Open Night

Open Night: December 19

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Detail of Earth's Moon viewed through The Cooley Telescope. iPhone photo by James Guilford.
Detail of Earth’s Moon viewed through The Cooley Telescope

UPDATE: Braving the cold (temperatures in the mid-20s), 17 folks visited the observatory and all were treated to our usual outstanding views of our Moon. Determined by timing and other factors, visitors also saw combinations of other objects: Uranus, stars of the Pleiades and Hyades star clusters, and the delicate beauty of the Orion Nebula.

Stephens Memorial Observatory of Hiram College will be open to the public on Saturday, December 19, from 7:00 to 9:00 PM. The Moon and planet Uranus, and the Pleiades and Hyades star clusters are to be featured during this, the final observatory event for the year. Visitors should bundle up; the observatory is unheated and Saturday’s forecast calls for frigid temperatures!

No reservations are required and there is no admission fee for observatory public nights. Cloudy skies at the starting time cancel the event and, in that case, the observatory will not open.

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.

November 21: Observatory Open Night

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UPDATE: Due to cloud cover and inclement weather, this program has been canceled; the observatory WILL NOT be open.

The Pleiades - Messier 45 - Credit: James Guilford
The Pleiades – Messier 45

Stephens Memorial Observatory of Hiram College will be open to the public on Saturday, November 21, from 7:00 to 9:00 PM. On the observing list for the night are: the Moon, the Pleiades and Hyades star clusters, and possibly other celestial objects.

No reservations are required and there is no admission fee for observatory public nights. Cloudy skies at the starting time cancel the event and, in that case, the observatory will not open. For updates and more information, return here or follow “@StephensObs” on Twitter.

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.

October 17 observatory open night

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UPDATE: Due to cloud cover and inclement weather, this program has been canceled; the observatory WILL NOT be open.

Stephens Memorial Observatory of Hiram College will be open to the public on Saturday, October 17, from 8:00 to 10:00 PM. On the observing list for the night are: the Andromeda Galaxy, the Perseus Double Cluster, and possibly other celestial objects.

No reservations are required and there is no admission fee for observatory public nights. Cloudy skies at the starting time cancel the event and, in that case, the observatory will not open. For updates and more information, see this website or follow our Tweets:  http://twitter.com/StephensObs

September 19: International Observe the Moon Night

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Photo: Waxing Gibbout Moon. Photo by James Guiilford.
The Waxing Gibbous Moon – Night Before First Quarter

UPDATE: It was a confusing night with the sky quickly changing from clear to overcast, overcast to clear, and so on! In all 14 folks took a chance and came out. Trees and clouds blocked our view of the Moon on, of all things, International Observe the Moon Night! Patient visitors did receive views of the Andromeda Galaxy, and the Perseus Double Cluster. The last to leave observed the path of the Milky Way’s star stream overhead and the dark areas created by interstellar dust clouds!

Stephens Memorial Observatory of Hiram College will be open to the public on Saturday, September 19, from 9:00 to 11:00 PM as a local venue of International Observe the Moon Night (InOMN).

The InOMN is an annual, world-wide public engagement program that encourages observation, appreciation, and understanding of Earth’s Moon. Everyone on Earth is invited to join the celebration by attending an InOMN event — and uniting on one day each year to look at and learn about the Moon together. This year’s InOMN takes place just one week ahead of the much-anticipated total lunar eclipse taking place the night of Sunday, September 27.

No reservations are required and there is no admission fee for observatory public nights. Overcast skies or inclement weather at the starting time cancel the event and, in that case, the observatory will not open. For updates and more information, see the observatory’s Web site: StephensObservatory.org or “@StephensObs” on Twitter.

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.

Click here for a handy map showing the Moon as it will appear during InOMN with some interesting features highlighted!

Saturday, August 22: Open Night

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Moon in Daylight Sky
Moon in Daylight Sky
UPDATE: The August 22 Open Night was a tremendous success seeing 49 visitors overall! Early arrivals were not only treated to good to excellent views of Earth’s Moon but fair to good sightings of Saturn and several of its moons as well! Over the course of the night we were able to observe open star clusters M6 (Butterfly), M7 (Ptolemy’s) in Sagittarius, and the Double Cluster in Perseus; globular clusters M28, and M22 in Sagittarius; and the Andromeda Galaxy or M31 as catalogued by Messier. The exploration ended, nearly on time, as clouds moved in from the southwest obliterating our viewing of “faint fuzzies” like globular clusters! Thanks to all who attended!

Stephens Memorial Observatory of Hiram College will be open to the public on Saturday, August 22, from 9:00 to 11:00 PM. On the observing list for the night are: the First Quarter Moon (early), and a couple of star clusters including M4 in Scorpius, finishing with the Andromeda Galaxy (late). Please note that the Moon will become obscured by neighboring trees before the end of open hours; arrive early if you wish to see it!

Clear skies are a necessity for viewing of faint objects like star clusters so visitors should keep up on current weather conditions: cloudy skies at the starting time cancel the event and, in that case, the observatory will not open. Check back here or via the observatory’s Twitter account for late Open Night status! Our Twitter handle is:  @StephensObs

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.

Saturday, July 25: Observatory Open Night

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Stephens Memorial Observatory of Hiram College will be open to the public on Saturday, July 25, from 9:30 to 11:00 PM. On the observing list for the night are: the Moon, ringed world Saturn, and star cluster M4 in Scorpius.

No reservations are required and there is no admission fee for observatory public nights. Cloudy skies at the starting time cancel the event and, in that case, the observatory will not open.

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.

June 20 Open Night

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UPDATE: As it turned out, although the skies turned cloudy just as the observatory opened for the night, the overcast cleared in short order giving way to very good seeing! About 20 visitors came and enjoyed views of Saturn, its moons, and the Cassini Division within the ring system, the beautiful Hercules Globular Cluster (M13), and Messier 57 aka: the Ring Nebula. Our views of M57 were the best we have enjoyed from Hiram thanks to an eyepiece on loan for testing! Next Open Night is set for July 25.

The title to this posting ought to include a question mark! So far this year, the weather has been very uncooperative on our public Open Nights and Saturday’s forecast doesn’t look very promising. We shall hope for the best because our June 20 event features the beautiful ringed world Saturn. We also hope to spy the Ring Nebula and, to break the ring theme, the diamond-dust Hercules Globular Cluster (M13). If the skies are clear enough, we will be open from 9:30 to 11:00 PM Saturday. 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. No reservations are required and there is no admission fee for observatory public nights. Cloudy skies at the starting time cancel the event and, in that case, the observatory will not open. For updates and more information, return here or follow “@StephensObs” on Twitter.

Open Night: Saturday, May 30

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UPDATE: Due to severe and inclement weather the scheduled May 30 Open Night has been canceled. Severe thunderstorms were reported in northern portions of Portage County along with strong winds and heavy rains. Radar was tracking other storms expected to reach the Hiram area.

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M13-small
The Great Hercules Star Cluster – M13

Stephens Memorial Observatory of Hiram College will be open to the public on Saturday, May 30, from 9:00 to 11:00 PM. On the observing list for the night are: the Moon, star cluster M13 in Hercules, and, later, the Ring Nebula. No reservations are required and there is no admission fee for observatory public nights. Cloudy skies at the starting time cancel the event and, in that case, the observatory will not open. 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. Watch for updates here and via Twitter @StephensAstro for the latest.

Luna is full of amazing sights

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Photo: Waxing Gibbout Moon. Photo by James Guiilford.
The Waxing Gibbous Moon – Night Before First Quarter

Clear skies look unlikely for our planned Public Open Night scheduled for Saturday. So here’s a look at Friday night’s Moon. I captured this with my camera and a telephoto lens and it turned out pretty well. I must say, however, that visitors viewing Luna through the Observatory’s grand old telescope get a much better view than I’m displaying here! Still, we’ll point out a few things here that we would mention if we were looking through the telescope… First, look along the edge of the Moon’s disk as it is contrasted against the blackness of space; note how it’s a bit uneven? The lumps in the disk’s edge are actually mountains and crater rims on the sides of the Moon’s globe! See the “smile” line on the inner edge of the Moon? That line divides the lit and unlit portions of the Moon and is called the terminator. In this, the waxing gibbous phase, the terminator represents sunrise on the surface. As on Earth, sunrise shadows are long and those long shadows and low-angle sunlight bring out details in the craters and mountains (for even greater detail, see this image from last month). The bright ray-lines projecting from some of the craters are light-colored material “splashed” out of the crater sites as they were formed by asteroid hits; they mark newer craters. Also note the central peak in at least one of the craters – material thrust upward as shock waves from collisions bounded back, inward, from the forming crater walls. Old Luna is full of amazing sights, if only we will see them!

Saturday, April 25 Open Night: See Moon and Jupiter

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Stephens Memorial Observatory of Hiram College will be open to the public on Saturday, April 25, from 9:00 to 10:00 PM. On the observing list for the night are: Jupiter, Beehive Cluster, M3 Star Cluster, and the Moon. Cloudy skies cancel the event! Trees to our west may interfere with viewing of both the Moon and Jupiter later in our session, so earlier arrival would be good.

The Observatory is located on Wakefield Road (Rt. 82) less than a quarter of a mile west of Route 700 in Hiram. For updates and more information, see the observatory’s Web site: StephensObservatory.org or “@StephensObs” on Twitter.

No reservations are required and there is no admission fee for observatory public nights. Cloudy skies at the starting time cancel the event and, in that case, the observatory will not open. 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.