 Hello Horizons Observatory Supporters,
Please be aware that the Horizons Observatory will be open to the public this Sunday night (November 13th) to view the Super Moon (weather permitting). The observatory will open from 5:30pm-7:00pm for moon gazing with the observatory's 14' Celestron telescope as-well-as binocular viewing. Dress warmly. Please do not bring flashlights since this will reduce our ability to view the sky. We're looking forward to seeing you and your friends on what promises to be a beautiful autumn night beneath a rare Super Moon!
0 Comments
Hello Horizons Observatory Supporters,
Please be aware that the Horizons Observatory WILL be open to the public to view tonight's Super Blood Moon Eclipse. The dome will open from 9:30pm-11:20pm for moon gazing with the observatory's 14' Celestron telescope as-well-as binocular viewing. Dress warmly. Please do not bring flashlights since this will reduce our ability to view the sky. We're looking forward to seeing you and your friends on what promises to be a beautiful autumn night beneath a rare Super Moon Eclipse! Total eclipse begins: 10:11pm Greatest eclipse: 10:47pm Total eclipse ends: 11:23pm Hello Horizons Supporters!
A clear moonless sky is forecast for Friday, November 21st - so the Horizons Observatory will be open to the public for stargazing. The schedule will be as follows: • 5:00-5:30 pm - Presentation on the night sky in the classroom. • 5:30-6:15 pm – Observatory, including the large telescope in the observing dome and Mark Libby’s impressive 20 inch Dobsonian, will open to the public. As well, a star tour will occur on the deck. • 6:15 – 7:30 pm - The observatory will be used by Killington Elementary School and Bridgewater Village School sixth grade students to photograph the Veil Nebula, a supernova remnant. Although the observatory will not be available for public viewing after 6:15 pm. telescopes outside the dome, including the 20 inch Dobsonian, will continue to be available for stargazing. If the forecast holds and it is clear, it will also be quite cold. Please dress VERY warmly! The event will be canceled in the event of cloudy skies. Sincerely, Scott Holson, Rob Hanson, Paul Otavsky, Mark Libby, Bill Heston Horizons Observatory Docents  As a culmination of our Cosmic Scales week at the National Park, the Horizons Observatory is hosting a stargazing event for Friday, September 26th from 7:30pm – 9:00pm. The entire public - is welcome. Visitors will have the opportunity to view stars, star clusters, and nebulae through the observatory’s 14” telescope - and to enjoy a night sky tour lead by a Horizons docent. Please keep flashlights at home in that the observing sight needs to remain as dark as possible.
The observatory is located at The Pomfret School. If the forecast holds and it is clear, it will also be quite cool so dress warmly! We look forward to spending a wonderful evening under the stars with you. The event will be canceled in the case of cloudy skies. Sincerely, Rob Hanson, Bill Heston, Scott Holson, Paul Otavsky Horizons Observatory Docents Yesterday afternoon a powerful X-class flare ripped through the Sun's lower atmosphere and sent a blast wave directly toward Earth that should arrive early Friday morning. - See more at: http://www.skyandtelescope.com/astronomy-news/observing-news/powerful-solar-flare-091020143/?et_mid=691740&rid=246610980#sthash.VgcE6To2.dpuf 
STARGAZING EVENT CANCELED
Please note that the forecast for cloudy skies tomorrow night will cancel our planned Summer Stargazing event on Wild Apple. However, we are planning a stargazing event in mid-September at the observatory. Details on the September event will be posted on this blog when the date is finalized.  Summer Stargazing on Wild Apple Road, Pomfret, Vermont
August 15 if weather permits 8:30pm – 11pm Come explore the night sky with us on a beautiful, tucked-away farm in Pomfret, Vermont. We’ll be joining the Jones Family at on Wild Apple Road where skies are dark and the stars shine bright. The highlights of the night sky we’re hoping to view will be: the Hercules star cluster, the Ring Nebula, the Andromeda Galaxy, and Alberio (a lovely blue and yellow binary star system), and the Lagoon/Trifid stellar nurseries. There is a possibility we may catch Saturn - the absolute jewel of the sky – before it sets below the horizon. The timing of this event will be weather dependent; the skies have to be clear to star gaze! A notice via the Horizons Observatory blog will be sent out 48 hours before the event to let you know if weather will cancel. If it’s a go, please arrive by 8:30pm in order to avoid headlights in the viewing area. Directions to the site: From Stage Road in Pomfret, take Wild Apple Road for miles. At the top of a steep part, the road makes a sharp turn to the left. Go left. The next drive on the left is the Jones’s place: 2395 Wild Apple Rd. You’ll see a bunch of cars parked there. Layered clothing and a sense of adventure are recommended! If you bring a flashlight, please keep it off near the viewing area – or use red light. One of the reasons we’re trekking so far into the country is to get away from white light – so we don’t want to bring it with us! Clear skies! 
Hello Horizons Supporters!
A clear moonless sky is forecast for Tuesday, March 18th - so the Horizons Observatory will be open to the public for stargazing. The schedule will be as follows: • 7:00-7:20 pm - Presentation on the night sky in the classroom. • 7:20-8:00 pm – Observatory, including the large telescope in the observing dome, will open to the public. As well, a star tour will occur on the deck. • 8:00 – 9:00 pm - The dome will be used by Woodstock Elementary School and Bridgewater Village School sixth grade students to photograph the Rosette Nebula. It will not be available for public viewing after 8:00 pm. If the forecast holds and it is clear, it will also be quite cold. Please dress VERY warmly! The event will be canceled in the event of cloudy skies. Sincerely, Rob Hanson, Bill Heston, Scott Holson Horizons Observatory Docents  It looks as if some part of Comet ISON has emerged from its close encounter with the sun. However, it now looks to be a headless comet. The nucleus of the comet has evaporated and the only thing remaining is the coma and dust tail. It's still possible that ISON will be visible in the evening sky over the next several weeks, but disappointingly it will not be the Comet of the Century we had all hoped for. It will most likely only be visible through telescopes. But that will remain to be seen.
In the image to the left, Comet ISON can be seen emerging from perihelion at the top left. The remains of its tail can be seen at the bottom right prior to perihelion. This image is from the LASCO C2 Solar Observatory. -Scott Griswold Check out these images from NASA's various solar observatories. http://stereo-ssc.nascom.nasa.gov/beacon/beacon_secchi.shtml STEREO Behind shows it best. In particular this sequence. http://stereo-ssc.nascom.nasa.gov/browse/2013/11/27/behind/cor2/512/thumbnail.shtml Looks like a coronal mass ejection is headed right for ISON (Comet ISON in the lower left of the image).. Of course it could be headed in front or behind but will be interested to see what affect it has. Latest word is that ISON could be in trouble and may be breaking up. http://www.isoncampaign.org/Present Will be interesting to watch as it gets closer over the next 24 to 48 hours and reaches perihelion on Thanksgiving Day, if it makes it that far. Let's hope it emerges from its close brush with death and emerges in all its splendid glory. Scott Griswold  |
Welcome to the Horizons Observatory blog. All public events at the Observatory will be posted on this page. Sign up below to receive an email notification of upcoming events. If you signed up for our notifications before December 2019, please re-enter your address. This is a new feed service, prior addresses were not transferred.
Your emails will be used by Blogtrottr to deliver notifications. We will not have access to them.
CategoriesArchives
December 2019
|
|
|
RSS Feed
Pomfret, Vermont