Thu, Nov 26 2009
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Kansas skies ideal backdrop for observatory Indeed, gasps were heard as people looked into the telescope that is roughly the size of a small car. The target for the night was the moon, and children raced down the ladder to tell their parents what they saw through the eyepiece.
“I saw the moon!” said Jacob Lamb, 7. “It was really round, and it had holes and cracks in it.” His mother, Kim Lamb, laughed and said Jacob had told her at breakfast that morning that he had waited all his life to look through a big telescope. “He’s always looking up at the stars with his dad,” she said. Tombaugh probably would have understood the appeal. Cochran said the Kansas countryside is a perfect environment for viewing the stars. “It is a lot of fun,” he said. “Sometimes I find myself out here at 2 a.m. just looking up at the sky. The stars are so bright here, and it’s so quiet.” Another option for local sky gazers is an observatory in Lamar, Mo. The Stilabower Observatory, located next to Lamar High School, is open to the public by appointment. This unique observatory was designed by Ralph Williston, a former teacher at the school. The telescope is built low to the ground, eliminating the need for a ladder to reach the eyepiece. Williston built the observatory to be easily accessible to wheelchairs and young children. “To my knowledge, this is the only observatory with this particular design,” Williston said. To set up an appointment to visit the Stilabower Observatory, people may call the Lamar Vo-Tech School at (417) 682-3384 or Walter Powell at (417) 682-3745 with a couple weeks’ notice. Destination: The PSU-Greenbush Astrophysical Observatory at the Abernathy Science Education Center. Directions: The Greenbush observatory is just west of Girard, Kan. Take Missouri Highway 171 north across the state line. Turn right on U.S. 69 and continue through Pittsburg and Frontenac. Turn left on Kansas 47 and follow it through Girard. The observatory is on the campus of the Abernathy Science Education Center, on the left. Address: 947 W. Highway 47, Girard. Features: The observatory has monthly astronomy programs that are free and open to the public. The programs feature a planetarium show and a chance to look through the observatory’s telescope, weather permitting. Upcoming programs include “Other Planets” at 8 p.m. on Aug. 8 and “Jupiter” at 7:30 p.m. on Sept. 5. Distance from Joplin: 52 miles. 
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