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Lick Observatory Volunteer Orientation Packet

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Lick Observatory Volunteer Orientation Packet Lick Observatory Volunteer Orientation Packet Elinor Gates with contributions from Lotus Baker, Ron Bricmont, Paul Lynam, Patricia Madison, Rem Stone, John Wareham, and Lick Observatory Volunteers May 15, 2018 Contents 1 When to Arrive 2 2 Evening Schedules 3 2.1 ScheduleofTelescopeObjects . ... 3 2.2 EveningwiththeStarsNights . 4 2.3 MusicoftheSpheresNights . 5 3 Nightly Assignments 5 4 Telescope Traffic Flow 7 4.1 36”Refractor ................................... 7 4.2 40”Reflector ................................... 9 4.3 Other ....................................... 10 5 Observatory and Telescope Facts 10 5.1 General ...................................... 10 5.2 36”Refractor ................................... 11 5.3 40”Reflector ................................... 12 5.4 OtherSourcesofInformation . 13 6 Frequently Asked Questions 13 7 How Do Telescopes Work? 14 8 What’s New at Lick Observatory? 14 9 Interacting with the Public 16 1 10 Safety and Emergencies 19 10.1General ...................................... 19 10.2911Emergencies ................................. 19 10.3LaserPointers................................... 20 11 Fundraisers 20 11.1 VisitorCenterServices . 20 12 Volunteer Orientation and Appreciation Nights 20 13 Other Volunteer Opportunities at Lick Observatory 21 13.1 ExpandedVisitorServices . 21 13.2 HistoricalCollections . 21 13.3Other ....................................... 21 1 When to Arrive It takes one hour to drive to Lick Observatory from downtown San Jose without traffic problems, please plan accordingly. Table 1 lists the arrival times for the summer 2018 programs (1 hour before doors open to the public, 2 hours before the programs begin). The volunteer group organizational meeting will be 1/2 hour before the doors open. More information is available at http://www.hallsvalley.org/lickvolunteers/. Table 1: Arrival Times for 2018 Date Program Arrival Time Doors Open Saturday June 2 Orientation Night 6:00pm N/A Friday June 8 EwS 6:30pm 7:30pm Saturday June 9 MoS 6:30pm 7:30pm Friday June 22 EwS 6:30pm 7:30pm Saturday June 23 MoS 6:30pm 7:30pm Friday July 6 EwS 6:30pm 7:30pm Saturday July 7 MoS 6:30pm 7:30pm Friday July 20 EwS 6:30pm 7:30pm Saturday July 21 MoS 6:30pm 7:30pm Friday August 3 EwS 6:30pm 7:30pm Saturday August 4 MoS 6:30pm 7:30pm Friday August 17 EwS 6:00pm 7:00pm Saturday August 18 MoS 6:00pm 7:00pm Saturday September 15 Appreciation Night 7:00pm 5:00pm for tour EwS = Evening with the Stars MoS = Music of the Spheres Please note that all events are rain or shine! We need your help even if it is foggy or raining. Plan to bring a red flashlight and warm clothing with you. 2 If for some reason you are unable to arrive at the Observatory on time and it is after Noon on the event day, please contact the Lick Gift Shop (408-274-5061) letting them know your expected arrival time. If you must cancel but can give more notice, please contact [email protected] and the volunteer coordinator Patricia Madison ([email protected]). Box meals for volunteers will be available. Go to http://www.hallsvalley.org/lickvolunteers/ and click on Box Meal Ordering to select your meal(s). Parking is very limited at the Observatory, so car pool as much as possible. Please park in the small lot near the maintenance shop. Outside volunteers with telescopes may park behind the Main Building where the telescopes will be. Refer to http://www.hallsvalley.org/lickvolunteers/ and scroll down to Volunteer Parking for details. All volunteers must fill out a volunteer form so they are covered by the University of California workman’s compensation in case of injury, etc. Typically the form will be dated such that you are covered for your volunteer activities for the full year (June to May), so that you need to fill it out only once per year. If you did not fill out a volunteer form during the Volunteer Orientation Night, you will have to fill one out when you arrive at Lick on the first night you volunteer. Remember, we want you to enjoy the events and being a volunteer, but don’t forget that the primary purpose is to enhance the experience of the public attending these events. If you wish to bring a guest with you, it must be approved by the Volunteer Coordinator, Patricia Madison ([email protected]), or her designee, in advance. Very limited spots are available during the summer for guests and we have many volunteers. In addition, do not let your guests distract you from your primary purpose of providing the best possible experience for the public. Guests may be asked to help volunteer for some of the night’s program (and also fill out the volunteer form and wear a guest badge for the evening). They will need to provide their own food/dinner and if they are not driving up with you, they should park near the school. On concert nights, there will be no unpaid guests. Guests should be over 8 years of age and must be coming up with a working volunteer. 2 Evening Schedules We’ve created a short description of what happens during the concerts (Music of the Spheres) and viewing program nights (Evening with the Stars). Many of you will already be familiar with this, but we hope it will be a good review and guide for the new volunteers. Things may not go exactly as planned, so flexibility in dealing with unexpected problems, changes in schedules, bad weather, etc. is expected. 2.1 Schedule of Telescope Objects Table 2 lists the planned schedule of objects to be viewed through the 40” Nickel Reflector this summer. Specific targets for the 36” are not going to be selected this year due to the elevating floor not being in a safe operable state, which makes pointing the telescope and viewing through it more challenging. 36” objects will generally be globular clusters and binary stars, as viewing conditions permit. It is helpful if you look up some information on 3 the object or type of object in advance so you can be better informed when speaking with the public. There is always a chance that weather conditions or mechanical problems will require looking at brighter or different objects. Also, if targets of opportunity appear, such as comets, then the program object may change. Table 2: 2018 Objects Date 40” Reflector Jun 8/9 Jupiter Jun 22/23 Jupiter Jul 6/7 NGC 6210 Turtle Nebula Jul 20/21 Saturn Aug3/4 Saturn Aug 17/18 NGC 6563 Cat’s Eye Nebula 2.2 Evening with the Stars Nights The typical Evening with the Stars (EwS) night starts with the volunteers and Observatory staff signing in and eating dinner together at the Main Building/Visitor Center, followed by the volunteer organizing meeting to discuss the jobs and schedule for the evening. The meeting will start promptly a half hour before the doors open to the public in either the courtyard or lecture hall, depending on weather. When the public arrives, we collect their tickets and hand out programs, numbered telescope passes for observing at the 36” Refractor and the 40” Reflector, and a voucher for a tote bag souvenir. Both telescope domes are open so visitors can get a good daylight view of the telescopes and take pictures before the programs begin. The evening’s program begins with lectures; a science lecture in the lecture hall and a history lecture in the 36” dome. After the history lecture the chairs are moved out of the 36” dome and stacked on the dolly in the hallway. The 36” telescope is then set up for public observing. Observing begins through both the 36” and 40” telescopes. Groups of 10 are taken through the 36” dome and groups of 10 or fewer through the 40” control room (if in use) and dome. As a general rule, it will take about a minute per person to look through the telescope. However, it may take longer per person at the 36” due to using the tall ladder to access the eyepiece. While observing is going on, both the science and history lectures are repeated in the lecture hall. This keeps everyone busy while waiting for their chance to look through the telescopes. The telescopes will stay open until everyone has had a chance to look through them. During the entire evening, volunteers have telescopes set up outside for public viewing. After the public viewing and lectures are completed, we expect the volunteers to assist in putting the chairs away and any other tasks that need to be done after the public leaves, such as cleaning up the refreshment table area, taking out the trash, etc. Once everything 4 is packed up and all the tasks are done, the volunteers will be treated to an extra object (weather permitting) through either the 36” Refractor or 40” Reflector. Please remember to sign out and return your name badge at the end of the evening. 2.3 Music of the Spheres Nights The typical Music of the Spheres (MoS) concert night starts with the volunteers and Observatory staff signing in and eating dinner together at the Main Building/Visitor Center, followed by the volunteer organizing meeting to discuss the jobs and schedule for the evening. The meeting will start promptly a half hour before the doors open to the public in either the courtyard or lecture hall, depending on weather. After the main doors to the building open, we collect the visitors’ tickets, hand out programs, give out numbered passes for nighttime viewing through the 36” Refractor and 40” Reflector, and a voucher for a souvenir mug or wine glass. The 36” Refractor and 40” Reflector domes will be open for daytime views of the telescope before the concert begins.
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