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Programs Offered -

an Educational Recreational Vacation

Astronomical Adventures offers a unique experience, designed to give you an educational recreational vacation.

During the day you'll climb a volcano, study tectonics at an active volcanic field, walk on lava flows at Sunset Crater, discuss more geologic history than is visible anywhere else on Earth at the Grand Canyon, explore Oak Creek Canyon and the Red Rock Country of Sedona, and tour the best preserved large meteorite impact crater on Earth at Meteor Crater, following in the footsteps of the Apollo astronauts as they prepared for their lunar missions. You'll visit Lowell Observatory and view the famous 24" Clark refractor used by Lowell for his historic views of Mars. The selected destinations represent the majority of geologic processes, structures and rock types found on Earth and the rest of the terrestrial planets, as well as being the most visited for their pure beauty and grandeur.

Additional day activities can include solar viewing in both white light and hydrogen-alpha, and visits to the Museum of Astrogeology, Astronaut Hall of Fame, the US Geological Survey's center for Astrogeology, and the Museum of Northern Arizona, which offers an interesting geology and fossil display in addition to an extensive Native American Indian display. Time for shopping and just plain relaxin' will fill the rest of your time.

At night with over 300 clear nights a year on average, you will have ample opportunity to enjoy a naked eye sky with the Zodiacal Light stretching 90 degrees, the Gegenschein visible all night, a splendidly detailed Milky Way spanning the sky, and more stars than you can shake a stick at as meteors punctuate your thoughts. You will use our 36", 30", 14.5", 13.1" reflecting telescopes, 4" solar and planetary telescopes, 7x35, 10x50 and 16x80 binoculars to locate and behold breathtaking views of deep sky objects. Stare at spiral arms in galaxies, color in nebulae, central stars in planetary nebulae, galaxies hundreds of millions of light years away, clusters and nebulae in other galaxies, and much more. Use our reference library to pre-plan your observing sessions and to research objects under study. In the end, you will have viewed virtually every observable type of object in space, from the spectacular "showcase" wonders, to the dim denizens of deep space.

5-Day Programs

We offer four slightly different five-day programs, based on the phase of the Moon.

~ New Moon Sessions are tailored for the deep sky enthusiast with the stamina to stay up all night. Wake-up is some time after the "crack of noon", resulting in shortened day activities.

~ First Quarter Moon Sessions emphasize astrogeology and at least two late night sessions of deep sky viewing after moonset. These sessions will also be scheduled for educators with the objective of using the experiences of the week to examine innovative hands-on approaches to science education in the classroom. Wake-up is somewhat earlier and day activities more extensive.

~ Full Moon Sessions concentrate on astrogeology, with early wake-up and the most extensive day activities. Hikes into the Grand Canyon, camping, and expeditions to additional destinations may also be possible, depending on customer preferences. These sessions include telescopic observations of the moon, planets, and other bright objects. Some deep sky viewing will also be conducted.

~ Third Quarter Moon Sessions will be the ideal program for families and for those that do not wish to stay up all night (see below for additional information on youth participation). Deep sky viewing will be conducted until moonrise and day activities will be extensive with a morning start.

Weekend Programs

For those with a limited amount of time, weekend sessions are available. These sessions consists of stargazing Friday and Saturdays nights and day tours Saturday and Sunday.

Youth Participation

While I was teaching introductory astronomy and physics in college I had students tell me that they did not have a "scientific mind". After some thought I determined that one of two explanations existed for this deficiency. (1) There are some brains, due to genetics, that are physically incapable of thinking scientifically. If this is the case, perhaps a blood test of some type could be administered at some point in the child's life and used to divert them from taking science courses. This would save both the student and the teacher considerable grief. (2) Science is an acquired critical thinking skill that the schools, for a variety of reasons, are failing to instill prior to graduation in a large number of cases.

I do not believe explanation number one for a second. I think a major reason behind number two is that science curricula are laid out around quantified objectives that are testable. These objectives are "rote" intensive, which by definition means: without thought of the meaning. The courses end up teaching the current state of our knowledge of science, which is merely a modern history course, and should not be confused or substituted for science. I firmly believe that science is about the study of questions and the methodology of pursuing answers, rather than being just about answers. A broad foundation of basic currently supported facts aids in providing an essential reference for further progress but is often used as an instructional end point rather than as a context. To adhere to a strict regimen of "answers before questions", intending to introduce methods of scientific thought later, misleads a number of students into thinking that science can be learned by memorizing the glossary. A disturbing number of students bring this attitude and deficiency to college.

Having said the above, I have seen directly, both personally and professionally, the profound impact that an experience as is available at Astronomical Adventures can have in influencing a young person's perception and interest in science, and in choosing a direction early in life. [In addition to students without "scientific minds", I have also met an alarming number of general education majors that had absolutely no idea what they wanted to do "when they grew up". This is particularly disturbing in light of the increasingly technical and educationally sophisticated society we live in, and the current and long-range employment trends.]

All of our programs are open to youths; however, in light of staffing limitations, I am strictly unable to accept unaccompanied youths, or those with severe physical or medical handicaps. I also reserve the right to dismiss anyone (including adults) who are being disruptive or unruly, Drugs and alcohol will not be tolerated.