|
Space Zone!
WHO are we? Students for the Exploration and Development of Space. Well, SEDS members see space not as science-fiction but as a new frontier to explore and develop, for the benefit of humankind. To this end, SEDS and its branches incorporate into all membership activities, the commitment to making space more a part of our lives. Members participate in lectures, meetings and events. Participation in SEDS events helps improve leadership skills, enhances career interests and develops organisational abilities. SEDS is the world's largest space enthusiast organisation for both school and university students. In fact, ANYONE who is interested can become a member of UKSEDS, young or old, student or non-student. The organisation was founded in the US in 1980 by students at MIT and Princeton University and is continuing to grow, currently having more than 60 branches worldwide. UKSEDS was formed in 1988 and is one of the fastest growing national SEDS groups. Its purpose is to promote the exploration of space, and the research and development of space-related technologies. Also .to provide a forum, through which students can become involved in the international space community. It helps to motivate students to excel in space-related fields and to share in the advancing knowledge and growing benefits to be reaped from space. It aims to improve space-related education through both academic work and hands-on projects too. For further information, please contact UKSEDS by writing to c/o National Space Centre, Exploration Drive, LEICESTER, LE4 5NS, United Kingdom. You can also phone them on 07092 303 414 Space News...... Win a chance to train like an Astronaut!
The British National Space Centre has announced a new competition that is bound to attract alot of attention!
|
BNSC is offering one lucky winner the chance to train like an Astronaut at the International Space Academy in Huntsville, Alabama. The five day programme is jam packed with astronaut training for young people. Activities include
simulated Space Shuttle missions, IMAX® movies, training simulators (like the 1/6th Gravity Chair), rocket building and launches, scientific experiments and lectures on the past present and future of space exploration. To win a place all you have to do is answers a few and complete a tiebreak assignment by the closing date of 4th April 2003. To enter, just visit BNSC's web page. 
http://www.bnsc.gov.uk/
Other space news from SEDS....
Comet NEAT. This comet can be found passing just above constellation of Pisces heading in the direction of Capricorn. The comet is already magnitude 6.1 and that is just above the limit of human eye, so if you have a good eye and also know the stars, you should be able to find it. If you do not find it easy to spot, do not despair use binoculars. It is 0.9353AV (astronomical units) from Earth. (1AV = 92 955 807 miles; the average distance between the Earth and Sun.)
Comet Kudo-Fujikawa.
This comet can be found in Capricorn on a heading that will take it into the centre of the constellation. It is a magnitude 2.1 and is about 1.1374 AV from Earth. SEDS Fact File. What is Magnitude? Magnitude is the brightness of an object. For example, values for well-known objects are; Sun -26.7 (about 400 000 times brighter than full Moon!)
Full Moon -12.7, Venus (at brightest) -4.4, International Space Station -2, all can be seen by human eyes. Then, for objects from +7 to about +9, 10x50 binoculars should just about allow you to see them. Pluto, at +14, at the edge of our planetary system, takes a telescope, and at the extreme limits of aided sight +30, the limit of the Hubble Space Telescope. Unfortunately, British watchers will often be rewarded by unyielding banks of cloud and will long for trips to Hawaii.
Page
information thanks to SEDS and BNSC.
|
