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Enthusiasm for observational astronomy, curiosity about cosmology, achievements with CCD imaging and technology. These and all other aspects of astronomy are interests shared by members of the Amateur Astronomers Association of Princeton. The club is based in Princeton, (Mercer County) New Jersey.

This organization of 100 + promotes astronomy-related activities for members and non-members, novice to expert.  A wide spectrum of astronomy interests are explored at the AAAP through regular meetings, workshops, use of the two club observatories, public outreach and regional star parties.

Come explore our web site.  Here you'll find details about our organization's meetings, discussion topics, members and their scopes, and a lot more. Our organization maintains two observatories: the larger in Washington Crossing State Park (housing a research-grade 355mm Schmidt-Cassegrain catadioptric and historic 159mm Hastings-Byrne refractor). A second facility is found at Jenny Jump State Park in northwestern New Jersey. This houses a 318mm custom-built Newtonian reflector.

Check out our current events page and mark your calendar!     Click here to get today's latest astronomy and space news!

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2009 Meeting Season

Peyton Hall (right) is the location of the 2009 AAAP monthly meetings. The building is home to the Department of Astrophysical Sciences, and is located just east of Washington Road, adjacent to Palmer Stadium, on the Princeton University campus.  Meetings begin promptly at 8:00 PM in the lecture hall (first floor) of Peyton.   Our last Peyton Hall meeting of the Spring season was May 12.

Our Fall Peyton Hall meeting season begins September 8, 2009.  Meetings start with brief announcements of general interest, followed by a guest speaker presentation.  After the guest speaker, the general meeting commences, reviewing current and future club activities, astronomy news, and public outreach projects.  Refreshments are often served.  Regular attendees of the lectures are encouraged to become paid members to support these popular speaking events.  Please email the AAAP for additional details.
Peyton Hall

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The AAAP Observatory


The 2009 Simpson Observatory Open House season begins Friday, April 3rd.  The facility is located in Washington Crossing State Park, a few miles outside Pennington, NJ.
Weather permitting, the observatory is scheduled to be open to the public each Friday evening through October.

Guests are shown a myriad of astronomical wonders including planets, The Moon, galaxies, nebulae, star clusters and much more. Learn the seasonal constellations and how to identify them.  AAAP astronomers operate a 6.25" Hastings Byrne refractor and a research-grade Celestron 14" Schmidt-Cassegrain on a Bisque Paramount ME mount.  AAAP members often set up additional equipment adjacent to the observatory. Visitors are welcome to bring telescopes.

For directions, and further details, please visit the observatory page.



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