I got out there pretty early last night and watched the stars come out. There was already a car there. A couple of gentlemen, John and Chris, were out looking for woodcock. They came back to their car. Quite a few stars were coming out. I showed them Venus (as noted elsewhere, a very thin crescent, very nice). Saturn was up high enough. I was able to bring it in between the branches of the trees. They were quite impressed. I pointed out some of the other stars, the Winter triangle (Sirius, Procyon, Betelgeuse), Rigel, Orion and his belt, Aldebaran. They did have binoculars with them. I pointed John in the direction of Pleiades (not yet visible) and he was able see it and was quite surprised to see such a nice little cluster, like a little dipper. I told him that later when it gets darker, he'll be able to see it naked eye, it'll first appear as a fuzziness. By the time they left, it was dark enough and they were able to see it. All in all, they were quite pleased and impressed with what they saw. I directed them to our website. It is possible they may show up some time at a meeting or an outreach event.
Scott came before they left. Scott said that the likelihood he would come out to Keller was now 100%… not 85%. 🙂
As noted, Scott had a productive night. Luka and Brandon were still there after I left.
Copyright © 2023 | Rochester Astronomy Club | A 501(c)(3) non-profit organization