We keep track of our frequently asked questions here. Can't find your question? You can always mail us on info@sterrenwachtcopernicus.nl.
When can I visit and what is the entry fee?
In our agenda, you'll see exactly when we're open. And if there's no price mentioned it means free access for everyone, without tickets or reservations. Usually these are our weekly star viewing nights and our monthly solar viewing afternoons
Only during special events you need to reserve for a small fee, and this will be clearly indicated in the agenda. If you arrive without a reservation during these times, unfortunately, you won't be able to enter.
What can I see through your telescope?
What you can see through our telescope slowly changes through the months. That's why in the agenda you can always find this information for the next opening. If you have a request you can always ask the telescope operator, but it's not always possible.
The prettiest things you can see:
- The moon, especially the half moon, is very pretty through any telescope.
- Planets Jupiter and Saturn are beautiful, and at good conditions people barely believe what they are seeing.
- Deep in the winter you can see nebula, gas clouds in space, but without the colors.
- When we're looking at star clusters you can see up to 1000 stars super close together.
- Through a telescope you can see faraway galaxies as faint clouds, but you're looking at 100 billion stars packed together at a distance of up to 15 million light years.
Will the weather be clear?
We have no additional weather information and do not make predictions. The best sources to look this up yourself are:
Can I bring my dog or pet?
No, you are not allowed to bring pets, with the exception of assistance dogs.
Is there a waiting list for the course or lectures?
We don't maintain a waiting list for courses or lectures. If you want to secure a spot in the course or lectures, we recommend following us on Eventbrite. You'll receive a notification as soon as we publish a new event, including all lectures and courses.
Can I donate a telescope or other astronomical objects?
We gladly accept items such as telescopes, but often we seek a purpose for them beyond our observatory. We have a large assortment of valuable telescopes, and our space quickly fills up if we were to use all the donated items ourselves.
Therefore, items often go to connections of the observatory, such as schools, volunteers, or students, who can make good use of them actively. This way, these items get a better second life in our eyes than if they were with us.
You can send an email to info@sterrenwachtcopernicus.nl with a description.
We will not resell donated items.
I've seen something interesting, what was it?
Our observatory is here to make scientific information available to the general public. So if you have a question about something you've seen, you can always email us, providing a description of what you saw, the time, and where in the sky (north, east, overhead, etc.). Then you'll receive an email back with what you likely saw.
However, we do not research UFOs (nowadays UAPs) or similar phenomena. Most reports of these also do not have an astronomical cause but are often weather balloons or special weather conditions.
By far, the most reports with an astronomical cause are of the planet Venus, which you can see as an extremely bright star early in the evening or morning.
I've received a gifted star, can I see these with you?
We receive this question often. Unfortunately, we must first point out that stars cannot be sold, nor can their naming rights. Therefore, the given name is also not recognized or used in astronomy. An article from Radar further explains this.
If this does not spoil the fun for you, we can try to point the telescope at the star. What we need is the official catalog name of the star as recognized internationally. You will likely need to contact the company that sold the star to retrieve this information. This often looks like "HD 42542" or "Gaia DR2 1107810707183372032".
If you can find the star under that name on Stellarium, we can also locate it in the telescope, but only if it is quiet and does not disturb the visit of other people.
If you cannot find that name and also do not receive it upon request from the company, you have been deceived, and the star does not exist.
Can I take an internship at the observatory?
We're only open for the public around 3 to 6 hours a week. Because of this most high school internships don't fit with us.
Still, you can try and email vrijwilligers@sterrenwachtcopernicus.nl.