Stargazing Event at SAFRA Jurong - 20 April 2013

There is a free public stargazing talk at SAFRA Jurong this coming Saturday.

DATE:  20 April 2013, Saturday
TIME:  7:45pm till late
VENUE:  SAFRA Jurong (near Boon Lay MRT Station)
WEBSITE: www.safra.sg
CONTACT: Miss Wirda (email:wirda@safra.sg, tel: 6686 4328)

Admission is FREE. No pre-registration required. Suitable for the whole family including school-going children. Late-comers are welcomed too.

Click on poster to enlarge it.

The topic for the talk is "Stargazing for Beginners". It will be conducted in SAFRA Jurong's Evergreen Room. I will be sharing some useful stargazing skills, knowledge and resources to let the aspiring stargazer start off on the right foot. Free paper star maps will be given and I will explain how to use it during the talk.

*Weather permitting*, there will be a live stargazing session at SAFRA Jurong's Multi Purpose Court (besides the basketball court). Telescopes will be set up to let the public look through and even take photos of the Moon with their mobile phones. You may want to bring your digital cameras along for better quality lunar shots and videography.

The telescope volunteers there will be glad to answer your queries about stargazing and their astronomical equipment. If you have a new or old telescope or binocular that you cannot figure out how to use it, why not bring it along that night and let us show you how!

Interesting objects to observe on that night:

- Saturn with its rings and moons! Saturn is getting very close to Earth.
- First quarter Moon revealing plenty of craters and surface features like mountain ranges!
- Bright Star Clusters and prominent constellations. Some of them are even colourful!

Photo by Dave Ng

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Directions to SAFRA Jurong:


View Larger Map

By MRT: Alight at Boon Lay MRT Station and walk South towards the T-junction formed by Boon Lay Way and Jurong West Street 64. You should see Jurong Central Park to your left along the way.

By Bus: Alight at Boon Lay Bus Interchange and walk South towards the T-junction formed by Boon Lay Way and Jurong West Street 64. You should see Jurong Central Park to your left along the way.

Bus services at Boon Lay Bus Interchange: 30, 79, 154, 157, 172, 174, 174e, 178, 179, 180, 181, 182, 182M, 187, 192.

By Car: Drive along Boon Lay Way, turn left into the SAFRA main entrance and then into the underground car park. Parking fees per session from 6pm onwards: $1.66 (SAFRA members), $3.45 (non members). 

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Response has been very good so far. Feel free to come early and explore the facilities at SAFRA Jurong while waiting for the talk and stargazing to commence - go for a swim, bring the kids to the huge indoor playground, enjoy a nice dinner. More info about SAFRA Jurong facilities can be found here: http://goo.gl/kcByn

Kudos to SAFRA Jurong for the invitation and after weeks of planning, my friends and I are really excited to travel west and spread our love of astronomy and stargazing to the general public! Hope to see you there soon!

Let's all pray for clear skies on Saturday evening!

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Update ( 3/5/2013): Big thanks to all who came for the event! Especially to SAFRA Jurong and telescope volunteers and helpers. Watch this slideshow of some of the photos taken during the event. Enjoy!