Many Mountain Air residents saw the partial eclipse from Mountain Air, and others traveled to nearby places to experience the total eclipse.  Mountain Air's Outdoor Discovery Center chartered a bus and took a large group to Clemson University.  Louise and Steve coincidentally also stopped at Clemson University on their drive up to Mountain Air from Key Largo, FL.  It turned dark, and the cicadas started chirping.  
 

For those looking for something different to do, try a Friday or Saturday night of star gazing in one of the few dark sky locations.  The Bare Dark Sky Observatory is located at the Mayland Earth to Sky Park in Yancey County, very close to Mountain Air.  The address is: 66 Energy Exchange Dr, Burnsville, NC 28714.  It offers a 360 degree view.  People can view the moon, planets and stars through the 34" diameter Sam Scope, as well as the smaller planetary telescope.  Or you can simply appreciate the dark night sky.

The Appalachian Mountains of North Carolina have stood as silent witnesses to the uninterrupted, nightly rain of starlight for nearly a half-billion years, but artificial light now threatens this nightly show. In honor of notable local efforts to preserve the natural nighttime landscape of western North Carolina, the International Dark-Sky Association (IDA) designated the Mayland Earth to Sky Park and Observatory as the first IDA-certified Star Park in the southeastern United States.

The Mayland Earth to Sky Park and Bare Dark Sky Observatory is open to the public many Friday and Saturday nights.  More information and tickets are available here.  

Brian Gurl has played at Mountain Air in the past. Now his new show is at the Diana Wortham Theatre.  Tickets are available here. 

​International award-winning pianist/vocalist Katherine Alexandra takes on renowned American piano powerhouse Brian Gurl in this innovative production. Performing an eclectic and vividly entertaining fusion of classical, pop, jazz & ethnic folk genres, with shades of Victor Borge.

Together with Grammy Award winning bassist Eliot Wadopian and drummer Byron Hedgepeth, Moscow Meets Manhattan takes you “Around The World in 88 Keys” - performing repertoire from Argentina, Spain, Hungary, Russia and America. This diverse duo skillfully compliment and playfully challenge each other on both one and two pianos - enhanced by lush vocal duets, Brian’s virtuoso melodica playing and an engaging rapport with the audience. From Ragtime to Rachmaninoff, Billy Joel to Broadway and Gypsy Folk to The Tango, MMM - Dueling Pianos Plus is a first class act in a fun-filled package.

© Louise Lindsay 2017

No, this was not taken at Mountain Air.  Most years I am at Mountain Air for the Perseid meteor showers in mid-August.  Kat, our naturalist, always has a great program on the runway at the top of the mountain.  It's a great place to view the meteors.  But this year, I am still in Key Largo.  It is also a great place to view the meteor shower.  The streaks here are star trails, as this image was created from tons of images stacked together, taken over 40 minutes.  The stars move and create these beautiful star trails.  The horizontal streak across the image toward the bottom may be  a plane that crossed my path, rather than a meteor.  But maybe it's a meteor.  

​The meteor showers are still active tomorrow night, 8/13/17.  Be sure to look up at the sky if you are awake at night.