We are no longer selling tickets to the 2012 Star Party! If you want to be put on the waiting list, email us at atlstarparty@gmail.com and we’ll try to help! Also, you can follow the fun online with our live stream! (Link will be live on Thursday night.)
Can’t attend but still want to contribute? Donate here!
About:
We are proud to present our fourth annual Charity Star Party a Star Party in memory of Jeff Medkeff. Astronomers Phil Plait and Nicole Gugliucci will be hosting the event with musical guests George Hrab and Marian Call! Proceeds to go to Light the Night – the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.
When: Thursday, August 30, 2012, 7:00 p.m.
Where: STATS Restaurant and Bar, 300 Marietta Street NW, Atlanta, GA 30313
Dress: Cocktail attire
Cost: $60 (plus $2 handling fee) – Includes stargazing, lecture, music, food and soft drinks. There will be a full cash bar available.
Can’t attend but still want to contribute? Donate here!
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RSVP on the Star Party 2012 Event Page and see who else is going!
Transportation: Please visit the Transportation/Parking page for detailed directions by car and public transportation:
Food: We’ll be serving heavy appetizers. Check back here for the menu once it’s confirmed!
Please join the Atlanta Skeptics and Foundation Beyond Belief on Thursday, August 30, 2012 for stargazing, food, music and conversations with astronomers. We are once again hosting a star party to celebrate the beauty of the universe around us while raising money for a great cause.
Who: Astronomers Phil Plait and Nicole Gugliucci will be hosting the event. Musician guests George Hrab and Marian Call will be performing as well!
This event is in honor of Jeff Medkeff, the Blue Collar Scientist, astronomer, skeptic and friend to many of us. Jeff succumbed to liver cancer in 2008. All proceeds will go toward the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society in Jeff’s name.
More information:
Jeff Medkeff, also known as the Blue Collar Scientist was an astronomer, writer, skeptic and friend to many of us. In the late 1990′s, he began working in the field of astronomical technology as a systems engineer and software developer. He was also an asteroid hunter. As a result of his work he discovered or co-discovered hundreds of asteroids and named several asteroids after famous skeptics, including Derek and Swoopy of Skepticality and Rebecca Watson of Skepchick. There is also an asteroid 41450 Medkeff named for Jeff.
Jeff was a contributing editor at Sky & Telescope magazine and contributed to several other magazines, including Astronomy, Astronomy Heute and Consumer’s Digest. Jeff was dedicated to science education and public outreach, in response to what he saw as a crisis in science education in the United States. He was a popular and regular speaker at the Campbell Creek Science Center and the Eagle River Nature Center, and occasionally spoke at the Anchorage Museum of History and Art and other area venues. He also regularly taught short units on astronomy and physics to high-school students at the invitation of science teachers, with a concentration on scientific methodology, how we know what we know about the universe, and the consequences of uncertainty in measurement. Jeff also worked hard to make his presentations informative, interesting, and funny.
Jeff succumbed to liver cancer in August 2008. We miss him and are proud to host this event in his memory.
Listen to the August 3: 365 Days of Astronomy podcast for a tribute episode to Jeff from his friends.
Dr. Phil Plait, also known as the Bad Astronomer, is an astronomer, author, blogger, and former President of the James Randi Educational Foundation. His book, Death from the Skies!, is about all the ways cosmic catastrophes can wipe out life on Earth. His Bad Astronomy blog is hosted by Discover Magazine and was recently chosen as one of the Top 25 Blogs of 2009 by Time Magazine. Phil also helped create and hosted the three-part Discovery Channel documentary ‘Phil Plait’s Bad Universe’, which took a skeptical look at asteroid impacts, alien invasions, and nearby exploding stars.
Singer-songwriter Marian Call delivers whimsical Alaskan folk funk to audiences all over North America. She sounds a little like Joni Mitchell & Regina Spektor raising the child of Jason Mraz & Lisa Hannigan. Call’s sound is soulful, honest, humorous, and clever, loved by all types — computer geeks, church ladies, teenage groupies, NPR listeners, and urban hipsters worldwide. Marian toured all 50 states in 2010 and continues to tour around the continent at a rapid clip. She hopes to play for you soon — find more information at http://mariancall.com. (Photo courtesy Brian Adams)
Dr. Nicole Gugliucci is an astronomer with Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, working on CosmoQuest, a citizen science and astronomy education portal. Her research is on low-frequency radio astronomy and how our observations of the most distant objects in the universe are affected by our own planet’s atmosphere. She has wanted to be an astronomer since seeing “Contact” in theatres as a kid, and tries to find ways to bring the wonders of astronomy to everyone. She has engaged in hands-on outreach with elementary school children through a program called Dark Skies, Bright Kids, has taught a class at UVa called “Life Beyond Earth,” and blogs for Discovery Space News. Inspired also by Carl Sagan’s “Demon-Haunted World,” Nicole considers herself a critical thinking advocate, getting involved in local skeptics groups and blogging at NoisyAstronomer.com and Skepchick.org.
Multi-instrumentalist, singer, songwriter, producer, composer and heliocentrist George Hrab has written and produced six independent CDs; published one book; performed for President Clinton; shared the stage with countless numbers of musicians and acts; and has traveled across the country as drummer, vocalist, musical director, and event host for the nationally recognized Philadelphia Funk Authority. As defacto Despot-for-Life of his own original ensemble The Geologic Orchestra, he makes it a personal quest to improve the cognitive thinking skills of each and every American by reaching them through their funny bones and dance shoes. His music, skepticism and wit have been featured on many radio broadcasts, TV shows, and podcasts.
In addition to his ten-piece Geologic Orchestra shows, Geo often performs in a solo acoustic setting, wherein he re-interprets his own works, and also delves into bizarre covers. Along with superlative musicianship, these intimate shows are known to showcase his quick wit and incendiary social commentary.
George published Non-Coloring Book featuring a collection of his assorted writings, and also delivered a well received “Fan of Geology” science track lecture discussing the evidence of the earth’s age at Atlanta’s Dragon*Con convention. He’s been asked multiple times to be a featured performer at James Randi’s The Amaz!ng Meeting in Las Vegas, was a special guest/performer in the Galapagos on the JREF’s Amaz!ng Adventure, and was the first American to present at TAM London.
He also produces a weekly, award winning podcast called The Geologic Podcast which features humor, sketches, and skeptical / free-thinking commentary through various weekly segments. He was asked to write the theme song to the 365 Days of Astronomy podcast and premiered the song “FAR” at the 213th American Astronomical Society Meeting in Long Beach California. His Occasional Songs for the Periodic Table, a 118 part song cycle featuring a song for each element of the periodic table has been described as the first “true geek symphony.”
George is considered one of the preeminent skeptic/science/atheist/geek-culture music icons currently living in his apartment.
Foundation Beyond Belief is a 501(c)(3) charitable foundation created to focus, encourage and demonstrate humanist generosity and compassion. They select and feature five charitable organizations per quarter, in the cause areas of Education, Poverty and Health, Human Rights, The Natural World and Challenge the Gap (charities based in other worldviews).
Foundation Beyond Belief (FBB) is proud to be a “Special Friend” team partner with The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS) for their Light The Night Walks. They are acting as a rallying point around which local freethought, atheist, and secular humanist groups form teams to participate in Light the Night Walks and fundraising. To support this goal, the Stiefel family has pledged to match the first $500,000 we raise for LLS! For more information, visit Foundation Beyond Belief’s LLS page.
The Atlanta Skeptics is a social organization that brings people together to discuss skepticism, science, and critical thinking. We feel strongly about being active in our community to do positive work and make charitable contributions. All our events are managed and coordinated by a team of volunteers.