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Observing Notebook Guidelines
These pages are designed for students of Jeff Adkins at Deer Valley High School in Antioch, California. Click the links at left to go to the other pages belonging to Mr. Adkins.
Observing Notebooks and Checklist-Revised September 2006
- The observing notebook contains three kinds of information:
- Observations of things in the sky (details below)
- One experiment or observing project carried out by yourself
- A description of the steps you went through and problems solved
for your major project
- Observations of things in the sky
- You must have 75 observations in your observing
notebook by the end of the year; 40 by the end
of the first semester.
Observations consist of Required and Optional observations. Required
observations
are on the list
below.
Optional
observations
are anything else you see
in the sky, or see while visiting an astronomical facility
such
as an observatory. All observations should be written in
a
permanently bound, water resistant,
and tough notebook.
The notebook MUST contain a table of contents, with numbered pages and entries listed by title.
Each observation should specify:
- Date
- Time
- Place
- For telescopic observations:
- Instrument specifications including aperture, f/ratio, eyepiece, magnification and type of telescope (when the person providing the telescope knows this information)
- Object - “the title of the observation”
- Observation
- Coordinates
- Magnitude
- For constellations and naked-eye observations:
- Context of the observation-- show the horizon, nearby landmarks, etc. Indicate cardinal directions (NSEW). The idea is you provide enough information to verify it on Google Earth.
- Constellation outlines and star names count as separate observations, but don't rely on them to get a good grade...variety is more important than quantity.
As you make each entry you should add it to your table of contents.
Observations can be as simple as watching a sunset or as complex as taking a picture with a telescope. For each observation, you should have an entry in the observing notebook. In general every observation has a drawing or photo. Your checklist should be signed by your parents, or by your teacher, or by a qualified TA. Things not on this list may be added later, including observations taken during class, during field trips, etc.
You may not be able to get every item on the checklist below in your notebook. You are therefore only required to observe 70% of the objects on this list, but you will still need 75 total observations, both required and optional. Note that a long-term observing project can count for multiple observations.
I reserve the right to add or drop items from the list. You should keep this checklist in your notebook for grading purposes. You can use this list as your table of contents if you add page numbers and permanently attach it to your observing notebook.
You must have a table of contents, which lists one line item per observation, for a total of one hundred entries. You should also attach a copy of this checklist which has the observations qualifying for the required list checked off.
Checklist -updated for 2006/2007
- Print out this table and attach it after your table of contents.
Write the page number where the observation appears in the blank. Observations
which are required are italicized.
- Click here for a printer-friendly PDF version.
- You must have 75 observations in your observing
notebook by the end of the year; 40 by the end
of the first semester.
Observations consist of Required and Optional observations. Required
observations
are on the list
below.
Optional
observations
are anything else you see
in the sky, or see while visiting an astronomical facility
such
as an observatory. All observations should be written in
a
permanently bound, water resistant,
and tough notebook.
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One experiment or observing project carried out by yourself
You should plan and carry out a series of observations, or an experiment, which is completely described in your observing notebook. This will be recorded as a separate grade from the observing notebook. It should be something different from the exercises done in class.
A description of the steps you went through and problems solved for your major project.
Major project updates,. notes, calculations, plans, etc., should be recorded in a separate section of the notebook. Reserve 10 pages for this purpose and isolate the pages with a paperclip. Details of the major project requirements are on the major project page.
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