Colin - I have a letter that flew on the Challenger on it's next to last flight. It is stamped before and after it flew and has a "Space Mail" stamp from while it was in orbit.
Whenever my son brings a new friend home I like to show it to them. They always get a kick out of touching something that has been in space before. I bought a really nice telescope a few months ago and my son wants to have some skywatching parties this summer. This year is one of the best in a looong time for viewing Jupiter, Saturn, and Mars. Mars will be closer to Earth than it has been in 73,000 years. Jupiter is closer than it has been in 80 years. Saturn hasn't been this close in 30 years. We've braved the cold at night a few times so far to use the telescope. We've seen Saturn close enough to see the divisions in the rings. We've seen Jupiter close enough to see the bands circling the planet (unfortunately the Great Red Spot is almost white right now so we haven't been able to see it yet). Mars is visible in the early AM right before twilight so we haven't seen it yet but by mid-summer it should be visible closer to midnight. We got up one morning and was able to see Venus right before twilight when it is at it's dimmest (if you try to look at night it is too bright to see clearly). Seeing a picture of a planet is one thing, but seeing it for real with your own eyes through a telescope is another. My son is already asking me if he will be able to see them in person when he is older. I can only hope so
02-02-2003
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