On Friday, February 13th, Valentine’s Eve, we attended a STEAM event at Beck Junior High in Katy. This was a new school for us and like many new venues we had to learn the ropes.
Inside, Hari Rao gave his stellar life cycle presentation. Instead of a presentation room all presenters were set up at tables with small groups of students and parents roaming around and stopping by. This was not unlike the format of the science nights we attended at Sartartia Middle School in the past. Hari who is now a veteran presenter adapted well.
With the forecast being cloudy we had initially planned to set up the telescopes inside but when we arrived there was a lot of open sky so we gave it a chance and set up outside at the front of the school. Ultimately the forecast was correct and it clouded over just as it got dark. Instead of moving inside I taped up pictures of planets on light poles and trees that the telescope operators pointed at. The real Jupiter did tease us as it poked out a bit near the end of the viewing but was quickly covered by clouds again. The temperature was pleasant, however, so we did enjoy having the scopes set up outside. Our volunteers operating scopes were Sean Carey, Mac Hooton assisted by his brother Robin, Wendy Walfoort and Wayne Wiegand.
After it was dark I was able to scout out the school to look for a darker setup location for next time. The school made an awesome poster which they let us keep as long as we return next year so I guess we are on the hook for a repeat event.
I am very grateful to all the volunteers who made the drive out to Katy and handled the challenges well.
