When thirty young campers turned their eyes to the night sky during a warm and sunny summer in the 1970s, the first “astronomy and astrophysics school camp” in Bulgaria was founded. Held in an open, spacious meadow in the Belite Brezi area in Kurdzhali, the campers were “armed” with just seven small telescopes and a lot of enthusiasm. That was the beginning of observational astronomy for students from Kurdzhali, and later, from all over Bulgaria.
Organized by the Vega Astronomy Club at the National Astronomical Observatory in Kurdzhali, this year’s edition will continue until August 1. What does it involve?
Specialists from the Department of Astronomy at the Faculty of Physics of Sofia University, the Institute of Astronomy, and the Institute of Nuclear Research and Nuclear Energy at the Bulgarian Academy of Science prepare lectures targeted to the camp participants. Also included are astronomy alumni from various cities in the country, along with students and PhD students from the United States. Students even get to present their astronomical observations to the group.
Participants are trained to record observations of meteors and variable stars. At the end of camp, they present their observational data and results of the primary processing such as meteor data, curves in the brilliance of the variable stars. Complicated, yes, but fascinating. The opportunity to participate in future expeditions will be determined by the performance of the student during the session. The program can be found here: http://www.astro-brezi.org/index.php
