The moon in my neighborhood

by Heather Steingruebl

My daughter and I set up on the sidewalk in front of the townhome complex in which we live, and had a good time looking at Jupiter and trying to see Io's shadow. (We didn't.) By the time we were done with that, the moon was up above the trees and fences and such. So, we turned our sights moonward.

And then it seemed like half of the neighborhood was out for an evening stroll. What fun! Everyone who stopped was so thrilled to see the full moon up close. It was really fun to see my neighbors out and about and to share a view of the moon with them. It was even better to see them continue on their walks looking a little lighter on their feet and with a twinkle in their eyes. Telescopes DO that to people, don't they? Especially random, unexpected ones.

This experience has me thinking that I'll scope out a slightly better place to set up, and an easier way of getting my XT8 out of my garage. I'd like to do this more often!

Heather