By “Astro” Mark Laurin

The night sky in March is different. More of a feeling type of difference, than a celestial difference. March is a month of transition for the celestial dome overhead. Most significant is the vernal equinox, the transition from winter to spring. The returning Sun rides its ecliptic path noticeably higher in the sky. Days grow longer, and the nights feel not so cold. (Dare I say this living in the mountains?)

The transition benefits the stargazer. Why? We can observe many of the outstanding gems of the winter sky without straining our necks to look up, and being outside at night is a bit less brutal. Moreover, these spectacular jewels are viewable earlier in the evening. But, what makes stargazing in March extra special this year? Lots-o-Conjunctions!

By “Astro” Mark Laurin

I’ll admit it, stargazing is difficult in winter. Especially in February. Even the hardiest hesitate. A crystal clear, cloudless night, dark as motor oil, still beckons you, however. Resolve rises inside and you bundle up. Just a quick step outside and a fast glancing about for a few moments, you say to yourself to build motivation. So you do, and you do. Immediately you are rewarded. Underneath the celestial sphere, the sky feels much larger and more expansive in the depth of the cold. The night is darker. It’s almost three dimensional. The shining luminous pin pricks of jeweled light are closer. You are amazed. Your mind and soul wander. Suddenly, the cold slaps you. The dream ends. The primal drive to find warmth shouts over the subtlety of the moment.

That’s stargazing in February. It takes motivation and commitment to break from warm confines to then step out into the night’s bone chilling cold. My tip: Make many short trips outside. Maximize each one under our winter celestial canopy by admiring these celestial events. It will be worth it.

Keystone Science school has been honored to give campers a chance to come to camp through our scholarship program for years. Thanks to our Scholarship committee comprised of volunteers, KSS will distribute approximately $70,000 in scholarship funding for the 2023 summer camp season, with over 80% of those scholarships allowing families to provide their children with an outstanding summer experience. This year, in an effort to give parents more time to plan their summers, we are offering 3 rounds of scholarship awards. We have successfully completed round one of the scholarship awards and wanted to share a few highlights from the process below.

• We received applications for 168 children from 117 families.
• Over 90% of our applications came from families residing in Colorado with a third of those being residents of Summit County.
• Campers ranged from K-11th grade, with the majority of children coming from families that qualify for free and reduced Priced meals or Colorado Health Plan Plus (CHP+).
• We offered a total of $45,186 to 98 campers with demonstrated need.
• The majority of awarded campers belong to our Summit School District families enrolling in day camp, closely followed by campers enrolling in Discovery camp.

Spending a summer as a CAP is a wonderful way for high schoolers to experience the magic of camp while getting some leadership experience along the way! With help from our counselor mentors, CAPs will learn valuable life skills like risk management, teamwork, and customer service while gaining hands on experience in childcare.