By COLE REIF
Great Bend Post
The Perseid Meteor Shower watch party is ready to go Friday, Aug. 12 at the
Kansas Wetlands Education Center, located northeast of Great Bend.
Each year, the Earth passes through the dust and debris of the Swift-Tuttle
comet, and KWEC celebrates by watching the meteors or shooting stars as they burn
in our atmosphere.
KWEC Program Specialist Mandy Kern said this year’s theme will center on the James Webb Space
Telescope.
"We'll learn about what the telescope looks for and look at some of the images that it has taken," said Kern. "We'll do several hands-on experiments that will look at how that telescope uses infrared energy. We'll have participants walk through the life cycle of a massive star."
The event Friday will be from 8:30 p.m. - 10:30 p.m. at the Kansas Wetlands Education
Center and will allow stargazers to potentially spot 60 - 100 meteors per hour
during this time.
"We'll have the planetarium for shows," said Kern. "We'll have one telescope set up. If people want to bring their own telescope, that's great. We do encourage people to bring lawn chairs or blankets so they can sit out and enjoy the sky while they enjoy s'mores and look for the meteors."
The public is invited to join KWEC for the free, family-friendly
activity.