College of the Canyons hosted its 29th semi-annual Star Party and Science Showcase on Friday night at the Canyon Country campus, which featured demonstrations of student-built projects.  Anthony Michaelides, dean of Campus Services & Operations, said it was great to see not only students come to the event, but other community members, too. The intricate science work the students do at the campus is not well-known to the public, he said.   “I think a lot of our communities don’t realize the levels of knowledge and experience these students have and what they’ve done, and this event gives them a chance to learn about what we’re doing here at the college,” Michaelides said. “The students are running the tables, representing the department or their club. It’s a community college. We’re an educational facility. We’re here to educate students. We’re here for the community.”  The Star Party Committee, which planned and organized the event, is made up of five members, including Michaelides, Teresa Ciardi, Jamie Page, Maria Sanchez and Paul Wickline.  Some of the projects displayed were part of the college’s NASA Student Engagement program, including improvements on a sun-tracking telescope that captures photos and a capsule release system that was selected for use on a NASA rocket.   Guest speaker Jason Wright, an astronomy and astrophysics professor at Penn State University, gave a presentation about the science behind searching for extraterrestrials.  Wright went over portrayals of extraterrestrials in pop culture and how his work involves looking for signs of life in space by monitoring waste heat.   The event is held twice a year, during the spring and fall semesters, and partners with the Local Group Astronomy Club of Santa Clarita and the Antelope Valley Astronomy Club, whose members volunteer their telescopes for attendees to gaze at the stars.  Glenn Basore, who previously served as the Local Group president, often brings his telescope along with other members of the club to the semi-annual Star Party for attendees to use, and he said it is rewarding to see people in awe of what they see.  “They look through it and you start hearing ‘Wow’ or ‘That’s cool’ or something like that. That’s our reward,” Basore said. “For us to be able to be able to share [the telescopes] with somebody and hear their reactions is really kind of neat.”  The post COC Star Party features NASA projects and search for extraterrestrials  appeared first on Santa Clarita Valley Signal.