Green Lake Star Party

The September 22 Green Lake Star Party featured clear although somewhat hazy skies and a very good public turnout. The clear sky was a pleasant surprise after a day of vacillation between typical Seattle-style clouds and clearing, and the pleasant, warm evening probably was responsible for the large public turnout.

In addition to the clear sky, a very important offering of the star party was the availability of a variety of telescopes: a four inch Dobsonian-mounted Newtonian, a 4 inch equatorial mounted Newtonian, a 4 inch Meade altazimuth mounted refractor, and a 5 inch equatorial mounted refractor. Binoculars were also available. Many people who were interested in buying a telescope were able to learn about the main mount options due to the variety of mounts and the opportunity to ask questions about the various types of telescopes and mounts.

Some unique and especially profound questions about telescopes as well as many other aspects of astronomy came from members of a University Prep high school astronomy class who were in attendance. These students were attending the SAS star party as a class requirement, but it was obvious from their questions and interest that their affinity for astronomy and curiosity about the universe extended far beyond simply meeting a class requirement.

In addition to the University Prep high school age students, a larger than usual number of children of all ages attended this star party and enlivened the evening with their great questions and comments. The star party ended at around 10:30 p.m. as Seattle clouds began once again to inhabit their normal sky territory over Seattle.

Announcements