Throughout the summer, Boy Scout Troop 378, from Torrance, CA has been meeting weekly at a local community center to learn about astronomy, as part of a program that would assist them to earn their Astronomy Merit Badge.  Troop Leader, Steven Yen, as well as volunteers from the South Bay Astronomical Society, conducted classes to teach the Scouts about the night sky, the different types of telescopes in use, the birth, life and death of stars, identifying the constellations and so much more.  Steven had contacted me to help assist with a star party for the Scouts, but each time a date was set, the star party was always called off due to the marine layer, which is infamous around the South Bay this time of year.  Finally, on Thursday, August 27, 2009, and after many delays, the marine layer withdrew and lifted far enough from land.  The Boy Scouts Star Party was back on!

Rob Hutchins, an avid local amateur astronomer and a good friend of Steven, opened up his backyard to host the special star party event.  Rob owns a private observatory with a good view of the sky and overlooks the Pacific Ocean.  Celestron's Lead Repair Technician, Hector Antuna, who also enjoys sharing his telescope knowledge, especially with children, accompanied me to the event. We brought along a NexStar 6 SE, as well as a few giveaways.  As dusk arrived, so did the Scouts, along with their parents and siblings.  Rob prepared his observatory for the evening viewing and set up a pair of binoculars which he mounted on top a tripod.  Meanwhile, Steven brought out his FirstScope and a laptop to play video clips for the Scouts to watch, which included a fascinating look at planetary nebulae.  After the video ended, Steven gathered his troop to review some of the astronomy lessons they've learned throughout the summer.  Listening in, I was quite impressed to hear how much astronomical knowledge the Scouts gained in several weeks.  The Scouts had no difficulties answering questions such as "What are the differences between refracting and reflecting telescopes?" and "Why do stars have different colors?" for example.  No question about it, the Scouts have been studying their lessons well.  Hector then gathered the Scouts together on the lawn, as we explained how a Schmidt-Cassegrain differs from the traditional refractor and reflector telescopes.  By demonstrating how easy it is to align the computerized telescope, and how to properly call up objects using the handcontrol's database, there were a lot of "wows" in the air.  One Scout said "It's like the telescope just comes to life," as the scope slewed to objects and provided everyone with nice views of the Moon, Jupiter, Neptune and even the elusive planet, Mercury.  Steven brought along a green laser pointer and used it to give the Scouts a constellation tour of the summer night sky - starting off by pointing out the "Summer Triangle" of Vega, Deneb and Altair.  We informed everyone to use their imagination as we connected the stars with the laser pointer to identify some of the more popular constellations such as Scorpius, Sagiittarius, Cygnus, Lyra, Aquila, Hercules, Ursa Major and Ursa Minor. 

At the conclusion of the star party, Steven presented us with the Boy Scouts of America Certificate of Appreciation Award.  He also acknowledged Hector for volunteering his time and sharing his telescope knowledge with the Scouts. We posed for a group photo and that concluded the star party event for the evening.  The sky became hazier from all the brush fires taking place in the nearby mountains, but luckily, we were still able to see nearly every object on our agenda and have a successful star party.  Speaking of brush fires, a rather large brush fire broke out in a remote area just over the hill from our location near the conclusion of our star party.  Thank goodness the fire departments responded and were able to extinguish the fire.  As for the Scouts, they studied very hard to earn their Astronomy Merit Badge, and it was well deserved.  Boy Scouts Troop 378, Torrance, CA, now possess astronomical knowledge that they'll carry with them and share with others for a lifetime.  It's wonderful they received a head start in Astronomy and Sciences at such an early age.  Who knows?  It may even inspire them to one day pursue a career in space related sciences.  It's good to start young.

On March 24, 2010, Celestron Representatives, from various departments within the company, went out on the road and conducted a star party at a local middle school within the community.  This allowed for a wonderful opportunity to help educate and provide students, parents and teachers with a chance to view and learn about the night sky and our nearest neighbors in the Solar System. 

The First Annual Wiseburn School District Star Party took place at Dana Middle School in Hawthorne, CA.  The Wiseburn School District is comprised of 3 elementary schools and 1 middle school, which serves over 2,400 students within the district.  Celestron brought along a variety of "kid friendly" telescopes and astronomical products such as the 80LCM, NexStar 127SLT, NexStar 6 SE, FirstScope and SkyScout, in addition to bigger telescopes like the CPC 1100 and CGE Pro 1400 HD. Representatives from Boeing and Cal State Long Beach were on hand to demonstrate and talk about various science related toys and minerals, which really stirred the children's interests.  The PTA also had their tables set up and conducted a fundraiser by selling snacks and drinks to the hungry crowds.

The weather proved to be uncooperative at times, as the marine layer moved in from the ocean, but with a sheer stroke of good fortune, the clouds parted just enough, so guests could view the Moon, Mars and a few terrestrial objects early on.  It was fun watching the kids marvel while observing the Moon's craters, and in some instances, we allowed the kids to use the telescope's handcontrol to "drive" the telescopes themselves to their delight.  As the evening wore on, Saturn appeared in the east, and we slewed our telescopes to the ringed planet.  Although the rings still appeared slightly "edge on" to our line of sight, everyone became jubilant just to see the rings. As one child stated "it looks like a dull orange with a line going through it."  I cannot accurately say how many times we heard "wow" and "cool" coming from both the children and parents throughout the evening, but it was plentiful.  The handball court wall served as a temporary screen as we showed Episode 1 of "The Path of Light" to the guests, including many children. 

Marketing Manager, Michelle Meskill, who helped coordinate this event, gave a brief speech and thanked the school district and everyone involved for allowing Celestron to host this first annual star party event.  A raffle prize drawing immediately followed suit with great prizes such as a FirstScope, a SkyMaster 15x70 binocular and an 80LCM telescope.  A few student representatives had the honors of calling out the winning tickets.  What a fun and exciting evening it turned out to be. 

 As we were about to pack up, the marine layer came in like an eerily, ghostly wall, but it really didn't matter because the First Annual Wiseburn Star Party was in the books.  Judging by the positive comments we heard throughout the evening, everyone went home with a new sense of understanding the universe in which we live in.  Celestron would like to say "thank you" to the Wiseburn School District for allowing us to conduct this very educational and successful star party event. We will be looking forward to joining with you again at the next star party in 2011.