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One of the things that I can credit for my early love of science (and my eventual pursuit of a career that involves science) is astronomy. When I was young, my mom would take me to the local library where I would peruse book after book and the ones that would draw me back over and over were the astronomy books. The large glossy pictures of distant galaxies and nebulae were beautiful and completely engrossing.  Even when these books were well above my reading level, my mom would let me check them out and read them with me. She made me read one page then she would read one or two.  Although, in retrospect, I doubt either one of us got too much detail out of the text of these books some concepts did come through.  These objects were huge.  They were vastly distant, so much so that it took light from them millions of years to reach us.  They were old beyond belief.  In short, it stretched my concept of the scale of the world around me and opened up a whole new world of possibilities.

Pretty pictures were one thing, but discovering that I could view things beyond the earth on my own was quite another.  Pretty early on I got my own telescope and started to explore the night sky.  Among my fondest childhood memories are laying outside on a blanket with my family, my mom and dad getting me up (still semi-conscious) at oh-dark-thirty to view a lunar eclipse and, later, overhearing my dad bragging to my mom about my knowledge of the night sky when he thought I was asleep.  All this convinces me that it is a worthwhile endeavor to at least expose my kids to amateur astronomy.

Kids. Outside. After dark.

Getting involved in astronomy doesn’t necessarily mean buying an expensive telescope, or staying out until 3 am in freezing weather. You can get started in very modest ways for little or no monetary investment. The easiest way to start is with the moon. The moon can often be seen even in the most light-polluted areas. Observe the changes in phase of the moon. Use an orange (for the moon) and a flashlight (sun) in a dim room to show why only parts of the moon are lit. Track the changes in phase. No big production is needed, just make note of it to your child. “Hey, it’s getting more and more full isn’t it?” or “It’s barely a sliver now.” That’s another fun thing to do with the moon. Try to find the first crescent. This occurs after a new moon (the opposite of full) when the moon is just beginning to appear.  Go out after sunset and try to catch the first sliver of moon as it begins to re-appear.  It may take a couple of nights, but it’s a really neat thing to see.  A good pair of binoculars will yield some exciting views of the surface of the moon with its craters and mountains.  Some of the best lunar observing is done when the moon is not full.  During a full moon, the amount of reflected light sometimes blurs out the details that you can see better during a quarter or crescent moon.  In these phases shadows cast by mountain ranges and craters make these objects stand out better.

Moving on to the stars.  The first thing to note is that not all those bright points in the sky are stars; some are planets.  Pointing out that Earth is not the only planet is an opportunity for another one of those ‘putting things in perspective’ moments.  Other planets, other worlds, not necessarily like this one, but others none the less.  And we have sent probes to many of them.  Little robotic spacecraft traveling millions of miles from home and beaming back pictures of these sister planets and sometimes landing on their surfaces.

Stargazing doesn’t have to be a formal ‘sit down with a telescope and peer into an eyepiece all night’ kind of a thing. You and your kids can just lie outside on a blanket and look at the stars. Point out the constellations and some of the bright stars. There are plenty of fun mythical stories that go with the constellations. I recommend getting a planisphere. They are not very expensive at all.  A planisphere is a little analog star chart that lets you know what stars are visible from your location at a certain date and time. A quick check of the planisphere before venturing outside will let you plan some of the things you might look for. If you can’t find certain stars or constellations at first, don’t worry. Be patient. The important thing is that you are spending time with your child and you are encouraging a spirit of discovery. In looking back over this article, I see that the things I remember the most aren’t facts and figures about astronomy or specific concepts. It was doing things with my parents.

These should be enough tips to get you started. You can eventually get a telescope or get into solar observing (dangerous if done wrong) or astrophotography, but those are subjects for later articles. Don't forget to search for planetariums and local observatories that may have public viewing hours or even astronomy classes.  I have included some links below to resources on the web that can help you out.

Good stargazing book for beginners:
NightWatch: A Practical Guide to Viewing the Universe

Planispheres at Amazon:
Planispheres

Free star charts:
www.midnightkite.com
skymaps.com

General:
Astronomy Picture of the Day
Astronomy Magazine
Sky & Telescope Magazine

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