A Novice’s Guide to Stargazing: When, Where and How?

A majority of us can recall that at some point in our childhood, we looked up at the night sky in awe; a myriad of stars, planets, and constellations. There existed countless wonders as I grew up, wondering about my place in this Universe. As a kid, I remember waiting all day for my favorite show, The Universe, to air on our cable. When we got Netflix, I went through all the shows that explained the conceptual parts of The Universe, finding all the proven and even unproven theories to be fascinating and something that was beyond mankind. As I grew older, simply staring outside my window wasn’t enough, especially with the increasing light pollution that made the dimming stars seem even fewer and far between . Luckily, a few avid sky observers have paved the way for us to continue our childhood passion and move forward in our minute discoveries of the cosmos.

Stargazing serves as a perfect pass time, whether it be with friends, family, or even just ourselves as a pathway towards introspection. Whatever it may be, at the end of this article, you will be well-versed in accessing the night sky. Though many stargazers have telescopes to aid their viewing, you absolutely don’t need a fancy gadget to access the night sky. To begin, future stargazers must pick a clear night. Cloudy nights, though often beautiful especially in light of the moon, can serve as a barrier to the cosmos. That brings us to our next step: pick a night when the moon isn’t too bright. Crescent or no moon nights often serve as the best nights to avoid the natural light from overcasting the other objects in the sky, and can give you the best conditions to view as many stars in the sky as possible.

Now onto the more difficult portion, finding the right location. Many of us live near the city or in suburbs that unfortunately use too much light. Though this may serve us well for late-night runs to the grocery store, it doesn’t work very well for our stargazing passions. For those of us who live in Austin, a quick 20-minute drive into the hill country does wonders in terms of moving away from the city lights. Locations such as the 360 bridge and Mount Bonnell as gems that are close enough to campus, but far enough and high enough on a hill that the stars decide to show themselves.

Though staring out your window at the night sky is an easy thing to do, I implore all of you to take the initiative and consider my advice to plan a night out under the stars. Who knows, you might just learn something about yourself as you stare up from the same, tiny, organic dot within the cosmos.