Membership Benefits

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Members of the Big Sky Astronomical Society can borrow telescopes, astronomy books, astronomy videos, and even astronomy software. They also enjoy an annual barbecue and can gain access to a fine observatory located under a dark sky. There is even a special Members Only section of this website that has an assortment of videos and eBooks. In addition, this online Members Only area also contains some important documents, such as instruction manuals for our telescopes, magazine articles, star maps, fact sheets, and data tables.

Membership Application

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​If you would like to become a member of the Big Sky Astronomical Society all you have to do is download the membership application form, fill it out, and send it back to us with your membership fee.

Annual Star-B-Q

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The annual Star-B-Q for members and invited guests is held in late summer. We always enjoy some tasty delights and often have a clear and wonderful night.

​SETI@home

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The SETI@home Project stopped sending out new work to users on March 31, 2020.

SETI is an acronym for the Search for Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence. The search is conducted by carefully analyzing radio signals from deep space in order to determine if they show any signs of extra terrestrial intelligence. The radio telescopes that are used to collect the radio signals gather so much data that the researchers need help analyzing it all and so the SETI@home project was launched on May 17, 1999.

SETI@home is a distributed computing effort involving volunteers from around the world. By downloading the software and connecting to the project, you can help analyze radio signals and take part in the search. The Big Sky Astronomical Society joined the SETI@home project in 1999. Since then a small number of our members and a few friends have joined our SETI@home Team, helping to make us a Top 40 team here in Canada. Currently, there are more than 1250 teams in Canada and we are ranked #34. The only astronomy club in Canada with a higher ranking is the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada.

Please join our SETI@home Team. You do not have to be a member of the Big Sky Astronomical Society in order to join our team. To participate in SETI@home you will need to download, install, and run the BOINC software. You will then have to connect to the SETI@home project. Upon completing these tasks, the final step is to join our team. We look forward to having you on our team!

The SETI@home Project stopped sending out new work to users on March 31, 2020.

​Charitable Registration Number: 86997 9021 RR0001