Minnesota Star Watch - Mike Lynch
Make the stars your old friends as we watch the great celestial show in the skies over Luverne. We'll have giant telescopes aimed at Saturn, Jupiter, star clusters, galaxies, and other great celestial treasures. We'll also check out constellations like the Big Bear, Cygnus the Swan, Pegasus the Winged Horse, and some of the great stories behind them. Along with visual telescopes, there will be a telescope/astronomical camera system to really see distant celestial targets on a video screen.
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This program will allow attendees access to high-powered telescopes and expert knowledge they would not be able to access otherwise. We hope this will spark interest and encourage attendees to purse those interests and research after the program by checking out books and materials to aid in stargazing. Attendees will view the stars at Touch the Sky Prairie, bringing them to another beautiful part of Rock County. Anecdotal responses will be collected.
Attendees were delighted and in awe of the images they were able to see through Mike's telescopes. Attendees saw Jupiter and four of its moons, Saturn and its rings, the mountains and craters on the moon, star clusters, and constellations. Attendees learned about these celestial bodies, plus the legends and folklore behind them from Minnesota Native Americans and Greek mythology.Comments at the program included:"This is absolutely incredible!" "I have never seen anything like this!", "I learned so much!", Comments from the survey included: "Wow, what passion. It was interesting to all who heard Mike Lynch.", "So interesting! An amazing experience!"
Touch the Sky Priaire, US Fish & Wildlife Service, Chamber of Commerce, Star Herald