by Chad Jocius | Mar 25, 2025 | Observatory, Observatory Events, One-Time
Tuesday, April 22 (8:00 pm – 10:00 pm)
Join us for “Dark Skies,” an interactive event dedicated to exploring and understanding light pollution and its impact on our environment and night sky visibility. Through a series of interactive stations, participants will engage in hands-on activities designed to illuminate the causes and effects of light pollution, as well as discover practical solutions to mitigate its presence in our communities. This event promises an enlightening experience for all ages, fostering awareness and inspiring action towards preserving our natural nightscapes. We will also have telescopes available for viewing of some of the fantastic spring-time deep sky objects.
We invite you to support our upcoming event through a donation-based ticket reservation system. To reserve your ticket, please click here.
Please note that Eventbrite processes one ticket per transaction. After completing your donation, kindly email us at Observatory@hawthornhollow.org to inform us of the total number of participants in your group. This information is crucial for us to allocate sufficient volunteers and enhance the event experience. As the event will be held outdoors during April evenings, we recommend dressing appropriately for nighttime temperatures. In the event of inclement weather, the event will be rescheduled to Wednesday, April 23, at 8:00 PM.
by Chad Jocius | Jan 17, 2025 | Observatory, Observatory Events, One-Time
Sunday, May 4, 10:00 pm – 12:00 am
Join us at The Heidi Observatory for a mesmerizing celestial experience! The Eta Aquariids, one of two meteor showers originating from Halley’s comet, will grace the night sky with their splendor. These meteors streak through the atmosphere at an astonishing speed of about 148,000 miles per hour, earning the Eta Aquariids the reputation of being one of the fastest meteor showers.
During its peak, we typically enjoy between 20 and 30 meteors per hour, providing a captivating display for all who observe. Relax in our anti-gravity chairs and immerse yourself in the beauty of the night sky as we watch the meteors cascade overhead, while also pointing out other fascinating celestial objects.
Each 2-hour session will be confirmed by email at least 24 hours before the scheduled time, contingent upon the cloud cover forecast (less than 40%). In the event of inclement weather, tickets are transferable for any observatory nightly event.
Reserve tickets here for 10 pm
If the email used to purchase tickets is different from your regular email, please check that email or contact me at the address below.
Do you have any questions or inquiries? Please don’t hesitate to reach out to us at Observatory@hawthornhollow.org. We look forward to sharing this unforgettable experience with you!
by Chad Jocius | Jan 16, 2025 | Observatory, Observatory Events, One-Time
Monday, April 21, 9:00 pm – 11:00 pm
The Lyrids appear in Chinese writing dating back to roughly 690 BCE, making them one of the earliest meteor showers on record. On the night of April 21, the annual shower will reach its near peak for 2023. The meteor shower is a result of Earth passing through the tail of the comet C/1861 G1 Thatcher. When our planet moves through this debris field, the space rocks burn up in Earth’s atmosphere, causing spectacular lights to streak across the night sky.
The Lyrids are one of the weaker annual meteor showers visible from Earth. On peak nights, they usually produce no more than 20 shooting stars per hour. The event is also unpredictable: On rare occasions, spectators are treated to incredible surges of up to 100 meteors per hour. For this reason, the Lyrids are worth checking out for diehard astronomy enthusiasts.
Come out to the Heide Observatory and enjoy a relaxing evening in our anti-gravity chairs as we point out the night-sky objects and watch for meteors.
This event is weather-dependent and will be canceled or rescheduled by e-mail 24 hours before the scheduled start time in the event of a cloud cover forecast greater than 30%. Reservations can be transferred for any other nightly observatory event.
Dress appropriately for being still in nighttime outdoor weather.
Questions? Feel free to contact us at observatory@hawthornhollow.org
Get your Tickets Here!
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 | Jan 16, 2025 | Observatory, Observatory Events, One-Time
Saturday, March 29, 8:00 p.m. – 12:00 a.m.
Friday, March 28, 8:00 pm – 12:00 am
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 rescheduled for Friday, April 4 at 8:00 pm.
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 Chad Jocius | Dec 3, 2024 | Observatory, Observatory Events, One-Time
Monday, January 13 (7:00 pm – 9:00 pm)
The Moon will pass in front of Mars, creating a lunar occultation visible from the Americas and Africa. Although the occultation will only be visible across part of the world – because the Moon is so close to the Earth that its position in the sky varies by as much as two degrees across the world – a close conjunction between the pair will be more widely visible.
Come on out to the Heide Observatory as we watch Mars disappear behind the moon. We will also be checking out the latest from our greatest hits, Saturn, Jupiter, Uranus, and Neptune!
Get your tickets here!
If you have any questions please feel free to email us at Observatory@hawthornhollow.org.
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.
