UPDATE: Thanks to the 29 visitors, of a wide variety of ages, who came out Saturday night to share the view with us. Early arrivals got good views of Saturn. In the middle of our evening our guests saw Saturn under improving conditions and the rising Moon as it cleared neighboring trees. Those who visited or stayed late viewed the Full Harvest Moon (sometimes through tree leaves). Our Moon, though fascinating to view through our telescope even when Full or nearly so, created huge amounts of natural light “pollution” as it illuminated atmospheric haze and thin clouds — we were unable to see the Great Andromeda Galaxy or the M15 star cluster. The Moon got tangled in trees again as it arced higher into the sky. Our final visitors of the evening, however, were rewarded for their patience with views of the Perseus Double Cluster after it cleared trees. We love trees but not so close to the observatory!
Stephens Memorial Observatory of Hiram College will host a Public Night Saturday, September 14, from 9:00 to 11:00 PM. On the observing list are: Earth’s Moon, Saturn, the Messier 15 star cluster, and, if sky conditions permit, the Andromeda Galaxy, and Perseus Double star cluster. Given good viewing conditions the Observatory’s 1901 vintage telescope delivers outstanding detail of the Moon and impressive views of Saturn and distinctive rings.
Cloudy skies at the scheduled starting time cancel the event in which case, the observatory will not open. No reservations are required and there is no admission fee for observatory public nights.
The Observatory is located on Wakefield Road (Rt. 82) less than a quarter of a mile west of Route 700 in Hiram. There is no parking at the Observatory. Visitors may park on permissible side streets near the Post Office, a short distance east of the observatory.
Updates on programming are available via the Observatory’s Twitter feed: @StephensObs or its website: StephensObservatory.org.
Stephens Memorial Observatory 