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Be sure to visit the website for JAAVSO vol. 40 #2, Dec. 2012 - a compilation of reports based on Citizen Sky activities: http://www.aavso.org/jaavso-v40n2 .
Thanks again to everyone who contributed data, observational reports, ideas and artwork! See you again for the 2036 campaign?

We are thrilled to announce that Citizen Sky has a new permanent home at the AAVSO!

Now that the epsilon Aurigae eclipse is over and the special, eps Aur issue of the JAAVSO is being published, Citizen Sky has a new mission -- more than one in fact!  Citizen Sky will be the new home of bright variable star activities at the AAVSO.  We have already developed a binocular observing program and will be developing a DSLR observing manual in early 2013.

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We've had a blast so far during Astro-April!

In the last couple of weeks we have presented 5 online talks on various astronomical subjects.  (If you missed any of them, recordings are posted on the main Astro-April page.)  The speakers have been engaging, the questions have been thoughtful, and we've given away $250 in "door" prizes!

Even though we only have one week left in our celebration, we have SEVEN more online talks to go!  We have recieved lots of positive feedback about this format, so please visit the schedule of talks and register for any that interest you. (Maybe you'll even win an Amazon.com gift certificate!)Read more

Many thanks to Dr. John Martin for his svery informative online talk yesterday on Supernova Impostors! (Video has been posted.)

TODAY, April 17th at 3:00pm Eastern: Dr. Steve Howell will speak about his work with NASA's Kepler Mission.  Click here to register for this talk!

We have many more online talks coming up next week!  Registration links for all remaining talks and video for past talks are posted on the main Astro-April page.

We have two very interesting online talks scheduled this week as a part of Citizen Sky's Astro-April:

1. Join us TODAY, Thursday, April 12 at 2pm Eastern Time for an online talk with Dr. Kevin Marvel. Kevin is a former AAVSO vice president and is the current executive officer of the American Astronomical Society (AAS), the leading professional organization of astronomers in the United States. Dr. Marvel will be joined by Dr. Bethany Johns, AAS Public Policy Officer. They will discuss the AAS, policy issues, and the current status of astronomy in the US.  They will also take questions from attendees.

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Dr. Bob will join us for a webinar/online talk about the recent science of epsilon Aurigae and a summary of what we learned from this eclipse. Read more

April promises to be a great month for the Citizen Sky Project!

We are using the month of April to celebrate the Citizen Sky Project and to learn a little more about astronomy outside of Citizen Sky. Astro-April will be packed with a series of webinars, prizes and awards.  Also, don't forget that there is a special AAVSO Membership sale going on to add the festivities!

We are certainly off to a good start!  The first webinar in the series was given April 4th by Robert Naeye, Editor in Chief of Sky & Telescope Magazine, and went very well.  We will be posting a recording of this and future webinars online. Many thanks to Bob for participating in Astro-April.Read more

The AAVSO, the parent organization of Citizen Sky, is holding a 50% off membership sale for Citizen Sky participants for the month of April. AAVSO membership comes with free access to robotic telescopes all over the world!Read more

Thursday's edition of Astrobites features a review of a newly accepted article by Don Hoard and friends, concerning the infrared sides of epsilon Aurigae's disk:
http://astrobites.com/2012/03/01/the-invisible-monster-has-two-faces/
The review was written by 2nd year Harvard grad student, Courtney Dressing, whose  include exoplanets, habitability, and astrobiology.
As Courtney notes, the cold side of the disk runs at 550 +/- 50K while the side facing the F star heats to 1150 +/- 50K.  This temperature difference is a major, major clue to the composition of disk material (thermal capacity) and may be pivotal in deciding the binary star separation.   Continued infrared and optical observatons of the system, as the heated side of the disk comes increasingly into view as we approach quadrature offer prospects for revealing the heating and cooling balance present in these regions.Read more