Recognized as the world’s first International Dark City, Flagstaff is host to luminous skies that glow over the town’s cascading landscape. Public Night, offered by the NAU Astronomy Club, gives the community the ability to approach the depths of the stars above and cosmic amenities in this sky with knowledge and technology.

Flagstaff is home to two major astronomical observatories. Lowell Observatory and the U.S. Naval Observatory are major staples in the continuous research and development of astronomers and scientists. A third observatory located on NAU’s campus is a research facility devoted to students involved in the astronomy and physics programs. Though the observatory is dedicated to undergraduate research, students in the Astronomy Club offer an opportunity for members of the community to participate in stargazing every Friday night.

Sean Diest, the president of the Astronomy Club and a sophomore physics and astronomy major, said the intentions of Public Night is to expand students’ knowledge of the skies through advanced telescopes.

“It gives us a chance to talk about the objects that are up there,” Diest said. “Most people have never looked through a telescope to see things like Jupiter or Saturn, the moons of Jupiter, different nebulas, and different objects that you can’t see without the aid of a telescope.”

Along with hosting the event, members of the Astronomy Club are also actively learning more about the use of telescopes and teaching others through the Public Night experience.

“Usually people will come by and have specific requests,” Diest said. “We will give them an overview of what they’re looking at. A lot of people have no clue about how far away things are and what certain things are. It’s fun for us because we get to explain to them what they are. It’s a passion for us to share the sky.”

Stephen Tegler is the faculty adviser of the Astronomy Club, a professor of physics and astronomy and the director of the NAU Atmospheric Research Observatory. He said Flagstaff’s low light pollution makes it an ideal setting for observing activity in the sky.

“I would like to see more people become aware of Public Nights and take advantage of an opportunity to observe objects in the cosmos with their own eyes,” Tegler said. “I can’t think of a place in the country with a better facility and better observing conditions for the public than the NAU Campus Observatory and its 0.51-meter telescope.”

The campus observatory is home to one main telescope which was produced by the same company that produced the Hubble Space Telescope.

“It’s interesting to see things you normally couldn’t see with the naked eye,” said Skyler Branch, a sophomore business major. “Flagstaff is known for its reputation of dark skies. We should take advantage of this window to another world.”

Public Night is every clear-skied Friday night from 7:30 p.m. to 10 p.m. during each semester. For more information, visit the Astronomy Club’s website at nau.edu/studentlife/astronomy.