Bring your family, friends and clubs to explore and take a closer look at the night sky during Montgomery County Community College’s free community nights in its observatory and observation deck.

The College will hold six community observatory sessions during 2019-20 from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. In the fall, observatory nights are scheduled for Sept. 11, Oct. 16 and Nov. 20.  In the spring, observatory nights are scheduled for Feb. 6, March 6 and April 10.

The observatory and observation deck are features of the College’s 60,000 square-foot Advanced Technology Center. The observatory features a 16-inch Meade Schmidt-Cassegrain telescope, and the observation deck has additional telescopes for viewing. All of the instruments are controllable both in the classroom as well as in the observatory itself.

Community nights are free of charge and are open to the public, and astronomy clubs and scout troops are welcome. The observatory is located on the third floor of the College’s Advanced Technology Center, Central Campus, 340 DeKalb Pike, Blue Bell.

In the event the weather is not optimal for viewing the sky, a short presentation will be given on different astronomy topics.

For more information about community nights, Troop Tuesdays or other observatory events, contact Kelli Spangler, M.S. at  kspangler@mc3.edu.