John J. McCarthy Observatory

		The Student Worldwide Astronomy Network (SWAN) is an initiative to develop and promote a worldwide network of student groups that will be able to work together on collaborative astronomy-based projects of educational and research value. SWAN is an initiative of the Western Connecticut Chapter, Society for Amateur Scientists (WCCSAS) through its operation of the John J. McCarthy Observatory.
		SWAN projects should be fun for everyone. Projects may be suggested by any SWAN participant and may be carried out by any groups that choose to do so. Participation in SWAN is, of course, voluntary and there are no costs involved. SWAN will provide a worldwide forum that will enable student groups and other interested parties to suggest and collaborate on projects and share their work. SWAN will be member driven. Until a better way is developed, the McCarthy Observatory will act as host and offer our web site as the forum for SWAN.
		SWAN is aimed at middle and high school level students, teachers, and schools, but anyone or any group may participate.
		A desire to participate and access to email are most important. Internet access is desirable. Telescopes and imaging cameras will expand the number of projects available to groups, but are not necessary for many exciting projects.
		There are many reasons to become a participant in SWAN, including: Excitement in education Since space and the night sky are exciting to most people, astronomy is the perfect vehicle to engage students and to help them to enjoy learning. Involving students in projects with other student groups will take this excitement to a higher level as geography, foreign languages, and cooperating with others who may be different are brought into the learning experience. Extended sky coverage The entire sky can not be seen from any one location. For instance, from our latitude there is much of the southern sky we can not see, and vise-versa. SWAN will allow full sky coverage by sharing between different groups. Poor weather can be overcome By networking with SWAN and sharing data and images the effects of poor weather can be overcome. Special events can be shared Many special events, such as eclipses, transits, occultations, and other transient events, visible to only a portion of us can be shared with all. 24 hour monitoring With SWAN, objects, special events, and the targets of our projects can be monitored 24 hours a day. Simultaneous observations SWAN will make it easy to arrange for simultaneous observations of objects from widely separated locations. This will be very useful for parallax projects that will enable the distance to nearby objects to be determined. SWAN's objectives are achievable Advances in technology make the time right for SWAN. With the communications revolution provided by computers, email, and the Internet and the parallel advances in affordable and capable telescopes and imaging equipment, a worldwide astronomy network designed to excite students SWAN is now possible. SWAN tradeoffs The benefits of SWAN far outweigh any negative aspects of the initiative, if there are any. There are no direct monetary costs involved, only the time and effort of SWAN's participants. There may be some minor privacy issues involved with the use of the email, the Internet, and the World Wide Web, but groups can decide individually how to deal with these issues. Other benefits When we look at an image of Earth taken from space, its beauty, its wholeness, and its isolation awe us. The view from space or even from an airplane does not show political or other divisions-the Earth and its life are one system. SWAN may help provide some of the friendship and goodwill needed to sustain us.
		If you are interested in participating in SWAN, click on the Sign Up button to go to the sign up form. The form will provide SWAN with information about you and your group, your suggestions for SWAN and any projects you would like to participate in. We will post your information on the Patricipants and Projects sections of this web site. Participants can review the list of projects and directly contact the participants involved in that project to join in and coordinate their participation. The most important aspect of participation is to have fun. As you fill out the form, please try to give as much information as possible, skip any item that does not apply to you, and remember, the information you provide will be posted on our web site.