During the winter months, when Earth faces a spiral arm of the Milky Way galaxy rather than the star-packed disk, the night sky appears brighter; this time of year is perfect for spotting Orion, Taurus, Canis Major, Canis Minor, Gemini and Auriga. The Irene V. Hylton Planetarium (14051 Spriggs Road, Woodbridge) is currently undergoing a multi-million-dollar renovation funded through private donations and will reopen better than ever before, according to planetarium director Tony Kilgore.
In the meantime, he has some advice on shopping for your first telescope. First of all, don’t spend a fortune right out of the gate, he says. There are two types of telescopes, reflectors and refractors, both of which use mirrors to focus the image into an eyepiece. “With reflectors, there are openings and the mirrors can go out of alignment, [so] you either have to take it to a shop or try and realign yourself,” he says. “They also can collect dust or particulate in them, which then you need to get in there and clean.” With a refracting telescope, as long as you keep the lens and eyepiece clean, you are good to go. Be prepared to spend between $200 and $500 for a decent model; if your brood gets more seriously invested in astronomy, consider a higher-end reflector telescope, which makes for better stargazing.
As of this posting, COVID-19 affected the availability of area astronomy events, but check the following websites for the most recent information:
Turner Farm has offered public stargazing events through the Analemma Society and usually holds an Astronomy Festival in winter. // 925 Springvale Road, Great Falls
Burke Lake Park has held Campfire Saturdays with stargazing and astronomy campfires. // 7315 Ox Road, Fairfax Station
GMU Observatory hosts free public tours on alternating Monday evenings during the academic year. // 10401 York River Road, Fairfax
This story originally appeared in the January issue as part of the Winter Wonderland feature. For more stories like this, subscribe to our monthly magazine.