Do you sometimes wonder what that bright star is that you keep seeing in the nighttime sky?
Maybe it’s not even a star at all! To find out what you’re seeing, plan to attend the Winnebago County
Conservation Board’s Summer Stargazing program at the Pilot Knob State Park tower. The program will
be held on Friday evening, August 26 th , beginning at 9:00 PM, and lasting about 45-60 minutes.
During the program, people will learn how to identify some of the more common summer
constellations and asterisms, such as Scorpius the Scorpion, Sagittarius the Archer, Lyra the Lyre, Cygnus
the Swan (also known as the Northern Cross), Aquilla the Eagle, and the Summer Triangle. Popular year-
round constellations, such as the Big and Little Dippers and Cassiopeia, will also be easy to spot.
Everyone will also learn about some of the brighter stars, as well.
The WCCB’s Summer Stargazing program will be free of charge and open to the public. People
should bring along a flashlight for the walk to and from the tower and star charts will be handed out to
all participants to take home after the program. In case of cloudy skies, the program will have to be
postponed or canceled and that announcement will run on KIOW Radio (FM 107.3), as well as the WCCB
Facebook page (www.facebook.com/WinnebagoCCB) and the WCCB twitter feed (@WinnebagoCCB).
For more information about the program, people can contact Winnebago County Naturalist Lisa Ralls at
either 641-565-3390 or at lralls@winnebagoccb.com .