One colossal day of FREE family fun is happening this Sunday, April 28th from 2 to 8pm at the Starry Night Astronomy Festival! Fun, family-friendly activities that bring together astronomy, geology, meteorology, robotics and physics with dance, painting, costume design and music will be featured throughout the day for all ages.
Highlights of some of the many all-day family-fun activities at the event include:
- Inflatable SkyDome planetarium
- Design and build huge cardboard Stonehenge-like monument
- Relays with giant inflatable planets
- Viewing the sun through safe solar telescopes, and learn about its properties
- Paint your own starry universe
- Explore fossils and learn about our planet from Orton Geological Museum
- COSI Science Spots
- Look at a comet and learn it’s make up
- Preschool Nebula Playzone – maze for kid 5 years and under
- Black Hole Book Corner – special readers share their favorite stories about space and the science
- Design your own planet poster
- National Weather Association and OSU Meteorology demonstrations
- Building zone for making rockets, robots and more
Highlights of some of the special presentations offered at different times throughout the day:
- Make a star wand and paint a constellation (2-5pm)
- Act out constellation stories (2-5pm)
- Rocket launching (4-5pm)
- Make and paint a clay model of the earth, and learn about its layers (5-8pm)
- Create your own cosmic costume (5-7pm)
- Dance party with space-inspired music and live DJ (6-8pm)
In addition to those fun activities, and much more not listed, there will be food available for purchase, as well as raffle tickets for a chance to win some incredible prizes from local businesses.
The Starry Night Astronomy Festival is FREE and open to all Columbus area families. It will be held at Westerville South High School, 303 South Otterbein Ave., from 2pm – 8pm on Sunday April 28th. Most activities are lead by local organizations specializing in the science or art, such as the Columbus Astronomical Society, OSU Astronomy, COSI, Ohio Geological Museum, Perkins Observatory, Arts Council of Westerville and more.
This event was created by the Westerville Elementary Boosters (WEB) and the amazing coordination efforts of local Westerville parent Amy Raubenolt. WEB is a nonprofit organization born out of recent dialogue on school funding and elementary education in the Westerville City School District. The organization aims to support elementary academics across the district by networking elementary schools and the community together to promote academic enrichment, forming a community volunteer corps, forging partnerships, and seeking grant funding and corporate sponsorships in support of elementary education.
