Open night starts soon and the star charts are missing

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Open night starts soon and the star charts are missing

A scavenger hunt in Loomis-Michael Telescope Observatory

Made by Mused

  1. First we need the sky globe.

    Open night starts in an hour and the crew has scattered everything. The dome has gone into planning mode, all blue lines and white ink. Our globe of the whole sky is somewhere on the dome floor near the foot of the big telescope.

  2. Now let us find north.

    Every good night of stargazing starts by finding north. A dragon and a hero glow on the painted wall here, but the compass slid across the dome floor to the far side of the telescope pier.

  3. Grab the red lantern.

    Out in the hallway the crew strung up red lights, and that is no accident. The red lantern is not out here though. Try the crew's office just off this hallway, where the desks and computers are.

  4. The finder scope is on the stairs.

    Every big telescope needs a little helper to aim it. The finder was carried up these stairs toward the roof, then put down somewhere along the way. Let your eyes adjust and check every landing.

  5. Somebody left the Moon on the roof.

    Welcome to the roof, with the city glittering and a steeple glowing in the distance. Visitors always ask why the Moon changes shape, and our Moon globe is out here somewhere among the crates and benches on the deck.

  6. Last of all, the star charts themselves.

    Nearly there, and the crowd is already on the stairs. The charts were never lost at all, just rolled up and left on the roof by the last person to use them. They are somewhere along the deck by the glass walls, not out by the rail.

Every box is ticked and the dome is ready. Galileo turned his first telescope to the sky in 1609, and tonight this crew carries that on for a line of curious visitors on the roof of the Science Center. Clear skies, friend.

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