Stargate, Night of the Shooting Stars. The Perseids Are Coming I. – (Featuring live coverage of the total solar eclipse) – August 12
August 12 is going to be a special day! Three truly spectacular astronomical events are taking place today: a solar eclipse, the peak of the Perseid meteor shower, and the dichotomy of Venus. Whether with our own eyes or via a live broadcast, we’ll be tracking them all! We’ll swap the partial solar eclipse—which is difficult to observe from Hungary and visible only with a completely clear horizon—for the magnificent sight of the total solar eclipse in Spain, which we’ll watch projected on a screen with live commentary and expert guidance. We’ll also chase the Perseid meteors with our own eyes on a summer evening sparkling with starlight, and during our meteorite examination, we’ll even get to hold freshly fallen “shooting stars” in our hands! In the twilight sky, we’ll also admire the planet Venus, which is currently in the half-moon phase, with its mystical bands of clouds along the sharp boundary between light and shadow. As darkness falls, we’ll observe the mysterious star clusters and nebulae of the summer sky through our telescopes. Meanwhile, those with a keen eye can lie down on blankets on the grass to catch a glimpse of some beautiful shooting stars.
Schedule
Programs:
Daytime and twilight astronomy:
Solar observation: Using our solar telescopes, we will examine groups of dark sunspots, fountain-like solar flares, and bright, lace-like solar prominences in different colors.
Half-Venus: The planet Venus will reach the exact half-phase today. On the planet, we can see not only the sharp light-shadow boundary, but also the bright outer edge of the planet and the delicate cloud patterns emerging along the light-shadow boundary.
Interactive astronomy programs
Meteorite examination – hold stones from space in your hands!
Spectrum Zone – light experiments in all the colors of the rainbow
Planet Sniffing Lab – get ready for some deep breaths!
Comet Cooking – we’ll cook up a smoking comet nucleus
Bubble Universe – giant colorful bubbles and their astronomical connections
Space-Time Trampoline – set the planets on their orbits around the Sun!
Telescope Tricks – we’ll take it apart, cut it in half, look inside, and focus it.
Total Solar Eclipse from Spain:
In the evening, after 8:30 PM, we’ll watch a live broadcast of the total solar eclipse occurring in Spain, while explaining the dazzling phenomena of the total eclipse.
Nighttime Telescope Observation
The most beautiful double stars in the summer sky as darkness falls: Albireo, the Double Double, Izar, Ras Algethi, Delta Cephei.
Open clusters and globular clusters sparkling with stars: Captain Hook’s Cluster, the Wild Duck Cluster, the Shoulder Cluster, and the M13 globular cluster.
The most exciting gas nebulae of the Summer Milky Way: the Lagoon Nebula, the Swan Nebula, and the Eagle Nebula.
A magnificent planetary nebula, a cosmic gas bubble: the Dumbbell Nebula.
On the rooftop terrace, we’ll also marvel at the thin ring of Saturn rising late in the evening!
A laser constellation tour through the constellations of the summer sky!
In case of cloudy weather
We will hold our Stargate event regardless of the weather; our interactive program venues will remain open throughout. In cloudy weather, instead of telescope observations of celestial bodies, we’ll offer a dome tour, video observations through a telescope, spectroscopic observations of light sources through a telescope, and a themed presentation! We’ll also broadcast the solar eclipse even if it’s cloudy!
Svábhegyi Observatory of Budapest
"The Svábhegyi Observatory is the largest demonstrational observatory in Budapest also an interactive astronomy experience centre. Our main goal is to bring the beauty of the Universe closer to everyone."
