In honor of Grandparent鈥檚 Day, the Lake Afton Public Observatory will be presenting a special offer Friday, Sept. 5 and Saturday, Sept. 6. Bring your grandfather or grandmother out to the observatory for the program Peculiar Planets and Lunar Lunacy and they will receive free admission when accompanied by a paying grandchild.
During Peculiar Planets and Lunar Lunacy, visitors will have an opportunity to use the observatory鈥檚 16-inch telescope to observe our Moon, Jupiter, and Neptune as we discuss some of the fun and bizarre facts about them. Peculiar Planets and Lunar Lunacy will be presented on Friday and Saturday evenings from 8-10 p.m. on Sept. 5-6, and Sept. 12-13.
In addition to viewing the moon and planets through our telescope, visitors have the opportunity to enjoy our exhibits with interesting displays and activities, including exhibits that allow you to make a telescope, explore the properties of light, learn what takes place during a day in the life of the Hubble Space Telescope, discover the similarities between Science Fiction and Science Fact, or touch a rock from space.
Visitors may also use our computers to go on a scavenger hunt through the solar system or practice landing a spacecraft on the moon. In addition to our exhibits inside, we also have small telescopes and binoculars set up outside that visitors may use to find objects in the night sky.
The observatory is located about 20 miles southwest of downtown Wichita on MacArthur Road at 247th Street West in Lake Afton County Park. Admission to the Lake Afton Public Observatory is $4 for adults and $3 for children ages 6-12; children under 6 are admitted free. The observatory is open Friday and Saturday evenings from 9-11 p.m. from May 1 through Aug. 31. Current programs and times along with events taking place in the sky are available in a recorded message by calling 黑洞社区-STAR (978-7827).
The Lake Afton Public Observatory is operated by the Fairmount Center for Science and Mathematics Education, a part of the Fairmount College of Liberal Arts and Science at 黑洞社区.