A research group will use Carson City volunteers to help measure Pluto early Saturday morning at the Jack C. Davis Observatory.
The Research and Education Cooperative Occultation Network, a citizen science research project exploring the outer solar system, is conducing a campaign to measure Pluto just before 1:30 a.m.
Following last month’s training event in Carson City, this is RECON’s first official observational campaign. RECON will be joining observers in both North and South America who are also involved in this study. Other scientific resources are being committed to this event from the professional groups Southwest Research Institute, Observatoire de Meudon in Paris, France and MIT.
Observing Pluto allows RECON participants at Carson City to contribute to science and will help test out logistics for measuring Kuiper Belt Objects in the future. Go here and here for more information on the project or contact Carson High Astronomy Teacher James Bean, jbean@carson.k12.nv.us.
This first test of the network’s operations will be Saturday morning. The teams will be measuring Pluto’s shadow as it passes over Earth. RECON-Carson — Jack C Davis Observatory and Carson High School — would like to invite fellow observers to participate in their research.
WHAT: RECON’s first official campaign to measure Pluto
WHO: Research and Education Cooperative Occultation Network (RECON)
WHEN: May 4, 2013, 12 AM to 2 AM
WHERE: Jack C. Davis Observatory, Carson City, NV