Many residents and visitors planning their trips to Kanab this month are anticipating the spectacle of the balloon glow set to take place in downtown Kanab beginning at 7 p.m., on the evening of Saturday, February 17. This major feature of the upcoming annual Balloons & Tunes Festival takes place right on Center Street. To provide yet another fascinating experience right alongside the festival, Stellar Vista Observatory will set up its telescopes, weather permitting, for public enjoyment of the night sky just outside the main entrance to the Kanab Center on 100 East. Observation at the eyepiece is open to all festival attendees including residents and visitors of all ages free of charge beginning with the moon one-half hour after sunset, from 6:30 - 9 p.m.
So what’s up in the sky that balloon festival goers might like to see? Stars; glittering stars, our gibbous moon, the planet Jupiter, the Winter Hexagon and more!
Through its monthly public star party series, Kanab’s Stellar Vista Observatory (SVO) provides observational experiences for people to enjoy, appreciate and comprehend what we can see in the exceptionally starry skies of southern Utah. February 17 marks the second such event held this year. For the month of March, two public star parties are planned. Kanab Library will host the first while Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park will host the second.
On Thursday, March 7, International Women’s Day, SVO will commemorate the illustrious women of science who have made significant contributions in the field of astronomy. The indoor presentation in the Library Community Room will be followed by direct observation of the night sky at the eyepiece of our powerful telescopes right outside the building at 374 N. Main Street in Kanab.
Two weeks later, on Friday, March 22, our telescopes will be set up on the beautiful observation deck at Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park from 8:30 – 10 p.m., with an alternative date of February 23, in case of cloudy skies. A $5 entrance fee is required at the park gate for entry into the park to participate in the star party.
For more information about these and other opportunities for the public to enjoy the lovely night skies above Kanab, visit stellarvistaobservatory.org/.
