Houston Science Enthusiasts

ONLINE: The Houston Astronomical Society presents Dr. Chris Morisette in a talk titled "Cosmic Clocks."

Description: "In 'Cosmic Clocks,' HAS Novice Chair Chris Morisette will present a survey of nine different techniques for determining the age of objects in our cosmos. Here he’ll discuss radiometric dating, crater counting, stellar spectroscopy, gyrochronology, magnetic activity, asteroseismology, dynamical age estimation, red shift dating, and CMB radiation measurement. The talk will include a description of the underlying principle of each technique, when its applied, examples of its application, and advantages/disadvantages of each method. At the end Chris will literally “build a watch” and unveil his version of a “Cosmic Clock”!!!"

Speaker Bio: Chris Morisette is HAS Novice Chairperson and an active member of the Houston Astronomical Society, North Houston Astronomy Club, and the Fort Bend Astronomy Club. He is also a member of the University of Texas Astronomy Department Board of Visitors. On clear Saturday nights you may find him volunteering at the George Observatory engaging with visitors and sharing his love of the night sky, or you may find him at the HAS Dark Site trying his hand at astrophotography.

This meeting will be held virtually via Zoom. To attend, you must register for the meeting. You can use the link below. You will receive an email with the details of the meeting and a link that will allow you to join in.

Register here.
You only need to register once!
Join us Thursday, August 7th, 2025, at 7:00 pm CT. See you then!

HYBRID: The Johnson Space Center Astronomical Society will hold a meeting featuring a presentation by Charles Phillips titled "Tracking Satellites – Why and How".

The meeting at will be held at the University of Houston-Clear Lake STEM Building, Room 1203 starting at 7:30 p.m.. People should arrive between 7 and 7:15 p.m. Attendees should park in Parking Lots D3 or D4 no earlier than 7 p.m.

Please see the UHCL Map here -- Please park in lots D3 and D4. The STEM building is building #5 on the map. Come in from the east side and go left. When you come to the end of hallway, you should find the auditorium where the meeting will be.

The meeting can be accessed by going to the JSCAS YouTube Channel at the link: https://www.youtube.com/c/JSCAstronomicalSociety

Also, the JSCAS YouTube Channel link will be posted on the JSCAS web page: http://www.jscas.net

To submit questions for our presenters during the meeting, please either enter your questions as a YouTube comment (if you have an account that will allow doing so) or send your questions to: jscaslive@gmail.com

JSCAS is open to anyone who wants to learn about astronomy and membership is free. After joining, you’ll have access to our amazing Astronomy DVD Library with 100’s of choices to learn from (from Astronomy Magazine, NASA, The Great Courses, Discovery Channel, etc.).

IN-PERSON: "The Ion is proud to present 'NASA Stories at the Ion' —a one-of-a-kind morning series spotlighting the human side of space exploration. Each session will feature personal and powerful stories from astronauts and key NASA personnel. From breathtaking missions aboard the International Space Station to unexpected lessons in leadership and teamwork, this series offers a behind-the-scenes look at spaceflight, told by the people who’ve lived it.

"This speaker series is designed to inspire anyone curious about what it takes to push the boundaries of human potential. Complimentary breakfast and networking kicks off each event.

Speaker bio: As a Flight Director at NASA’s Mission Control, Anthony Vareha has spent over 8000 hours operating spacecraft in low Earth orbit and beyond. His primary duty is the safe operation of the International Space Station (ISS) as he leads a multi-national team to execute the mission of humanity’s greatest scientific and exploration asset in space. Anthony has provided operational leadership to the Commercial Crew Program, as a Flight Director on console during the SpaceX Demo 1, SpaceX Demo 2, and Boeing Starliner flight test missions. Anthony was the lead NASA Flight Director for the SpaceX Crew-1 mission, which was the first six-month mission of the SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft. As lead Flight Director for Expedition 61, his team set a variety of records for both the number of spacewalks as well the number of hours of scientific research. From 2021-2022, Anthony served as Assistant Director of Flight Operations for the Commercial Crew Program. In 2022, Anthony served as a Flight Director during the Artemis 1 mission – the first instance of a human-rated spacecraft orbiting the moon since the end of the Apollo program. His current assignments are as the lead Flight Director for the next flight of the Boeing Starliner capsule, as well as lead Flight Director in the development of the US Deorbit Vehicle – responsible for the eventual safe decommissioning of the ISS.

Full details and registration: https://iondistrict.com/event/nasa-stories-at-the-ion/

PARKING:

Ion District Parking Garage
Enter 4111 Fannin Street into your GPS for directions directly to this parking garage, located a block from the Ion. Parking in the Ion District Garage is free for the first two hours.

Red Parking Lot
Enter 4203 Fannin Street into your GPS for directions directly to the red parking lot, located across the street from the Ion. This lot is for overflow guest parking and tenant parking and is free for the first three hours.

NOTE: This is a NON-HOSTED meetup.