Booking a Night

How to Select a Viewing Night

The Moon – Plus and Minus

Plus – Seeing the moon through binoculars or a telescope is stunning. It is often the primary object that first-time viewers want to see when coming to the observatory. And we are happy to oblige. Whether a full or a crescent moon, the craters and mountains will captivate you.

Minus – The moon reflects a lot of light into the night sky. The brighter the moon, the fewer the number of other astronomical objects you will be able to see. Think hard about that.

Compromise – A setting moon, even a sliver, provides you an early evening view of the moon’s surface and a lovely dark sky for later viewing. Check the tab with a link for the Moon Rise and Set times if you definitely want to view the moon. Otherwise, we recommend a night with no moon for maximum viewing enjoyment. We can help you to select the best type of night for what you hope to see.

The Time of Year

Different astronomical objects are above the horizon at different times of the year. Whatever time of year you select, there will always be more wonderful objects to view than you will have time available to see them. When it comes to objects, any time of year is a good time.

However, summer months, especially with daylight savings time, have fewer hours of darkness. The night sky will often not become truly dark until 9:30 p.m. or 10:00 p.m. Central Daylight Time. For some people, that’s bedtime. Also, summer nights are sometimes hot, humid, and muggy. If so, the seeing will be poor compared to crisp, cold winter nights.

Winter is not without its issues. The Milky Way is not as striking in winter as it is in summer. the nights can be cold, and you will want to bring very warm clothing (coats, mufflers, gloves, caps, long underwear, well-padded shoes or boots). But the stars—absolutely stunning. We do have the clubhouse available for warmth, and we provide hot coffee and cocoa.

Keep this in mind. Regardless of the season you come, if you live in a town or city, the view of the night sky at the observatory will be astonishingly, jaw-droppingly better than the view you will have from your back yard.

Cost

$250 per evening for a party of 1-5 guests. $50 per person for each additional guest beyond 5. Payment in cash.

Number of Guests

We recommend no more than 5 visitors at the site for an evening of viewing. More than that will not give adequate time for everyone to see the minimum number of objects you would want to see.

Contact

Contact Us to arrange a night of viewing with Outreach for Education in Astronomy or to ask further questions.

Release of Liability

We require that everyone visiting the site sign a release of liability and that an adult sign for a minor. The release was prepared by a really good attorney and will scare you half out of your wits. This is the country. There are bugs and critters and such, and though we are in a fenced-in compound, we cannot patrol the surrounding countryside. We can say that through all our 30-plus years of going to the site, no one has ever been bitten by a snake or attacked by a wild boar or encountered a sasquatch.