Comets and Telescopes

Last week was full of astronomical adventures. Spencer and I had the rare treat of seeing a comet. One evening after dropping off Daddy downtown for SXSW, we returned home to find our neighbor Gail looking into the sky. She told us that the comet Pan-STARRS was supposed to be visible in Austin over the next couple of days.

Well, we never spotted it that night, but the following night after we dropped Daddy off, we were driving down South Lamar and I spotted it. At first I thought it was an airplane, but the streak was not changing or moving and I finally realized what I was seeing. When we got home and realized we could see the comet so well from our yard, Spencer said, "Let's text Gail and tell her to come outside!" I told him that I don't know Gail's number and he replied, "Well, email her then!" I suggested we do it the old fashioned way and knock on her door. As the sun went down, the comet appeared slightly reddish — look closely and you can see it below.

We also got to see a full-scale model of the James Webb Telescope during SXSW. It is the successor to Hubble and the largest space telescope to ever be built — as big as a tennis court and as tall as a 4-story building. 

NASA also had a tent set up with all sorts of educational activities and giveaways.

Looking at sun spots.

Interactive model of the universe.

Thermal camera - that's Spencer on the right. He put his had in a warming glove and in a bucket of ice water to see the difference on the screen.

 We definitely had some fun Spring Break adventures this year!