VIRGINIA BEACH — The city’s Public Library has two Orion telescopes available to borrow free with a Virginia Beach Public Library card.
Donated by Back Bay Amateur Astronomers, the telescopes are available to check out from Central Library.
As with all library items, customers may place holds on the telescopes and have them delivered to another VBPL location for pick up, according to a news release from the city.
Star maps and other materials accompany the telescopes in order to help observe the night sky.
Back Bay Amateur Astronomers donated one telescope to VBPL in 2015, which has been used during library programs, and another in July 2018. In order to maximize usage of the telescopes, VBPL decided to make both available for customers to borrow.
“The Back Bay Amateur Astronomers Library Telescope Program fits perfectly with the club’s motto of ‘Bringing Astronomy to the People of Hampton Roads’ by allowing members of the public the ability to view the night sky at their own convenience, said Shawn Loescher, BBAA vice president. “We recognize that not everyone can attend our outreach events and this is another tool to help promote astronomy and get the public involved in science.”
For information about VBPL’s telescope lending program, and other technology available for check out or use in libraries, call 757-385-0150.
Back Bay Amateur Astronomers is a group of amateur astronomers founded on Dec. 14, 1978.
The group is an active member society of the Astronomical League, a part of the Night Sky Network, and a member of the Virginia Association of Astronomical Societies.
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