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Next Meeting:
Friday, August 15th, 7:30 pm
University of Denver, Olin Hall, Room 105 (Directions)

Dr. Suzanne Traub-Metlay:
The Latest on Mercury Messenger

Dr. Suzanne Traub-Metlay

Dr. Suzanne Traub-Metlay, Education Programs Director at the University of Colorado’s Fiske Planetarium in Boulder, will share the latest information from NASA’s MESSENGER mission to Mercury at the August 15th general meeting.

After obtaining a B.A. in History and Science from Harvard University in 1986, Suzanne earned her Ph.D. in Geology and Planetary Science from the University of Pittsburgh in 1993. Having volunteered as a staff member for a U.S. Senator in Pennsylvania, Suzanne was privileged to work for the Governor of Florida from 1994-1996.

After moving to Colorado in 1996, she tried corporate life but found that she far preferred teaching at a community college and in 1999 quit her day job to work part time at Front Range Community College (FRCC), Metropolitan State College of Denver, and CU-Boulder.

In 2001, Suzanne decided to focus her teaching on FRCC only and was thrilled to be named Master Part-Time Instructor at FRCC-Boulder, where she taught astronomy, geology and geography. From 2001-2003, she also joined the student services staff and served as School District Project Coordinator for FRCC classes taught at local area high schools. Suzanne wrote a textbook supplement in 2001 and created content for Websites regarding world regional geography in 2002 and 2004 for textbook publisher Prentice-Hall.

Since coming to CU-Boulder in 2004, Suzanne has joined the Longmont Astronomical Society (LAS) as well as the Boulder Astronomy and Space Society (BASS). She is also a long-time member of the Geological Society of America. She encourages greater public support of robotic exploration and private entrepreneurship in Space. She is also a meteorite expert and will be more than happy to identify that “weird” rock you may have in your collection or just knocking about the house, to see if it may truly be “out of this world”.

Suzanne considers her proudest accomplishments, however, are that of being a devoted wife and mother to two spectacular daughters.

As always, General meetings are held starting at 7:30 at Olin Hall, room 105 on the DU Campus. Immediately following the meeting, Refreshments will be served at nearby Chamberlin Observatory. 

Keith Pool, DAS Vice President

All attendees are invited to a reception at DU's Historic Chamberlin Observatory following the meeting, where there will be refreshments, conversation and -- weather permitting -- a chance to view the heavens through the 20-inch Clark-Saegmuller refractor.

The March meeting is the DAS Annual Banquet.

Recent Meeting Speakers

Dr. Mark Bottorff presented the evidence for the existence of Dark Matter and discussed some possibilities for what it might consist of at the July, 2008 meeting.

Stephanie Pahl discussed the mysteries of the Analemma at the June, 2008 general meeting.

Chuck Carlson provided some "Heavenly Intrigue," with a discussion of theories about the death of Tycho Brahe at the April, 2008 meeting

Bryan White presented his latest digital, 3-dimensional astronomical images, including his aurora pictures, at the DAS banquet in March, 2008.

David Grinspoon, DMNS, an internationally known Planetary Scientist who is funded by the ESA to conduct interdisciplinary research, spoke on the Venus Express Mission at the February 2008 meeting, which was simulcast on Second Life.

Mike Carroll captivated the general meeting audience in January 2008 with his beautiful and astronomically accurate space art and his knowledgeable presentation on "Alien Volcanoes" in the Solar System

Show and Tell (November 2007) Imaging presentations by Bryan Wilburn and Joe Gafford, and a look at Ivan Geisler's remounted 5-inch telescope.

Robert Bruner, Denver Museum of Nature and Science, entertained us with a fascinating (and only slightly expurgated) presentation on Greek Mythology and the Constellations at the October 2007 meeting

Dr. Richard McCray, University of Colorado (retired) presented "Supernova 1987A Revisited," showing and discussing the latest images and data from the most recent nearby supernova, at the August 2007 meeting.

In July 2007, Max Moe, University of Colorado, presented a talk called "The Evolution of Planetary Nebulae"

In June 2007, Dr. Mark Bottorff, Southwestern University, spoke on various creative and educational ways of observing the moon in his presentation "A Novice Lunatic's View of the Moon."

In May 2007, Dr. Dimitri Klebe of the Denver Museum of Nature and Science described the development and capabilities of an All Sky Infrared Visible Analyzer (ASIVA) he developed for an observatory in Chile.

Dr. John Bally, University of Colorado - Boulder, gave an exciting and richly illustrated presentation on The Birth of Stars and Planets at the April 2007 meeting

Dr. John Stevens, Director of Development, Lockheed Martin Space Systems, presented at the 2007 DAS Banquet in March 2007 on NASA's Orion Program and the Crew Exploratory Vehicle

Dr Daniel Baker, University of Colorado, Boulder, spoke in February 2007 about space weather and its effects on human technology

Dr. Mark Bottorff , Southwestern University, presented in January, 2007 on Active Galaxies: The most powerful engines in the universe.

DAS member Dr. Roger Clark presented at the September 8th, 2006 General Meeting on his cutting-edge work with the NASA Cassini mission Visual and Infrared Mapping Spectrometer (VIMS) team.

Brian D. Warner, of the PDO, discussed ways that amateur astronomers can collect vital astronomical data on August 11th, 2006.

Bryan White, Nitescapes, Presented beautiful new 3D Slides of Aurora and Other Phenomena at the July 7, 2006 meeting.

Dr. John Spencer, Southwest Research Institute, spoke at the May 2006 DAS meeting on the recent discovery of Water Spouts on Saturn's moon Enceladus.