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Astronomy Night Stargazing Event 5-29-2009
Date Published: May 29, 2009

VISTANCIA TO HOLD STAR-STUDDED EVENING AT
ANNUAL ASTRONOMY NIGHT

Vistancia will host an evening with the stars during its annual Astronomy Night from 7:30 to 10 p.m. May 29 in Peoria.
The event is free and open to the public. Guests, unfamiliar with Vistancia, are asked to meet at 7:05 p.m. at Sunset Park located across the street from the community's Mountain Vista Club.

From there, guests will be lead on a guided walk on the Discovery Trail to Vistancia's Solar Garden where local astronomer, Tony LaConte will begin the evening with a 30-minute presentation on the "disappearance" of Saturn's rings in September, Native American folklore and Greek mythology and the summer solstice.
The solar garden is the only residential facility of its kind in the state. Positioned along a spiral walking path, it contains scaled models of each planet hanging from educational panels and imprinted with information about each planet.

At the heart of the garden, a concrete sun, 12 feet in diameter, takes center stage in an amphitheater designed for educational presentations.
Guests will also receive and learn how to read a star map for May.
A walk back to Sunset Park at 8 p.m. will allow guests to view the wonders of the night sky through state-of-the-art telescopes that will be pointed at exploded stars, star clusters, colorful binary (double) stars and galaxies millions of light-years away.

"There will be no moon in the sky that evening, so we'll do a lot of star and constellation identification," said LaConte. "Saturn will also be well placed for viewing." Guests are encouraged to bring binoculars and digital cameras to photograph Saturn.

Vistancia is located northwest of Lake Pleasant Parkway and Happy Valley Road. For questions about the event, contact Vistancia Lifestyle Director, Monica Hollins at 623-215-8646 or visit www.vistancia.com.