West Jersey Astronomical Society  www.wasociety.us

Welcome to the Official Home Page of the West Jersey Astronomical Society (formerly known as the Willingboro Astronomical Society). Our club is in its 50th year of serving both the public and the amateur astronomers of the Delaware Valley. We have a long history of public education, star parties, interesting meetings, in-depth training and experienced leadership. We are a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization. Click here for membership information (dues can now be paid through PayPal).

 

President:

Vice President:

Secretary:

Treasurer:

 Roger Cowley

Jim Fusco

Bernie Kosher

Wade Evans

      

Announcements   Last Update: Wednesday, June 28, 2017

July 3 Earth is at aphelion, 4:11 pm EDT, its greatest distance from the sun for the year, 94,505,895 miles.
July 7 Formal Meeting, 7:30 pm at the Virtua Health and Wellness Center in Moorestown, NJ. As always, guests are welcome and no astronomical experience is necessary. Use the Main Entrance and check with the security guard who will direct you to the conference room.
July 9 Full Moon at 12:07 am EDT in Sagittarius.
July 21 Informal Meeting, 7:30 pm at the Virtua Health and Wellness Center in Moorestown, NJ.
July 22 WAS Picnic, for members and their guests only, at Camp Ockanickon in Medford, NJ. Details to follow.
July 23 New Moon at 5:46 am EDT in Cancer.
July 29 Public Star Watch at Batsto. Check back on the day of the event for the go/no-go weather call.

Photo Spotlight   Image posted 6.19.2017

Here's a nice wide-field image showing the Lagoon Nebula, Messier 8, at the lower left, the Trifid Nebula, Messier 20, toward the upper right, and Messier 21, an open cluster at the upper right edge. All of these objects are in the constellation Sagittarius, and about six months from now, the sun will pass between M8 and M20 (closer to M20) a day after the Winter Solstice. This image was captured by club member Jerry Williams on June 10, 2017, from Hainesport, NJ. It was exposed 45 minutes (30 x 90-second subs) with a Takahashi 106 mm apo refractor on a Takahashi EM-200 German equatorial mount (tracking, but not guided). It was processed with PixInsight and Photoshop.

 

Click here for the previous home page image.

 

Note: Club President, Roger Cowley, has published a new book, Gauging the Solar System: Measuring Astronomical Values for Yourself. Have fun and do more than just snap pictures of the sky! Available at Amazon too.

Click to contact the . Members are encouraged to submit their astronomical images to the webmaster for inclusion on the WAS Home Page. Be sure to include a description, date and time, as well as equipment and photo data.

USNO Solar System Object Apparent Disc