Orange County Register

The Orion Nebula. Image courtesy of NASA>

The periodic public astronomy nights that UC Irvine holds at its campus observatory are so popular the university is asking for donations so that it can sponsor more of them during this, the International Year of Astronomy.

“We decided to increase the number of ‘Visitor Nights’ we hold this year because they have been so very popular with the public,’ Tammy Smecker-Hane, the observatory’s director, says in a news release.

“However, we are asking for your financial help. Please consider making a tax-deductible donation to the Observatory to help us cover the added cost. A typical Visitor Night costs $2,000, thus we need to raise an additional $6,000 for these three (additional) nights. We hope you will consider supporting us and our efforts to inspire others with the majesty of the astronomy. ”

The next Visitor Nights are scheduled for April 3, 4, and 5. Click here for more information. Click here to learn how to donate. And click here for advice on buying your own telescope. Also, San Diego State’s Gary Peterson will discuss whether there’s water on Mars during the March 13th meeting of Orange County Astronomers. Click here for details.

Depending on the weather and what’s in the sky, UCI’s Visitor Nights have attracted from hundreds to thousands of people to the observatory site in University Hills. But you don’t have to go to UCI to watch the space station pass overhead this week. Click here to learn where to look.

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