Skylog: Astronomy Out & About

International Sidewalk Astronomy Night is March 20

The fourth annual International Sidewalk Astronomy Night is Saturday, March 20! Now, for a good chunk of us in the northern hemisphere, that is not an ideal time of year -- in other words, it's likely to be cold! But that actually presents an opportunity.

Think about it: by the time March rolls around, people are suffering from "cabin fever" and are just looking for things to do outside. This week our local TV weather person is calling for high temperatures past 40F, and the anchors back at the studio were all excited at news of the "warm" weather!

So my strategy will be to set up near a restaurant. It's one of the first things many folks want to do when the weather is "nice." Coffee shops are ideal! Actually, this is a good strategy anytime of year, but especially in the colder months. I personally think locations such as parks are not very good for sidewalk astronomy unless the weather has been warm for a while -- people just don't use them as much when it's cold outside. Remember, the whole idea is to get eyeballs to the eyepiece, in mass quantities! You have to go where the people are.

What are other good locations for colder-weather sidewalk astronomy? Post a followup with your ideas and experiences!