Madison Astronomical Society

  • How Do We Actually Know Things About Exoplanets?

    Friday, Apr 10, 2026, 7 PM, UW Space Place

    Max Kroft headshot

    Maxwell Kroft

    How do astronomers discover and characterize exoplanets? It’s not as straightforward as spotting them with a telescope, like you do with stars on a clear night in a park. In this presentation, Max will delve into the methods astronomers employ to measure various aspects of exoplanets, primarily by observing their impact on their host stars. He’ll also share his research on exoplanets conducted using the WIYN 3.5m telescope at Kitt Peak, Arizona.

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    • M31, Then and Now

      blinking GIF comparing shots of M31 from the Palomar Survey (POSS) and a modern Seestar.
      The Palomar Sky Survey shot of M31 blink compared to the one from Carol Santulis’s SeeStar. Can you tell which is which?

      Sometimes I like to sit back and marvel at the remarkable progress our hobby has seen over the past half century or so. Technology has revolutionized everything, but perhaps nothing has changed more profoundly than astrophotography.

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    All Astro News

    • MAS Seeks New Space

      MAS members sitting at a meeting, listening to a guest speaker
      MAS members at a monthly meeting in Space Place, August, 2024.

      For the first time in nearly 30 years, MAS is looking for a new home for its monthly meetings.

      Space Place, which is the UW Astronomy Department’s home for outreach and education, will be closing its doors when the lease expires in June. According to Jim Lattis, the recently retired director of Space Place, the UW admin has been mulling this move for some time, and has finally made the decision to shutter the operation.

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    All MAS News

  • MAS Member Photos