February's Club of the Month

Meet the Astronomy Club of Trilogy at La Quinta

By: Celine Todd
Published February 4, 2010

Welcome to the third article in the Club of the Month series on MyTrilogyLife.com. This month, we're highlighting a group of stargazers from La Quinta, California. Read on to get to know February's Club of the Month, the Astronomy Club of Trilogy at La Quinta.

In the following interview, club founder Mike Wagner shares the story of the Astronomy Club.


Mike, thanks for taking the time to share your club's story with us. I understand that you founded the Astronomy Club in the spring of 2008. Have you always had a passion for astronomy?

I have always had a mild interest and small amount of knowledge about astronomy, but it did not blossom until my wife and I moved to the desert in 2006, and the sky was so rich with stars, night after night.  I began to check the NASA website so that I’d know when to watch for the International Space Station.  During June of 2007, my wife and I were fascinated by the developing conjunction of Saturn and Venus right after sunset each night.  Eventually she bought our first telescope, and within 6 months we had outgrown that one and bought the 8" diameter Celestron that we now use as the primary telescope for the Astronomy Club.

What is the mission of the Astronomy Club of La Quinta?

The TLQ Astronomy Club is an informational and social club.  We help people learn about the objects on view in the night sky, and by extension about our place in the universe.

How often does the Astronomy Club meet? 

Star gazing get-togethers are held every four or five weeks.  We adjust our meeting dates to take advantage of special events, like eclipses, meteor showers, or comets.  

Is there a certain time of night that the club gets together in order to get the best view of the sky?

A typical meeting is held on a Thursday evening close to the new moon.  During a new moon, the moon isn’t visible, so the sky is darker and the stars can be seen more easily.  We meet at the driving range at 8:00pm, or 8:30 in the summer months, when it gets dark later at night.  This time may also change to take advantage of a sighting of the International Space Station or other interesting phenomena.

Mike, can you describe a typical meeting of the Astronomy Club of La Quinta for us?

We have two telescopes set up, and we usually observe anywhere from six to ten interesting sights over the course of the night.  Such sights might include planets, stars, double stars, star clusters, nebulae, and galaxies.  We generally start by observing prominent objects.  During the last few months, for example, Jupiter and the Pleiades have been on display for our telescope viewing. 

Is there usually a speaker, or someone knowledgeable on the topic of astronomy, such as yourself, who leads the club meeting for the night? 

Well, after our initial telescope viewing period, we take a break from stargazing to hear some commentary from myself or from one of our resident experts. We are fortunate to have several members who have information to share on this topic.  Several knowledgeable members participate in describing the history and features of various stars and constellations.  Many have also shared their experiences in traveling to see solar eclipses.  After this period of discussion and information sharing, we enter into another round of telescope viewing. 

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