by Jim Poinsett

Minutes of the September 2018 Board Meeting of the AAAP

• There was a discussion about StarQuest and the fact that it loses money every year. Should we keep having it or cancel it. The board decided to keep it and raise prices to cover the cost, $40 per night, per person. No discount for campers, students would only be $25. Email intent forms to observatory@princetonastronomy.org
• Rules were drawn up for requesting a star gazing event and will be placed on the website. The website will be modified to make it easier to find the requesting information.
• It was suggested that the AAAP twitter feed be embedded on the website. The suggestion will be passed on to Surabhi.
• The board discussed Meet-Up and decided to continue it’s use and to monitor statistics to determine it’s usefulness.
• The topic of reaching out to new members was discussed, basically how are we doing? The new members interested in outreach are contacted by Gene and those interested in the observatory are contacted by Dave. Gene is getting good response, Dave’s results are hard to determine.
• There will be a new member “Meet and Greet” during the break between the lecture and the business meeting.
• The meeting programs are being set. The 10 minute member talk needs to be kept to 10 minutes so as to not make the guest lecturer run late.
• Field trip possibilities were discussed. Two places of interest are the Air and Space Museum in Dulles in December or early next year and Cherry Springs in the Spring or Summer of 2019.
• The Mewlon and the Refractor need better alignment. The new cameras are working well with no complaints.
• Larry will handle the Astronomy Calendars this year.
• AAS memberships are now available to amateurs.
• A memorial plaque is being made to honor Gene Ramsey.

Meeting adjourned.