What Star is This?
An astronomer’s thoughts on the star of Bethlehem
with Dr. George Spagna
Wednesday, January 6, 2021
7:00 p.m., Zoom
A special presentation will be offered by Dr. George Spagna, Chair of the Physics Department at Randolph-Macon College and Director of the Keebler Observatory. “What Star is This? An astronomer’s thoughts on the star of Bethlehem” is a timely presentation, as we enjoyed a rare planetary alignment in December and our first Wednesday program falls exactly on Epiphany. We will share in a Zoom meeting at 7:00 p.m. on the 6th, to hear his interesting exploration about the star observed and followed by the Magi.
Dr. Spagna lives in Ashland with his wife, Sylvia, where they raised 2 daughters, Amy and Kimberley, who are both grown. They have one grandson, 19 month-old Evan. Having taught at Randolph-Macon for almost 35 years, he is looking forward to retiring at the end of this academic year. The Spagnas are part of the Episcopal Church of St. James the Less in Ashland, VA.
How will the program work?
While these sessions are offered at a specific time, they will also be recorded for later listening or viewing on the church website, though watching later will not be interactive like the live Zoom will be. In each session, there will be a presentation piece, in this case a dialogue, followed by a time to ask questions and further discuss the presentation content. If you must exit the conversation at any point along the way, please do so as needed. We understand our session may go a little longer and you might need to go.
After signing up, you will receive a Zoom link via email, along with instructions for participating.
First time using Zoom? That’s okay!
- Pre-download Zoom here (it includes links to download mobile apps for Apple and Android devices).
- Unless you have a top notch internet connection at your home, it is recommended that other family members stay off internet during the Zoom (or at least do not stream video, play online games, etc.).
- For the same reason, you will probably only want one connection in the house to the Zoom meeting. In other words, spouses should share the same phone or computer instead of being on separate devices.
- If you lose your connection during the call, go back to the link provided above and log back in.
- When you initially log in, mute your microphone and open up the chat feature to type questions and comments. After the initial greeting, we’ll have you turn your microphones back on for conversation.