Catching Light - For Stargazers

City Lights Bookstore encourages folks to go outside on clear nights and catch some starlight. Set up a reclining lawn chair away from sources of stray light. Maybe prop your elbows on the chair arms to steady a binocular, or let your unaided eyes wander through the stars. If the moon's not flooding the sky with reflected sunlight, how many meteors do you count in an hour? Can you spot any planets or perhaps some faint fuzzy objects? How about patches of blackness set against the blue/gray background sky? Have you ever split a double or appreciated the different colors of light that reach us from neighboring stars? If you're curious about what's up there, pay us a visit in downtown Sylva, North Carolina. Ask about the availability of new or used optics to help you see more than naked-eye stargazing permits.  In addition to a modest selection of tools and accessories, we stock a fine range of charts and books to inform and delight the amateur astronomer. We've highlighted a few of our favorites below.

We're developing other reading lists focused on planetary science, spaceflight, and astrophysics.