Space, the final frontier, now ready for guided tours

By Nelson Daily staff

Take a tour of the cosmos without ever leaving the ground.

Through the power of Nelson astronomer Wayne Holmes’ telescope, people can take a trip through the starry night skies nearly every weekend this summer  and up to Christmas at Taghum Community Hall.

Called Taghum Starry Nights, Holmes will be taking families through the cosmos, as well as teaching people how to build their own telescope at home.

Wannabe star-gazers will learn all about spawning constellations, how to find them and naming them through Holmes’ power point presentation. In addition, he will show folks how to find certain objects within the constellations.

“I’m going to start with binocular objects, and point out some of the easy binocular targets,” explained Holmes. “Then we’ll move on to some of the things we’re going to show the public in our astronomy telescopes: some of the harder-to-find things that may be bright, but can be difficult to locate. For the real diehards we’ll likely stay late into the night.”

Supported by Kootenay Association for Science & Technology, the initiative runs all summer long at the Taghum Community Hall.

On two dates in particular during that stretch — July 2 and Aug. 20 — Marilyn Roberts of Kaslo will be doing a special demonstration on telescope building. Accompanied by a video of John Dobson (who is probably one of the world’s most famous telescope builders), Marilyn will bring mirrors, the tubing she uses for making a scope, and explain how all of that comes together to allow us to look light-years into the sky.

Holmes noted that you don’t need a high-power telescope to get a great view of the night sky, and encourages folks to bring along binoculars which today are as-or-more powerful than the telescopes used by Galileo in his day.

“People are often amazed at just how much you can see even without a top-of-the-line high-powered telescope,” said Holmes. “Even with binoculars you can see lots of cool stuff in the sky, so dust off that telescope that has been hiding in the closet and bring it down to the Hall and see for yourself.”

The event starts at dusk for those coming to watch and a bit earlier for those that need to set-up. The dates are scheduled in pairs because if the Friday night weather is not good then they will try again on Saturday night.

How will you know exactly? You can phone Wayne Holmes at 354-1586. Use your good judgement. If it is pouring down rain or snowing or the sky is not visible then the event will be cancelled.

Organizers caution attendees to dress very warmly; bring a lawn chair and your own snack/drink. If bringing a flashlight it is strongly recommended to cover the end with red cellophane to reduce light pollution on site.

For more information about the Starry Nights Program or any Taghum Hall Society program, contact president Linda Barber at 352-0428 or rental manager Cheryl Hicks at 352-5226.

Location: Taghum Community Hall, 5915 Taghum Hall Road (by the old bridge at Taghum).

Time: Dusk or after dark.

Dates:

• June 24/25, July 2 (alternate indoor activity planned)
• July 8/9
• July 22/23
• July 29/30
• Aug 5/6
• Aug 19/20 (alternate indoor activity planned)
• Aug 26/27
• Sept 2/3
• Sept 16/17
• Sept 23/24
• Sept 30/ Oct 1
• Oct 21/22
• Oct 28/29
• Nov 18/19
• Nov 25/26
• Dec 2/3
• Dec 16/17

About KAST: www.kast.com. KAST is a registered non-profit society advocating for science and technology in the West and Central Kootenay and Boundary regions.