Astronomy at DeMiguel School
"Men who have worked together to reach
the stars, are not likely
to descend together into the depths of war and desolation."
Senator Lyndon B. Johnson, 1958
Join the NASA Kids' Club!
Calendar of Events - Watch this site for news of upcoming astronomy events!
Star Parties
Star Parties begin at about sunset, weather permitting. Join us for some exciting star gazing at Walker Observatory at DeMiguel School! Warm beverages will be served in the commons. Dress warmly!
Friday, May 30, 2008 - Join us at 8:15 p.m.
Stay tuned for upcoming Summer Star Party dates and times!
In the News
Learn about the Cassini-Huygens Mission to Saturn and Titan at http://saturn.jpl.nasa.gov/home/index.cfm
Did you know that scientists in Arizona are leading two major missions to Mars?
NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission for NASA's Office of Space Science, Washington, D.C. The Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State University, Tempe, in coordination with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote Sensing.
The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen at Arizona State University. Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, is the prime contractor for the Odyssey project, and developed and built the orbiter. Mission operations are conducted jointly from Lockheed Martin and from JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena.
All of the THEMIS images are archived here: http://themis.asu.edu/latest.html
The University of Arizona is honored to be the first public university to lead a mission to Mars. The Phoenix Mars Mission, launched in August 2007, is the first in NASA's "Scout Program." Scouts are designed to be highly innovative and relatively low-cost complements to major missions being planned as part of the agency's Mars Exploration Program.
Read about the Phoenix Mars Lander mission at http://phoenix.lpl.arizona.edu/
For information about visiting Walker Observatory, contact Mary Lara at DeMiguel School, via email.
Photos of Site Preparation for Walker Observatory, February/March 2000
Photos of Building the Walker Observatory, March/April 2000
Steps to the Stars, May/June 2000
The Crew at Work, Summer 2000
The Pieces Come Together, August 10, 2000
The Stars Come to Us, February, 2002
A Very
Special Acknowledgement
The success of the
Walker Observatory at DeMiguel School can be directly attributed
to one person: Teacher Mary Lara.
From start to finish, Ms. Lara has made all of the arrangements,
directed all of the volunteers, supervised and encouraged
everyone who has had a hand in making the observatory a reality.
This has been no small task. Her expertise in the area
of space science has brought a rich learning environment to our
school site and for that, we thank her most heartily.
Mary is a Solar System Educator. The Solar System Educator program is sponsored by the Jet Propulsion Lab. Mary is the only such educator in Arizona. They are trained by JPL scientists and outreach personnel on current and future JPL missions. Their charge is to train 100 educators each year. If anyone is interested in an inservice to become part of this program, or to learn more about space-related teaching, contact Mary Lara at DeMiguel School.
Kenneth Walker
Observatory Kenneth Walker, an educator and amateur astronomer, constructed an observatory housing a 16 inch reflecting telescope in Holbrook, AZ. Sometime in November he learned that he had a deadly illness and set out to donate the telescope to an observatory in Arizona. While the telescope is of excellent quality, it does not meet the requirements of institutions such as Kitt Peak or Lowell Observatory. His granddaughter, Kara Lee, an art teacher at Coconino High School, talked about this with a few teachers at Coconino. These people suggested that she should contact Ms. Lara at DeMiguel since she sponsors the Astronomy Club at the school. Ms. Lara was very excited about receiving the telescope if it could be brought to DeMiguel. Ms. Lara spoke to the Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum and Instruction, Dr. Lee Hager. He was also excited about the telescope at DeMiguel. Ms. Lara, Russ Randall, a teacher at Coconino High School, Joe Hobart, engineer at the Naval Observatory, and Mike Winters, President of the NAU Astronomy Club drove down to Holbrook to look at the telescope. They concluded that it was in good shape and should be easy to use. Efforts to open Walker Observatory at DeMiguel are continuing. Many DeMiguel site council members and students are excited about this project! |
The Walker Observatory would not
exist at DeMiguel School without the talents and support of some
amazing
people and local businesses. These people have donated time,
money, expertise, and/or materials.
We would like to offer our deepest thanks for all of the
following community support:
•Riggs Construction |
•Duane Witt •Walt Multer •Kevin Moriarty, Eagle Scout •Arizona Public Service •John Bolton, University Mobil •Freddi Sandor, Century 21 •Elks Club •Kenneth Palmer •Babbitt Ford •Mountain View Pediatrics From DeMiguel School: From FUSD: |
Building the Walker Observatory
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Note: By clicking on some of the above links, you will be leaving the DeMiguel web site and the district server. The Flagstaff Unified School District has no responsibility for the content beyond this point. The Internet is a dynamic and volatile place where pages can change suddenly and rapidly. It is not unusual to find information or images that are objectionable. Proceed at your own risk.
