Students Beneath the Stars
By Lane Hardy
The night of Oct. 7 on top of a hill cloaked in darkness a chattering mass of people scurried, stopping now and then to scribble on papers. They were stargazers, astronomy students and their guests who had gathered for a star party at the Jubilee Observatory.
Brian Bill, the ICC professor heading the event, traced constellations with a powerful green laser that shone far into the night sky, undisturbed by bright lights. He narrated as he did so, identifying the boundaries of celestial bodies the crowd of students had learned about in class.
“I think it helps get them excited about science in general.” said Bill. “People have heard about the constellations before, but most people haven’t even seen them.”
Bill was right, for students like Jade Allen, and Maggie Jackson, it was a wonderful new opportunity.
“That was the most stars I had ever seen.”, said Allen.
Growing up in the city, she was never able to view a sky unblemished by light pollution, never shown that there is more to the night sky than the moon and a few stars. Jackson found herself in the same situation.
“This is the first time I’ve been able to go out and see something so vast. I’ve never seen the milky way where I live”, said Jackson.
Many people find themselves in similar situations, surrounded by artificial lights which overpower the natural view above. It’s easy to forget that so much is up there.
It was an unusual sight, numerous patches dim of red light which blinked now and then as they were passed by throngs of watchers who moved in organized chaos around the hilltop. The light came from the bases of the telescopes that were set up all around the area. Red film covering the bulbs of small lights prevented the eyes of observers from adjusting to the brightness.
Now and then a voice would call out, beckoning people to come look through one of the telescopes to see what they had found. Their focus revealed many interesting sights, binary stars, globular clusters, nebulae, but not everything worth seeing was hidden to the naked eye.
“I think when you’re out looking up and you’re realizing how insignificant you are, and how you’re just part of this huge mass of matter … it actually gives you significance because it’s amazing that we can even know that that’s mars.”, said Allen.
It was Bill’s along with Jeff Constable’s astronomy students who had been assigned to come to the observatory. Their task was to see as much as they could, and mark off everything they found on a worksheet as the night went on.
The event was hosted by the Peoria Astronomical Society, which has rented the property the observatory sits on from the Jubilee State Park property since 1974. While it’s not normally open to the public, the society regularly invites specific groups to visit for educational purposes.
Beyond learning, the sense of wonder and community was palpable.
“It’s nice just to connect with people”, Jackson said. “I’m enjoying the event for what it is and I’m glad that I don’t have to sit around people pulling out their phones.”
All around, the observers talked, laughed, and learned, joined in appreciation for nature and bathed by the light of the stars.