seeing stars

Unless you are already involved in local astronomical organizations, you may not know that events and information about the planets, stars and sky are readily available nearby. At Richland College in Richardson is a planetarium that has shows free-of-charge. In the past, they have even customized shows a bit for Scout groups studying for astronomy-related badges. Contact them for their schedule:

Richland College Planetarium - Special programs on the first Friday of each month. Starts with indoor program regardless of weather. Continues with public telescope viewing unless completely overcast or raining. Each second and third Saturday, astronomy programs are presented at 2pm and 3pm. Tours can be arranged through the college by reservation. Sponsored by Richland College and Texas Astronomical Society.

12800 Abrams @ Walnut
Richardson
972 238-6013

Open: 2nd & 3rd Sat 2pm & 3pm Open: 1st Fri of Month 8pm & 8:45

Free, donations accepted
Directions: Enter from Abrams. Planetarium is on west side of campus in Sabine Hall, room S116.

http://www.rlc.dcccd.edu/ce/planet.htm

Also: contact the planetarium to find out about any "Stargazing" events scheduled for Richland college. At these events, amateur astronomers from the area bring their telescopes, set them up on the grounds, aim them at the "cosmic event-of-the-moment" and all visitors can roam about, peering into each telescope. Now these aren’t little ‘scopes like those in a pirate movie, folks. Sometimes they resemble miniature observatories. It’s fun to go from one to another, seeing sights that aren’t normally visible. A fun way to introduce your children to astronomy and make it interesting.

are big and bright * * * * DEEP IN THE HEART OF TEXAS! OK, that’s all the singing I will do…had to get my "State Pride" input there. Anyway, oh yes…we were talking about stars at night. Well, if you have tried to do any stargazing in Plano, you no doubt found out quickly that the glare from those huge baseball-field flood lights across the street MIGHT interfere a bit with seeing any stars other than maybe the brightest stars in Orion or the Big Dipper. Forget about the Milky Way! No, you have to be willing to drive out of town a little ways to get "deep in the heart" (read: away from large metroplex areas) of some open country. Fortunately, the Texas Parks & Wildlife Department has claim on a lot of open land in the state and provides Texans with multiple opportunities to get out and enjoy it.

Rather than just go out to a state park and look upwards, some parks have regularly scheduled Stargazing Parties, complete with star-guides! So, get out and enjoy beautiful parks, fresh air, enjoy seeing more stars than you thought existed and learn about them at the same time!

Two types of Stargazing Parties are regularly scheduled at nearby State Parks:

Dinosaur Valley SP - Star Party - The astronomy club will set up telescopes for viewing and studying the night sky. 8:30 p.m.- till. 254-897-4588

Cleburne SP - Stargazing - Beginning Astronomy Become familiar with the constellations of the season and specific stars and objects of interest. Participants will view a slide presentation followed by telescope observation of the skies. Bring your telescope, binoculars and a blanket or lawn chair. Some telescopes will be provided. Sunset-10 p.m. 817-645-4215

Cleburne State Park, which is south of Ft. Worth…is about a 2 hour drive from Plano. I found it is best to get there by going south on Central (75) from Plano, east on LBJ (635), loop all the way around south of Dallas and take Hwy. 67 south. Dinosaur Valley State Park is just a little further down Hwy. 67 from Cleburne SP.

The cool thing about the NTS website is that it recaps the planetarium shows for Richland College AND the stargazing events at State Parks. It also includes pertinent information about current astronomical events as they will be seen from where we are, North Texas! Visit it for more info:

http://members.aol.com/Mikehibbs/Skywatch/skywatch.html

For more information on astronomy see:

http://web2.airmail.net/tasclub/

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