Madison Astronomical Society

  • Building a Collapsible Telescope

    Friday, Sept 11, 2026, 7 pm, Memorial High School

    Keith Swartz - portrait shot

    Keith Swartz

    Telescopes come in all sorts of shapes and sizes. Changing their shape and size is not easy, if possible at all, but Keith Swartz tells the story about how he modified his homemade 10-inch Dobsonian telescope to better suit his needs. Following the tradition of a few recent speakers, he will also share a bit about his journey with this great hobby.

    Keith Swartz is a recently retired mechanical engineer. He is originally from Iowa, but has lived in Madison for 26 years, where he and his wife have raised three kids.

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    • First MAS Seestar Collaboration

      A crop of the 116 hour Seestar collaboration shot. Shows a field of many small galaxies and stars.

      In the spring of 2026, MAS member and Seestar owner Jack Fitzmier had an idea. Having read about a Seestar collaboration in China, Jack wondered if we could do something like that here. Maybe a few of our Seestar owners could be persuaded to contribute to a large group project. It seemed like it was worth a try.

      By the time the project concluded at the end of July, we had 12 participants with Seestar S50s and S30 Pros.

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    All Astro News

    • Moon Over Monona Terrace

      Martin Mika at Moon Over Monona Terrace, 2023. Photo by Carol Santulis.
      Martin Mika, 2023. Photo by Carol Santulis.

      The Midwest’s Largest Star Party

      This years’ event is on Friday, October 16, 2026 (link)

      Every year since 1998, when weather permits, MAS has partnered with Monona Terrace Community and Convention Center to throw a huge star party on its rooftop terrace (known formally as the William T. Evjue Rooftop Gardens).

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    All MAS News

  • MAS Member Photos