Mars draws many to Shoreline park

SHORELINE — Many Mars-watchers throughout Seattle chose Shoreline’s Paramount Park as the location to view the red planet on Aug. 27.

That date marked the closest that Mars and Earth have been in almost 60,000 years, as the two planets were only 34,646,418 miles a part from center to center, according to NASA. Although the planet was visible even without a telescope, it could be seen in detail with a large aperture telescope, such as a Dobsonian.

Members of Seattle Astronomical Society (SAS), along with other community members, brought personal telescopes to Paramount Park to view Mars. According to Karl Schroeder, a Shoreline resident and past president of SAS, more than 1,000 people from the Seattle area gathered at Paramount Park on Wednesday evening, and many stayed until 1:30 a.m.

“People were parking two to three blocks away and were forming a line,” Schroeder said.

Paramount Park is one of two locations in Seattle where the SAS holds its “star parties.” The party on Aug. 27 was an extra one, held in honor of Mars making a close approach to Earth.

Steve Kulseth, a SAS member since 1976, said that Paramount Park is chosen for a variety of reasons — all favorable to star gazing.

“It’s high elevation here, has a great horizon and is fairly dark,” Kulseth said. “I could see the polar cap and a distinctive rust color. It’s a very pretty planet.”

In addition to serious star gazers, amateurs also gathered for the Mars siting. For many, this was their first star party.

“We are here just to check it out,” said Dixie Burden, who was with a friend at her first-ever star party.

According to Schroeder, who has been a member along with his wife since 1989, the SAS has a club meeting once a month at the University of Washington astronomy building. The organization, which has about 230 members, also has star parties once a month.

The excitement felt at this particular star party, though, is perhaps best explained when Shroeder said: “Mars comes into position about every two years, but this is the first time Mars has been this close to the Earth in 59 thousand years.”