A Telescope in Every Pot

We hope to give thousands (millions?) of kids and adults a chance to build a simple refractor similar to the ones Galileo used. Especially for people who can’t afford to buy even a department-store telescope, a do-it-yourself Galileoscope could be the key to pursuing an interest in astronomy beyond IYA 2009. There are several cardboard-and-plastic refractor kits on the market today, but none are particularly good. Our working group is collaborating with the AAS “Telescope Kits & Optics Challenges” working group, led by Stephen Pompea (NOAO), to develop a better one.