A night with my students and,.. something else!
September 6th, 2011
I wasn't thinking of staying long outside and didn't have any set goals but I simply couldn't let a cloudless night pass by without attempting to explore the skies! I set up and decided to return to the constellation Cygnus for another romp. As I was making sure everything was aligned, I heard a strange noise. It was subtle but I recognized it right away. Something or someone was playing with the tarp found around the BBQ. Could it be that a wild animal was attracted by the smell of the chicken my husband had made the night before?
No,..
It was the neighbour's dog which I have nicknamed "Silly Pup" which had come by to keep me company. The man never ties his dog but this does not concern me since he is great pal to have around on a starry night!
After taking the above picture, I heard my name being screamed over and over again. I recognized the voices immediately, my students were coming over for a look! They couldn't see me since I was sitting on my back porch in the dark. I went to the side of the house and called them over. It was at that point that I saw them,.. the northern lights were out! Considering the solar activity in the last few days (if not weeks) and my northern location, I wasn't surprised. Unfortunately, the lights were quite faint and picture-taking was impossible. So, we were starting this little astronomy class with the presence of the mighty Aurora Borealis! Who can ask for anything more?
I then showed my students a couple of constellations but they were barely listening to me. What had attracted their attention was the light that loomed above, our moon! I gave them a chance to navigate the telescope to our natural satellite and wasn't surprised that they "whooped" in pleasure at the sight!
Pssst! Try a little higher!
Once the moon exploration was over, one student remembered something, "You said in class last week that Jupiter was out here! We want to see it!"
I explained that it was still close to the horizon and was actually found on the other side of the house. I also stated that it was best for us to wait and that I didn't like the idea of walking around with my 10" dob around the house in the dark. I couldn't see them in the dark but I could sense their eyes starting to glaze over.
They just looked at me with "puppy dog eyes" (once again I could sense this with no problems in the dark) and said:
Now, How can I say "no" to that?
We carried the telescope to the front of the house and they marveled at the fact that they could see Jupiter's moons. Some colour could be seen and this made them extremely excited!
After we were all blinded by the flash, my students helped me bring my telescope inside. It's nights like these that I pride myself for being a teacher. The young ones that left, had acquired something very special, a taste of a passion that will remain with them forever!
Isabelle
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