Among the offerings: black holes, full moons and a hike for senior citizens
For casual visitors, Observatory Park is open daily 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. at 10610 Clay Street in Montville Township.
For those wanting a more guided experience, however, the astronomy naturalists (“astro-nats”) are glad to help all winter long at this International Dark Sky Park.
Each Friday and Saturday night, park buildings will be open from 6 to 11 p.m. for self-guided night sky viewing and, as weather permits, the occasional use of the Oberle reflecting telescope.
Each Sunday from 1 to 4 p.m., enjoy building open houses of the Robert McCullough Science Center and the Oberle Observatory to view the meteorite display (featuring a real meteorite you can touch!) and the Oberle telescope, with its 25.5″ mirror. These hours also include The Sky Tonight Planetarium Show Sundays at 2 p.m., offering a naturalist-hosted preview of “what’s up.”
More structured programming is available for visitors of all ages and interest groups, as well.
Biweekly Friday programs from 7 to 8 p.m. include:
- Black Holes on January 10 and 24
- Solar System Explorers on February 14 and 28
- Hubble’s Greatest Hits on March 14 and 28.
- A Geauga Walkers hike geared toward active senior citizens will take place Tuesday, January 14, from 1 to 2:30 p.m.
And programs to study the full moons are scheduled for:
- Wednesday, January 15 (the Wolf Moon), from 6 to 8 p.m.
- Friday, February 14 (the Snow Moon), from 6 to 8 p.m.
- Sunday, March 16 (the Worm Moon), from 8 to 9:30 p.m.
All Observatory Park programs this season are free to attend without registration. For details on these and other parks’ programming this winter, visit the website and click Find a Program.
Observatory Park is wheelchair/stroller accessible but can be especially windy, and thus icy cold, in the winter time. Don’t forget your warmest coats, hats, boots and gloves when you come to join us this winter!
Geauga Park District is online, Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.
