“When you’re in love,” said Carl Sagan, astronomer and co-founder of The Planetary Society, “You want to tell the world.”
This is the impulse that leads people to bring their telescopes outside, set them up in public, and offer passersby a glimpse of the Cosmos. Though it may sound modest, sidewalk astronomy reaches hundreds of thousands every year. Many people get their first sight of Saturn’s rings or the craters of the Moon while out on the street, where a moment’s pause on an evening walk can spark a lifelong curiosity about the Universe.
If you own a telescope and want to give sidewalk astronomy a try, it comes with a few best practices. These range from the practical (how do you share an expensive piece of equipment with lots of people, some of whom may not know how to use it?) to the more strategic (how can you best draw a crowd?). Here are our top tips on hosting your own sidewalk astronomy event, drawn from both personal experience and that of The Planetary Society’s members.