NET awards telescope to Rock County teacher

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NET awarded a Celestron telescope to teacher Rhonda Ammon and her 41 fifth-, sixth- and seventh-grade students at Rock Country Public Schools in Bassett, Neb.

The telescope giveaway was part of a promotion for the PBS television program "400 Years of the Telescope." NET Television accepted contest entries from Nebraska schools and non-profit organizations.

In their submission, all 41 of Ammon's students wrote a short essay describing how their school would use the telescope and why it was important to their education.

"There is no way we could afford a $2,000 telescope. With just 15 kids per class, money goes for books first. The kids were very excited and we'll be able to use this in all of our schools," said Ammon.

The presentation of the telescope to Ammon and her students is featured at http://www.netnebraska.org/telescope. The website also offers more information on "400 Years of the Telescope."

Contest entries were posted on the NET website and voted on by the public.

The telescope is designed for amateur astronomers. It can provide details about the surface of Jupiter, Mars and Saturn's rings and images of far-off Uranus, Neptune and Pluto. The telescope is valued at $1,999.

- By Kim Rodgers, NET