Once again, the skies did not cooperate with Kenwood Elementary School’s science night. We had plenty of volunteers with scopes at the ready, but they were told to stand down early in the afternoon since the skies were totally overcast.
But, all was not lost. Tom Haugh set up a telescope inside the cafeteria along with all the other science exhibits. He had it focused on a picture of Saturn hung on the opposite wall. This was a hands-on exhibit with the students and parents getting a view of the inverted image provided by most telescopes of today. He reported a total of 74 students and additional parents and siblings getting a look through the scope.
He also set up a NASA Solar System Ambassador display featuring SOFIA, NASA’s Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy. There was a video describing the aircraft, its modifications and descriptions of its recent missions. He also had a model of the modified 747.
He said there were a lot of great questions and discussions about the scope and the aircraft as well as current activity aboard the International Space Station.
We look forward to next year and our next attempt to show Kenwood Elementary School students the night sky.