Observing the Moon at Vassar Farms

For the second year running, MHAA held an observe the moon night at Vassar Farms as part of their "Exploring a Sense of Space" series of events. We had about 10 MHAA volunteers show up this year, and somewhere between 80 - 100 guests over the course of the night.

This year's audience was very different from last year's. Last year we had a lot of Vassar Students, and a high school class from Arlington. This year it was mostly attended by families with children. Lots of young children were there, most of whom were getting their first view ever through a telescope. The wonder and excitement coming from them was palpable.

At 8 pm, after about an hour of moon observing, Sean Dague gave a brief talk on what people were seeing in the telescope, and some fun facts about the moon. As soon as that was over, Jupiter had gotten high enough to make it a target of opportunity. All 4 moons were out, and people were amazed by what they could see, adults and children alike.

We've also got some great pictures, thanks to John Lesica, who was taking 5 second exposures with a very fast lens. While many of these look like they are taken at 3 in the afternoon, I assure you they are all by moonlight.