Astronomy Adventures and Vacations: How to Get the Most Out of Astronomy in Your Leisure Time [Paperback]

This astronomy travel guide examines the many wonderful opportunities for experiencing the observing hobby. Amateur astronomy is often consigned to observing from home or from a local park, yet it can be much more. Tim Treadwell explores all the possibilities of astronomical and space-related activities that are available on day trips and longer vacations. These activities range from observatory visits and other simple ways to build an astronomy event into a holiday, to full blown specialized astronomy travel.

Many trips give the opportunity to visit some of the worlds famous attractions. On most vacations it can be a matter of just taking a day (or night) out of your schedule to fit in an astronomy event, but larger, dedicated pilgrimages are also possible. How to make the most of astronomy potential on a holiday, whether observing on the beach in Hawaii with the Telescope Guy or visiting Star City in Russia, is covered in detail. Go to a star party, explore the national parksor see the northern lights! There are a wide variety of activities for all budgets described in this book.

Part I Astronomy.- Chapter 1 Telescope Shops & Astronomy Shows.- Chapter 2 Planetaria & Science Museums.- Chapter 3 In Search of Dark Skies.- Chapter 4 Star Parties.- Chapter 5 Astronomy in the National Parks.- Chapter 6 Hawaii.- Chapter 7 The Northern Lights.- Chapter 8 Southern Skies.- Chapter 9 Eclipses & Other Time Specific Events.- Chapter 10 Observing Other Astronomically Related Phenomena.- Chapter 11 Enhancing Your Observing Experience.- Part II Space.- Chapter 12 NASA Visitor Centers & Other U.S. Space Sites.- Chapter 13 Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center Star City.- Chapter 14 Meet an Astronaut.- Chapter 15 Cosmic Adventures.- Appendix: Useful Books and Websites.- Index.