Enjoying the Vastness of Space with Night Sky Gazing

On Friday May 10^th an extreme geomagnetic storm, the biggest in 20 years, painted the sky with dancing shades of pink, purple and green as far south as Florida. Sun flares generated aurora borealis commonly called, “northern lights” which continued through the weekend. When the sun pulls on the Earth’s magnetic field it launches electrons at high speed that form ribbons and curtains of bright colored light. If you would like to be notified of future probability such a displays, follow Aurora Forecast  on “X” (formerly Twitter) or you can bookmark their website. In the meantime the sky can offer more wonders with some spectacular sunsets…and there is the display of meteor showers, comets, stars and constellations, as well as planets available to view on a cloudless night sky.

Don’t have a telescope but want an enlarged view? Many national parks offer night sky programs, even full moon walks with rangers.  The Space Tourism Guide provides resources to find local observatories or great places for dark sky viewing. There are local astronomy clubs that host a public star party where people bring their telescopes to share for viewing.

Want to be more spontaneous? Want to continually be on a quest to discover about our galaxy and others? There are phone apps you can use to help navigate the night sky both free and paid versions. Look for features such as:

• Real time viewing Just point your phone upwards and it will show you a map, even if the international space station is in view!
• 3D constellations It will highlight and provide an image of the Greek mythology symbols on the map, e.g. the big dipper, Hercules, Orion, Pegasus, etc.
• Locator You can ask, where is the Hubble space telescope
• Space facts You can learn about the age of a star, a planet’s topography, etc.
• Sky Tours You can look at the sky as if you were in another country, or at any time, like on your birthday, or during a super nova.
• Set notifications Get reminders to view an upcoming astronomical event, e.g. meteor shower, an alignment of planets, or an eclipse.
• Indoor viewing Some apps have the technology to recognize it is being aimed at a ceiling, and it will take your location and still how you the sky!

As with any app, check the rating, reviews, if it has won awards, and cost, if any. For optimal outdoor viewing, choose a cloudless night with no moon, ideally get away from the city lights, for the darker it is, the more stars you will see! Bring multiple blankets to get comfortable laying on the ground. Give your eyes time to adjust, and create a relaxing memory!

The angel (at the tomb) said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; He has risen, just as He said. Come and see the place where He lay.  Matthew 28 1: 5-6

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