Sam Miller
The SaddleBrooke Skygazers Astronomy Club is pleased to host Dean Koenig from Starizona on Sunday, April 12 at the SaddleBrooke One Activity Center at 7 p.m. Dean will describe the various levels of equipment (from beginner to professional) used in astronomy. He will also describe the various accessories that supplement the telescope and make the amateur’s task of locating objects in the night sky easier and more enjoyable. Dean believes that those new to the science hobby should be appropriately outfitted with equipment that is suited to their skill level to make the initial experience simple and enjoyable. Starting out with advanced or complex equipment is a frequent reason the amateur does not “catch the astronomy bug” and continue to enjoy the pastime.
Dean Koenig, along with his wife Donna, are owners of Starizona. Starizona is a world renowned astronomy shop in southern Arizona, which first opened its doors in November of 1995. Dean is the inventor and patent holder for the HyperStar system which converts a Schmidt-Cassegrain telescope into a 25 times faster imaging system with 10 times better image correction. Starizona provided four complete HyperStar imaging systems to NASA for use on the International Space Station to image the earth. Starizona is also known for their many unique telescope accessories, which they manufacture.
The SaddleBrooke Skygazers Astronomy Club meets monthly on the second Sunday evening (7 p.m.) at the SaddleBrooke One Activity Center. Star Parties are held monthly at the softball field parking lot. The next star party is on Tuesday, April 14 at 7:45 p.m. The public is welcome to both. Club and Star Party information can be obtained by emailing Sam Miller at [email protected].