Comments on: Spreading the joy of astronomy, one customer at a time

By: Ihna

Ihna — Fri, 12 Nov 2010 06:32:59 +0000

@17 Mary & @18 chimango (and everyone else who finds them:)

How do you encourage those enthusiastic kids?

By: mike burkhart

mike burkhart — Tue, 09 Nov 2010 16:28:02 +0000

I would do this but the last coupple of years I have’nt had any trick or treaters in my neighborhood. Also this year it was cloudy on Halloween . Still I think its a good idea maybe it will get kids interested in science . Like I’ve complaned about there are to few kids who have an interest in science , I think there are several resons for this : 1 The preception that science is for nerds so many jocks ingnore science and pump iorn intsed 2 Parnets just don’t encourge there kids to look into science as a job, I think most parnets want there kids to be sports stars or coporate excutives they don’t see sciencetists as a seccessfull job ( lets face it few sciencetists are millonares) 3 hollywoods mad sciencetist films 4religous fundamentlists who unlike religous moderets like me think of science as an enemy and a big conspircy to wipe out religon 5 I think school systems teach few science in k-12 grade leaving up to collages to teach science.

By: Andy Fleming

Andy Fleming — Tue, 09 Nov 2010 15:14:33 +0000

What an absolutely superb idea… I do the same thing as Mr Courtin, only with living in a village the skies are somewhat darker so when I set the telescope up on the village green we can extend things to some DSOs such as M81, M82, the Orion Nebula, M57, M31 and 33 etc. My own son thoroughly enjoys the views and quite a few of his friends and neighbours’ kids have a look too. Saturn is always tops with the kids.

And before anyone asks, the village green is owned by the same council and as I am a volunteer like Neil Haggath at the same planetarium I have been CRB checked!!!!

I know checks have to be made but it all seems a bit OTT, a job creation scheme and I don’t like the ‘guilty until proven innocent’ tone of the way things are heading in the UK.

By: Jeffersonian

Jeffersonian — Tue, 09 Nov 2010 05:23:39 +0000

It’s so true. I knew this dude who lived in a rural part of Colo (away from lights) at nearly 10,000′ (very clear skies). He would have these parties where he would set up these large telescopes (a Schmidt and a Meade?, iirc – both were like 10″-12″ and one was the kind with the eyepiece on top) and the revelers would form lines. Many people had not seen, say, Ganymede and Io. When Hale-Bopp came he threw an all-nighter. It was so big and clear through those top-optic devices.

By: Autumn

Autumn — Tue, 09 Nov 2010 05:06:26 +0000

Neil @ #29,
Actually, because you are on Council property, this is entirely resonable from the point of view of the Council. I agree that it is silly and illogical when seen from your point of view, but imagine the outcry if something unfortunate did happen on the property; citizens would be outraged that such a minor thing as a background check wasn’t required for anyone who may attract a crowd.
My kids’ schools have similar rules for anyone volunteering for the school, as well as for groups that use the open public spaces of the school for various events, practices, etc. On your own property, you have the ultimate responsibility for yourself, so the government is not interested. Here in the US, there are plenty of neighborhoods whose local property-owners’-associations would certainly want proper vetting and permitting if someone were to set up a ‘scope for public viewing on land not owned by the ‘scope owner.

By: Tom

Tom — Mon, 08 Nov 2010 18:22:18 +0000

I like that idea for Halloween. I’d love to try that but I’m in Seattle and a clear Halloween is very rare. Bah!

By: Neil Haggath

Neil Haggath — Mon, 08 Nov 2010 17:50:14 +0000

I applaud anyone who takes astronomy to the public in this manner. But I´m sorry to say that in my country, any such effort is likely to be made difficult by interfering politicians, idiotic laws and over the top bureaucracy!
In the UK today, if anyone wanted to do this sort of thing in a public place, the council would demand that:
a. he take out public liability insurance, for a minimum cover of one million pounds ( that´s about US$1.4 million – and I´m not exaggerating! ), just in case someone trips over his telescope or something.
b. he be vetted by the Criminal Records Bureau, to prove that he isn´t a paedophile, as he might come into contact with children.
I kid you not! A case in point…
In my home town, the Council owns a public observatory and planetarium, which is used for public open nights and organised visits for schools, scout groups, etc. Its Director is a council employee, and members of the local astronomical society help out at these events on a volunteer basis. Everyone who does so has to be vetted by the CRB, as stated above; this isn´t really unreasonable, as they are working for the council ( albeit unpaid ), and they obviously are working with children. And the Council pays for the vetting.
But the Council have taken it a step further… Even before the observatory was built, some of our society members traditionally used the site as an observing location with their own telescopes, and some still do. So the Council has decreed that anyone who takes their own telescope to the site, for their own personal use, must also be vetted by the CRB ( at their own expense ) – just in case they come into contact with children who are visiting the observatory!!!
We have naturally protested about the latter stupid decision. I have made the sarcastic point that, continuing with the same “logic”, the next obvious step is to say that every astronomer who uses his own telescope in his own driveway must be vetted by the CRB, just in case any of his neighbours´kids happen to come along, and say, “Can I have a look through your telescope, mister?” Isn´t it?

By: QuietDesperation

QuietDesperation — Mon, 08 Nov 2010 15:50:22 +0000

I would expect that images on a laptop would be questioned, but most people will believe what they see with their own eyes.

So you pop in a regular eyepiece for a moment. Adapt, people, adapt!

Or use a binocular attachment: CCD in one and eyepiece in the other.

By: Wayne on the plains

Wayne on the plains — Mon, 08 Nov 2010 15:32:14 +0000

I’ve been doing the Halloween telescope thing since getting the idea here a few years ago. This year, some older teens walked by and said “It’s the Telescope Guy”. My wife has decided that’s my new nickname. I can live with that.
I also try to bring a ‘scope to every outdoor gathering I attend that will go past dark. It never fails to be a hit among young and old.

By: JonH

JonH — Mon, 08 Nov 2010 14:01:13 +0000

We have a small neighborhood park just up the street from my house. Aside from a couple of lights and trees , it seems like it would be a great place to setup a scope to get a wide range of viewing.

I’ll have to do this next Halloween, we get a ton of people through the area. I’ve always wanted to take the scope up there and show people stuff. (Love the Milky Way candy bar idea)

By: DennyMo

DennyMo — Mon, 08 Nov 2010 13:32:53 +0000

I finally hauled my 4.5″ Meade reflector out of its box in the basement, planned on setting it up for Halloween. Remembered why it was back in the box, gears on the equatorial mount aren’t engaging properly, no tracking, grrr. At least my boys got to see Jupiter and its moons for the first time. (Hopefully it’s an easy adjustment to fix.)

By: Timmy

Timmy — Mon, 08 Nov 2010 13:22:08 +0000

I recently got a galileoscope for my birthday and had the wife and kids outside to see Jupiter and the moon. I was able to see two of the gallilean moons and could even see a dark band on Jupiter. The moon was about 3/4 full and looked absolutely amazing!
I am planning to take the ‘scope out on our next cub scout camping trip to see what we can see…

By: Yeebok

Yeebok — Mon, 08 Nov 2010 08:35:28 +0000

I used to do this with my 8″ dobsonian when I volunteered at the local astronomy club. The reactions of people was *always* rewarding. Sure, you get the odd person that’s unimpressed but some of them would be unimpressed if a meteor made a crater 2 feet from them.

The absolute best night was an evening we had some wheelchair bound people come. I made a point of ensuring that no matter what we were looking at, they got a look. Afterwards, they were extremely appreciative – they said any other time, the ‘scope operator seemed to think it was too hard to accommodate them, but they loved that I took the time.

@5 (Oliver) That is a real shame. Tell them if they sent me one, I’d ensure it was out giving them a good name at least every other clear night. Not sure what postage to Australia would be tho ..
@8 (Brian) How do you knock out a street light with a laser ? Given my current location that would be an excellent skill to have.

By: Adrienne

Adrienne — Mon, 08 Nov 2010 05:09:30 +0000

One of my favorite experiences was a ~3 year old girl who stepped up to look at the Moon. She looked, she gasped, she exhaled, ‘La Luna! La Luna!” then looked up at the Moon with her head, then back to the scope, then up to the sky, then back to the scope, all the time whispering, “la luna….la luna….la luna…” After the crowd went through looking, she took a second turn A few minutes later I was on another object, and she came back over. Very upset, she threw a small temper tantrum b/c she couldn’t look at La Luna again! The whole crowd was smiling at her. I tell ya, I’m not one to tolerate temper tantrums…but if it’s because of not being able to look at the Moon through a telescope…I welcome it!

Another favorite is the ~90 yr old couple that came up to the resort restaurant b/c their great grandchildren and grand children were staying there. They came out to the telescope. Neither one had looked through a telescope before and it was amazing to see their reaction.

By: Joe W.

Joe W. — Mon, 08 Nov 2010 05:01:11 +0000

I’m soooo gonna steal your stargazing idea for Halloween trick-or-treaters…

By: Monkey

Monkey — Mon, 08 Nov 2010 04:18:34 +0000

Tain the soup with a little bit of poison, and the soup….she is wrecked.

Astronomy + astrology = …she is wrecked.

By: tmac57

tmac57 — Mon, 08 Nov 2010 03:47:53 +0000

Hey this guy is in my neck of the woods.I’ll try to stop by some time. By the way, this is actually in Dallas.Lakewood is the name of the neighborhood.

By: chimango

chimango — Mon, 08 Nov 2010 03:42:27 +0000

It is a great thing to do; you notice when they see for the first time trough the scope and their faces suddenly change the expression, (it happen sometimes, specially with kids)
During the IYA2009, i have toured all over San Luis province, in Argentina, with a 10″ telescope (the university i work for brought 6 of them, there were 5 other teams doing the same thing). During vacations, we went to the main square of each town and when the schools opened, to the schoolyards. In total, almost 100.000 people looked trough a telescope, most of them for the first time (we even went to remote places where there was no electricity)
Most of the times, there were too many people and we pointed at the moon (without a filter it was too much light!) or Saturn/Júpiter and nothing more. Sometimes, there were less than 50 people and they always wanted to see something more; all the summer looking at M42 and 47Tucanae. And a very few special times they asked us to stay longer. That happened mostly on rural schools; someone made an asado (something like a barbecue, but more tasty) or would bring empanadas, all the people from the near farms came to the school and we ended well past 12pm (we were supposed to end at 10pm) looking at M42 (at the beginning of the year) alfa centauri, omega centauri, every planet available, tarantula nebula, the ring nebula, sombrero galaxy (if the sky was dark enough), centaurus A… ah, yes; and Eta carinae Nebula. After i told them what it was and what is going on there, it always became a favorite. As Mary said, sometimes, some kid stands out because of the questions made, and is a challenge to answer without oversimplify nor complicate things too much for them.
I have seen all kind of reactions, including what Adrienne said; many people thinking that it was a fake image, trying to look trough the other end of the telescope to see if there was a photograph or something… it happened me more than once. Most people were amazed. Some where very interested in the telescope itself (hey, a meade 10″ lx2oo is an awesome toy, and not a frequent sight in such a poor province) some people even walked off really pissed when they asked me about UFO’s/fake moon landings/2012/etc and i gave them my usual frontal answers… (only the classic nut jobs did that; most of who asked that ended laughing and we had a nice chat)

but almost NO ONE walked out in indifference.

Yes, it was (is) a job for me, the university paid me for it and i didn’t do it for free (it was free to look trough the telescope, we didn’t charge) as Stephen is doing it, but it has been one of the most rewarding things i have done so far in my life. I only regret that the IYA was so short (just one year? oh, and the money for the project ran out, as it was supposed to, at the end of the year) Now, we have set up a 16″ telescope to be used trough Internet, but is not the same that looking at their faces. (if Phil reads this comment and lets me, i will leave the url in another comment; it’s open for everyone to use, but still a little “beta”)

greetings from (the other) down under
and sorry for my bad english

By: Mary

Mary — Mon, 08 Nov 2010 03:21:24 +0000

Our Astronomy group does ‘Sidewalk Astronomy’ on a regular basis. The reaction of s0omeone seeing the Moon or a major planet for the first time through a telescope is always fun. There are people who come back again and again. Because of the brightness of the location, telescopes can show only the brightest objects. However, pointing out the ISS passing over is always a hit. A number of members have Mallincams. Mallincams can show objects that would generally not visible in a lit area. In a dark location, well– they really are quite amazing.
Always, on Astronomy Day or at a Scout Group or similar events, I meet young people whose enthusiasm and inquisitiveness are delightful. Often, one stands out, showing a particular interest and asking thoughtful questions. It always makes me smile and makes the driving and setting up and taking down equipment well worth the effort.
There have been times when members have set up for personal observations at dark sites and been visited by police officers who are wondering what is going on. It is not unusual for the officers to return after their shift to have a look.

By: Jennifer

Jennifer — Sun, 07 Nov 2010 23:27:08 +0000

I do this occasionally on nice nights, and offer to show passersby Jupiter, Venus or the Moon. It’s always fun.

By: zzamboni

zzamboni — Sun, 07 Nov 2010 22:40:08 +0000

A few years ago my wife and I were visiting Yosemite and by chance came across a meet of a local astronomy club. There were about 10 or so people with telescopes, showing different sights to whoever came by. I had already looked through a telescope before, but it was still an awesome experience, and I felt very thankful that those people were letting us glimpse the sky through their telescopes.

By: Tobin Dax

Tobin Dax — Sun, 07 Nov 2010 22:02:04 +0000

@ Quiet Desperation: Similar to what Adrienne said, a common reaction I get from students seeing Saturn or Jupiter for the first time is “Is that real?” I would expect that images on a laptop would be questioned, but most people will believe what they see with their own eyes.

By: Flower of Scotland

Flower of Scotland — Sun, 07 Nov 2010 21:28:20 +0000

@12 Too true, I have actually had a police man questioning me over what “that thing was.” I live under an RAF flightpath and don’t tend to leave the telescope out before dark encase one gets a little jumpy.

By: Bipedal Tetrapod

Bipedal Tetrapod — Sun, 07 Nov 2010 20:11:28 +0000

Try it with a 10″ dobsonian. The SWAT team will be there in minutes…

By: J. Major

J. Major — Sun, 07 Nov 2010 19:22:55 +0000

It’s a Good Thing that guy is doing. I’ll have to stop and visit him one of these nights!