.post-982438059984079722008-11-26T22:12:00.000-08:002008-11-26T22:14:23.051-08:00NAM 2008<span style="color:#ffffff;"><h2><i>International Year of As 2009 and School based Astronomy”</i> <img class="imageright" src="http://aalk.lakdiva.net/NAM08/images/NAM08.jpg" alt="fish1" /> </h2></span><div class="meteor"><h4>Introduction</h4></div> <h4>The National Astronomy Meeting 2008 is being hosted and organized by Sri Lanka Astronomical Association.<br /></h4><h4><br /><!--4-->We look forward to welcoming the astronomy, space science and planetary science communities to NAM2008 at the auditorium of Sri Lanka Association of Advancement of Science. The NAM08 will focus on “Sri Lanka’s views on International Year of Astronomy 2009 and school based astronomy education”.<br /><br /> <br /> </h4><h2 style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> Date: 29th Saturday, November 2008<br /><br />Time: 2:00pm – 6:00pm<br /><br />Venue: Auditorium of Sri Lanka Association of Advancement of Science, Colombo</h2> <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" ><br /><br /><br /><br /> </span><div style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="meteor"><a name="Program"></a><h4><a name="Program">Program</a></h4></div> <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" ><br /><br /><br />What is IYA2009/Sri Lanka involvement in IYA 2009<br /><br />Planned programs for IYA2009<br /><br />Network of school astronomical societies<br /><br />Discussion: School involvement<br /><br />Lecture - by Prof. Michael Snowden (Professional Astronomer) </span> <br /> <br /> <br /><br /><div class="meteor"><a name="Press"></a><h4><a name="Press">Press</a></h4></div><br /><br /><br />SRI LANKA ASTRONOMICAL ASSOCIATION PRESS INFORMATION NOTE<br />Date: 20 November 2008 For Immediate Release<br />Ref.: 2008-01<br /><br />Issued by:<br /><br />Sri Lanka Astronomical Association<br /><br /><br />Mr. Thilina Heenatigala.<br />Mob: +94 (0) 716 245 545<br /><a href="mailto:thilina_atn@yahoo.com">thilina_atn(AT)yahoo(DOT)com</a><br /><br /><a href="http://aalk.lakdiva.net/">website</a><br /><br /><br />NATIONAL ASTRONOMY MEETING 2008<br />DATE: 29th November, 2008<br />VENUE: Auditorium of Sri Lanka Association for Advancement of Science (SLAAS)<br />TIME: 02:00pm onwards<br /><br /> 1ST MEDIA ANNOUNCEMENT<br /><br />Nearly 100 students with few professional scientists and astronomers will gather for the first National Astronomy Meeting (NAM 2008), which is hosted and organized by Sri Lanka Astronomical Association, on 29th November at 2:00pm onwards.<br /><br />The NAM 2008 “International Year of Astronomy 2009 and School based Astronomy” will focus on International Year of Astronomy (IYA) 2009 which is a global celebration of astronomy and its contributions to society and culture, highlighted by the 400th anniversary of the first use of an astronomical telescope by Galileo Galilei. The aim of the Year is to stimulate worldwide interest, especially among young people, in astronomy and science under the central theme "The Universe, Yours to Discover".<br /><br />The NAM 2008 will brief the Sri Lanka involvement in IYA2009, scheduled programs for 2009, possible program and will discuss school based astronomy.<br /><br />One of the highlights of the NAM08 is the launch of the “Network of School Astronomical Societies” which is a virtual network where all the school astronomical societies will gather together to enhance the interaction between schools.<br /><br />The NAM 2008 will follow by lecture from a professional astronomer. <br /><br />A full and up to date schedule of these and other events can be found on the official website at <a href="http://aalk.lakdiva.net/NAM08">NAM 2008</a><br /><br /><br />Media representatives are cordially invited to attend the meeting. <br /><br />FURTHER INFORMATION<br /><a href="http://aalk.lakdiva.net/NAM08">NAM 2008</a><br /><a href="http://aalk.lakdiva.net/">Sri Lanka Astronomical Association</a><br /><a href="http://aalk.lakdiva.net/iya2009">International Year of Astronomy2009 - Sri Lanka</a><br /><a href="http://www.astronomy2009.org/">International Year of Astronomy2009</a><br /><br /><br />NOTES FOR EDITORS<br /><br /><br />The Ceylon Astronomical Association which was founded in June 1959, (later known as Sri Lanka Astronomical Association) and now revived as the Astronomical Association of Lanka (AALK) is a not-for-profit association founded by Sir Arthur C. Clarke and late Herschel Gunawardene.<br /><br />It is for the purpose of pursuing the study of astronomy and promoting the education of astronomy and related sciences. The revived Association’s goals would include usage of internet to carry research on astronomy and related sciences among university students and others.<br /><br /><br /><br /><div class="meteor"><a name="Contacts"></a><h4><a name="Contacts">Contacts</a></h4></div><br /><br /><br />For general enquiries please contact:<br /><br />Mr. Thilina Heenatigala.<br /><br />Mobile: +94 (0) 716 245 455<br /><br />Email:<a href="mailto:thilina_atn@yahoo.com">thilina_atn(AT)yahoo(DOT)com</a><br /><br /> <div class="meteor"><a name="Links"></a><h4><a name="Links">Links</a></h4></div><br /><br /><br /><a href="http://aalk.lakdiva.net/">Sri Lanka Astronomical Association</a><br /><a href="http://aalk.lakdiva.net/iya2009">International Year of Astronomy2009 - Sri Lanka</a><br /><a href="http://www.astronomy2009.org/">International Year of Astronomy 2009</a><br /><a href="http://aalk.lakdiva.net/NAM08">National Astronomy Meeting 2008</a><br /><a href="http://www.iau.org/">International Astronomical Union</a><br /> <a href="http://www.astronomy2009.org/">International Year of Astronomy2009</a>Deshhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15282687474083285001noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5867074105846723198.post-6608149812049390312008-11-06T18:23:00.000-08:002008-11-06T18:24:40.970-08:00Buying & Purchasing a Telescope<table class="ModuleBackUndefBorderDef" align="center" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="4" width="100%"><tbody><tr><td align="center" valign="bottom" width="25%"><a href="http://www.buytelescopes.com/product.asp?pid=11214"><img src="http://www.buytelescopes.com/products/featured/1863.jpg" border="0" /></a></td><td rowspan="3" width="1"><img src="http://www.buytelescopes.com/images/spacer-gray.gif" height="150" width="1" /></td><td align="center" valign="bottom" width="25%"><a href="http://www.buytelescopes.com/product.asp?pid=13742"><img src="http://www.buytelescopes.com/products/featured/1866.jpg" border="0" /></a></td><td rowspan="3" width="1"><img src="http://www.buytelescopes.com/images/spacer-gray.gif" height="150" width="1" /></td><td align="center" valign="bottom" width="25%"><a href="http://www.buytelescopes.com/product.asp?pid=9532"><img src="http://www.buytelescopes.com/products/featured/1867.jpg" border="0" /></a></td><td rowspan="3" width="1"><img src="http://www.buytelescopes.com/images/spacer-gray.gif" height="150" width="1" /></td><td align="center" valign="bottom" width="25%"><a href="http://www.buytelescopes.com/product.asp?pid=12390"><img src="http://www.buytelescopes.com/products/featured/1869.jpg" border="0" /></a></td></tr><tr><td valign="top" width="25%"><p align="center"><a href="http://www.buytelescopes.com/product.asp?pid=11214" class="FeaturedProductLead">Nikon 3-9x40 ProStaff w/BDC Reticle Riflescope</a><br /><span class="Price">$159.95</span></p>For 2006 Nikon has announced a new reticle designed to be used in conjunction with its popular laser rangefinders to provide hunters with an easy-to-use system for determining proper long-range shot placement on animals. </td><td valign="top" width="25%"><p align="center"><a href="http://www.buytelescopes.com/product.asp?pid=13742" class="FeaturedProductLead">Gerber Rivermate with Sheath</a><br /><span class="Price">$22.00</span></p>When you need a knife quickly, you need it to have some traction. 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Even when viewing with a single eyepiece the sun appears fully animated revealing hints of curvature, this effect is enhanced when used with bino-viewers. </td><td valign="top" width="25%"><p align="center"><a href="http://www.buytelescopes.com/product.asp?pid=12390" class="FeaturedProductLead">Alpen 12x50 Apex Binoculars</a><br /><span class="Price">$337.00</span></p>ALPEN Apex binoculars define the best in optics quality, featuring superb workmanship and the latest optics technology. Including fully multi-coated BAK4 glass, PXA� phase coating and HR� metallic coating, Apex binoculars allow clearer viewing in bright and dim light and in the wettest conditions. </td></tr><tr><td><a href="http://www.buytelescopes.com/department.asp?d=35"><br /></a></td><td><br /></td><td><a href="http://www.buytelescopes.com/department.asp?d=1"><br /></a></td><td><a href="http://www.buytelescopes.com/department.asp?d=6"><br /></a></td></tr><tr><td align="center" valign="bottom" width="25%"><a href="http://www.buytelescopes.com/product.asp?pid=6115"><img src="http://www.buytelescopes.com/products/featured/1881.jpg" border="0" /></a></td><td rowspan="3" width="1"><img src="http://www.buytelescopes.com/images/spacer-gray.gif" height="150" width="1" /></td><td align="center" valign="bottom" width="25%"><a href="http://www.buytelescopes.com/product.asp?pid=14182"><img src="http://www.buytelescopes.com/products/featured/1890.jpg" border="0" /></a></td><td rowspan="3" width="1"><img src="http://www.buytelescopes.com/images/spacer-gray.gif" height="150" width="1" /></td><td align="center" valign="bottom" width="25%"><a href="http://www.buytelescopes.com/product.asp?pid=9042"><img src="http://www.buytelescopes.com/products/featured/1893.jpg" border="0" /></a></td><td rowspan="3" width="1"><img src="http://www.buytelescopes.com/images/spacer-gray.gif" height="150" width="1" /></td><td align="center" valign="bottom" width="25%"><a href="http://www.buytelescopes.com/product.asp?pid=9585"><img src="http://www.buytelescopes.com/products/featured/1908.jpg" border="0" /></a></td></tr><tr><td valign="top" width="25%"><p align="center"><a href="http://www.buytelescopes.com/product.asp?pid=6115" class="FeaturedProductLead">ScopeGuard Case for Takahashi TOA-130</a><br /><span class="Price">$399.00</span></p>ScopeGuard cases are designed with the safety of your telescope in mind. 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