On a clear night the sky is impressive. With the house lights turned off, you will experience a night of darkness with a sky filled with stars and the Milky Way. If the moon is full, you will not need a flashlight to light your way. Take a blanket out on the front lawn and settle down to a few minutes of star gazing. If the season is right and the conditions good, the northern lights can occasionally be seen from the back of the house. It is also completely quiet ... Listen for the call of the owl ... You can stand in the front of the house and not see any lights - from town, or from any house nearby or far away.

Except for the occasional car, the only sources of light are the stars.

The Milky Way Galaxy stands out like a white sash across the summer sky, and, if you know where to look, you can see the Andromeda Galaxy with the naked eye. Binocular views of the Andromeda Galaxy are spectacular - as good as at a star party. In mid-April, the Beehive Cluster is a naked eye object.

In winter, the Orion Nebula is a true naked eye object... In summer the Lagoon Nebula is visible with the naked eye.

There is plenty for the amateur astronomer to do: from a parent telling a child about the stories of the Book of the Skies; a naturalist interested in all facets of nature; a beginning astronomer with his or her first telescope; an advanced amateur with a "light cannon" or a professional astronomer wanting to get away from the computer terminal and contemplate.




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