Melissa.Marshall@SVHERALD.COM Huachuca Astronomy Club President David Roemer shows f5-year-old Tristan Gomez, his mother, Elizabeth, and sister, Laurel, 8, the planet Jupiter during Pie in the Sky on Monday night at Joyce Clark Middle School.

Printer-friendly versionSend to friend

SIERRA VISTA Huachuca Astronomy Club Member Bob Gent can still recall how he would lean the small telescope his grandfather gave him against his house when he was a young boy growing up in Phoenix, and peer into thenightsky.

Just looking up at the sky and seeing thousands of stars and wondering, how far away are they? How many are there? Can we go visit them? What are they made of? Where is the last star? Could there event be a last star? What is the nature of infinity? Gent said. It triggeredmyimagination.

On Monday night, with his 8-inch diameter Newtonian telescope locked on the crescent moon, Gent was passing down that spark to students gathered on the Joyce Clark Middle School sports field. Between bites of sweet snacks, the students took in the natural wonders of space during the schools second-ever Pie in theSkyevent.

I just think that families need to see the fun side of science, Eighth-grade science teacher Tari Hardy said.Sometimes its nice to just relax, have some deserts, see the sky and actually talk to some really knowledgeable people about an interesting aspectofscience.

Hardy organized the event, partnering with the astronomy club to bring its members out to volunteer their timeandtelescopes.

Every time a young student comes up here and looks through the telescope and goes wow! you know that youve helped introduce them to science and astronomy,Gentsaid.

There was no shortage of wows on Monday, with students glimpsing much more than just the moon as the eveningworeon.

Arealtreat

Go here to see the original:

(Schools) Students sample celestial treats