Von Braun Astronomical Society facts for kids
34°44′58.736″N 86°30′44.662″W / 34.74964889°N 86.51240611°W The Von Braun Astronomical Society (VBAS) is a group of people who love space and stars. They are based in Huntsville, Alabama, USA. Some members are professional astronomers, and others are just very interested in space as a hobby.
VBAS works to teach everyone about astronomy. They also want to get young people excited about space. They even have a special award called the Ann Sanford Award for young people. A student also gets to be on their board of directors!
You can find their observatory and planetarium in Monte Sano State Park, which is east of Huntsville.
Contents
History of VBAS
How the Society Started
The Von Braun Astronomical Society was first called the Rocket City Astronomical Association. It was started by a famous rocket scientist named Wernher von Braun. He and other rocket scientists came to the US from Germany after World War II.
Helping with Moon Landings
The VBAS facility played a big part in the Apollo program that landed humans on the Moon. Wernher von Braun and his team used a powerful telescope there. This telescope was in the Swanson Observatory. They used it to look for good places for the Apollo astronauts to land on the Moon.
VBAS Facilities
The Von Braun Astronomical Society has several cool facilities. These include a planetarium and different observatories. Each one helps people learn about and explore space.
The Planetarium
The VBAS planetarium has a large dome that is 33 feet wide. Inside, a special projector called a Spitz A3P shows images of stars and planets. About 80 visitors can sit inside and watch the shows.
Here's a fun fact about the dome: It was once part of a model for a fuel tank! This model was used to help build the huge Saturn V rocket. The company North American Aviation gave it to VBAS in the mid-1960s.
Swanson Observatory
The Swanson Observatory is the oldest building at the VBAS site. It has a 21-inch Cassegrain-Newtonian telescope. This telescope was very important for the Apollo Moon missions.
In 2009, the observatory was updated. Now it can do electronic observations and video recordings. The dome's opening was also fixed and made wider in the 1990s. Parts from a Sky Lab engineering model were used for this repair. The observatory is named after Conrad Swanson.
Angele Observatory
The Angele Observatory is named after Wilhelm Angele. He was another member of von Braun's rocket team. This observatory has a roof that can roll off. Inside, there is a 16-inch Celestron Schmidt-Cassegrain Telescope.
This telescope was one of two special telescopes ordered by NASA. They were used to help find possible landing spots on the Moon.
Stuhlinger Solar Telescope
VBAS also has the Stuhlinger Solar Telescope. It was finished around 1994. This telescope has a 12-inch main mirror. It also has a smaller 4.75-inch mirror that reflects sunlight.
It projects a large 24-inch image of the Sun onto a whiteboard. You can see this image in the Angele foyer. This telescope was a special project of Dr. Ernst Stuhlinger. He was also a member of the Von Braun team.
See also
- List of astronomical societies
