Day 2
Monday 17 June 2013

Monday started off with the campers building their own spectroscopes that they used to identify the chemical composition of of various gas lamps, just like astronomers use spectroscopes to identify the atoms and molecules that permeate space.  We learned how to measure distances using just a ruler, your arm, your fist, and your pinky.  Astronomers use "parallax", or the apparent change in the position of an object when the observer moves, to measure distances to the nearest stars.   Before lunch we discussed healthy eating habits, both on campus and during a long interstellar voyage. We found out that a breakfast consisting of two servings of fruity cheerios, two pop tarts, a 20 oz. Gatorade, and a zebra cake is equivalent to 30 sugar cubes!  After lunch the campers performed fun skits that suggested why we would leave Earth to colonize another planet, setting the stage for the camp theme "Journey to the Stars".  Later we learned about optics and used that information to build hand-held telescopes that can be taken home.  We explored the different sizes in the Solar System and then re-created our own during a walk from one end of campus to the other.  The day was capped off with a tour of the night sky inside the UW planetarium and a skype session with another camp from Colorado Springs.