Last night David and I attended a night at the planetarium here in Greenville. It was a work-related function for him and families were also invited. The group was small, only about ten or so adults and five small children (too young to appreciate any of the events). First we gathered in the planetarium where we saw three different programs. The first one was about astronomy in general. The second was what the skies above Greenville, SC look like, adjusted for all the light pollution (so sad) but we were still able to make out a few of the constellations, etc… in the sky above us this time of year. The third program was a really fun special Halloween show. It was sort of like a laser light show, although it was only in black and white but it was so cool. It was 3-D and you felt like you were traveling thru space and down into deep holes etc. Spooky and so much fun. You almost felt like you were riding on a roller coaster at times. After the planetarium shows we walked over to the observatory. They had one large telescope set up outside and we were able to see Jupiter and 4 of its 22 moons. Yes, I said 22. I remember back when they thought it only had 8. Wonder how many more they will discover? The sky was mostly cloudy so Jupiter and the moons kept disappearing from sight then reappearing again but I think we all got a chance to look through the telescope. Next we went inside the observatory and the astronomer tried to get Jupiter in view in the large telescope (the one with the 23 inch lens) but was never able to due to the clouds and the fact Jupiter was sinking lower on the horizon. We were told about a comet that is visible right now, Comet Holmes. Unfortunately the part of the sky where it is visible was completely covered with clouds. It is visible with the naked eye so if you are interested in taking a look click the link here to find out where to look in the sky. Comet Holmes Please note that it does not have a tail, or at least not one showing as of yet so it will only appear as a large fuzzy star. Here’s to dark skies and clear nights. Happy viewing!
update:
I saw Comet Holmes tonight! We could see it with the naked eye but much better using the binoculars. It is much larger than any of the stars you can see in the binocular field and appears as a fuzzy cotton ball. It is not like any of the other comets I have seen over the years. It doesn't have a tail and is just a fuzzy spot in the sky right now. Still really cool to see.
