Winter is a wonderful time of year to observe the nighttime sky, and the Winnebago County Conservation Board will host a Winter Stargazing program on Friday, Jan. 16. The program will be held indoors at the Hanson Nature Center, beginning at 7 p.m.
Winnebago County Naturalist Lisa Ralls will give an informal tour of the winter nighttime sky, all from the warm comfort of the nature center. She will discuss some of the brighter stars and constellations that are visible this time of year and relate interesting tidbits of information about them. Among the winter constellations that she will discuss are Orion the Hunter, Taurus the Bull, Auriga the Charioteer, the Gemini Twins, and Leo the Lion.
People will also learn about other constellations that are visible throughout the year, including the Big and Little Dippers (Ursa Major and Ursa Minor), Cassiopeia the Queen, and Hydra the Sea Serpent. In addition, attendees will also learn how to identify Saturn and Jupiter, both of which are also visible this winter.
This program will be free and open to the public. After the talk, star charts will be handed out for people to take home with them. These charts can then be used by attendees to observe the stars whenever they want to brave the cold.
For more information about the WCCB’s Winter Stargazing program, contact Lisa Ralls at either 641-567-3390 or at lisa.ralls@winnebagocountyiowa.gov.
The Hanson Nature Center is located at 41600 Highway 69, two miles north of Leland.
