Wood Speaks to European Astronomers
Tue Feb 15 2011
Dr. Chuck Wood, director of the Center for Educational Technologies at Wheeling Jesuit University in Wheeling, WV, was an invited speaker at AstroFest, the largest amateur astronomy meeting in Europe.
In addition to his work at the center, Wood serves as a senior scientist with the Planetary Science Institute in Tuscon, AZ.
At the London conference Feb. 4-5 he made two presentations about the Moon. In one he explained how to learn to read the Moon, deciphering its history and the sequence of processes that formed and modified its surface. The second talk told the history of observations and beliefs about lunar transient phenomena—observations of unusual lighting that often have been misinterpreted as evidence for life, atmosphere, or volcanism. Wood pointed out problems with these observations and how they are in conflict with modern understanding of lunar science.
Wood chairs the Lunar Nomenclature Task Group of the International Astronomical Union, whose task is to issue new names for discoveries on the Moon. Wood has authored three books dealing with the Moon, volcanoes, and craters, respectively. He also has written some 250 papers encompassing conference publications, abstracts, and oral presentations at national and international meetings. He also has been a columnist for Sky & Telescope magazine since 1998, authoring more than 100 columns. In addition, he operates a website called Lunar Photo of the Day. For more information you can also visit his personal website, Chuck Wood's Moon: A Compendium of Lunar Science and History.
