Edward Brown edited Observing.tex  about 9 years ago

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\subsubsection{Hands-on observing experience}  It is a long-standing tradition for AST~208 students to visit the \href{http://www.pa.msu.edu/astro/observ/}{MSU Observatory} for hands-on observing experience, and the redesigned AST~208 continues to uphold this tradition. Students come to the observatory in their lab groups of 3--4 (at night, outside of scheduled class time) and use the CCD camera to obtain science-ready images with the help of an instructor. Every student is required to visit the observatory at least once throughout the semester, and we aim for more than one visit. With the scarcity of clear nights during the spring semester, relatively large class, and logistics of transporting students to the observatory (1.5 (it is 1.5  miles south of the Biomedical Physical Sciences Building, where class meets), having the students complete multiple labs at the observatory is an ongoing challenge. A goal is to increase student access to the observatory through more aggressive scheduling, so as to take advantage of as many clear nights as possible. In support of AST~208, the MSU Observatory underwent a significant upgrade this winter, with assistance from the contractor \href{http://www.astronomical.com/}{Astronomical Consultants \& Equipment}. The observatory is now equipped with a spectrograph, which opens new avenues for hands-on scientific inquiry with MSU's on-campus facilities. The development of such labs is ongoing; these labs will be completed and tested next academic year.