This year, the organizers of the Northwoods Starfest have once again asked me to be a featured speaker. That’s two years in a row. You’d think they’d learn!

This annual three-day star party — 2012 marks the 24th year — takes place in Fall Creek, Wisconsin, at Hobbs Observatory, which is about a four-hour drive from my home in Milwaukee.

The observatory, which is part of the Beaver Creek Reserve, has two domes. One contains a 24-inch f/5 reflector on a massive 5-inch naval gun turret mount, which, I can assure you, does not suffer vibrations while tracking objects across the sky. The club acquired this behemoth a few years ago. The only costs they incurred were those associated with renting a truck, heading out to the West Coast, and bringing the unit back to Fall Creek.

The other dome houses a 14-inch Schmidt-Cassegrain telescope that also gets a lot of use. During the star party, attending amateur astronomers will set up in the large field south of the observatory.

Last year’s event was a blast. I’m much more of a social animal than I was growing up, so I loved chatting with more than 100 dedicated hobbyists about the sky, what’s new in astronomical science, and the magazine. I also am looking forward to “borrowing” some time to view through a number of large telescopes. Nothing refreshes my writing and engenders more story ideas than actually observing the real sky — a challenge on most nights from Milwaukee.

And the forecast calls for clear skies. Oh, boy! If that’s true, stay tuned for more from this great star party.