An Out-of-This-World Afternoon in Fresno

The NorCal SCI community came together on Wednesday, October 7th for a great afternoon at the Downing Planetarium at Fresno State. The space was a little bit cramped, but having the whole theater to ourselves for a private show made it work out really well! We kicked back and leaned back, looking upward to watch The First Stargazers, taking a trip back in time to see how ancient people first tracked the night sky. The show took us all the way from early bone carvings done 30,000 years ago to the ancient alignments at Stonehenge and the Pyramids of Giza. After the main show, we got to see a special preview of the stars and constellations that are above us right now, which we usually miss because of Fresno's bright city lights. It was fascinating to see how the sky changes over a full 24-hour period—it's so easy to forget that the stars are up there, even during the daytime!

Afterward, those of us who could, rolled over to Bull Smash Burgers at Campus Pointe and basically took over the quiet restaurant, turning it into an instant party. Between eating good food and catching up on everyone's summer, Victoria and Rhonda kept us laughing as usual. Doug had plenty of stories to share with the group, and Corey brought up a total lifesaver for the Fresno heat: keeping a battery-operated spray water bottle nearby to mist your skin. Everyone agreed that staying inside with the AC on was definitely the best strategy this past summer!

Now that the weather in Fresno is finally becoming tolerable again, we're thinking an outdoor event might be next on the schedule. Huge thanks to Jeffrey for putting his awesome photography skills to work and taking the photos for this article! To see more upcoming NorCal SCI events and keep up with what's next, click HERE.