A FREE event presented by the PA Wilds Astronomy Club, Commonwealth University-Mansfield, and the cast of Hamilton-Gibson's upcoming production of Silent Sky.
Friday, April 26
6:30pm - Doors open, refreshments
7:00 - 9:00pm - Program
Pre-registration required.
pawildsastro.org/event/henrietta-leavitt/

Strait Planetarium
76 Stadium Drive, Mansfield, PA 16933
The play Silent Sky, being presented at the Coolidge Theater in May is about Henrietta Leavitt and her fellow woman astronomical “computers” at the Harvard Observatory in the early 1900’s. Discoveries by Leavitt included how the brightness variability of some stars could be used to measure their relative distance to earth. This was key to future work on mapping the universe. Some scientists, including Edwin Hubble, said that Leavitt deserved the Nobel Prize for her work.

The program will include a talk on Leavitt’s contributions to science, some readings from the play by the actors, a planetarium show, and telescope observing in the parking lot afterward if the skies are clear. Space-themed snacks will be provided!