FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE            May 11, 2007           Contact: Janie Schwab

Capital Region Students Win Out-of-This World

Dudley Observatory Astronomy Awards

The Dudley Observatory, the nation’s oldest independent supporter of astronomical research and education, is proud to recognize ten outstanding Capital Region students who have been awarded Astronomy Camperships and Internships.

The awards will be presented on Monday, May 14 in a ceremony beginning at 7:30 PM at the Albany Heritage Area Visitors Center. The ceremony will be followed by telescope viewing.

The winner of the Albert Hessberg II Astronomy Campership Award is Michael Ormsbee of Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake Senior High. This award pays tuition and travel expenses to attend the nationwide Advanced Astronomy Camp in Tucson, Arizona. Ormsbee will travel to the mountaintop observatory of the University of Arizona. He will participate in a wide variety of astronomical activities, including nighttime observation of the stars through the university's large telescopes. Ormsbee will also carry out daytime solar observations using a variety of instruments, participate in an exchange of ideas with professional astronomers, and he will carry out his own astronomical research project. The award is named for former longtime Dudley Observatory trustee and astronomy enthusiast Albert Hessberg II.

Winners of the Rising Star Internship Program each receive a telescope and education on use for celestial studies. The interns, assisted by mentors from the Albany Area Amateur Astronomers, will gain the knowledge and experience needed to provide free public astronomy education programs at schools and other venues throughout the community. The Rising Star Program was developed and is managed by Janie Schwab, Executive Director of the Dudley Observatory.

Winners of Dudley Observatory Rising Star Internships are:

• Brady Pelkey of Hudson Falls Middle School
• Nicholas Bordeau of Ballston Spa High School
• Sooha Lim of Albany Academy for Girls
• Alicia Ann LaCross of Hartford CSD
• Steve Schroder who is Home-schooled
• Aileen Shaughnessy of Notre Dame-Bishop Gibbons
• John Lind of Maple Hill Middle School
• Dan Mancuso of Scotia-Glenville High School
• Matt Arnold of Troy High School

The Dudley Observatory, founded in 1852 in Albany and now located in Schenectady, carries out a wide range of programs of education and research in astronomy and the history of astronomy. The Observatory has been the site of numerous milestone discoveries in astronomy, and remains committed to advancing international astronomical studies. For more information on the Dudley Observatory, call the Observatory at (518) 382-7583, or go online to www.dudleyobservatory.org.

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Dudley Observatory
107 Nott Terrace, Suite 201
Schenectady, NY 12308
(518) 382-7583
info@dudleyobservatory.org