June 16, 2009 (Boston, MA) This past week a Harvard paper was submitted to the Astronomical Journal confirming a new category of supernova. What is so unique about this discovery is not just that it is the weakest Supernova ever discovered but that it was found by a 14 year girl in upstate New York. While most other girls her age would be shopping or talking on the phone, Caroline Moore spent months in front of her computer looking through data hooked up to several telescopes. Since her discovery Caroline has received numerous local and state recognition awards and has been interviewed by local and national media –including NPR. And now with this new scientific paper submitted last week, Caroline is again in the national media spotlight. She will appear this Wednesday, June 17, 2009 on Fox News on the Martha MacCallum Show from 1 to 3 pm and Friday, June 19, 2009 on MSNBC on the Rachel Maddow Show at 9pm EDT.

So how did all this begin? Caroline had been fascinated with astronomy since age ten. But back in April of 2008 Caroline won a green SmartStar-R80 telescope from iOptron at the NEAF astronomy tradeshow. Then in that same week Caroline and her father were having dinner with friends from the show. During the conversation one of them mentioned that an 18-year-old had discovered a supernova. At that moment Caroline vowed that she would be the youngest person to discover a supernova. And so Caroline began learning everything she could about researching and collecting data—which meant spending hours in front of a computer hooked up to several telescopes as part of the Puckett Observatory Supernova Search Team in New York. Then one night this past November she saw something out of the ordinary in the constellation Pegasus. A week after submitting it to the International Astronomical Union she received a phone call confirming that what she discovered was one of the dimmest supernovas ever found. “I laughed out loud on the phone when they told me,” says Caroline who is a freshman in high school.

This past February Caroline Moore was announced as the Young Astronomer of the Year by iOptron Telescopes. Caroline will be an active participant of iOptron's International Year of Astronomy 2009 (IYA 2009) initiatives throughout the year helping to promote astronomy with young people. “We are all proud of Caroline and her accomplishments,” says John Hou VP Marketing at iOptron. “The fact that she is so young and knowledgeable about astronomy makes her the perfect representative.”

Caroline’s school district in Warwick, NY also asked her to help set up an astronomy program to help foster astronomy in more young people. iOptron has agreed to help sponsor the program by donating astronomy equipment to the school.

About iOptron:
iOptron is a global company specialized in the development, manufacturing and marketing of innovative computerized telescopes and cutting-edge imaging products for multiple applications. The SmartStar® mount and telescop systems are the flagship offerings from iOptron. With iOptron's SmartStar®telescope star-gazing is no longer just for geeks and scientists. Now families can enjoy watching the stars, too. Just click and see the universe!

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Media Contact:
Coleman Coates
iOptron Corporation
781.569.0200 Ext. 256
ccoates@ioptron.com