#StopSOPA #PIPA #SOPA
The Fight’s Not Over – Stay Involved!
January 20th, 2012 by Tavi GreinerBuy the stars and share the sky!
November 28th, 2011 by Tavi Greiner
Now, when you buy the night sky for yourself, you can help to share it with others across the world!
Through December 8, the folks at Southern Skies are donating 40% of all proceeds from sales of their Sky Safari 3 astronomy app to Astronomers Without Borders. Available in three versions for both Apple and Mac devices, Sky Safari 3 is a pocket-sized planetarium, powerful enough to replace your desktop astronomy software. And with current sale prices ranging from just $0.99 to $29.99 – that’s 20% to 67% off regular prices! – it’s also a very affordable app!
I recently purchased the standard version of Sky Safari 3 and can tell you that the app is very easy to use, has an extensive database, includes hundreds of beautiful images, and is especially handy for my real-time, local sky. A fellow sky enthusiast, Frank Piscitelli, tells me that the app is amazing and he prefers it to others that he has used.
So, go check it out. You’ll be supporting astronomy across the globe, while getting a fantastic astronomy app at a super-low price!
On Hiatus
November 21st, 2011 by Tavi GreinerA Sky Full of Stars will be on a brief hiatus as Rob and I – along with several colleagues – work to develop the Astronomy.FM website. We’ll be back as soon as possible!
We’re counting stars, again!
October 12th, 2011 by Tavi GreinerA fun citizen science opportunity returns this week with the Great World Wide Star Count, an annual endeavor that encourages everyone to look up and count the stars! Now in it’s fifth year, this international event has recorded night sky observations from thousands of individuals in dozens of countries on all but the two pole continents. Most importantly, all that counting has prompted more family nights under the stars and raised a greater awareness about the many ills of light pollution.
Participating in this Windows to the Universe / UCAR project is literally as simple as counting stars on any night from October 14 through October 28. The star count website includes step-by-step instructions and a user-friendly reporting form, as well as a printable activity guide available in fifteen languages. You can also encourage others to participate by posting to Facebook or Google+ or by tweeting your own observations with hashtags like #StarCount2011 and #citizenscience.
Fun Fact: The Great World Wide Star Count is funded by a grant from the National Science Foundation.
Explore the ISS from home!
October 6th, 2011 by Tavi GreinerWanna have a little fun with the International Space Station? Check out ISS Live!, a new interactive NASA website that includes crew and science timelines, console displays, lesson plans for educators, and 3-D models that let you explore the world’s only manned orbiting laboratory, inside and out. It’s the kind of fun that can keep your attention for hours, and there are even plans for smartphone apps!
Want more? Catch the latest station news, connect to live video and audio feeds, and follow the station’s orbit, all from NASA’s ISS homepage. And if that isn’t enough, you can follow the astronauts themselves as they post updates and share images through Twitter and Facebook.
Though the shuttle program has ended, work at the space station continues on – and NASA continues to develop fun ways to include us all!
Tweet for Literacy!
September 28th, 2011 by Tavi GreinerTwitter users unite to #RTforLiteracy! Through September 30, Random House will donate up to $30,000, for the collective re-tweets of this message, to Room to Read’s Africa and Asia literacy programs. Every RT is worth $1.00, so start tweeting today, to help others begin reading tomorrow!
Kudos to Random House - $15,000 has already been raised!
