The Charles and Helen Reichert Planetarium will offer a new summer astronomy program for young adults, ages 16-22. The program will be led by Vanderbilt science educators Tom Rico and Roger Ledgister, who also work with Discovering the Universe, the Museum’s mobile science and astronomy classroom that visits Long Island schools.

The program, Young Adult Stellar Discussions, will be offered Tuesday evenings 7:30 to 10:00 from July 8 through August 26, 2014, at the Planetarium. Fee: $10 per session with advanced, on-line registration (www.vanderbiltmuseum.org), or $15 at the door.

Participants will take part in “extended, interactive star talks” with Rico and Ledgister in the Charles and Helen Reichert Planetarium. Questions and discussion will be encouraged. “We’ll look at the galactic neighborhood visible to us on Long Island at this time of year,” Rico said.

In-depth discussions will include naming various planets, stars, and constellations, their distance from Earth, size, magnitude, and the possibility of such stars hosting exoplanets. Mars, Saturn and the Moon should all be visible through the telescope in the Vanderbilt Observatory during July, Rico said, with the August focus on lunar and stellar observations.

Schedule:

7:30-8:15 – Planetarium star talk

8:15-8:45 – Pizza and soda in garden outside Planetarium

8:45-9:45 – Outside observations of the night sky. Guests may bring their own telescopes.

9:45-10:00 – Night-sky observation through Observatory telescope