Early Friday morning, 23 September, the sky cleared somewhat allowing some stargazing. It was another day of speakers at Oracle State Park. The morning began early with several attendees doing a Birding Walk with Kathe Anderson.

Several telescopes were set up in the Observing Area.

Friday afternoon held some promise for a partly clear sky for the Oracle star parties that night as seen in these views from the Park.

The afternoon session at the Park began with David Levy welcoming everyone to the Arizona Dark Sky Star Party via Zoom. He apologized for not be there in person, but said he would come to Oracle that night to be with his friends. David was followed by Fred Espinak, who talked about solar eclipses. David Eicher, Editor of Astronomy magazine, spoke about Galaxies via Zoom. The afternoon session ended with Brandon Hamil, The Traveling Astronomer, showed how he is involved with doing public outreach across the country and he encouraged everyone to visit many of the places. Mike Weasner, local Oracle resident, spoke about the community support for its "Dark Sky Heritage" and the importance of this event being in Oracle. A replay of the afternoon session is available on YouTube.

After the talks ended, the weather was less promising but with a rainbow there was still hope for the night.

Friday night, as part of the Oracle Dark Sky Cultural Festival, four star parties were held at business locations around Oracle. David Levy came to Nonna Maria's restaurant and gave a talk there later in the evening. Telescopes were scheduled to be set up at Nonna Maria's, Oracle Patio Cafe, the Oracle Community Center, and the Ore House. Music and food were also available at each location. Special displays and Oracle Dark Sky Cultural Festival items were available at the locations.

A severe thunderstorm popped up west of Oracle about sunset. Initially it was moving to the north.

It was initially headed north, but it made a 90 degree turn to the east and headed directly for Oracle! There was a lot of lightning. It dropped 0.5" rain in about 30 minutes. The electricity went out for about two hours in parts of Oracle and at several of the locations. Unfortunately, all the telescope viewing was cancelled, but everyone seemed to be having a great time experiencing one of Arizona's Monsoon thunderstorms!

Photos by Mike Weasner

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