100 Hours of Astronomy: Wednesday 1 April

From the Earth to the Universe, one of the cornerstone projects of IYA 2009 in Syria and the world, was launched with the first course on astrophotography. The course was held with the sponsorship of SBS center for computer sciences in Damascus.

The course lasted for one month with three lessons a week, and 12 persons participated, some of them are members of the association. Topics included basics of celestial sphere movement, using telescopes, the cameras used in astrophotography, digital processing of photos, using software in astrophotography, and other topics.

This is our first step in From the Earth to the Universe in Syria, which will also include a big gallery on 20 June 2009 and launching a page in our website for astronomy shots taken by amateurs. This field is completely novel in Syria and only few know about it.

This course will be repeated later in 2009.

A picture taken by our trainees on 31 March shows the Theophilus crator on the moon	Some of the trainees learning how to use software in astrophotography