Mauna Kea Coin Contest
|  | All Hawai'i Island K-12 students are invited to enter the 2013 Mauna Kea Coin Contest now through March 15, 2013 at the island's KTA Super Stores locations. Visit the coin contest website for more information.
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Hawaii Public Radio's Stargazer
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Shawn Laatsch
| If you listen to Hawaii Public Radio (HPR) you may have heard our own Shawn Laatsch, 'Imiloa's Planetarium Manager, speak with HPR's Dave Lawrence on Stargazer. If you haven't been fortunate enough to catch it or you happen to miss the weekly update of the Hawaiian night sky, simply go to HPR's Stargazer webpage to hear the latest. We have also added a new quick link to the top left sidebar of Kilolani for your convenience. Be sure to bookmark it if you haven't already!
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Elwood Visits 'Imiloa
|  | Elwood, the "Dream Big" character doll, who has traveled over 4 million miles and met three U.S. Presidents, recently visited 'Imiloa. Read more about Elwood and his travels & experiences by clicking the photo above.
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New in the
Bank of Hawaii
Museum Store
|  | Looking for something special for your Valentine? Visit our store to see the scarves, tops and bracelets inspired by star forming regions of our galaxy. They are all hand painted by Hawai'i Island artist, Patti Pease Johnson. Don't forget to ask for your 10% member discount. You will also receive Member Loyalty Credit for additional savings!
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'Imiloa Ikebana
|  | Mahalo nui loa to Ikebana practitioner / 'Imiloa Volunteer Sharon Midallia, who generously donates gorgeous flower arrangements to 'Imiloa! Please take a moment to enjoy these beautiful displays of nature as you enter our atrium.
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Image of the Month
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The Heart Nebula
| The Heart Nebula in Cassiopeia (a.k.a. IC 1805) is a mix of glowing interstellar gas and dark dust clouds stretching out over 200 light years. This nebula is roughly 7,500 light-years away in the Perseus spiral arm of our galaxy and is a region of star formation. At its center there is a group of massive hot stars known as Melotte 15, about 1.5 million years young. It is a perfect nebula to celebrate Valentine's Day.
Image courtesy of NASA's Astronomy Picture of the Day.
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Aloha mai!
Welcome to 'Imiloa's monthly membership e-newsletter, Kilolani. Mahalo for your support of our programs. Please send your comments and feedback to our Membership Office at membership@imiloahawaii.org or call (808) 969-9719. |
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Spring Intersession Program
BLASTRO-Vision: March 18-22, 2013
'Imiloa Astronomy Center is seeking junior explorers and innovators in grades K-3 for our Camp 'Imi-Possible Spring Intersession Program happening Monday-Friday, March  18-22. "BLASTRO-Vision" is a fun, multi-sensory exploration of our expanding Universe. Keiki explorers will be immersed in a week-long adventure of exciting science experiments and activities using light, telescopes, optics and color. The final day, parents, along with keiki, will actively participate in the BLASTRO-Vision Hō'ike, a celebration of new learning. The camp will run from 9am to 3pm (with drop-off available at 7:30am and pick-up by 4pm). Cost is $180 for members and $200 for non-members. Early registration is open to members on February 1st and general registration begins February 5th. Our Camp 'Imi-Possible winter intersession program sold-out so sign up early to reserve your space.
Read more about Camp 'Imi-Possible on our website >
Click for registration form > Mahalo to the Japan Foundation for Promotion of Astronomy for support through the Subaru Telescope for the winter and spring Camp 'Imi-Possible programs. A limited number of need-based scholarships are available. Please click here for more information or contact Craig Mitchell at 969-9720 or cmitchell@imiloahawaii.org.
To sponsor a child to participate in this wonderful program through a tax deductible donation, please contact Margaret Shiba, Director of Institutional Advancement, at mshiba@imiloahawaii.org or (808) 969-9732. Your support makes a difference!
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Welcome Margaret Shiba, 'Imiloa's New Director of Institutional Advancement Aloha nui dear members of 'Imiloa. I am pleased to announce that Margaret Shiba has just joined 'Imiloa in the newly created role of Director of Institutional Advancement. She will work closely with me and our staff on enhancing our private support base as we address the challenges and opportunities of our next phase of development. Continue reading Ka'iu Kimura's message about Margaret>
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'Imiloa to Host Science Fair and Science Fair Field Trips
The 27th Annual Hawai'i District Science and Engineering Fair will be held at 'Imiloa. Judging of more than 100 varied projects completed by local students in grades 6-12 will be held on Saturday, Feb. 16. Forty local scientists and engineers will spend the day reviewing the projects and interviewing the students, selecting forty to go to the State Science Fair in Honolulu in April.
The Science Fair exhibits will then be available for free public viewing Sunday, Feb. 17, and the following Tuesday through Friday (Feb. 19-22). (Science Fair participants will begin collecting their projects at noon on Friday.)
School excursions will be offered during the week (February 19-22) for island schools to bring students in grades 4-12 to view the projects.  These special field trips will give students a chance to view the Hawai'i District Science and Engineering projects, visit the exhibit hall & gardens, and watch our Planetarium show, We Are Astronomers. Teachers have the opportunity to provide an experience for their students that will get them excited about science and hopefully inspire them to take the initiative to become future Science & Engineering Fair participants and possibly pursue careers in the sciences. For more information on Science Fair field trips contact Craig Mitchell at (808) 969-9720 or cmitchell@imiloahawaii.org. Regular field trip rates apply but please ask about our free bus transportation.
If you would like to support our School Field Trip & Education fund please click here. Or contact Margaret Shiba, Director of Institutional Advancement, at (808) 969-9732 or mshiba@imiloahawaii.org. |
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Maunakea Skies, February 15th at 7pm
The monthly Maunakea Skies planetarium presentations are held on the third Friday of the month. The evening begins with a tour of the current night sky over Hawai'i, pointing out prominent constellations and stars one can see during this time of year. Following this, a special guest presenter from one of the Maunakea observatories shares the latest research in astronomy using the 3D planetarium.
 February's topic:
Modern Cosmology
speaker:
Dr. Simon Radford, Caltech Submillimeter Observatory
host:
Shawn Laatsch, 'Imiloa's Planetarium Manager
Read more about this month's topic & presenter on our blog >
Cost is $8 for Individual, Dual, Kupuna and Family members; $6 for Patron Members; Free for Silver, Gold and Corporate Members. Non-member rate is $10. Pre-purchase tickets at the 'Imiloa front desk or by phone at 969-9703.
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Planetarium Closed February 23 - March 4
'Imiloa's Planetarium will be closed from February 23 to March 4 to refresh the computers used to project the astronomical datasets and planetarium programs. These computers were originally installed in late 2007 and the system needs to be refreshed and upgraded to ensure ongoing stable operations.
The refresh will include upgrading the operating system from Windows XP to Windows 7, enhancing graphics capabilities using new graphics cards, increasing storage for astronomical datasets, and moving from analog to digital audio. Numerous software updates to Digital Sky will also be performed at this time.
Refreshes such as these are required every three to five years to keep planetarium systems stable and up to date. The 'Imiloa planetarium team along with Sky Skan, Inc. will complete this refresh over the nine day period and will migrate all current content to the new computers. The planetarium will re-open on Tuesday, March 5th with its regular programming. Mahalo for your patience and understanding during our refresh period.
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Seeking New Worlds and New Life
You are invited to UH Hilo (Room UCB100) on February 23rd at 7pm to listen to Dr. Olivier Guyon of the Subaru Telescope speak about "Seeking New Worlds and New Life." This is a free event open to the public. Please contact Subaru Telescope Outreach at 934-5960 for more information.
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 'Imiloa's KTA Family Free Day Coming Up March 10'Imiloa's turning 7! Come party with us at our upcoming birthday celebration on March 10, from 9am to 4pm. We'll have free birthday cake and giveaways for the keiki, inspiring programming courtesy of Journey through the Universe, exhibit and garden tours, and fun, engaging activities hosted by various departments of the University of Hawai'i at Hilo! Special mahalo to event sponsor and corporate member, KTA Super Stores for their continued support of 'Imiloa Astronomy Center.
 For more information, check out the KTA Family Free Day page on our website. Find out more about Journey through the Universe at www.gemini.edu/journey. |
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