Skyscrapers Jam at the Newport Folk Festival
by Tom Thibault, Dave Huestis, Jim Crawford & Gerry Dyck
The stage was being set; the skies were clear and a beautiful shade of blue. It was early when our members Bob Forgiel, Bob and Betty Horton, Dave Huestis, Alex Bergmann, Jim Crawford, Gerry Dyck, and Tom Thibault entered Fort Adam’s State Park in Newport, Rhode Island. They had arrived upon the request of Prof. Donald Lubowich of Hofstra University. Donald developed and has been promoting the Astronomy and Music Program for a number of years. Donald contacted Skyscrapers last winter asking if we would be interested in participating with his program this summer. Skyscrapers has always promoted Public Outreach and gladly accepted this opportunity.
Fort Adams is a magnificently preserved military fort that once guarded the entry into Narragansett Bay. Fort Adams has hosted both the Newport Folk and Jazz Festivals for many years. The fort is an ideal setting for events—its location at the southern point of entry to Newport Harbor provides fantastic views of the ocean and all the sailing vessels entering and exiting. The large stone walls with arched entries and their cobblestone roads are picturesque. The main entry displayed a number of antique cannons on the grounds to the side of the large arched entry. The cobblestone and granite road showed its long history with grooves worn in the upward ramp below the arch as you entered. The grounds surrounding and within the fort are all well keep with green lawns and fields that lead to the water’s edge on the exterior.
When we arrived early that Saturday morning, the fort was bustling with activity. Stages were being set-up, sound checks were occurring, and food and craft vendor were preparing for the day. We were to set-up within the walls in the large central grounds. Bob Forgiel had met with Donald and the festival organizers during the week and provided everyone with the when and where to gather. Everyone chipped in and we completed our display area rather quickly. Our pop-up tent and Jim Crawford’s tent were set up as well as our tables and Skyscrapers poster display. Bob Horton set up Brown University’s Coronado SolarMax 90mm H-alpha solar scope and Sun Spotter. Bob Forgiel brought his 12” Meade with a white glass solar filter and 40mm PST and Gerry Dyck arrived with a 60mm H-alpha solar setup as well. Dave Huestis and Alex Bergmann had organized our tables with Skyscrapers Membership forms, web link handouts, and other items, so we were ready to rock, or would that be folk?
Donald Lubowich arrived with a van full of displays, literature and a special guest, no other than Galileo. Galileo (played by Mike Francis, formerly with the Boston Museum of Science) was dressed in his traditional garb, and had brought a replica of his telescope. Momma mia—what a guest. We all pitched in to help Donald set up some outstanding displays. They included a large 8’ x 25’ double sided banner with exquisite planetary and deep space images and content.
Accompanying Don was Dr. Peter Edmonds, outreach scientist for the Chandra X-ray Observatory at the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory at Harvard. Peter’s role in this program involved providing and displaying images from the “From Earth to the Universe” exhibit. This consisted of 6 to 8 double sided poster size photo’s on independent chrome display stands with Hubble photo and information regarding its imagery. Really nice stuff!
Well we were all set and ready to begin, the sun had risen high and the heat was beginning to bake. Luckily for us, there was a Del’s Lemonade stand not far from us. I think that Skyscrapers themselves made enough purchases to fund a larger Del’s cart for next year. The crowds began to arrive and bands began playing. We had one of the three stages at the event close to us so we all were treated to some great music throughout the day. There was a steady flow of people visiting us and during the breaks between bands we where swarmed with individuals. They ranged from the very young children with their parents to seniors. Not only did it appear all age groups were represented, but those from all walks of life. All appeared interested in what we were offering and many engaged us in conversation. Those that appeared somewhat shy were quickly engaged by Jim Crawford. There were a number of times I would hear Jim say,” You want to see the sun, come take a look?” You all know Jim. He has his own special way to break the ice.
The views that day were fantastic. We had three groups of sun spots in view stretching across the face of the sun. These showed up great on Bob Forgiel’s Meade and Brown’s Sun Spotter. Brown’s SolarMax 90mm H-alpha, Gerry Dyck’s 60mm H-alpha, and Bob Forgiel’s 40mm PST were providing marvelous views of the solar prominences. The prominences were plentiful and very active. Sol was being quite cooperative this day to the pleasure of all that visited and took in the view. I can’t tell you how many times I heard people expressing their amazement and gratitude for the opportunity to view our sun close up. I’m sure many of them will never forget this experience and it may even have provided some individuals an incentive to make astronomy a hobby of their own. What a pleasure it is to share these experiences to so many.
Thanks to everyone who participated. What a great job promoting Skyscrapers, astronomy, and public education. I would urge all to consider joining us in the future when these great opportunities arise. It provides a great feeling of satisfaction to share the wonders of the universe with others and possibly instill a new interest in them.
Below are some photo’s and the thoughts, comments, and personal experiences of those attending that day:
Dave Huestis:
We really didn’t know what to expect at the Newport folk Festival since the details were being handled by a third party. Though it was Stellafane weekend, several members did volunteer to bring their own solar filtered telescopes to help share this interesting aspect of observational astronomy with the public.
Though we had a captured crowd so to speak, the festival goers were to enjoy the bands performing on several stages, both inside and outside the fort. We were set up inside the fort walls.
It was a hot day .. a very, very hot day.
Every Skyscraper volunteer had their own way of engaging the public. Often the subject would turn to other topics in astronomy. Quite a few seemed interested enough to pick up a Skyscrapers brochure. Perhaps we will see a few of them at a future monthly meeting.
Skyscrapers’ participation in the Folk Festival was a very worthwhile adventure. We introduced two to three hundred people to just one of the wonders of astronomy. Whether it is a small group of 15 scouts, 150 students, or 300 concert goers, Skyscrapers excels in public outreach. The Sun nearly drained all of us to the brink of dehydration and exhaustion. Regardless, after just a few short minutes of engagement, our visitors left with an increased knowledge of our life-giving star. And that’s what makes it all worthwhile (that, plus the Dell’s lemonade stand 60 feet away!)
Jim Crawford:
The best part of my participation was being with the more experienced members. They provided the visitors with an exciting explanation of our Sun’s character. I’m an outgoing person and had a great time promoting our group and explaining the many things we do. The day was long, but really worth every hot moment.
Gerry Dyck:
I was pleased to be a small part of the astro event in Newport on Saturday. It was much less logistically stressful than I anticipated, due to the excellent help of Bob Forgiel. In retrospect I wish I had invested my three hours there a bit later in the day - after 11:30am, when the event seemed to really get going. Nevertheless, I enjoyed showing the sun to about 30 interested and appreciative people. It was good that the sun displayed easily-identifiable groups of spots for viewing by novices. All in all, it was a good time.
