Astronomy Tours at Winter Park

AstroTours.org is excited to partner with Winter Park to provide an out of this world experience!

Hosting programs at Winter Park will provide us access to the pristine dark sky above Winter Park. Due to it's high elevation and lack of light pollution Winter Park is a seller spot for astronomy.

We will be providing two experiences:

1) https://www.winterparkresort.com/things-to-do/wpguides#/experiences/6ecf5308-dc89-4bd2-a002-b55c34c16123

A tour for all ages located at Hill House. Tours start at sunset and last for 2 hours. The show will explore the night sky with several large telescopes and a laser pointer. We will see and learn about planets, constellations, navigation, satellites, nebula, clusters, galaxies, maybe some shooting stars (if lucky), and our universe. Through telescopes we will get up close looks at these objects and take in their beauty with our own eyes. Guests are provided with a red flashlight, comfy seating, and hot coco. Guests are encouraged to bring questions, wonderment, and warm clothing (it will get cold after sunset). Please be aware of weather, tour is subject to cancellation if it is too cloudy to see any stars.

2) https://www.winterparkresort.com/things-to-do/wpguides#/experiences/29e6dfba-7330-456f-9d87-4afd3ceda505

A tour for all ages located at the top of the Winter Park Resort Gondola. Tours start at sunset and last for 2 hours. The show will explore the night sky with several large telescopes and a laser pointer. We will see and learn about planets, constellations, navigation, satellites, nebula, clusters, galaxies, maybe some shooting stars (if lucky), and our universe. Through telescopes we will get up close looks at these objects and take in their beauty with our own eyes. The tour takes place at the top of the gondola in winter park (small ~100yard walk required, snowshoes available upon request) where phenomenal sunsets and wildlife are often seen. Guests are provided with a red flashlight, comfy seating, and hot coco. Guests are encouraged to bring questions, wonderment, and warm clothing (it will get cold after sunset). Please be aware of weather, tour is subject to cancellation if it is too cloudy to see any stars.

Frequently asked questions about the Winter Park tour:

For General Information feel free to reach out to Winter Park here:

Guest Services - 970.726.5514

Email:wpinfo@winterparkresort.com

Location:

top of the Gondola or Hill House depending on tour.

About the tour: Tours start at sunset and last 2hrs. we start with a talk about telescopes and looking at a few twilight objects. Then there's a 30 to 45min astronomy talk where we will teach you how to navigate with the stars, point out some constellations with a lazer and share their stories as we let our eyes adjust to the night. Next is ~45 min of telescope time where we get to look at: planets, constellations, satellites, nebula, clusters, galaxies, maybe some shooting stars, and our universe. I end with a 15min q&a and a last few objects (I love looking at things in the telescopes so, guests are free to stay as late as they like and I will keep pointing telescopes at things, answering questions, and talking, as long as there's an audience).

Recommended night/ moon worries:

I would recommend a day or two after the full moon or a day or two after a new moon. The moon is amazing to see in a telescope but, it gives off natural light pollution which drowns out a lot of the dimmer stars and things. For full moon tours I would recommend to just book the usual tour in Boulder as the full moon will make the sky in Winter Park very similar to Boulder's light polluted sky

Will there be any hiking?:

Nope, No hiking required. You might have to walk ~100 yards from the Village Cabriolet for hill house, or the gondola for sunspot. the ground is flat at the sight. We provide chairs for you to sit in during most of the show, and can assist you getting around if needed. Most of the telescopes require standing to use, however I can show the same things in more accessible telescopes if needed, and you will be able to sit during telescope time if needed as well.

Can children come:

Yes, All ages are welcome! I just warn parents of young children: this is a late night show geared for a developed mind requiring a good attention span, little ones often fall asleep. Can dogs come:

No, unfortunately Winter Park does not let dogs come to the resort. Well behaved dogs are welcome on the tours in Boulder only.

Should we come earlier?: If guests want to come earlier to see the telescopes in the daylight and ask questions, ~15min before the show starts the guide usually will be mostly set up and able to talk about the telescopes

Can we use the discounts listed on the discount page?:

No, all discounts listed on this web sight are for the tours in Boulder only. Unfortunately these programs are ran entirely through the resort in Winter Park as such AstroTours.org has no control over adjusting prices.

We're very excited about this partnership and look forward to seeing you at Winter Park

The Orionid meteor

The Orionid meteor shower is one of my favorite meteor showers and will be in our skies soon!! Get a plan to get outside and watch the shower! This guide will tell you what you need and how to make a plan to see the shower on your own! If you want to skip the planning just book a tour to see the shower and more up close in a telescope with me.

When: October 24th/25th (The shower will peak on the 21st but with full moon being on the 20th I would actually recommend to catch the shower after ‘peak’ as you’ll be able to see more)

Where: Earth the Orionids are visible in most latitudes. Just be sure to get a dark cloud free spot.

How: The best way to increase your chances to view any meteor shower is to: 1) turn off all lights and let your eyes adjust to the dark for 20min. 2) lay on your back under the night sky to maximize the amount of your field of view taken up by the sky. I recommend heading to a park with a picnic blanket and lay out on your blanket in the middle of a light-less grassy field.

What you need to best see it:

1. Something to lay down on (picnic blanket, trampoline, hammock, sleeping pad, rug, air mattress, etc.)

2. Your eyes

3. Optional:

   1. Bug spray

   2. Warm clothes for falling temperatures

   3. A sky map app on your smartphone

   4. Binoculars

   5. telescope

Orion hopefully it won't be this cloudy when you go out to watch the meteor shower.

Meteor showers are caused by the Earth traveling through a part of its orbit that has lots of debris left behind from a commit. As the Earth travels through this debris, the debris causes “falling stars” “shooting stars” or more correctly “meteors”. Small meteors (about the size of a grain of sand) are responsible for most of the shooting stars we see. These small meteors are moving extremely fast when the earth hits them ripping electrons off air molecules in the upper atmosphere, making them light up “electrifying” the air. I feel like this is what makes them so electrifying to watch!

The Orionids are one of my favorite meteor showers because it is known for having the biggest and brightest meteors. The Orionids are about average for amount of meteors you see at 20 meteors per hour but they more than make up for this with the brightness of the meteors. This is because the meteors of the Orionids are some of the fastest meteors the Earth hits all year. This is because the Earth is hitting the debris field nearly head on. The particles come from Halley's Comet (1P/Halley) which is seen every 75 to 76 years, and the debris it leaves behind is in the perfect angle to cause some of the brightest shooting stars we see all year.

Halley's Comet

Unfortunately this year won’t be the best for my favorite meteor shower. The shower will “peak” in late October with the night of the 21st technically being the “peak”. However, I recommend checking it out after the “peak” because this will get you a better early evening view. With the full moon being on the 20th you will be able to see more shooting stars with the moonless hours just after sunset (~6:30p MST) on the 24th. The moon will unfortunately subtract with its natural light pollution and you will see fainter shooting stars on the 21st during the “peak”.

Location can have a huge impact on how many shooting stars you will see as well. You want a very dark open area. I recommend using this mapping tool to find the best spot near you: https://www.lightpollutionmap.info/#zoom=4.00&lat=39.1997&lon=-97.2914&layers=B0TFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF

Denver's light pollution

I’m always impressed with places like Cherry Creek State Park or the Rocky Mountain arsenal for being so dark yet ~15 minutes away from some of the brightest areas in Colorado. Then there's places that are very dark like Nederland that's less than 1 hr from the brightest areas in the state. It’s all about finding that balance. You’ll still see the brightest falling stars in your backyard, the darker the better but don’t let it be a barrier to seeing the shower.

You want a clear area so when you lay down and look up you only see the night sky. trees/hills are nice to block out some of the surrounding light pollution but you don’t want them to block your view of the night sky and miss out on shooting stars behind them. Definitely check the weather as well, you're not going to see any shooting stars if it's cloudy. Weather.gov

Laying down under the night sky is the biggest cheat code to seeing more shooting stars. This shower is the “Orionids” meaning that the shooting stars will appear to radiate from the constellation Orion which will rising around 1030p MST in the Eastrn sky. You will still be able to see them all over the sky even when Orion isn’t out. Laying down so you can see the maximum amount of sky at one time is the best way to maximize your chances of seeing a shooting star. I recommend picnic blankets, trampolines, hammocks, sleeping mats, a rug, air mattress, anything that will let you lay out under the stars for a good amount of time in comfort.

With that you should be more than prepared to view the meteor shower this October!

Here’s a small list of other bonus things to see if you can spot while you’re out there:

1. The big dipper low in the north west sky

2. The Moon - you will get to watch the moonrise at 8:35p if you’re out on my recommended date of October 24th.

3. Venus - it will be the first “star” you can see after sunset low in the Western sky

4. Jupiter - Jupiter will be low in the South-Eastern sky next to just after sunset and rising high in the southern sky. You will be able to see up to four of Jupiter’s moons in a pair of binoculars or a telescope

5. Saturn - Saturn will be high in the South-Eastern sky next to Jupiter just after sunset and rising high in the southern sky You will be able to see the rings and some moons in a good pair of binoculars or a telescope

6. The milky way - if you’re in a dark enough area you won’t be able to miss it high in the sky going right over your head

7. Use a star app on your phone to identify other stars / constellations. This is a fun thing to play with but every time you look at your phone remember you are losing your night vision, making it harder to see dimmer shooting stars. Turn down your screen brightness and be courteous of others not to shine light in their eyes.

This was my 50th blog post! Thank you everyone for helping me grow this blog! To celebrate I’m offering 5$ off my tour just pick a date here: astrotours.org/booking and email me to redeem!

If you want to see all this and more in a telescope book an astronomy tour here:Astrotours.org/booking

Neptune

I don’t get too excited about Neptune; even with the best conditions possible and a really good telescope it's not much to look at. So it’s no wonder that this is the first time I’m making a post about Neptune. Which really is a shame because although it doesn't look like much in a telescope it is a really interesting planet and definitely worth exploring here, where I’m not limited to showing what’s in the telescope, and I can share pictures from Voyager 2 and Hubble.

Neptune seen from the Voyager 2 flyby

Neptune’s discovery is an interesting story in itself. Because all the planets from the sun to Saturn have been known since before recorded history nobody really “discovered” them. Neptune, however is so dim that to even see it you have to have a telescope, making Neptune's discovery much more modern. The first recorded observation of Neptune was by Galileo Galilei in 1612. However Galileo is usually not credited with “discovering” Neptune since it’s unclear if he actually saw that it was a star and not a planet. Recent analysis of Galileo's writings indicate he might have known it was a planet.

Galileo's depiction of Jupiter in his notebook with Neptune depicted as a star near by to Jupiter (Right), A modern computer rendering of what Galileo would have seen in his telescope with Neptune labeled (Left)

Neptune was the first planet to be predicted before it was discovered. By the 1840’s it was clear to astronomers that the motion of Uranus (discovered in 1781) was abnormal and likely being influenced by another planet further out. Two researchers John Couch Adams, and Jean Joseph Leverrier were working separately trying to find this planet beyond Uranus. They used the motion of Uranus to predict the location of Neptune and in 1846 two astronomers Johann Gottfried Galle, and Heinrich Ludwig d’Arrest looked where it was predicted to be and found it. All four Galle, d’Arrest, Adams, and Leverrier share credit for Neptune's discovery.

Neptune is the smallest of the four gas giants (Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune), however, it is still very big having a radius of 15,300 miles or, about 4 times Earth’s radius! It orbits about 2.8 billion miles away from the sun (about 30 times the distance from earth to the sun). It takes Neptune 165 Earth years to go around the sun once, meaning it had just been a little over a year on Neptune since its discovery (currently; 175 Earth years ago) in 1846. From Neptune the Sun is just a very bright star at 1/9000 the brightness we experience from the sun here on Earth (or about 450 times the brightness of the full Moon), Because of this Neptune is very cold.

Neptune size compared to Earth

Being so cold Neptune is usually called an Ice Giant however there are parts of Neptune that are quite hot. The atmosphere is thought to be mostly hydrogen and extends down about 15% of the way towards the center of the planet. Due to the thickness of the atmosphere the pressure on the surface of Neptune is about 100,000 times that of earth. This high pressure forms a hot dense ocean made up of water and ammonia. The high pressure at the surface of the ocean could mean that methane from the atmosphere would be under enough pressure to form diamonds and rain diamonds on the water-ammonia sea. The core of Neptune it thought to be made up of iron, nickle, and silicates making a dense rocky solid core.

Diagram of Neptune

There are currently 14 known moons of Neptune. The biggest Triton was discovered soon after the discovery of Neptune in 1846. Triton is about 78% the size of our Moon and orbits Neptune at about the same distance that the Moon orbits Earth. Triton is the only large moon in the Solar System with a retrograde orbit, an orbit in the direction opposite to its planet's rotation. Because of its retrograde orbit and composition similar to Pluto, Triton is thought to have been a dwarf planet, captured from the Kuiper belt. The latest moon of Neptune to be discovered was discovered in 2013 by an astronomer analyzing photos from the Hubble telescope that were taken in 2009, it wasn’t even until 2019 that the new moon was given a name, Hippocamp (after Poseidon’s sea horse)

composite of Hubble photos of Neptune showing the newly discovered moon Hippocamp

Neptune has rings, the rings can actually be seen from earth but not easily. To see the rings you will have to wait until Neptune crosses in front of a background star. As Neptune approaches crossing in front of a star you can see a dip in the brightness of the star as the rings block out the light, then the star will brighten back up as it shines through the gap between the planet and the ring only to be blocked out by the planet soon after. Then the reverse can be seen as the star comes out from behind Neptune and seen in the gap between the rings to, then be hidden by the rings, to be observed again in full brightness after the rings have passed. The rings have only been observed up close during a fly-by of the Voyager 2 spacecraft which found Neptune to have 4 thin rings.

Neptune's rings seen by Voyager 2 (the planet is blotted out because it would have been too bright and out shined the rings).

Voyager 2 is the only spacecraft that we’ve sent to study Neptune. Since Neptune was the last planet Voyage 2 visited, the trajectory was changed so we could also get a peak at Triton. Voyager 2 made the closest approach to Neptune on Aug 25 1989. When doing so it was revealed that (like Jupiter’s red spot) Neptune had a ‘great dark spot’ that was a massive storm raging in the atmosphere of the planet. Since the fly-by we have relied on telescopes to study Neptune. In 1994 the Hubble Space Telescope noticed that the great dark spot was no longer there but in the other hemisphere another great dark spot was found. Neptune has also been observed to have gotten ~10% brighter between the 1980 to the 2000 this is thought to be due to more reflective white clouds in the atmosphere.

Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 flight path (Left), Neptune from Voyager 2 (mid), Neptune from Hubble (right). Notice how the dark spot flips from the southern to the northern hemisphere.

Observing Neptune is difficult for an amateur astronomer, and when found it offers very little to be seen. A telescope of about 6 inches or larger can resolve a small pale blue dot under a magnification of 95x or greater. But that’s about all there is to see, just that it’s not a point of light like a star. If you are really patient and track it down in a telescope and then proceed to wait a few months/years and do so again you will see how slowly it moves in the night sky. Today 9/15/2021 is technically the best time to see it all year since we are on the same side of the sun as Neptune. However, while being on the same side of the sun as Mars helps a lot, Neptune it makes little difference. Neptune is 30 times as far away from the sun so, if we were on a foot ball field the sun was on the end zone, earth at the 10 yard line Neptune would be at the 300 yard line (3 football fields away). Being on the same side of the sun as Neptune is like taking one step closer towards Neptune which helps but not dramatically.

The best way to see Neptune is in this Blog post but, if you want to try to see Neptune in a telescope with your own eyes the best way would be to join me on one of my tours. I’d love to try to show you Neptune in my large telescopes!