Events

VVO recently hosted the twelfth CT Exoplanet Picnic on July 20, 2026. This one-day workshop has been hosted at Wesleyan since 2013 and brings together exoplanet researchers in the region to share, discuss, and possibly collaborate on exoplanet projects. We had about 40 participants from all around the Connecticut River valley and beyond, including several Wesleyan undergraduate and MA alumni! There were engaging talks throughout the day. Wes MA alumni, Ismael Mireles (MA 2019) described the interesting dynamic TOI-201 system, and Katharine Hesse (MA 2020) provided details on how to become a TESS Vetting Volunteer, while Wes undergraduate alumni, Girish Duvvuri (BA 2017) described his postdoctoral research on evaluating activity from young exoplanet host stars. Current Wes MA student, Natalie Price (MA 2027) gave some exciting preliminary results on her project to image the astrospheres of nearby stars. Thank you to our Yale University, Southern CT State University, and MIT colleagues for sharing talks on their work, and everyone that provided a lightning talk. We had a wonderful picnic lunch, including yummy pie, and the annual frisbee throwing outside the Observatory. Stay tuned for the thirteenth CT Exoplanet Picnic in summer 2027!

Late last autumn, while looking over the calendar of events for VVO’s centennial celebration, I noticed something penciled in for February 6th by Michaela Fisher, one of the students working on our history project. “Frederick Slocum’s Birthday Party.” What should we do to celebrate the 143rd birthday of VVO’s first director? Then I remembered another idea from a brainstorming session last summer…

That’s how I found myself on the evening of February 6th, in the Observatory, wearing a vintage 3-piece suit, and preparing to recreate a 1916-era astronomy lecture for the public.

Assisting me in this endeavor was my colleague Professor Amrys Williams from Wes’s history department, who jumped at the chance to play dress-up.

Our observatory is full of many wonders from the past, so it was relatively easy to put together a talk from original lantern slides, many of which were photos taken by Slocum himself during his time at Yerkes Observatory before coming to Wesleyan. We also used our circa 1910 Bausch and Lomb lantern slide projector, although we replaced its original 500 Watt incandescent bulb with a modern 40 Watt LED light source. (The chamber in which the original bulb sat is lined with asbestos. You know, for safety.)

As we dimmed the lights, Amrys set the stage for the audience with colorful tales from early 20th century life in Middletown and beyond. The show was about to begin.

1916 was an interesting era in astronomy–although Einstein’s work on relativity had recently been published, the connections with the universe were not yet made. We were a few years away from the groundbreaking work of Cecilia Payne, which heralded in the era of modern astrophysics. Planetary science was in its infancy. And the realization that the great spiral nebulae were in fact separate galaxies at tremendous distance was only beginning to be considered. Trying to place ourselves in this era, even for a few minutes, is a powerful reflection on the progress that has been made in the last century, both in astronomy and in society as a whole. Lest the audience get too philosophical, we provided cake!

Many thanks to Cybele Moon and Christian Milik from Wesleyan’s costume shop, the Astronomical Society of Greater Hartford for operating telescopes and generally being awesome, and the Under Connecticut Skies team.

It’s our Centennial year, and we have an exciting program of events for the spring semester! First up, our popular Kids’ Nights will resume on Friday, February 5 at 8pm.

Then, on Saturday, February 6 at 7pm, we will have a special public program: in celebration of the 143rd birthday of Frederick Slocum, Wesleyan’s first Observatory Director, our own Roy Kilgard will be presenting a 1916-era public astronomy lecture in period-accurate attire using original vintage lantern slides and projector.

Finally, our normal program of Wednesday evening Space Nights will resume on February 10th at 8pm.

We’ve got a lot more in store for the semester, so stay tuned!

Every Wednesday throughout the academic year, the students and faculty of the Astronomy Department host a public stargazing event from 8-9pm at the Van Vleck Observatory.  This event is free and open to the public.  Clear skies are mandatory so check the weather first.  For more information, click here.