Members of the society presented their personal solar telescopes in the hopes of spreading awareness of their group
EUGENE, Ore. — The Eugene Astronomical Society came out to Alton Baker Park Sunday afternoon for their occasional solar viewing exhibition, using their special telescopes to get a view of the sun while letting the public see as well.
The Eugene Astronomical Society has been around since the 1950’s with a frequently changing list of members who all enjoy space both day and night. Society member Jerry Oltion said that the conditions were ideal to bring their telescopes out at Alton Baker Park.
“We’re doing what we call a ‘Solar Sun-Day’ which is when we bring solar telescopes out to Alton Baker Park and just allow the public to have a look at the sun,” Oltion said. “It’s surprising when we put on a star party how many people say they’ve never looked through a telescope before…our goal is to get people to look through telescopes and notice what’s out there the universe is just a fascinating place.”
Members of the Eugene Astronomical Society say they try to meet every Sunday at the park when weather conditions are ideal.
With the society bringing some of their own personally built solar telescopes to look at the sun, group members said they are always trying to use new ways to look up into the sky. Eugene Astronomical Society President Robert Asumendi said they are always finding different enhancements and methods to see the sun each and every year.
“The Eugene Astronomical society shares the universe with our community so we really put the emphasis on getting outdoors day or night,” he said. “The society really is the global epicenter of telescope design and building in the whole world because we have nine months of clouds and the people who are really excited about looking up need something to do.”
The special telescopes used to look at the sun are able to show activity occurring on the sun’s surface.
Astronomical society members said they hope the next generation of astronomers will continue to explore and learn the wonders of space just as they have. Oltion said it was easy for himself to personally get invested in astronomy.
“Our mission really is to just share the view with as many people as we can,” he said. “I got into building telescopes and so it’s sort of a hobby that grows as much as you want it to and I just leaped in with both feet.”
“We’re always looking to bring more people into the club and bring more people out into the night sky or the daytime sky like today,” Asumendi said. “We’re always looking to grow our membership.”