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Date: August 10, 2009
Contact: Sonya Berger, 207-288-8803

Acadia National Park will offer a number of weekend telescope viewing programs, beginning on August 8 and going through September 20, due in large part to a generous $2500.00 contribution from the Bar Harbor Chamber of Commerce’s Sustainable Tourism Development Fund. Two telescopes have been purchased for use by the interpretation division in order to share Acadia’s stellar night sky views with visitors and community members alike.

On August 5, Tom Calderwood of Boston joined Acadia’s night sky interpretation staff through the National Park Service’s Astronomy Volunteer-in-Park (AstroVIP) program. He and other park staff, with support from the Island Astronomy Institute, will conduct telescope viewing sessions for the public on Saturdays and Sundays from August 8-30. Calderwood will also assist in a lighting inventory of park facilities, one of the first steps in the park’s quest to become an International Dark Sky Park. In September, a second AstroVIP, Bert Probst from Ohio, will assist with weekend telescope programs from September 5 through the weekend of the Acadia Night Sky Festival, September 17-21.

To make a reservation for the Night Sky Scoping telescope program for upcoming Saturday or Sunday evenings, visit the Hulls Cove Visitor Center no more than three days in advance, or call 207-288-8832. For more information about the Acadia Night Sky Festival, visit www.nightskyfestival.org.