FROM THE VICE-PRESIDENT
 
          This article is to announce my resignation as vice-president of NPMAS. I have taken a teaching position in Agusta, WI. This is a small community about 20 miles southeast of Eau Claire.
          This new position will allow me to involve more students in science projects and to be closer to my family in Chippewa Falls and Minnesota. This was not an easy decision but I feel it is in my best interest in the long term. I will provide my new email address when it becomes available and will be returning occasionally during the summer. I will also be rejoining the Chippewa Valley Astronomical Society and will be representing them at the various conventions and star parties (if they will let me).
          I have had a wonderful time in the Green Bay area and will miss the many friends I have made over the last five years. I will be keeping in contact and hope that you will also.

Gary Baier

EDITOR'S NOTE:
         Gary has made a substantial impact on our club and many of it's members. He has served
the vice-president's position well and kept us up to date each month with his talk on the space program.
         This month is a big one for Gary - not only is he changing jobs and moving, he also had a photograph published in the August issue of Astronomy magazine! On behalf of the NPMAS board of directors and the rest of the membership CONGRATULATIONS AND GOOD LUCK!!!
 

WHATS UP IN JULY

POW WITH NEWSTAR - July 9^th - 10^th
          Come join us at this month's Parmentier Observing Weekend, weather permitting. Our friends from the valley, NEWSTAR, will be joining us for this observing event. If you need directions or a map on how to get to Parmentier Observatory, contact Wayne Kuhn at 920-468-0765.

MONTHLY MEETING - July 14^th
          Please join us at the Neville Public Museum from 7:00 to 9:00 PM. This month's topic is "What were they thinking?" -the History and Mis-History of Science. Club member Jim Sentowski will be giving this talk, described as "A brief look at some of the more bizarre ideas of our forefathers". Happy Joe's to follow!

NPMAS BOARD MEETING - July 28^th
          President Katrina Dewitt has called for a board meeting this month. It will be held at 7:00 PM at the DeWitt residence - 1081 Raleigh Street. All board members are asked to attend. If you have any questions, please call Katrina at 920-405-8534.

NEWSTAR MONTHLY MEETING - July 16^th
     The Newstar monthly meeting will be at the UW Fox Valley Center. If you are interested in going please call Don DeWitt at 920-405-8534 for more details.
 

FROM THE TREASURER
By Don DeWitt
          This has been a challenging year for magazine renewals as some of you can attest to. Several members subscriptions did get interrupted this past year. As a result I am going to send this year's renewals in earlier.
          I will be collecting magazine renewals from now until September 15^th. Renewals will be sent in on September 16^th whether you have sent them to me or not. I will be giving each club member an "invoice" based on the magazines you ordered last year. On your invoice will be an option to "normalize" your subscription so it expires at the same time as the rest of the club members. We like to do this to cut down on the number of mid year renewals.

          Pricing this year is as follows:
               Astronomy Magazine - $29.00 for 12 issues
               Sky and Telescope Mag. - $29.95 for 12 issues
               Northern Lights Newsletter - $3.00 for 4 issues

          You may also pay your dues for the year 2000 at this time if you choose to. The rate is currently $15.00/year single and $25.00/year family.
          Please take this chance to reserve your copy of the various calendars and observing guides that we order yearly. I am not collecting money yet but want to start getting a count so when the time comes, I will have a good idea what to order.
               Astronomy Magazine 12 Month Calendar _____ qty.
               Space Weekly Calendar _____ qty.
               Royal Astronomical Society Observers Handbook _____ qty.

NEW MEMBER WELCOME MAT
          Once again we had two new members join the club this past month. First is Jason Johnson, 1414 Clark Street Apartment 2E, Manitowoc, WI 54220. Phone: 920-686-9456
          Jason, 24, has always had an interest in Astronomy and nature in general. Recently he came across the NPMAS web page while using an internet station at his local library. He attended our June meeting and decided to join. Jason wanted to attend the "Come to the Moon" observing party but was away on his honeymoon with his new wife, Jessica.
          Jason works for KI International in Manitowoc. He does not own a telescope but has his eye on the new Mead ETX 5".
          Our second new member is David Duquette, 720 North Broadway, DePere, WI 54115. Phone: 920-336-1624
          David, 50, teaches Philosophy at St. Norbert college. His interest in Astronomy started a few years ago when he purchased some books on the constellations. He currently owns a Celestron 3" Newtonian reflector which he purchased from Hobby Town, a hobby shop on Green Bay's West side.
          David learned about our club from a flyer he received from Hobby Town. He looks forward to learning how to use his telescope with help from other NPMAS members.
          Here are a few corrections to mistakes made on the bio of Jim and Dixie Tubbs who were in the New Member Welcome Matt in the May issue:
               Phone number: 920-494-4754
               E-mail address: jdtubbsgb@aol.com
          Dixie is from Sheridan, Wyoming (not Sheritol) - a beautiful city located at the foothills of the Bighorn Mountains not far from the Montana state line. Jim and Dixie met at Colorado State University in Ft. Collins, Colorado (not at Colorado College which is in Colorado Springs)
 
WELCOME JASON & DAVID!!!

A LOOK BACK AT JUNE

 JUNE MONTHLY MEETING
          Thirty two people were in attendance to see Ron Parmentier appoint a new member to the Parmentier Observatory staff. The lucky person was Tony Kroes, our resident CCD guru. Tony also provided this month's talk on CCD imaging.
          Congratulations Tony and good job!

 COME TO THE MOON PARTY REVIEW
     By Katrina DeWitt
          About fifteen club members ventured to the museum on the night of June 25^th for the first scheduled "Come to the Moon" Party. The sky was mostly clear and the temperature was comfortable. A great night for observing.
          Everyone was getting set up and anxious to get started. I passed out the observing forms and simplified Moon maps to everyone. Soon we were underway! Several locals stopped by; curious to see what was going on. Many were excited to look through the telescope. The highlight was Tony Kroes' TV set up. A lot of people lingered around for awhile watching the Moon on TV. We even had the local police stay for over an hour!
          As it grew darker, I heard lots of rustles from Moon maps and observing sheets. The best was when Ron Parmentier was trying to figure out the image of a "cow jumping over the Moon". I'm still not sure if he figured it out or not.
          As the so-called "Moon expert", I was busy helping others locate and verify the different features. I got reacquainted with the Moon as well. Everyone was busy well into the night observing and recording objects. Many were busy trying to identify the naked eye objects then moving on to the telescope ones.
          To prove that this award is one of the easiest to attain, we only need to look at Tony Kroes and Ron Parmentier. They watched the Moon on TV and focused in on the objects they needed to observe. There was Ron and Tony in their chairs, watching TV, recording their observations. By the end of the three-hour observing session, Ron had recorded 40 of the 100 objects needed.
          As the night drew to a close, I received several suggestions to have another "Come to the Moon" party scheduled. I think this would be a great addition to our regularly scheduled club activities if there were enough interest. Let me know what you think.
          When your done with your observations, turn them into Don DeWitt or myself and we will do what is necessary for you to receive your pin and certificate. If you haven't already started, get out there. The Moon is waiting for you!

 FROM THE MEMBERS

PERSONAL REFLECTIONS ON AN OBSERVING SESSION
     By Katrina DeWitt
          The seeing wasn't that good. Everything was getting dewed before the sun sank below the horizon. I was going to observe something that I had never given much thought to before.
          I don't mean looking at the object, then moving on to something new. I've done that too many times before. This time I really meant to observe it. I was serious enough that I had pencil and paper in hand to record everything that I could see.
         As it grew dark, I looked into the eyepiece. There before me was my target swimming in the soup. I knew I had just been issued a challenge. For the next twenty minutes, I played eyepiece hog with Don DeWitt's 18-inch telescope. The object's beauty mesmerized me. I began to wonder why I never took the time to observe this object before.
          I began to make my rough outline. Noting the various shadings, sizes, shapes, and what features jumped out like a sore thumb, the ones you had to patiently wait for. I was trying to accurately capture the image before me onto a piece of paper.
          For the first time, I observed Mars. I didn't have the slightest idea of what features I was seeing that night. But it left a lasting impression. While my observing session lasted all of twenty minutes, I felt a real sense of accomplishment and satisfaction. I stopped to take the time to really observe something. What's more, I forever captured that moment in a sketch.
          After I put the pencil and paper away, I took the time to just sit in the chair and look at the stars. Not looking at anything in particular. Rather, just taking it all in and enjoying what I was seeing. After awhile, I decided to call it a night. As I took one last glance at the sky, I realized then that I just had a perfect observing session.

CONSTELLATION OF THE MONTH - SAGITTARIUS

          Sagittarius was known by the Greeks as the archer, and later came to be identified as a centar- half man, half horse. But it is often referred to as "the tea pot" complete with "steam" (milky way) coming out of its spout.
          This is my favorite constellation. Located just above the southern horizon, it has many different kinds of objects from a couple galaxies to many globular clusters. Other treats include a planetary nebula at 10^th magnitude (NGC 6818), the Trifid nebula ( M20), and the Lagoon nebula (M8) with a nice open cluster near by just to name a few.
          There are 39 objects from magnitude 10.0 to magnitude 4.6 (open cluster NGC 6530). Thirteen of the objects are Messier objects - M25, M22, M23, M8, M21, M17, M20, M18, M28, M55, M69, M54 and M70. Nearly half of the 39 objects are globular clusters and surprisingly so most of those are NGC globulars.
          All you really have to do is point your telescope or binoculars in the area of "the tea pot", sit back and enjoy! Clear skies, Steve

NORTHWOODS STARFEST '99
From the CVAS web page

          We don't have all of the information for Northwoods Starfest '99 yet, but it will be similar to previous years. The dates for 1999 are August 13 - 15. Attendance is limited to 130 people Pre-registration is required this year ! ! !
          Join us at the 11th annual Northwoods Starfest, August 13-15, 1999, at Hobbs Observatory near Eau Claire, Wisconsin. Hobbs Observatory is part of the Beaver Creek Reserve (BCR). Recreational possibilities include the Eau Claire County Youth Camp, the Wise Nature Center, hiking trails, and bicycling.
          Hobbs Observatory has two domes, one with a 24-inch f/5 reflector and the other with a 14-inch Celestron. There is a large meeting area where talks and presentations take place. There is a large field in front of the observatory to set up for observing. The skies are nice and dark.
          CVAS has reserved the Youth Camp for Starfest use. The camp has five cabins and the Cedar Lodge. The cabins sleep 20; the lodge, up to 40. Cabins have bunk-style beds and mattresses. You will need to bring sleeping bags and pillows. Showers are available for all guests, but bring your own towels. Tenting and camper spaces are also available.
          If you want a swap fest, bring whatever astronomical goodies you want to get rid of. Also, if you have slides, a talk, or a video that you would like to show, bring them with you.
          Look around the CVAS web page for more information and a preliminary agenda for the weekend.  You can also learn more about the C.V.A.S. and Hobbs Observatory: http://www.cvastro.org/

PAPER SESSION
          An informal paper session is planned for Saturday afternoon. If you have something to share: slides, a video tape, a unique telescope, or anything else that people might enjoy, we encourage you to sign up.

REGISTRATION
          The registration fee is $30 per person until August 1st. It is $40 after that. The fee includes registration, meals and snacks, lodging or camping fees, and speakers' fees. If you plan to bring a camper, park in the field adjacent to the observatory. There are a few electrical outlets available outside the observatory for your use.
          Please let us know if you have any other special needs before Starfest and we'll do our best to meet them. For hotel/motel information for the area call the Eau Claire Visitors Bureau at (715)-831-2345.
          For more information, contact Hobbs Observatory at (715)-877-2787, Bert Moritz at (715)-835-4034, or Ray Forsgren at (715)839-0995. Please let us know in advance if you are coming to help us with meal planning.

 ASTROFEST '99

From the Chicago Astronomical Society web page

You are cordially invited to Astrofest 1999. The 20th annual Astrofest convention will be held at the 130 acre Camp Shaw-Waw-Nas-See 4-H camp near Kankakee Illinois from Sept. 17 - 19. Astrofest is a nationally recognized convention for observers and amateur telescope makers. The camp has a large field for observing and camping, a limited number of cabins, and a 250 seat dining hall. We offer, catered meals served in the dining hall, a magnificent flea market, and a great selection of commercial vendors.

REGISTRATION
          Your registration must be postmarked on or before 8-28-99. For more information and a registration form call Wayne Kuhn at 468-0765 or go to their website: http://www.chicagoastro.org/
          I will also be bringing several copies to the July meeting.