A Visit to the Hardin Planetarium

Submitted by Keith Bridgman

The Hardin Planetarium on the WKU campus offers a series of educational and entertaining programs throughout the year. For the past several years the Night Photography Mini Group has kicked off the season with a visit to the planetarium and this year was no exception.

A good crowd attended the program, the last one in the six week long series called "Starry Tales for a Winter Night". Met up with Bill and Rita Schneider and we had a great time.

The program was about how different cultures viewed and used the night sky where every culture gave names and made up tales to describe collections of stars we commonly see and know as Constellations. It was an interactive program where teams of people were given a formation of stars and we were to give it a name and a story. Rita, Bill, and I teamed up and named our formation "The William Tell Arrow" and its story was about how William Tell shot his arrow toward apples in the sky.

The other teams came up with some interesting and creative names and stories as well. The presenter finished off the show by allowing us to find our constellation in the night sky projected on the dome above and explained how to navigate around the night sky using some of the stars as reference pointers.

The planetarium programs are shown at 7:00 pm on most Tuesday and Thursday evenings along with a 2:00 pm showing on Sunday. The next program starting in April will be about Saturn's Rings. More information can be found by visiting: https://www.wku.edu/hardinplanetarium/

As part of the The Night Photography Mini Group agenda, we will soon be exploring the night sky and learning about the mysteries of and amazing visual collection of stars that hover above us each night. It is a fascinating form of photography and much easier to do than most people realize. Plan to join us as we start a new season. More details to come in the near future.

Day at Goose Pond WMA in Linton, Indiana

Submitted by Julie Barrick

Last week MaryBeth and I made a trip to Goose Pond Wildlife Management Area in Linton, Indiana on a birding expedition. It was a three hour drive, so we vacillated on whether it would be worth it or not to go. Turned out...It WAS!

We stopped off at the Goose Pond Visitors Center when we first arrived. It is a sight to see in itself. The entire back of the building is a walled off glass area overlooking some of the ponds. It is perfect for cold weather wildlife viewing.

We eventually headed out in search of various birds on this 9,000 acre expanse. We were told there were many parking areas all around and it was okay to use any of them. You can also get out of your car and walk anywhere. The girl at the Visitor Center even said the ponds were 90% frozen and it is fine to walk on them. (We chose not to do so).

However after driving around and spotting only a few Sandhill Cranes, we decided to park the car and get out and take a hike. It was 19 degrees with a wind chill of 8 degrees, but it turned out to be one of our best hikes ever! We hiked a little ways and started seeing thousands of Sandhill Cranes. After a few more minutes we noticed the sky was filled with American White Pelicans mixed with A great many cranes.

Then off in the distance, we saw tens of thousands of snow geese. They were absolutely everywhere! We also spotted some swans. Because they were some distance away we were not sure if they were Tundra Swans or Trumpeter Swans. The only thing we did not see were the elusive Whooping Cranes.

This place is a birders paradise! Next year the Nature Group will definitely have to make a road trip there when all of these amazing birds return.

I sure do love spring, but I am going to miss all the incredible birds that come through this region during the winter. They are certainly very special!

The Rest of the Story

(A photograph can often stand as a stunning reminder of events from the past and stir dormant emotions from deep within. Thank you William for your story and its reminder of a sacrifice we should never forget...krb)

(The following story was submitted by William Sledge)

On a visit to Washington, D.C., my wife Debbie and I visited the Vietnam Memorial Wall.  I took several photographs of the wall but one stood out.  In this photograph the Washington Monument was reflected on the black face of the memorial.  After returning home I enlarged and cropped the photograph and had it framed.  

The names on the wall are listed in the order of the time the soldiers died and I became curious as to when they died.  The first recognizable name is Michael L (Leroy) Harris from South Bend, Indiana, who died on November 2, 1969, in Tay Ninh, South Vietnam in a helicopter crash.  

The last recognizable name is Roger (Lee) Tallman from Munising, Michigan, who died November 11, 1969, in Phuoc Long, South Vietnam as a ground casualty.  All the men in this photograph with a memorial reflected across their names, with many others not shown, died within a 10 day period in November 1969.  

And now for the rest of the story...Tears were brought to my eyes as I realized the dates and times these brave men died. Their stories took place in a land far from home. They did their duty, they gave their all, and they are remembered on this wall. Yes, it was difficult to hold back my tears as I read their names. Memories from long ago still linger deep within my heart, for you see, I too was in South Vietnam in November of 1969.

(If anyone else would like to submit a "The Rest of the Story" story, feel free to do so by contacting Keith Bridgman)