![[Virginia Tech Department of Physics]](a_physics2.gif)
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Public Open Houses will be held on Friday evenings when classes are in session during the Fall and Spring Semesters, weather permitting. The docent(s) conducting the Open House will use the telescope to show various interesting objects visible in the night sky (the Moon, if visible, any visible planets, interesting stellar objects, nebulae, galaxies, any bright comets,...).
To find out if a particular Open House will occur go to http://www.astroclub.org.vt.edu/. The announcement concerning the open house will be in the marquee at the top of the page. To get to the Anderson Observatory from within Blacksburg travel west on Prices Fork Road, past the 460 bypass, towards Radford. Once you pass the Hethwood area, Hethwood Shopping Center, Fire Station, and Kipps Elementary School (in that order), the next right turn is Old Mill Road (just before Cox's Driving Range), just before the Blacksburg town line. Travel about 1/2 mile on Old Mill Road. There is a gate on the right, beyond which you can see the Observatory on the top of a hill. The Observatory looks like a short silo. Please close the gate after driving through --- the area surrounding the Observatory is a Tech pasture. Here is a map showing the observatory's location just off Prices Fork Road in Blacksburg. The map was generated by MapQuest.
Thinking of buying a star name or other astronomical "real-estate" or viewing a "purchased" star at an open house? You may want to first read what the International Astronomical Union (IAU) has to say on this subject. Astronomers worldwide recognize and use the astronomical designations and nomenclature approved by the International Astronomical Union. Although we welcome visitors with an interest in astronomy, we do not provide telescopic examination of "purchased" stars at the observatory.