The Prince George Astronomical Observatory was showered with visitors excited to view the Perseid meteor shower over earlier in August.
With approximately 182 people showing up on Tuesday, Aug. 12, and 281 on Wednesday, Aug. 13, the observatory was packed with local families looking to foster their interest in the stars.
Prince George Astronomical Society president Malhar R. Kendurkar overviewed some of the sights that lucky Prince George locals got to see Wednesday night.
“There were some people who we couldn't count because it was just so busy,” said Kendurkar. “It went really well — luckily, the sky was clear on Wednesday night — and we saw a few meteors, and there were northern lights visible as well, after 11:30 in the northwest direction.
“That was cool, and people got to see that. The moon was pretty bright — we knew that was going to happen. The moon was going to be there and the illumination was 78.5 per cent on Wednesday night. But despite that, people were able to see some meteors. That was actually really nice.”
Kendurkar was swamped both nights, showcasing the observatory's telescope and giving presentations — but despite that, he could still hear stunned reactions from stargazing locals.
“They were very excited,” explained Kendurkar. “Whenever they saw a meteor in the sky, from the dome you could hear people cheering, ‘Oh my god, there’s a meteor!’ There were a few fireballs as well and some pretty bright meteors. The Perseid meteor shower is known to have a few fireballs, which makes people even more excited about this meteor shower.”
The big crowds resulted in the second most popular event of the year for the observatory — and a record-breaking attendance for the event.
The huge body of locals helped donate to the observatory during their viewings, which Kendurkar noted were essential to the operation of the observatory.
“Over the two nights, we got about $640 worth of donations, which is really good,” said Kendurkar. “The donation helps us a lot to keep the doors open and keep the facility maintained and pay the bills and all of that, because we don't have a lot of funding sources, unfortunately. So that's why we heavily rely on donations. The $640 will help us keep the doors open until Sept. 5.”
