AAAA Members Earn
Observing Awards

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The Astronomical League provides a complete range of observing programs, from beginning amateur all the way to advanced observer. All members of the Astronomical League are eligible to participate in any of these observing programs, earn an official Certificate of Participation, and receive a beautiful lapel pin. The names and club affiliation of all certified observers will also be published in the AL’s newsletter, the REFLECTOR.

The Astronomical League provides the following programs free to its affiliated societies without restriction for distribution to their own members and to encourage participation in observational astronomy. The American Association of Amateur Astronomers has assembled six of them here in one packet as a convenience to its members and other interested observers. These programs can also be downloaded individually at no charge from the AAAA web page in Adobe PDF format: www.corvus.com/aa01006.htm

• Binocular Messier Club—50 of the best Messier objects for binoculars.
• Deep Sky Binocular Club—60 additional deep sky objects for binoculars.
• Southern Skies Binocular Club—50 of the finest objects in the Southern Hemisphere.
• Double Star Club—100 of the finest double & multiple stars in the heavens.
• Lunar Club—100 features on the moon for naked eye, binoculars, and telescope.
• Urban Club —observe 100 objects in heavily light-polluted areas.
• Arp Peculiar Galaxy Club—CCD image or observe 100 Arp galaxies.
• Planetary Club—27 selected projects to introduce the pleasures of planetary observing.

You must be a member of the Astronomical League, either through membership in an affiliated astronomical society or as a Member-at-Large, to receive certification for AL Observing Programs. As a member of the Astronomical League through the American Association of Amateur Astronomers, not only are you eligible to earn any of these observing awards, but you will also get your own subscription to the Astronomical League's newsletter, the REFLECTOR, as well as our own quarterly newsletter, The American Astronomer.

Manuals and Guides for the following programs are available for purchase from the Astronomical League through Astronomical League Sales, PO Box 572, West Burlington, IA 52655, or through the AL Sales Online Store, www.astronomicalleague.com.

• Messier Club—70 object and 110 object levels for the telescope.
• Herschel 400 Club— 400 deep sky objects for the telescope.
• Herschel II Club— 400 more challenge deep-sky objects for the telescope.
• Meteor Club—observe a series of meteor showers, and record your observations for ALPO.
• Sunspotters Club—observe and study sunspots and their cycles.
• Asteroid Club—learn to identify and observe asteroids and minor planets.
• Universe Sampler—a journey through the universe for the beginner.

Please feel free to photocopy any of the programs in this packet and distribute them to other interested observers. However, to receive certification, you must be a member of the Astronomical League through one of its member societies. Photocopy the observing form we have included as many times as you need to, use it to record your observations, and file it in an observing notebook. Upon completion of each program, submit a request through your club officers to obtain certification.

Send requests for information about all AL observing programs to: 

Scott Kranz, 
Al Observing Coordinator, 
106 N. Darrowby Drive, 
Raymore, MO 64073-9181. 
E-mail: skranz@worldnet.att.net. 
Phone: (816) 331-5796. 

The Astronomical League web page is www.astroleague.org.

AAAA members: Submit a copy of your observations and request for certification to: 

AAAA Observing Coordinator, 
P.O. Box 7981, 
Dallas, TX 75209-0981 
E-mail: aaaa@AstroMax.com. 

Be sure to send COPIES only. Do NOT send original photographs or observing logs.

If you are a newcomer to the hobby of astronomy, and have questions about equipment, eyepieces, telescopes, or astronomy in general, let us know and we will try to answer your questions, or find someone who does know. Send or e-mail your questions to Newbie News, AAAA, P.O. Box 7981, Dallas, TX 75209-0981, or send your e-mail to aaaa@corvus.com.

If your sleep patterns, complexion, and aversion to white light
have your co-workers convinced that you're a vampire ...
You MIGHT be an Amateur Astronomer!