Astro Nite to bring wow factor of astronomy to community – Burtonview

Astro Nite is designed to allow all ages to delight in astronomy. Photo provided BURTON The University of Michigan-Flint astronomy team will take their high-powered telescopes to For-Mar Nature Preserve and Arboretum and lead participants on a solar system tour set up on the ground, designed to teach participants about the planets and other astronomical features of the solar system.

With over an estimated 9,000 visible stars to our eye across the entire night sky, and billions visible using telescopes, it is hard not to be fascinated by astronomy, said Nicole Ferguson, head naturalist at For-Mar.

The program will be held 8 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 26, partners U of M-Flint and For-Mar and will feature a campfire with astronomy storytelling, astronomy crafts and a moon phase activity which will reproduce the solar eclipse which occurred Monday are part of the planned activities.

There will also be solar eclipse and constellation crafts. The crafts are great takeaway reminders that help families remember all of the things they learned during Astro Nite at For-Mar, Ferguson said. She added the campfire is a great addition to any nocturnal fun.

For Astro Nite, a campfire provides that perfect place for participants to gather and tell stories about the stars, she said.

The U of M-Flint Astronomy team will point the telescope to the sky to look at the moon and its many craters, planets like Saturn and Jupiter and different stars and far off galaxies.

We will also be talking about nocturnal animals, Ferguson said.

Ferguson said Astro Nite is suitable for all ages and abilities because of the wide variety of activities for kids and adults.

Dr. Rajib Ganguly, associate professor of physics, heads up the volunteer team. Ganguly also is the astronomy professor for U of M-Flint.

Ferguson said For-Mar has a great dark sky location that makes it great for both looking at and learning about astronomy first-hand. For-Mar is one of the leading outdoor educator facilities in our area, she said.

Astro Nite has taken place for the last five summers at For-Mar.

Nature centers and outdoor education facilities are perfect locations for astronomy classes and events, Ferguson said. In addition to our once-a-year Astro Nite event, we also lead monthly full moon hikes (and) talk about what is in the night sky each month.

The Astro Nite team puts on two annual Astro Nites at the U of M -Flint campus in collaboration with the Longway Planetarium, and shares astronomy information on their Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/UmFlintAstroNite/.

For details on Astro Nite, visit geneseecountyparks.org There is no cost, and preregistration is not required.