The Solafide Observatory will be open for public viewing Saturday night, beginning at 8 p.

Thursday, November 11, 1999

The Solafide Observatory will be open for public viewing Saturday night, beginning at 8 p.m.

Keith Snyder and other volunteers will be present to guide viewers in their star-gazing and a pending meteor shower has astronomers excited.

The observatory is located approximately five miles south of Austin via 4th St. SE south to Mower County Road 29 and further south to 42nd Ave. SE and west on the avenue to the dome-shaped building.

The Solafide Observatory is operated under the supervision of the J.C. Hormel Nature Center staff in the Austin Parks, Recreation and Forestry Department.

Star-gazers are prepararing for the annual Leonids meteor shower Wednesday and Thursday. Scientists predict a major display is likely this year.

Every 33 years, the Leonids get recharged when the comet Temple-Tuttle swings through the Earth’s orbit.

Meteor showers are caused when comets leave behind tiny bits of rock in the Earth’s path during their journey around the sun.

The particles burn up when they hit the Earth’s atmosphere, becoming what people call "shooting stars" or "falling stars."

The best viewing of the Leonids meteor shower is expected to be from 4 a.m. to 7 a.m. Wednesday and Thursday when there are no lights to the north and east.

For more information about the Leonids meteor shower, ask Snyder Saturday night at the Solafied Observatory.