The three dozen or so people huddled under the dome of the College's observatory last Saturday night had to chuckle when observatory manager Chuck Winrich stopped his narration to answer the phone.
“Hello, Pizza Hut … no the bread sticks will take longer than 30 minutes.”
Actually, the call was from students in the control room below. They wanted to know where they should next aim the 20-inch telescope for the monthly open house.
“Saturn,” Winrich replied.
Moments later, amid a low-pitched rumble, visitors had the odd sensation that the room was turning; what really happened was the dome and telescope were rotating to the southern sky to take in the ringed planet and a couple of its moons.
So it went on Saturday as Winrich, who is also planetarium director at the Schenectady Museum, led a tour of the night sky that also included stops at Venus, the moon, Jupiter and the Orion nebula.
Conditions on Saturday were near perfect, the stars and planets shining brightly through the cold, clear air.
Saturday's open house brought about 60 people to the top of the F.W. Olin Center, a typical turnout, Winrich says.
The open houses usually draw a few students and employees with their families, but most of the visitors seem to be folks from the local community.
The usual questions range from the predictable (How far away is Venus?) to the sensational (Have you seen any UFOs?). The discussion also has spurred some philosophical debate on the existence of extraterrestrial life.
Upcoming open houses are planned for Saturday, March 3, at 6:30 p.m. and Friday, April 20, at 8:30 p.m., the latter in conjunction with the Museum's celebration of Astronomy Week.
For more information on the observatory and the open houses, see the Web at www1.union.edu/~koopmanr/observatory.htm or call the hotline at 388-7100.