Astronomy Day Fun for All
May 6 2006 - Teams from Sonoma County Astronomical Society made telescopes available to everyday folks in three locations in Northern California (Petaluma, Healdsburg, and at Robert Ferguson Observatory). Yours truly showed up un-announced at the Healdsburg location - telescope in tow - making for a total of three scopes.
Healdsburg is a quaint little town nestled amist wine country. On week-ends it's "hoppin" with folks going to popular restaurants, pubs, and even a micro-brewery. From the outset passersby excitedly flocked around our scopes. Interest was high all evening long.
This was my first time bringing a scope to such an activity, and without a doubt was the most fun I've had in a long time (yes, this confirms it - I'm a nerd). Two high quality refractors and my (seemingly hulking) 10" reflector took turns looking at Saturn, Jupiter, and the half moon. People were demonstrably excited to see these celestial wonders close-up, almost always for the first time. I quickly became hooked hearing their exclamations; "Oh my God", "I can't believe it", and other such statements. If we named sky objects by popular vote, Saturn would be renamed to "Holy".
Some of the recurring themes we heard were amusing. Folks would wonder about "Astronomy Day" - seemingly wondering if it were for real. I would explain that we have days for almost everything now - even "National Corn Flake Day" (ok, I was kidding). Then seriously I would explain that the event is in the spirit of John Dobson's Sidewalk Astronomy. Recurrently folks would jokingly(?) wonder if I had a photo viewer hidden in the scope, projecting a picture of Saturn to the eyepiece! Many asked about the differences between the little refractors (a Pronto and a Megrez) and the “cannon” as some called my 10” Orion reflector. Invariably, half-way through the explanation there would be a gasp of excitement from one of the scopes, and our audience would dash over to see the next object! I need to work on shortening that speech.
People asked many questions about telescopes and sky objects. In addition, they deeply appreciated what we were doing, and we received sincere thanks all evening long. Sign me up for next time!
I encourage those in local astronomy groups to consider sponsoring your own "Sidewalk Astronomy" events. They are rewarding to provide, and inspire "plain folks" about the wonders of our universe!
Healdsburg is a quaint little town nestled amist wine country. On week-ends it's "hoppin" with folks going to popular restaurants, pubs, and even a micro-brewery. From the outset passersby excitedly flocked around our scopes. Interest was high all evening long.
This was my first time bringing a scope to such an activity, and without a doubt was the most fun I've had in a long time (yes, this confirms it - I'm a nerd). Two high quality refractors and my (seemingly hulking) 10" reflector took turns looking at Saturn, Jupiter, and the half moon. People were demonstrably excited to see these celestial wonders close-up, almost always for the first time. I quickly became hooked hearing their exclamations; "Oh my God", "I can't believe it", and other such statements. If we named sky objects by popular vote, Saturn would be renamed to "Holy
Some of the recurring themes we heard were amusing. Folks would wonder about "Astronomy Day" - seemingly wondering if it were for real. I would explain that we have days for almost everything now - even "National Corn Flake Day" (ok, I was kidding). Then seriously I would explain that the event is in the spirit of John Dobson's Sidewalk Astronomy. Recurrently folks would jokingly(?) wonder if I had a photo viewer hidden in the scope, projecting a picture of Saturn to the eyepiece! Many asked about the differences between the little refractors (a Pronto and a Megrez) and the “cannon” as some called my 10” Orion reflector. Invariably, half-way through the explanation there would be a gasp of excitement from one of the scopes, and our audience would dash over to see the next object! I need to work on shortening that speech.
People asked many questions about telescopes and sky objects. In addition, they deeply appreciated what we were doing, and we received sincere thanks all evening long. Sign me up for next time!
I encourage those in local astronomy groups to consider sponsoring your own "Sidewalk Astronomy" events. They are rewarding to provide, and inspire "plain folks" about the wonders of our universe!
Funding Member
