Goulburn and the Mars opposition

[Gundary5]

My boy started kindy this year and as a bit of a community spirit exercise I’m trying to organise a little astronomy night, where the little ones could have a look at Mars along with the other planets and maybe DSO’s that are up. I fear I have created a bit of a monster however and am a bit overwhelmed by the interest and my one telescope will be overwhelmed.

So I’m putting it out there, would there be anyone close by that would be willing to let an army of little kids look through their scope? Like a kind of open night.

[Kunama]

You sound like a glutton for punishment....

So you need to coordinate a small army of 4+ year olds to view planets including Mars....

Mars will really only fit into your program from the end of July onwards as I assume the little ones will have a reasonable bed time.
On 30 July Mars will be about 25º above the horizon at 7pm and the temperatures in Goulburn are likely to be below zero.....

Jupiter and Saturn will be available much earlier in the evening as will many of the Southern Gems around the Crux area....

I am in Canberra and am building an 18" scope that will be quite short so could accommodate the kids.... keep me in the loop with your plans, I should be able to get to Goulburn..

You can contact me via PM when you have some dates sorted.... Cheers, Kunama

[LewisM]

I ran a kindy astro night twice. It's difficult to say the least, and explaining how to use the eyepiece is a challenge.

Best way I suggest is to webcam the view, or similar, and show them on a laptop. Many adults even expect to see a massive planet with a multitude of detail, so it can be a little underwhelming to them.

I'd suggest Jupiter instead of Mars also, as it currently rises early enough for most kids, and is big enough too.

Good luck.