Membership Benefits

Members of the Big Sky Astronomical Society can borrow telescopes, astronomy books, astronomy videos, and astronomy software. They also enjoy an annual barbecue in August and have year-long access to a fine observatory located under a dark sky. There is even a special online file folder for members. This file folder has an assortment of videos and important documents, all of which can be downloaded. If you would like to become a member of the Big Sky Astronomical Society and enjoy the camaraderie of like-minded individuals at monthly gatherings, all you have to do is download the membership form, fill it out, and send it back to us along with your membership fee. We look forward to seeing you out at the observatory!



Star-B-Q

The annual Star-B-Q for members and invited friends takes place in August. Come enjoy a tasty delight and let's hope we have a clear night. The Star-B-Q is traditionally held on the Saturday that is closest to the peak of the annual Perseid meteor shower.




Telescope Loan Program

We have three telescopes in our collection that are available to members. You may borrow them for a month at a time. Use them in your own backyard, at your convenience.

The Celestron NextStar 80 SLT refractor has an aperture of 80 mm and a focal length of 900 mm. It is a "GoTo" telescope and comes with two eyepieces.

There is also a classic Celestron 8 telescope, which has a motor drive, but it's not a "GoTo" telescope. This rather large orange telescope has an aperture of 8 inches and is almost identical to the telescope currently installed in the observatory.

The third telescope in our collection is a Meade LX-50 and it also has an aperture of 8 inches. It used to be our Outreach Telescope and it served us well in that capacity for ten years. Just like the classic Celestron 8 telescope, the Meade LX-50 also has a motor drive, but it's not a "GoTo" telescope either. It does, however, come with the Magellan II Computer-Corrector, which makes it a bit easier to find those hard to locate celestial objects.

 

 



Online File Folder

The Online File Folder is only accessible to members after they login. The folder contains important documents, such as instruction manuals for our telescopes. It also includes magazine articles, star maps, fact sheets, and data tables. You will also find a collection of space and astronomy videos. Any member of the Big Sky Astronomical Society can add files to the Online File Folder by sending them via email.



SETI is an acronym for the Search for Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence. Its purpose is to analyze radio signals, searching for 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. Hence, the SETI@home project was launched in May 1999.

SETI@home is a volunteer computing project using Internet-connected computers. By downloading the software and connecting to the project, you too can help analyze radio signals and take part in the search. The Big Sky Astronomical Society joined the SETI@home project in May 2001. Since then a small number of our members and a few friends have joined our SETI@home Team, helping make us a Top 50 Team here in Canada. Currently, there are more than 1000 teams in Canada and we are ranked #46. The only astronomy club in Canada ranked higher 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 be on 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!