Throughout the month of October 2021,

the Sierra Vista Community will celebrate the launch of the James Webb Space Telescope. 

An overview of the Sierra Vista JWST Community Event and a description of the James Webb Space Telescope will be presented at the September meeting of the Huachuca Astronomy Club by organizer, Ted Forte.  The meeting, which is open to the public, will be held in the community room, Student Union Building at Cochise College, 901 N. Colombo Avenue at 7p.m. on Friday, September 17. Admission is free.

OCTOBER 2021 JWST Community Events

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Multi-site Webb Telescope Exhibit

From Monday, October 5 through the launch of Webb, the City of Sierra Vista will host Webb displays at four City buildings, each with its own theme.  Using posters and accompanying content created by NASA, these displays describe Webb’s scientific components and how they will enable Webb to achieve its science goals.

How Webb Works will be the theme of the display at the Oscar Yrun Community Center located at 3020 E. Tacoma St., Sierra Vista, AZ. Open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. 

Dissecting Black Holes is the subject of the exhibit at the Henry F. Hauser Museum located in the Ethel Berger Center at 2950 E. Tacoma St. Sierra Vista, AZ. Open Tuesday through Saturday from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. 

The display at the Sierra Vista Public Library is titled Understanding the Early Universe. The library is located at 2600 E. Tacoma St. Sierra Vista, AZ. Open Monday through Thursday from 10 a.m.-7 p.m., Friday from 10 a.m.-6 p.m., and Saturday from 10 a.m.-4 p.m.    

Pushing the Boundaries of the Unknown is the focus at the Sierra Vista Sports Division located at 3401 E. Fry Blvd. Sierra Vista, AZ. Open Monday through Friday from 10 a.m.-7 p.m. and Saturday from 9 a.m.-3 p.m.

Stomp Rockets with Echoing Hope Ranch

Monday, October 4 from 10 a.m.-11 a.m. at the Sierra Vista Public Library located at 2600 E. Tacoma St. Sierra Vista, AZ.  Join guests from Echoing Hope Ranch to build and launch stomp rockets! Designed by Explore Science for imaginative play, the stomp rocket activity invites participants to build their own rocket and imagine its mission before launching it at a target poster. This program is free and open to the public. It is geared toward special-needs adults, but open to people of all abilities.

Cosmic Bowling with Therapeutic Rec

Tuesday, October 5 from 5-6 p.m. at the Oscar Yrun Community Center. The City of Sierra Vista Therapeutic Recreation program will host registered special needs adults for cosmic bowling! Participants must be authorized by the Department of Developmental Disabilities. For more information, contact Marita Helbig at 520-439-2281 or via email at Marita.Helbig@sierravistaaz.gov.

Kartchner Star Party

Saturday, October 9 from 12 p.m. to 9 p.m. at Kartchner Caverns State Park, Benson AZ.  Hosted by the Huachuca Astronomy Club, the event will feature a Webb telescope display during an afternoon of solar viewing.   Solar System Ambassador Ted Forte will deliver a talk on the James Webb Space Telescope in the Discovery Center Theater at 5:30 pm. Night sky observing will commence after dark.  A park admission fee applies to this event ($7.00 per vehicle). Star party activities are at no additional charge.

Space-themed Rec & Roll

Saturday, October 9, 10 a.m.-12 p.m. at the Sierra Vista Sports Division located at 3401 E. Fry Blvd. Sierra Vista, AZ.  A space-themed recreational activity for families and children of all ages! Rec & Roll will feature face painting, a bouncy castle, crafts, a green screen for out of this world photographs and more. This program is free and open to the public.

Far Out Art

Saturday, October 9 from 6-7 p.m. at the Pottery Studio inside the Oscar Yrun Community Center located at 3020 E. Tacoma St., Sierra Vista, AZ.  Create your own glazed clay disc planets and Nebula Spin Art! This program is for children ages 5-13 and includes a nominal fee of $7 to cover supply costs. Space is limited. To register, please visit the City of Sierra Vista Webtrac page at https://webtrac.sierravistaaz.gov or register in person at the Oscar Yrun Community Center.

Public Night at the Patterson Observatory

Thursday, October 14, 6:30 – 9:30 p.m.  This free public observing event will feature JWST displays in the Bob Gent Science Center and telescope observing through a variety of telescopes.  Admission is free but registration is required and space is limited.  See: www.universitysouthfoundation.com/patterson-observatory  to register. The event is weather dependent and will be canceled if the sky is cloudy. Call 520-458-8278 extension 2214 for a recorded message announcing cancelation. The observatory is located on the campus of the University of Arizona, Sierra Vista at 1140 N. Colombo Avenue.

Sierra Vista City Star Party

Friday, October 15 from 6-8 p.m. at Veterans Memorial Park 3105 E Fry Blvd, Sierra Vista. Admission is free and open to everyone. The event will feature telescope observing with members of the Huachuca Astronomy Club. Informational materials about the James Webb Space Telescope will be available for free. The event is weather dependent and cancelation will be announced on the club’s and the city’s social media platforms if the sky turns too cloudy.

Build Your Own Spacecraft & Stomp Rocket

Saturday, October 16 from 10 a.m.-12 p.m. at the Sierra Vista Public Library located at 2600 E. Tacoma St. Sierra Vista, AZ. Children ages 6-12 are invited to build their own spacecraft using the Design, Build, Test activity from the NISE network and build and launch stomp rockets.  Designed by Explore Science for imaginative play, these activities invite participants to explore the different purposes of spacecrafts while engineering their own. This program is free and open to the public. Space is limited. Contact the Henry F. Hauser Museum at 520-439-2306 or via email at Elizabeth.wrozek@sierravistaaz.gov to reserve a spot.

Sensory Space Exploration

Saturday, October 16 from 1 p.m.-3 p.m. at the Ethel Berger Center located at 2950 E. Tacoma St. Sierra Vista, AZ.  Explore outer space through a short speaker presentation, dramatic play area, and space-themed sensory activity stations! This program is geared for special needs children, but open to children of all abilities. It will feature supportive resources like noise cancelling headphones, calm-down boxes, and fidgets. This program is free and open to the public. For more information contact the Henry F. Hauser Museum at 520-439-2306 or via email at Elizabeth.wrozek@sierravistaaz.gov.

Among Us Murder Mystery

Friday, October 22 from 6:30-8:00 p.m. An astronaut/space themed Among Us Murder Mystery at Sierra Vista Public Library located at 2600 E. Tacoma St. Sierra Vista, AZ. This program is free and open to teenagers in high school ages 12 and up. Space is limited. To register, please visit the City of Sierra Vista Webtrac page at https://webtrac.sierravistaaz.gov.

Huachuca Astronomy Club Meeting

Friday, October 22, 7 pm to 9 pm in the Community Room, Student Union Building, Cochise College, 901 N. Colombo Avenue, Sierra Vista.  Dr. George Rieke, MIRI team leader at the University of Arizona, is the guest speaker.  MIRI is the mid-infrared imager on the James Webb Space Telescope. This meeting is open to the public and admission is free.

JWST “Launch Party”

Saturday, October 23 from 9 a.m.-4 p.m. This open house event at the Patterson Observatory, 1140 N. Colombo Avenue, Sierra Vista, will celebrate the upcoming launch of the James Webb Space Telescope and will feature a virtual presentation by a NASA scientist.  The event’s other activities and presentations will include solar viewing with members of the Huachuca Astronomy Club, JWST displays and videos, an attended display of NASA artifacts, a live Spanish language JWST presentation, and a guided activity where guests can build their own paper model of JWST.  Admission is free. Send an email to info@hacastronomy.org for more information.

Space-themed Laser Tag

Saturday, October 23 from 4:30-6:00 p.m. Space-themed Laser Tag at Sierra Vista Public Library located at 2600 E. Tacoma St. Sierra Vista, AZ. This program for youth ages 7-11. To register, please visit the City of Sierra Vista Webtrac page at https://webtrac.sierravistaaz.gov.  A signed waiver is required for each participant. This program is free and open to the public.

​JWST Speaker Presentation

Thursday, October 28 from 6-7 p.m. at Sierra Vista Public Library located at 2600 E. Tacoma St. Sierra Vista, AZ.  Solar System Ambassador Ted Forte will deliver a talk on the James Webb Space Telescope. This event is open to the public and admission is free. For more information, please contact the Henry F. Hauser Museum at 520-439-2306 or via email at Elizabeth.wrozek@sierravistaaz.gov

Webb Across Arizona - Find detailed information for James Webb Space Telescope community events hosted across Arizona and a special opportunity for K-12 students.