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Ashton Observatory
Ashton Observatory is a public astronomical observatory operated by the Des Moines Astronomical Society, in collaboration with Jasper County, Iowa, USA. It is located in Ashton-Wildwood County Park near Baxter, Iowa. Public programs are presented on Saturday evenings in the months of April through October, except for the first Saturday of each month. These public nights were cancelled for 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Facilities Building Built in 1983, the observatory originally consisted of two domes connected by a small room. Each dome houses a aperture telescope, and can accommodate about one dozen people. In 2002 a classroom was added to the building's north side, allowing for public presentations to groups of up to 50 visitors. The classroom was badly damaged by the August 2020 Midwest derecho, and is being extensively renovated. South of the building there are several concrete pads upon which portable telescopes can be deployed to accommodate star parties ...
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Ashton Observatory Iowa 20090215
Ashton may refer to: Names *Ashton (given name) * Ashton (surname) Places Australia * Ashton, Elizabeth Bay, a heritage-listed house in Sydney, New South Wales * Ashton, South Australia Canada *Ashton, Ontario New Zealand * Ashton, New Zealand South Africa * Ashton, Western Cape United Kingdom England * Ashton, Cambridgeshire * Ashton, Cornwall * Ashton, Devon * Ashton, Hampshire * Ashton, Herefordshire ** Eye, Moreton and Ashton, a civil parish in Herefordshire *Ashton, North Northamptonshire, near Oundle *Ashton, West Northamptonshire, near Northampton * Ashton, Somerset, a hamlet in the parish of Chapel Allerton, Sedgemoor district *Long Ashton or Ashton, North Somerset **Ashton Court **Ashton Gate, Bristol ** Ashton Vale, now in Bristol **Bower Ashton, now in Bristol *Ashton Common, Wiltshire *Ashton Green, East Sussex *Ashton Hayes, Cheshire *Ashton Keynes, Wiltshire *Ashton under Hill, Worcestershire *Ashton upon Mersey, Greater Manchester *Ashton-in-Makerfield, Great ...
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Star Party
A star party is a gathering of amateur astronomy, amateur astronomers for the purpose of observing astronomical object, objects and events in the sky. Local star parties may be one-night affairs, but larger events can last a week or longer and attract hundreds or even thousands of participants. Many astronomy clubs have monthly star parties during the warmer months. Large regional star parties are held annually and are an important part of the hobby of amateur astronomy. A naturally dark site away from light pollution is typical. Participants bring telescopes and binoculars of all types and sizes and spend the nights observing astronomical objects such as planets, comets, stars, and deep-sky objects together. Astrophotography and CCD imaging are also very popular. At larger star parties, lectures, swap meets, exhibitions of amateur telescope making, home-built telescopes, contests, tours, raffles, and other similar activities are common. Commercial vendors selling a variety of ...
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Buildings And Structures In Jasper County, Iowa
A building or edifice is an enclosed structure with a roof, walls and windows, usually standing permanently in one place, such as a house or factory. Buildings come in a variety of sizes, shapes, and functions, and have been adapted throughout history for numerous factors, from building materials available, to weather conditions, land prices, ground conditions, specific uses, prestige, and aesthetic reasons. To better understand the concept, see ''Nonbuilding structure'' for contrast. Buildings serve several societal needs – occupancy, primarily as shelter from weather, security, living space, privacy, to store belongings, and to comfortably live and work. A building as a shelter represents a physical separation of the human habitat (a place of comfort and safety) from the ''outside'' (a place that may be harsh and harmful at times). buildings have been objects or canvasses of much artistic expression. In recent years, interest in sustainable planning and building practi ...
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Astronomical Observatories In Iowa
Astronomy is a natural science that studies celestial objects and the phenomena that occur in the cosmos. It uses mathematics, physics, and chemistry in order to explain their origin and their overall evolution. Objects of interest include planets, moons, stars, nebulae, galaxies, meteoroids, asteroids, and comets. Relevant phenomena include supernova explosions, gamma ray bursts, quasars, blazars, pulsars, and cosmic microwave background radiation. More generally, astronomy studies everything that originates beyond Earth's atmosphere. Cosmology is a branch of astronomy that studies the universe as a whole. Astronomy is one of the oldest natural sciences. The early civilizations in recorded history made methodical observations of the night sky. These include the Egyptians, Babylonians, Greeks, Indians, Chinese, Maya, and many ancient indigenous peoples of the Americas. In the past, astronomy included disciplines as diverse as astrometry, celestial navigation, observational as ...
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List Of Observatories
This is a partial list of astronomical observatories ordered by name, along with initial dates of operation (where an accurate date is available) and location. The list also includes a final year of operation for many observatories that are no longer in operation. While other sciences, such as volcanology and meteorology, also use facilities called observatories for research and observations, this list is limited to observatories that are used to observe celestial objects. Astronomical observatories are mainly divided into four categories: space-based, airborne, ground-based, and underground-based. Many modern telescopes and observatories are located in space to observe astronomical objects in wavelengths of the electromagnetic spectrum that cannot penetrate the Earth's atmosphere (such as ultraviolet radiation, X-rays, and gamma rays) and are thus impossible to observe using ground-based telescopes. Being above the atmosphere, these space observatories can also avoid the effects ...
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Newton, Iowa
Newton is the county seat of, and most populous city in, Jasper County, Iowa, United States. Located east of Des Moines, Iowa, Des Moines, Newton is in Central Iowa. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 Census, the city population was 15,760. It is the home of Iowa Speedway and Maytag Dairy Farms. History Early history Newton was founded in 1846 as Newton City, then shortened to Newton in 1847 and incorporated as a city in 1857. It was named to pair with Jasper County, following a common American naming scheme at the time in honor of American Revolutionary War, Revolutionary War soldiers John Newton (soldier), John Newton and William Jasper. In the late 19th century, Newton's growth was fueled by the development of coal mines in the region. The first significant mine in the area was the Couch mine of the Jasper County Coal and Railway Company, opened in the 1870s. For a while, it was the largest mine in the county, producing 70 tons per day. William Snooks opened a shaft mi ...
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Phosphorescent Paint
Luminous paint (or luminescent paint) is paint that emits visible light through fluorescence, phosphorescence, or radioluminescence. Fluorescent paint Fluorescent paints 'glow' when exposed to short-wave ultraviolet (UV) radiation. These UV wavelengths are found in sunlight and many artificial lights, but the paint requires a special black light to view so these glowing-paint applications are called 'black-light effects'. Fluorescent paint is available in a wide range of colors and is used in theatrical lighting and effects, posters, and as entertainment for children. The fluorescent chemicals in fluorescent paint absorb the invisible UV radiation, then emit the energy as longer wavelength visible light of a particular color. Human eyes perceive this light as the unusual 'glow' of fluorescence. The painted surface also reflects any ordinary visible light striking it, which tends to wash out the dim fluorescent glow. So viewing fluorescent paint requires a longwave UV ligh ...
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Mural At Night
A mural is any piece of graphic artwork that is painted or applied directly to a wall, ceiling or other permanent substrate. Mural techniques include fresco, mosaic, graffiti and marouflage. Word mural in art The word ''mural'' is a Spanish adjective that is used to refer to what is attached to a wall. The term ''mural'' later became a noun. In art, the word began to be used at the beginning of the 20th century. In 1906, Dr. Atl issued a manifesto calling for the development of a monumental public art movement in Mexico; he named it in Spanish ''pintura mural'' (English: ''wall painting''). In ancient Roman times, a mural crown was given to the fighter who was first to scale the wall of a besieged town. "Mural" comes from the Latin ''muralis'', meaning "wall painting". This word is related to ''murus'', meaning "wall". History Antique art Murals of sorts date to Upper Paleolithic times such as the cave paintings in the Lubang Jeriji Saléh cave in Borneo (40,000–52,000 ...
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Ashton Park Mural
Ashton may refer to: Names *Ashton (given name) * Ashton (surname) Places Australia * Ashton, Elizabeth Bay, a heritage-listed house in Sydney, New South Wales * Ashton, South Australia Canada *Ashton, Ontario New Zealand *Ashton, New Zealand South Africa *Ashton, Western Cape United Kingdom England * Ashton, Cambridgeshire * Ashton, Cornwall *Ashton, Devon * Ashton, Hampshire *Ashton, Herefordshire **Eye, Moreton and Ashton, a civil parish in Herefordshire *Ashton, North Northamptonshire, near Oundle *Ashton, West Northamptonshire, near Northampton * Ashton, Somerset, a hamlet in the parish of Chapel Allerton, Sedgemoor district *Long Ashton or Ashton, North Somerset **Ashton Court **Ashton Gate, Bristol **Ashton Vale, now in Bristol **Bower Ashton, now in Bristol *Ashton Common, Wiltshire *Ashton Green, East Sussex *Ashton Hayes, Cheshire *Ashton Keynes, Wiltshire *Ashton under Hill, Worcestershire *Ashton upon Mersey, Greater Manchester *Ashton-in-Makerfield, Greater Manc ...
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August 2020 Midwest Derecho
On August 10 and 11, 2020, an extremely powerful progressive derecho devastated much of the Midwestern United States, primarily eastern Nebraska, Iowa, Illinois, Wisconsin, and Indiana. It caused high winds and spawned an outbreak of weak tornadoes. Some areas reported torrential rain and large hail. Damage was moderate to severe across much of the affected area, as sustained wind speeds of were prevalent. The greatest damage occurred in eastern Iowa, and northern Illinois, where multiple tornadoes touched down. The highest winds occurred in Iowa, measured at and highest estimated from post-event damage surveys at . Millions across the Midwest were affected by wide-scale Public utility, utility disruptions, residential and commercial property damage, and severe damage to Maize, corn and soybean crops. Cedar Rapids, Iowa, was the most severely damaged, suffering a near-complete Blackout (electricity), blackout that lasted for weeks in some areas, widespread and severe property ...
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The Des Moines Astronomical Society
''The'' is a grammatical article in English, denoting nouns that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the most frequently used word in the English language; studies and analyses of texts have found it to account for seven percent of all printed English-language words. It is derived from gendered articles in Old English which combined in Middle English and now has a single form used with nouns of any gender. The word can be used with both singular and plural nouns, and with a noun that starts with any letter. This is different from many other languages, which have different forms of the definite article for different genders or numbers. Pronunciation In most dialects, "the" is pronounced as (with the voiced dental fricative followed by a schwa) when followed by a consonant sound, and as (homophone of the archaic pronoun ''thee'') ...
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COVID-19 Pandemic In Iowa
The COVID-19 pandemic was confirmed to have reached the U.S. state of Iowa in March 2020. The first known cases were three individuals who had traveled on a cruise in Egypt before returning home to Johnson County on March 3. Initially, case clusters were focused at meatpacking plants and congregate care facilities. By late October, community spread had become a concern, and some areas of the state had reported over 20% test positivity. A headline stated that "Iowa hospitals fear overwhelming patient surge if coronavirus cases continue to climb." Timeline March 2020 * March 8 – The first confirmed COVID-19 cases in Iowa were announced — three individuals who had traveled on a cruise in Egypt before returning home to Johnson County on March 3. * March 9 – Governor Kim Reynolds signed a Proclamation of Disaster Emergency. *March 15 – Governor Reynolds recommended closing schools for four weeks. The state worked on developing legislation to provide child care during the eme ...
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