Dark sky event Saturday at Big South Fork

USA TODAY NETWORK - TENNESSEE

Take a look at the Big Sky at Big South Fork on Saturday.

In support of the “GO BIG 2017” Challenge, Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area is presenting a dark sky program, featuring the Paul Lewis, director of the University of Tennessee’s Space Science Outreach.

Lewis and amateur astronomy enthusiasts from around East Tennessee will be at Big South Fork to find and describe the stellar objects in the nighttime sky. Telescopes will be set up for observations.

The event begins at 9:30 p.m. at the Bandy Creek Visitor Center parking area.

The program is kid friendly and Junior Ranger Night Explorer packets will be available.

All ranger-led campfire programs are free of charge. Big South Fork personnel advise those participating to wear weather-appropriate clothing. Participants might also want to bring a blanket or chair for comfortable seating.

In the event of inclement weather, the solar viewing program will be postponed and an alternative dark skies program will be presented in the Interpretation and Education Building next to the Bandy Creek Visitor Center. For directions or additional information call 423-286-7275.

The GO BIG 2017 Challenge is a year-long park-wide event designed to motivate visitors to go out and explore their park. Participants earn points by answering questions about the nature and history of the park that will require exploration in search of site-specific information. Some answers may even require a photo to be taken. Points are also given for miles hiked, biked, paddled or equestrian-ridden so participants and earn them any time.

Lewis talks to thousands of school children each year about astronomy and has conducted night sky observations for University of Tennessee astronomy students. He has been involved with teaching about astronomy for nearly 30 years.

He said he first got involved at looking into the night sky when as a child he saw the Russian satellite Sputnik shoot across the sky. The satellite was the first in space.

Encompassing 125,000 acres of the Cumberland Plateau, Big South Fork protects the Big South Fork of the Cumberland River and its tributaries. The river and recreation area gets more than 650,000 visitations a year.