Stargazing days in East Gilry | nature

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nature

LICHTENVOORDE – This year there was an opportunity to look at the stars through large telescopes at the stadium on the Sperwer in Lichtenvoorde. This happened in the context of the National Stargazing Days, an event that took place last weekend in various places in the Netherlands.

On the first day, Friday, of this popular event, the weather was variablely cloudy and rainy. So the organisation, run by the Oost Gillery Astronomy Club, decided not to go out with the equipment this evening. “However, after 9 p.m., it became crystal clear and the moon and Jupiter were beautifully visible. This is very annoying if you cancel an event, but that's nature. Sometimes it's just unexpected,” says Job Hoppers on behalf of the organization. Extremely”.

Saturday evening also started cloudy, but the forecast was better. “We set up our telescopes at dusk and soon the first visitors arrived. Every now and then the Moon and Jupiter were clearly visible through the clouds. Visitors readily used the large 200mm reflecting telescope (by Astrid and Jeroen Dobbin) and the 80mm eyepiece viewer (by Job Hoppers) to view These celestial objects.Once properly adjusted, these binoculars automatically track the Moon and Jupiter and remain in the middle of the field of view.

There were a lot of kids who came to watch with mom and dad. In case viewers are busy, visitors in attendance can contact Godfried Nijs and Tom Waalderbos. Using their robotic telescopes, they were able to capture images of Andromeda, a galaxy 2.5 million light-years from Earth, and make them visible directly on their laptop screen. The Orion Nebula, a star-forming region 1,500 light-years away, also appeared clearly on the screen 20 seconds later.

The organization looks back on the successful evening with great satisfaction. “We received many interested parties at this beautiful location. During the event, locals treated us to a hot cup of coffee. We would love to come back again next year!”