Stargazer - Sydney Jessip tells how she watches the skies
By Sydney Jessip, age 12

My dad got me started looking at the stars when I was little by pointing them out and telling me what they were. When we got our first telescope we started by looking at the moon. I got to see all of the craters and the shadows that they cast. Seeing them close up and real, not like in a picture, was very different. It was kind of spooky and exciting at the same time.

I wanted to see new things like the planets, but you can’t see them all at the same time. The different planets come into view in different years and different months. I really needed some help to tell me what I could see and when I could see it. Websites like www.astronomy.com or www.space.com helped me figure out what planets I could see and when I could see them.

My dad gets lucky and sees interesting, large things in the sky. He shows them to me and if we aren’t sure what it is, we go to the Web to find out. Sometimes Venus and Mars confuse us, but we can usually tell the bigger planets apart.

Once, my dad and I watched Jupiter for almost a month. On different nights we could see the four large moons in different places around the giant planet. We hoped to be able to see the Great Red Spot but Jupiter was either too far away, or our first telescope wasn’t good enough to see it.

There are two or three different types of telescopes; one uses all glass lenses and is called a refracting telescope. The other is usually larger and uses a large mirror in the bottom and is called a reflecting telescope. There is a third, new type called a hybrid which uses both glass lenses and mirrors, but I haven’t looked through one of those yet. All telescopes have a spotting scope on top. The spotting scope helps me aim the telescope. It usually doesn’t get me right on the spot, but it does get close.

All you really need, other than a telescope, is a clear night, an area that doesn’t have a lot of lights (the darker the better) and a place where there aren’t a lot of cars. You’ll need a flashlight that has a red lens to help you get your telescope set up and a few minutes to let your eyes adjust to the dark.

Start by looking at the moon because it is so big and will let you get used to using your scope. After that, figure out what you want to look at and try to view it with the scope. Don’t get too upset if you don’t see anything. There have been times that my dad and I have gone out to look at something and couldn’t find it. Another thing you need is a lot of patience.

I’ve been waiting to see Saturn for a long time, but something always seems to get in the way or keeps me from it. Someday I’ll see it.