OBSERVATORY HOST TO ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY

At the invitation of Harlow Shapley, director of the Harvard College Observatory, and Paine Professor of Practical Astronomy, the Twenty-First Annual meeting of the American Association of Variable Star Observers will be held Saturday at the Harvard Observatory. The organization, which includes over 300 members and is world-wide in extent, will have members present at the meeting from considerable portions of the United States.

Although there are two other such organizations, the American Association of Variable Star Observers is unique in this country. France and England are the only other nations in which similar societies have been formed.

Session Starts Friday

Members of the Council will gather for the usual council meeting on Friday evening, convening at nine o'clock in the Pickering Memorial Room immediately following the Open Night held at the Observatory to which all members of the Association are cordially invited. The members are fortunate in being able to attend the first of the annual series of Open Nights, at which Dr. D. H. Menzel will lecture on "The Sun, a Variable Star." An important part of the activities of the Open Night will be the observation of various stars, through the new 15-inch telescope at the Observatory, the largest of its kind in the world, situated in the western hemisphere.

The regular business meeting will be held at the Observatory starting at 10 o'clock on Saturday morning. At this time reports of officers and committees will be received and submitted, and general business matters of the Association acted upon. An eclipse symposium will follow the conclusion of general business. The morning session will adjourn following this meeting.

Oak Ridge Trip

If the weather permits, the afternoon session will be held at the new Oak Ridge station of the Harvard Observatory at Harvard. This will be the first meeting of any importance to take place at the new Observatory, which was dedicated early last September. Following the election of officers and council members, opportunity will be given for the presentation and discussion of papers. Tea will be served at the invitation of Dr. and Mrs. Shapley at 4.30 o'clock. The meeting will adjourn at 5.30 o'clock for the return to Cambridge.

The final event on the program will be the annual dinner to be held at the Hotel Continental, Cambridge, at 7.30 o'clock on Saturday evening