March 18, 2026

Meeting Minutes

Online (Zoom) & In-Person (Rocky Hill Community Center)

The March 18, 2026 meeting of the Astronomical Society of Greater Hartford (ASGH) was called to order at 7:31 PM by President Chris Markiewicz.

Attendance: 26 total (15 in person; 11 online).

Program

Speaker: Marcia Bartusiak, Professor of the Practice Emeritus, Graduate Program in Science Writing, Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Topic: The Day We Found the Universe — based on her research and book of the same title.

The Day We Found the Universe is described as “a narrative saga of the birth of modern cosmology and the 2010 winner of the History of Science Society’s Davis Prize.” The book traces how astronomers discovered that the Milky Way is only one of countless galaxies.

Marcia recounted key milestones and figures in early 20th-century cosmology, including Henrietta Leavitt (Cepheid variables as a distance indicator), Heber Curtis (the “island universe” hypothesis), and Harlow Shapley (the “big galaxy” model). She also described the Great Debate and how later observations by Edwin Hubble—including a Cepheid variable in Andromeda—helped establish that galaxies exist beyond the Milky Way.

On January 1, 1925, Hubble announced findings that helped establish that the universe contains many galaxies like our own. Continuing research later showed that more distant galaxies are receding from us at a velocity proportional to their distance—later dubbed Hubble’s law (historically corrected to the Hubble–Lemaître law)—supporting an expanding universe.

Thanks: Thank you to Marcia Bartusiak for a fascinating and detailed talk.

Recording: Marcia’s talk was recorded with her permission. The recording is available on the ASGH YouTube channel: https://youtu.be/N9QBRlr35Rc

More videos: Talks from prior ASGH meetings can be found on the ASGH YouTube channel: Astronomical Society of Greater Hartford – YouTube
( https://www.youtube.com/@ASGH_CT )

New Members

Prospective ASGH member, Zsolt Herberth, introduced himself and was welcomed during the meeting.  

Secretary’s Report

The Secretary, J. Benoit, reported that the minutes for the January and February 2026 ASGH meetings were previously posted to the members section of the ASGH website. Paper copies of both sets of minutes were also available in the meeting room for review. A motion to accept both sets of minutes as posted was made, seconded, and unanimously approved.

Treasurer’s Report

Treasurer, C. Barron, reported that the balances in the accounts are:

Savings $15,630.46, checking $2,064.23, and T-bills of $20k or $25k.  Will be purchasing another T-bill for $10k with funds now in savings, which include the deposit of a T-bill that recently matured.

Have one expense of $545.04 for renewal of the ASGH web page.  Marty O. had paid for this from his personal funds and so Cindi will be reimbursing him from the club’s account.

Cindi also has a check to deposit of $4994.25 from Cosmic Cultures.

Treasurer’s report was voted on and accepted as presented with clarification on T-bill values to be provided by email by Cindi after the meeting.

Webmaster’s Report

Webmaster Bill De Nio reported that the web hosting account contact information was outdated, which contributed to a missed renewal and a brief site outage. The renewal has been completed and the website is back online; contact information is now updated to Bill with Marty as backup. Bill also noted that he and Secretary Jeff Benoit discussed improvements to minutes formatting to streamline publishing to the website.

Outreach

ASGH President Chris Markiewicz noted that outreach events were previously sent out to members and would not be reviewed during the meeting as planned to allow more time for the presenter.  Outreach events copied from agenda slides and inserted below.

• Skygazing — Talcott Mountain Science Center (Avon, CT): Friday 3/27/2026, 8:30–10:00 PM (volunteer arrival 8:00 PM) — Cancelled by Talcott Mountain.
• Skygazing — Talcott Mountain Science Center (Avon, CT): Friday 4/10/2026, 9:00–10:30 PM (volunteer arrival 8:30 PM).
• Space Expo 2026 — New England Air Museum: Saturday 4/25/2026, 9:00 AM–3:00 PM (setup/teardown 7:00 AM–4:00 PM).
• Skygazing — Talcott Mountain Science Center (Avon, CT): Friday 5/1/2026, 9:00–10:30 PM (volunteer arrival 8:30 PM).
• Girl Scout Brownie Troop Camporee — Camp Yankee Trails (Tolland, CT): Camporee Fri 5/1–Sun 5/3/2026; Saturday 5/2/2026 time TBD (requirements being clarified).
• Ellington Trails Committee (Ellington, CT): Star Party & Perseid Meteor Shower viewing; Wednesday 8/12/2026, 9:00 PM (exact number TBD).
• Cedar Hill Cemetery (Hartford, CT): Star party for family groups (fundraiser for Cedar Hill Cemetery Foundation); Tuesday 9/15/2026, 7:30–11:00 PM.
• Windham Technical High School (Willimantic, CT): Requested a short solar observing session during school hours; date/time TBD.

New Business

Cash Award for the Charles Hammond Award for Excellence in Astronomy: President Chris Markiewicz proposed increasing the cash awards to:

• $1,000 for the Senior winner
• $500 for the Senior runner-up (if any)
• $500 for the Junior winner

The proposal was based on increased college costs, the consistently high quality of projects received, and maintaining parity with comparable science fair awards. John Sillasen made a motion to allocate up to $2,000 annually for the Charles Hammond Award for Excellence in Astronomy as described above, provided this amount can be supported by annual income and is re-evaluated annually. The motion was seconded and approved, with one vote against. The understanding is that these higher amounts will be used for this year’s winners. Chris also thanked Scott Tracy and Bill De Nio for their work on this outreach effort.

Science Fair Award Recipients (Project Summaries)

First Place, High School: Predicting Detectability of Transiting Exoplanets: A Python-based Signal-to-Noise Ratio Model

The aim of this research was to develop a user-friendly tool that enables nonprofessional astronomers to detect and study transiting exoplanets, expanding participation in exoplanet research. A Python model was created to predict the minimum detectable transit depth of an exoplanet for any given telescope and camera system by calculating the signal-to-noise ratio (S/N) for stars of different magnitudes and converting it into a corresponding detection limit.

Honorable Mention, High School: A Robust Computational Framework for Solar Particle Event Detection: Integrating Convolutional Neural Networks with Multivariate Physical Proxies

The objective of this investigation was to develop a high-precision predictive system for Solar Particle Events (SEPs).  I tested if a hybrid model, synthesizing convolutional neural network (CNN) analysis with custom physics-derived features, could isolate SEP signatures from background solar wind noise.  Results demonstrated a validation accuracy of 85.1% and a storm-event precision of 0.89, outperforming standard threshold models.

Middle School: Detecting Astroparticle Flux Under Different CME Strengths Using Household Materials

By measuring the variety and quantity of solar particles detected under changing geomagnetic conditions, this project aims to raise awareness about the types and levels of particle exposure people experience.  A homemade cloud chamber with dry ice was used to detect cosmic particles on different days with different geomagnetic indices forecasted. 

Good of the Organization

Restarting our Van Vleck Partnership:  President C. Markiewicz noted that status unchanged as we await additional communication from Wesleyan which had been delayed due to a temporary staff absence.  As a reminder, elements discussed with the administrators of the Van Vleck Observatory (VVO) to determine a path forward to restart ASGH hosting of VVO observing nights include; telescope operator training requirements, scheduling of observing dates further in advance, and minimum operator staffing for events.  

Van Vleck Observatory partnership: A preliminary list of volunteers to operate the telescope includes:

• Chris Markiewicz
• John Sillasen
• Jeffrey Benoit
• John Allen
• Allan Wilson
• Dean Kavalkovich
• Cyndi Baron
• Robert Fischetti
• Martin Ollenschleger

Star Party (members, family, and friends): Friday April 17 (no rain date) at the Kruger Preserve in Haddam Neck. Middlesex Land Trust owns and maintains the property and will also publicize the event. Club members set up at 7:00 PM; others arrive at 7:30 PM.

Observing & News

Observing opportunities recent/until next meeting:

Check out https://in-the-sky.org/ for a list of observable objects/events in your area.

Next month’s meeting is scheduled for April 15^th with a speaker from Wesleyan University on the Interstellar Medium.  Details to be sent out with the meeting invitation.

Meeting adjourned at 9:34 PM.