Stargazing in the (Rose) Garden

Everyone loves astronomy; kids, grown-ups, even celebrities. So when it's World Space Week -- not to mention the International Year of Astronomy -- lots of folks get out there with their telescopes, binoculars and naked eyes, just to see what they can see in the night sky.

On October 7, according to the blog Physics Buzz, a good-sized group of middle schoolers and grown-ups (including a few celebrities) all got together in the backyard to do some star gazing.

There were about 150 middle schoolers at the star party.

There were 20 good-sized telescopes.

There were also a few celebrities.

There were NASA dignitaries. And there were astronauts (think Sally Ride and Buzz Aldrin).

Oh -- and the backyard in question was attached to the White House. So President Obama and the first lady dropped by. The president gave a bit of a pep talk to the crowd, introducing them to a pair of amateur astronomers aged 14 and 16. It seems these young people happened, respectively, upon a rare neutron star and a previously unknown type of supernova.

It was a low-key event, and not heavily covered by the press. Just a few friends... gazing at the night sky.

Photo courtesy of Halfblue, via Wikimedia Commons