by William Parker | Jan 16, 2025 | Observatory, Observatory Events, One-Time
Saturday, March 29, 8:00 p.m. – 12:00 a.m.
Are you new to astronomy and looking for a challenge? Been around the sun a few times and are ready to up your stargazing street cred? There’s no better way than to try and run a Messier Marathon.
The Messier objects are a collection of deep space objects catalogued by French astronomer Charles Messier in his Catalogue des Nébuleuses et des Amas d’Étoiles (“Catalogue of Nebulae and Star Clusters”), originally published in 1771. The Messier objects themselves vary: in the catalog, you’ll find galaxies in a variety of forms, different kinds of nebulas, open star clusters, and globular star clusters. There are also a few unique objects: one supernova remnant (M1), one-star cloud (M24, our own galaxy), and one double star (M40).
In a Messier Marathon, you try and see all 110 Messier objects in a single night. Like a physical marathon, it takes planning and pacing to quickly move through over 100 deep space objects in a single night.
Whatever draws you to learn more about the Messier Marathon, you’re not alone. Every year, hundreds of astronomers undertake the challenge and head on out to the Schoolyard Observatory for some or all of the Messier Marathon where we will be attempting to discover all possible Messier objects with a number of telescopes and other amazing information on each object. Reservations are donation-based to help promote our fundraising efforts.
Please reserve and donate today.
In case of poor weather conditions this event will be held indoors at the Nature Center where we will be presenting high definition pictures / videos giving full descriptions and back grounds of the messier objects and how they came to be. We will contact you 24 hours prior to the event to confirm start times and weather conditions.
Reserve tickets here or feel free to email observatory@hawthornhollow.org
If the email used to purchase tickets is different from your regular email, please check that email or contact me at the address below.
by William Parker | Oct 4, 2024 | Observatory, Observatory Events, One-Time
Saturday, December 14 (5:00 PM – 7:00 PM or 7:15 PM – 9:15 PM)
The Geminid meteor shower is one of the most active and reliable meteor showers of the year! They streak through the sky every minute or two all night. It is unique because the meteors are visible all night long, since the constellation Gemini arises just an hour or two after nightfall. Most meteor showers require you to wait until midnight or pre-dawn for the best viewing. The constellation Gemini is the radiant of the Geminid meteor shower, which means that it is the meteor shower’s point of origin. The Geminid meteors will appear to fall away from the constellation Gemini.
This is the best meteor shower of the year so reserve these limited tickets early!
This event is weather-dependent and will be canceled by e-mail 24 hours before the scheduled start time in the event of a cloud cover forecast greater than 40%.
Dress appropriately for being still in nighttime cold outdoor weather.
Questions? Feel free to contact us at observatory@hawthornhollow.org.
Purchase 5:00 – 7:00 pm tickets here.
Purchase 7:15 – 9:15 pm tickets here.
by William Parker | Sep 16, 2024 | Observatory, Observatory Events, One-Time
Tuesday (November 26) 7:00 pm – 9:30 pm
Have you ever looked up at the night sky and wondered what someone standing in the same spot in the past saw and thought when they looked up?
500 years ago contact between Europeans and Indigenous Americans of the time changed the world, resulting in the collapse of Aztec and Inca empires and triggering a hemispheric pandemic that may have caused the Little Ice Age which ensued. Prior to this contact, indigenous American conceptions of the sky had no input from the astronomical ideas circulating in the rest of the world.
On Tuesday, November 26, in a series of short, five-to-fifteen-minute presentations by UW-Parkside students currently enrolled in the Astronomy of Native America course, we will explore the range of astronomical understanding and beliefs among indigenous groups of the Americas from the Inuit peoples of the Arctic to the Maya, the most astronomical advanced civilization of pre-Columbian Mesoamerica.
Presentations begin at 7:00 pm and proceed until completion, estimated around 9:30 pm. Questions are welcome at the end of each presentation. Weather-permitting, the presentations will be given outside the Heide Observatory dome (directions here), and the observatory will be open afterward for a brief tour and night-time sky viewing. In the event of rain, the presentations will be held inside the Hawthorn Hollow Nature Center.
Have questions? Please contact us at Observatory@hawthornhollow.org.
For reservations click here
by William Parker | Apr 22, 2024 | Observatory, Observatory Events, One-Time
Saturday June 1 & 15 (9:00 pm – 11:00 pm)
Are you eager to deepen your understanding of the night sky? Join our two-night Adult Astronomy class on the first and third Saturdays in June! In this engaging course, you’ll explore the layout of the celestial sphere, identify the ten brightest stars, and recognize important star patterns. We’ll also cover Moon rise and set patterns with phases, major visible constellations, and the brightness scale for observation. Additionally, you’ll learn about distances in space and the methods astronomers use to measure them.
This class combines interactive learning, night sky simulations, and direct observations, outdoors as weather permits. Don’t miss this opportunity to enhance your knowledge of astronomy!
To register, please purchase tickets here. Reservations include both evenings. In the event that a minimum of five total registrants has not been reached by May 31, the class will be canceled and your ticket refunded.
Feel free to email us with with questions at observatory@hawthornhollow.org
by William Parker | Feb 12, 2024 | Observatory, Observatory Events, One-Time
Tuesday, March 19 6:30 pm – 9:00 pm
Hawthorn Hollow and the Heide Observatory invite you to celebrate the 2024 passing of the Sun into the northern celestial hemisphere and the first equal length day and night for this year.
Join us at the Heide Observatory on the night of Tuesday, March 19, starting at 6:30 pm for a March equinox party and simultaneously come experience the currently largest public-serving telescope in southeastern Wisconsin.
Your ticket will include: a walk to the restored prairie to view the sunset and look at the planets currently in the west through telescope and binoculars, a guided tour through the meadow solar system model, and views of the sky through our largest telescope along with a night-time sky tour of other celestial objects. Beverages and snacks will be included and the excess proceeds for the event will benefit the ongoing mission of the observatory.
In the event of inclimate weather the backup date will Saturday, March 23.
Please contact us by e-mail for more information or discounted group rates.
Purchase tickets here or email observatory@hawthornhollow.org