NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Explore the universe this year with your school-age child or grandchild with a Dyer Observatory “Star Catchers” program, a perfect holiday gift. This unique program packages a quality telescope with a hands-on learning session and other benefits.
“We created the Star Catcher package in response to the numerous inquiries we get each year from people asking about telescopes – what kind they can buy, where they can buy one, how to use one, and so on,” said Nancy Dwyer, education coordinator at Dyer Observatory. “We hope it will help instill a life-long enjoyment of astronomy in children.”
For $395, Star Catcher participants receive:
• A 6-inch Orion Dobsonian telescope
• A fun, informative session for one adult and one child on Jan. 27, 2007 where participants will learn how to use the telescope, care for it and find objects in the night sky
• A map of the sky, including a star wheel and sky chart
• A copy of the book Discover the Stars by Richard Berry
• A dual-beam flashlight to enhance stellar observing
• A year‘s membership at the Dyer Observatory, which includes free attendance at the observatory‘s monthly “Exploration Nights” that feature an astronomer or other space scientist, invitations to members-only events at the facility and an e-newsletter
Please contact Vanderbilt Dyer Observatory at (615) 373-4897 or nancy.dwyer@vanderbilt.edu to reserve your place in the Star Catchers program.
Dedicated in 1953, Dyer Observatory for years was used by research faculty and students of Vanderbilt‘s Department of Astronomy. It now serves as a community resource for the teaching of science as well as a venue for public, private and corporate events. Each year Dyer hosts thousands of visitors through school tours, observations nights, scout events and other community programs, such as Music on the Mountain.
The observatory is located at 1000 Oman Drive, off Granny White Pike between Old Hickory Boulevard and Otter Creek Road, near Radnor Lake. A map with information and directions is available at www.dyer.vanderbilt.edu/directions.htm.
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Media Contact: Melissa Pankake, (615) 322-NEWS
melissa.r.pankake@vanderbilt.edu