ShareThisA Night Under The Stars
On Monday Dr. Nelson and his astronomy class had their first of many nighttime labs at the Vermont Academy observatory. A little after 8pm with the sky just about as dark as it would get, 12 students made their way to the observatory, which lies at the north of the athletic fields and out of sight of the campus lights. Encouraged by their earlier daylight excursion made during class, some found their way in the dark by walking, a few arrived by car, and one brave soul showed up on his bike. Jupiter was shining brightly, low in the east, as the telescopes were opened up: an 8-inch Meade owned by the school, and Dr. Nelson's own 11-inch Celestron. Both are computer-controlled, and once a few bright stars are identified, the computers are able to slew the telescopes to any object in the sky merely by entering its name on the keypad. Jupiter was nice and bright, with details in the cloud bands visible (the Great Red Spot, usually an easy target, was facing away from Earth). Three of the four Galilean moons were lined up nearby. In the other telescope students saw a double star known as Albireo, notable for its nice color contrast. "One is blue and the other is..... yellowish?" one remarked.More »
Back to School News »
