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EVLslayer
member
Reged: 01/24/09
Posts: 28
Loc: Bangor, Maine FN54
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You guys gave me a great idea. (1) My local Amateur Radio Club does a hidden radio hunt once a week. (2) The local Astronomy Club does Sidewalk "Guerrilla" Astronomy. (3) I work at Starbucks. I think we are going to have a transmitter hunt ending at a Star Party with great coffee. Why not? It can happen? It's cold up here in Maine. Have a great week. Don.
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George N
professor emeritus
Reged: 05/19/06
Posts: 672
Loc: Binghamton & Indian Lake NY
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Quote:
Yeah, one of our Library Park nights was also the night of a cancer walk-a-thon, and we were happy to be able to give the walkers a nice break.
This type of event has an extra meaning for our astronomy club because one popular member recently died from cancer and another member in his early 30’s is now cancer free after a long period of chemo. He met a nifty lady undergoing the same treatment and they are now “pair bonded” and she has become a club member too.
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George N
Obsession 20
Optical Guidance Systems 10" F/9 R-C Cass
6" F/5 & 8" F/8 home-made Newts
MI-250 mount
SBIG STL-1301E CCD
Member, International Dark-Sky Association
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NotThePainter
sage
Reged: 06/02/07
Posts: 370
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I enjoy Guerrilla Astronomy. I'm fortunate enough to live near a tourist area so there are throngs of people in the summer.
See http://notthepainter.com/2008/07/come-see-the-moon/
for a report of one trip. I also give astronomy talks at the library, and I'm booked for the Audubon center this summer and I'm talking with the National Parks folks also.
It is amazingly rewarding.
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60mm Swift Refractor
5 inch Burgess 1278 Refractor
6 inch Edmund Scientific Reflector
8 inch Celestron SCT
Celestron ASGT mount
Canon 15x50is
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Cape Cod Astronomy Society
New Hampshire Astronomy Society
My astronomy blog: http://www.NotThePainter.com
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George N
professor emeritus
Reged: 05/19/06
Posts: 672
Loc: Binghamton & Indian Lake NY
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Quote:
I enjoy Guerrilla Astronomy. .....It is amazingly rewarding.
Ya, but you really should have said "Come see the moon!" 
How often do you do this?
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George N
Obsession 20
Optical Guidance Systems 10" F/9 R-C Cass
6" F/5 & 8" F/8 home-made Newts
MI-250 mount
SBIG STL-1301E CCD
Member, International Dark-Sky Association
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Doug Reilly
super member
Reged: 07/29/08
Posts: 158
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That's a great story there. I really appreciate how you put yourself out there...sidewalk astronomers have to weigh safety with the reality that people everywhere, from many social strata, should know about where they live in the universe.
Here's one of my true stories:
Last autumn I set up my telescope across the street from two bars in downtown Geneva. I aimed the telescope at the gibbous moon, hanging over city hall. Two guys were smoking outside of the bar, and one of them called out to me:
“Dude, can you see my *&%@$ in there?”
“No, a telescope is for big things that are far away, not tiny things close up. That’s a microscope.”
I didn’t really reply that way, even if it was the best of several clever retorts I worked out about two hours later. What I did reply was said out of a total lack of talent for witty repartee, but also a transparent honesty.
“No, I’m looking at mountains on the moon. Wanna see?”
*&%@$-guy blinked several times, and then his friend said “Sure,” shrugged, and crossed the street, leaving *&%@$-guy looking a little foolish.
*&%@$-guy's friend looked through the telescope.
“You gotta be $^*#$&ing kiddin’ me…Man, get your *&%@$ over here and see this &$#*(#! You won’t %&*#$ing believe this.”
I have to say, those curses were really satisfying.
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I keep a blog on astronomy, astronomy outreach, and other related topics at punkastronomy.com Nerd is punk!
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Duane Frybarger
member
Reged: 02/12/07
Posts: 55
Loc: San Francisco, CA
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I have the good fortune to do sidewalk astronomy on the corner where John Dobson started (9th & Irving in San Francisco). There are many bright lights but I've successfully shown not only the Moon, Jupiter and Saturn but the Pleiades to well over 1,000 passersby on this spot over the last few years. In fact, the Pleiades are even visible to the naked eye under bright lights.
I'm almost always alone and have only had problems once (where I was worried about my safety). I often have problems with people that want to hang out and talk my ear off, usually with crazy theories about any and every thing. This neighborhood has a small town feel (not like a downtown area) with lots of restaurants, a few bars and lots of people. It is always extremely rewarding and I always receive many appreciative thank yous and almost always the comment "You made my night!"
I often do solar sidewalk astronomy in this same neighborhood with my PST. This is much harder, as people are trained not to look at the Sun. On a lark a few weeks ago, I went to the Main Library downtown and set up my PST right by one of the entrances. It was my best outing ever with the PST - non-stop for about 45 minutes until the clouds rolled in.
I have had very poor receptions at tourist areas and downtown areas. S.F. has a lot of street people and hustlers and even my sign saying "See the Sun - safe and free" doesn't convince many people that it's actually free. I have the best luck in areas that have a neighborhood feel with lots of foot traffic.
I also have done quite a few formal astronomy programs, but that's "preaching to the choir". If they are there, they are already interested. For me, it's so much more fun to catch people on their way to dinner and show them a razor-sharp image of the Moon or Saturn and totally blow them away! It happens all the time - I can't think of a better way of spending an evening when the moon is in the sky. By the way, people LOVE the full moon through a telescope. We all know it looks much more impressive between new moon and 1st quarter, but they don't know that and they are always blown away by the view.
Last night,at the local Blockbuster (lots of lights) I was showing people the crescent moon and Venus (also a crescent) with my Celestron 80ED. At the end, I showed an interested couple M42 and M41 and they loved it. M42 was just a faint wisp (I wasn't using a filter) but it didn't matter to them. Another couple saw M42 and they also loved it. If you've never seen this before and provide just a little basic info (how big, how far away, etc) people are really impressed.
Hope these ideas help...
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Duane Frybarger
http://virtualcolony.com/blog/ - my sidewalk astronomy blog
PST
Orion ST80 w/ Lunt 50mm filter
Cometron 62mm Comet Catcher ($14.99 at Goodwill!)
Celestron ED80
Celestron 100ED
Celestron C5 SCT
Intes MN66
13" Coulter home built ball mount newtonian
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Doug Reilly
super member
Reged: 07/29/08
Posts: 158
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Duane,
You're covering some hallowed ground there, though JD would object to that phrase I'm sure. Last summer he came to Black Forest star party to give a talk. He's a feisty chap, very quick tongue, and witty to boot. I asked him what he hoped to communicate through sidewalk astronomy. He barked "You were not born in some little town in Pennsylvania! You were born into a universe."
I rather liked the answer!
doug
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I keep a blog on astronomy, astronomy outreach, and other related topics at punkastronomy.com Nerd is punk!
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mwedel
super member
Reged: 12/16/07
Posts: 184
Loc: Claremont, CA
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Quote:
I also have done quite a few formal astronomy programs, but that's "preaching to the choir". If they are there, they are already interested. For me, it's so much more fun to catch people on their way to dinner and show them a razor-sharp image of the Moon or Saturn and totally blow them away!
I totally agree. It's always great to see the people who show up to organized events, but it's even more fun to go catch passersby who weren't expecting you and aren't expecting how good the views will be...even if they're pretty average, low-power, light-polluted views for those of us who have been doing this for a while!
I am fortunate to live in a town with a nice public square with fountains, outdoor seating, coffeehouses, and a 5-screen theater. It's a great place to catch people of all ages and persuasions, and they are almost always interested in looking through the telescope and grateful for the opportunity. In another thread someone suggested doing some guerrilla astronomy outside movie theaters when Star Trek comes out. I'm thinking that movie theaters are good places for this no matter what is showing.
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Orion XT6 "Shaft"
Little Maks: Orion Apex 90, Celestron orange tube C90, Synta MC90
Edmund Astroscan "Baby Red"
76mm ongoing ATM experiment
Celestron UpClose 10x50
Celestron SkyMaster 15x70
10 Minute Astronomy
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Saintmaya
member
Reged: 05/29/09
Posts: 28
Loc: Sky Valley, GA 34.98, -83.30
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This is the coolest thing ever. My scope isn't even here yet and I'm plotting where I could set up at. I live near a town that shuts down very early, but has a huge tourist economy and scenic look-outs as well. I think movie theaters are great locations, since folks are out a bit later there than most places.
I'm around the corner from the second highest peak in Georgia, which would have to be a great place to set up, however, the two mile hike to get there is rather intimidating. Did I mention bears?
Your evil plan is working, btw, because of this thread, I've been reading up on John Dobson and his ideas. Very, very cool.
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MoonChild
sage
Reged: 04/27/09
Posts: 280
Loc: upstate ny
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great ideas everyone!
Ive been thinking about this same kind of thing lately.
I really like Georges ideas, 
State parks would be great for this!!
also Cancer walks and that kind of thing!
My stepmom works for the american cancer society,
i bet it would be fairly easy to be able to set up a scope or two or however many at the events.
love the idea.
good stuff , thanks George, thanks everyone.
i had about 8 of the kids from next door (some on each side, lol), looking at the moon early this morning, about 7-8 am. lol
they loved it, and a few of them said.. ( "whoahh, i never knew you could see the moon in the daytime!!) lol 
beauty. <3
Clear skies!
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*newb*
“Astronomy compels the soul to look upwards and leads us from this world to another” ~ Plato
~Kopernik Observatory
~C.Forks
my amateur astronomy pics
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RobertW
member
Reged: 04/24/09
Posts: 58
Loc: Whistler, BC
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back in toronto i used to observe from the school yard across the street from our house, and had a few people stop to have a look. this thread reminds me of the reactions i invariably got, and has inspired me to consider hauling the scope somewhere public a few times this summer. i live in whistler, bc, which is a ski resort by winter and a downhill biking/golf destination by summer, so we have plenty of foot traffic. time to start scoping out some locations!
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5" Skywatcher Newt / EQ6
Nikon D40x / 18-200mm VR
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Enig
super member
Reged: 06/24/09
Posts: 160
Loc: NW GA, U.S.A.
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Quote:
I think everyone needs a reminder of where they are, even the bar crowd.
I would say... *especially* the bar crowd! Maybe if more of them knew "where they were" (still speaking in the grand sense) there would be less of them, thus reducing the sum total of idiocy within the collective mind of humanity!
Anyway, I'm really digging this whole "Sidewalk Astronomy" concept. I first read about it in JD's Wikipedia entry a few days ago, when wanting to see what the deal was with whoever it was that invented the "dobsonian mount".
I live in a small, Southern hillbilly kinda town and I would love to spread some inspiration around. I really, really wish I could help towards guiding people into more worthwhile areas of exploration than taking meth and stuff.
Quote:
The trick is to just overlook the initial approach and posturing they do for each other and get them to the eyepiece. It totally changes the conversation.
That is some super wise stuff right there, worthy of accentuation... *very* much appreciated.
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Nekkid Eyes!
12x50 Binoculars
8" Newtonian / Dobsonian Telescope (Stock Zhumell Z8)
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Tim A.
sage
Reged: 09/19/07
Posts: 243
Loc: 40 30'N 105 3'W
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Update: Well the weather here has not been co-operative much this year. However, I've made three dates so far:
- St. Patricks Day with a PST. It was a clear afternoon, so I set up in the public part of Old Town, and had upwards of 50 people take a look at the sun. Fortunately that day we had prominences at 3 spots, so the view was great. I got the usual "Isn't that dangerous?" question, to which I replied, "If it were, I'd be here with a white cane." That disarmed people's natural hesitance.
- Solstice night, campground in National Forest. Fewer people than I expected, but good nonetheless. One couple (the gal especially) was schnockered, which made me fear a bit for my gear, but it turned out OK. The other couple was great, esp. the guy. He spent a lot of time at the EP, and though quiet by nature, was very engaged.
- Roof of downtown parking garage, night of local festival: I made up some posters to direct people to the roof. None came; the one in the most important place was taken down by some yahoo at some point.
 OTOH, the security guy was nice and enjoyed the views (although he said he was obligated to tell me I need a permit). He brought the pay-booth girl up to see. Plus, I had a few people who had parked there come over. However, the night was pretty cloudy, so I was forced to quickly find sights through sucker holes, and they weren't necessarily the best for that light-polluted location.
I'm thinking tonight I'll go back up to that campground. It's generally pretty full this time of year, so I should have better luck. Besides, it promises to be a lovely night.
PS: On the day I set up the PST, I tried several commercial locations (Safeway, Target, etc.). The managers of each told me they could not permit me to set up, due to corporate policy or some such. So at this point, I'm pretty much focusing on public spaces.
-- Tim
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F/5 12.5" Dob (Starbucket)
Celestron CPC800
Celestron CR-150 HD on CG5-GT
Galileoscope
Oberwerk Deluxe II 20x80 & Ultra 10x50
Celestron Regal LX 8x42 (gone AWOL)
Bio-binoculars 1x6
"Me? Crazy? Oh, yeah. Crazy like an ox!"
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Tim A.
sage
Reged: 09/19/07
Posts: 243
Loc: 40 30'N 105 3'W
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Update:
I've done three more trips to the National Forest campground, all very good. It's a very dark site (mag 6.5 I'd say, definitely brown zone) with a low light-dome to the east from a city some 20-miles away behind the hills. The biggest problem with the site is its proximity to the headlights of a low-traffic highway. During the early evening, you close your eyes for a few seconds every few minutes to let a car pass. Otherwise, it is located in a wider spot of a canyon which runs north-south in that section. So the southern view is well placed in the notch of the canyon, and east-west views are obstructed up to about 15-degrees, which is fine.
Last night I printed up some tri-fold flyers advertising my program, and handed them out around the campground just before sunset. I had seventeen people show up. The moon had just set, much to their disappointment (but I had warned them it would set early). I began with a naked-eye tour of the major constellations, Milky Way including Great Rift. I also went over some of the basics (light-years, star dynamics, and so on). Then we went to the telescope, my 12.5" Dob. I began with M13, which got a lot of appreciation. I swung over to the Veil, which with an O-III at 62x was splendid; then I moved on to M8, M17, M11, M57, M101. By that time, people were ready to go but wanted to see Jupiter, which was "OK" at best due to mediocre seeing. It's still a crowd pleaser though.
This "guerrilla astronomy" is becoming a lot of fun!
-- Tim
Colorado
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F/5 12.5" Dob (Starbucket)
Celestron CPC800
Celestron CR-150 HD on CG5-GT
Galileoscope
Oberwerk Deluxe II 20x80 & Ultra 10x50
Celestron Regal LX 8x42 (gone AWOL)
Bio-binoculars 1x6
"Me? Crazy? Oh, yeah. Crazy like an ox!"
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mwedel
super member
Reged: 12/16/07
Posts: 184
Loc: Claremont, CA
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Thanks to everyone for keeping this thread rolling.
I have been doing guerilla astronomy in the public square downtown, always on nights when the moon is waxing. I always get takers and so far the response has been 100% positive.
Quote:
Quote:
The trick is to just overlook the initial approach and posturing they do for each other and get them to the eyepiece. It totally changes the conversation.
That is some super wise stuff right there, worthy of accentuation... *very* much appreciated.
Yes, getting them to the eyepiece is clutch. A lot of people just walk by without even looking at me and the scope. We're just part of the background of city life, I guess. So as people pass by I point at the scope and say, "Hey, would you like to see the moon? It's fast and free." That gets their attention. Even if they say no, I can usually tell that they had to think about it. But most people do say yes.
Here are my findings:
- in any party of three or more, at least one person will say yes. Their friends may be standing around looking bored while they come for a look, but after the early adopter says "Wow, that's stunning!" or more often, "OMG that's amazing!", the others come look, too.
- for couples, by FAR the most common outcome is for the guy to blurt an automatic "no thanks" with barely a sideways glance, and the woman to look from him (sharply, like "are you nuts?") to the telescope and say, "Okay!" (Note to guys: women don't dig on having that decision made for them, and they like to rub it in your face.) Then once the woman looks the guy might as well look, too. Sometimes he still stands off. I used to just let those guys stand there, but now I say, "Aw, c'mon, it'll just take a sec." That nets almost everyone. And they're always grateful and happy afterward. Sometimes both people are up for it, and a couple of times (out of hundreds) it has been the guy who wanted to look but not the woman, but most commonly it is the other way around.
- I have never been turned down by anyone with kids, ever. My guerilla astronomy scope is a 90mm Mak on a light tripod with a quick-adjust center column, so I can slide it up and down and get recentered in about 5 seconds. Any kids too short to reach the scope at the bottom of its travel are light enough for their parents to lift to the eyepiece.
- It is downright scary how many people think an ordinary crescent moon is undergoing an eclipse.
- At least once a night, someone will tell me that seeing the moon was the highlight of their evening. If you want to make a whole bunch of people happy for no money and a minimal time investment, guerilla astronomy is hard to beat.
I hadn't been out for a couple of months, so I went out last Friday and Saturday nights, around the release of the movie "Moon" at the theater downtown. Friday the moon went down pretty quick and I only had 35 visitors in 45 minutes. Saturday I did better, 119 visitors in an hour and fifteen minutes.
More reports from the field, please!
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Orion XT6 "Shaft"
Little Maks: Orion Apex 90, Celestron orange tube C90, Synta MC90
Edmund Astroscan "Baby Red"
76mm ongoing ATM experiment
Celestron UpClose 10x50
Celestron SkyMaster 15x70
10 Minute Astronomy
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Tim A.
sage
Reged: 09/19/07
Posts: 243
Loc: 40 30'N 105 3'W
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Update: In mid-August, I took the show on the road to Yellowstone National Park (YNP). YNP has a monthly "official" astronomy program, which I would have attended and volunteered for, but due to a road closure, it was 90 miles from my camp.
Instead, for the new moon week, I offered an ad hoc astronomy program to my fellow campers. Along about 5PM, I'd make a call on whether the sky was good. If so (and it generally was), I'd post my invitation flier to every restroom door in the area; see attached.
My site was a large turnout 1/2 mile from the campground, with a wide-open view of the horizon. Such a site is uncommon in much of the densely wooded YNP. The nearby road was largely screened from the site, and is lightly traveled at night. YNP is a twitch south of the 45th parallel, with uncompromised sky conditions. At 8000 feet elevation, the dry air and total absence of light pollution deliver unmatched transparency and contrast.
I got between 8 and 30 visitors on the various nights. The biggest turnout occurred on perhaps the finest astronomical night I've ever experienced. Until the crowd began to diminish, I mainly used the computerized 8" SCT. This allowed a "set and forget" approach to the observing. As people filed past the EP, I gave an unrehearsed talk on the summer sky, the Milky Way, the historical roots of our constellations, basic astronomy facts, and whatever else came to mind that would interest my audience. I fielded a lot of good questions. To the credit of my visitors, I got no silly "Planet X" or astrological inquiries.
I mainly stayed with the Messier showpieces: M13, M5, M8, M11, M57, M27, M51, M17, and so on. I also hit a few of the better doubles like Alberio, Mizar, and Epsilon Lyrae. Under such a sky, an 8" SCT delivers stunning views of these objects.
If the crowd was smaller, or as a big crowd dwindled, I switched over to the 12.5" Dob. That instrument delivered jaw-dropping views of any of the above, plus the Veil, NGC 6888, and many others. There was no way my visitors could know that they were getting a visual experience of staggering quality.
When the last visitor left (2AM) on that great night, I stayed until nearly dawn to watch the early autumn sky rise. A two-yr-old grizzly bear had wandered through the campground earlier in the day, but I didn't worry much about it. A healthy two-year-old bear isn't looking for trouble, and will avoid human contact 99.9% of the time. And if there's a healthy two-year-old in the area, there probably aren't other bears nearby.
I reached a total of almost 60 people in this outreach effort. During the day, after sleeping in, I'd explore some of my old YNP haunts (I was raised in the area) and spent one afternoon just watching the light change at the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone. What a lovely spot.
Edited by Tim A. (09/24/09 09:19 PM)
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