KOKOMO, Ind. – Mars and the spring galaxies will be the stars of the show at Indiana University Kokomo’s last Observatory open house of the school year, on Sunday, May 19.
Patrick Motl, associate professor of physics, will begin the free open house at 8 p.m. with discussion of new gravitational wave detections from the Laser Interferometer-Gravitational Wave Observatory (LIGO), after it resumed operations April 1.
Mars and the spring galaxies in Leo and Virgo will be visible, weather permitting, with the summer triangle and summer favorites including the ring nebula and great globular cluster in Hercules rising towards the end of the evening.
The Observatory’s two telescopes include a six-inch Takahashi refracting telescope and a 16-inch Meade reflecting telescope mounted together. The Takahashi provides exceptionally sharp images of planets, while the Meade allows viewers to see fainter objects in the sky, due to its larger light-collecting area.
Observation continues through 10 p.m., weather permitting. The open house is free and open to the public at the Observatory, 2660 Washington Street. Free parking is available on campus.
Indiana University Kokomo serves north central Indiana.