Observatories near Topeka

Crane Observatory is on the fourth floor of Stoffer Science Hall, at 17^th Street and Washburn Avenue. There is ample free parking in front of the building in Lot 1. Use the southwest entrance to Stoffer Hall and take the stairs to the fourth floor. At present, the observatory is not wheelchair accessible.

The observatory is named for Zenus Crane, who in October 1901 anonymously donated $50,000 for its establishment. His identity was revealed after his death in 1917.

Check out this week’s night sky  before you go to Crane Observatory. Contact the Washburn Department of Physics and Astronomy at 785-670-2264 to learn more.

Another is in Lawrence Kansas at 500 Lindley Hall, KU

Clyde W. Tombaugh Observatory

These are a couple observatories very close to me and I also have my own telescope so that is always an option. Everyone needs to get their own telescope the sky has so much to offer and there is so much to discover!

Viewing Constellations in Kansas

The significance of the zodiac stems from the fact that the ecliptic -- the narrow path on the sky that the Sun, Moon, and planets appear to follow -- runs directly through these star groupings. Since ancient times, the Sun, Moon, and planets have been known as special astronomical objects -- they "wander" through the background stars of the zodiac, which remain fixed with respect to each other.

In Kansas we can see all the Zodiacs if we have the right conditions and it is the correct time of the year !



stardate.org

New Controversial Sign!

According to 13zodiacs.com "The new theory that has come into existence is said to be based on change in alignment of the Earth. It is said that the moon exerts a gravitational pull due to which the position of the earth is slightly altered and hence even the zodiacs have to be adjusted accordingly with the earth to be in line with the changes and thus came into picture the Zodiac star "Ophiuchus"."People born in between November 29th and December 17th, come under this sun sign. This news started to spread like wild fire when someone from the Minnesota Planetarium Society named Parke Kunkle put forth a new concept that supports this theory and introduced the world to 'Ophiuchus'. The constellation of Ophiuchus is the only sign of the Zodiac which is linked to a real man. This man lived in ancient Egypt around the 27th century BCE, and his name was Imhotep. Many of the same attributes of Imhotep can also be found in the Biblical Hebrew man Joseph, son of Jacob.  Imhotep is credited with many accomplishments including the knowledge and use of medicine.  It is said of Imhotep that he brought the art of healing to mankind. This zodiac sign is symbolized by a man who is holding a snake and this is said to represent "Imhotep" of Egyptian history where the snake stands for medicine."  This is such a new idea and is upsetting a lot of people which is understandable thought it will not effect those born before 2009.

Picture from silverstreamsgardens.com

Capricorn

Capricorn falls from December 22nd to January 19th.   The Capricorn zodiac sign is often interpreted as being either a goat or a sea-goat, or a half goat with a fish fin.  On the website god-and-monsters the story of this sea goat goes as follows, Pricus is the father of the race of sea-goats, who are known to be intelligent and honorable creatures who live in the sea near the shore.  They can speak and think and are favored by the gods.  It is a long story about Pricus going forward in time and seeing the future of his race and returning to warn them of the dangers of living on land and how they will all become goats rather sea-gaots.  However the story ends with all the sea-goats being killed when they go to land expect for Pricus who is  is allowed to live his immortality in the sky as a constellation.

Some positive traits may be: 
Faithful
Ambitious
Self-controlled
Determined
Responsible
Sincere
Some negative traite may be:
Shy
Pessimistic
Awkward
Detached
Self-centred
Gloomy
Stubborn













This picture is from atrologyweekly.com

Scorpio

Scorpio falls from the dates October 23rd November 21st, and in all ancient cultures was imagined as a snake.  Some ancient Greek tails tell of Scorpio the great scorpion being sent from Earth to triumph in killing Orion or (Orion's Belt) after Orion a great hunter who claimed he would kill every animal on earth. The Scorpio constellation is actually placed exactly opposite to Orion appearing that Orion runs since he is never in the sky when Scorpio is.  Scorpio is located in the southern hemisphere and actually the most southern located constellation and is located in the center of the galaxy. Scorpio can be viewed most easily in the hot summer nights of July and August in the Northern Hemisphere.

Some positive traits could be:
Focused 
Brave
Balanced
Faithful
Ambitious
Intuitive
Some negative traits could be:
Jealous
Resentful 
Secretive
Manipulative

















Picture from Topastronomer.com

Sagittarius

The constellation Sagittarius fall from November 21st until December 21st.  This constellation is located in the southern hemisphere and can be viewed almost any summer night there, however here in the northern hemisphere it is best to observe on summer nights with low heat along the horizon.  The ancient legends beileive this to resemble an archer and is often depicted and has storied of this archer being half man half horse archer. The archer is aiming at Scorpio who killed Orion.  According to space.com this is the 15th largest constellation in the sky covering 867 square degrees!

Some positive traits could be:
Strait forward
Intellectual
Philosophical
Large Hearted 
Adventurous

Some negative traite could be:
Careless
Tactless or rude
Superficial
inconsistent
Over confident







Picture from unawe.org

Libra

picture from sciencephoto.com

Libra symbolizes a scale and falls from Sept 23rd to Oct 22nd

Strengths can be
- Diplomatic
- Graceful
- Peaceful
- Idealistic
- Hospitable
Weaknesses can be
- Superficial
- Vain
- Indecisive
- Unreliable