Mercury Viewing Event Offered
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A gathering to view the planet Mercury will be offered Friday evening, Feb. 22, by the Klamath County Museum.
The “Search for Mercury” astronomy event will begin at 6 p.m. in the parking lot of Foothills Christian Fellowship, at the north end of Patterson Street.
“This is admittedly an event for serious astronomy enthusiasts, because Mercury is not a very interesting object to look at,” said museum manager Todd Kepple. “Because Mercury is so close to the sun, it’s somewhat elusive, and that makes it rewarding for astronomy nerds. There’s really only two brief periods this year when it will be easily visible, and the next week or so is one of them.”
Amateur astronomers will have telescopes set up for Friday’s event, but an ordinary pair of binoculars will also be useful in spotting Mercury.
The planet Mars and the Orion nebula will be among other objects visible this weekend.
In the event of cloudy skies, the viewing may be rescheduled for another evening. Check the museum’s Facebook page for updates.
This weekend’s event was originally scheduled for Saturday, but has been rescheduled because of a more promising weather forecast for Friday.
A series of astronomy events is planned by the museum this year. Locations will be announced as dates draw near.
March 9 – Earthshine on the moon.
April 6 – Chiloquin Skies Star Party.
May 11 – Spring Astronomy Day.
June 21 – Mercury meets Mars, with Saturn rising.
August 3 – Astronomy “superstars” Jupiter and Saturn.
Sept. 21 – Moon in the morning.
Oct. 5 – Fall Astronomy Day.
Nov. 11 – Mercury transit across the sun.
Nov. 23 – Venus meets Jupiter.
Dec. 28 – Moon and Venus photo op.
Press release provided from the Klamath County Museum.
Klamath County Museum