New telescope lending programs taking off at some suburban libraries

Dave Wagner enjoys seeing the sense of wonderment when people gaze at the night sky using telescopes he brings to suburban libraries for special programs.

"The best feedback we get when we're doing the 'Moon Over Lake Zurich,' or whatever, is some child going up to the telescope looking at Saturn and basically going, 'Oh wow, is that real?' People don't even realize what they're seeing in the sky," said Wagner, a retired electrical engineer who's a Lake County Astronomical Society member.

Wagner said the strong interest he's observed in his group's astronomy events at public libraries in Lake Zurich, Wheeling and Mundelein led him to help those facilities launch a telescope check-out program, mimicking one that is spreading in New England.

By all accounts, the local telescope effort is off to a hot start.

Lake Zurich's Ela Area Public Library hasn't kept its six telescopes on the shelf for very long since launching the program in November. The library has 34 patrons on the telescope waiting list.

"People have been really receptive to these telescopes," Ela library Director Matt Womack said. "They are thrilled to get an opportunity to use something like this. Most people who have borrowed them are either enthusiasts that just no longer have telescopes or they always wanted to try it."

Telescopes are another example of how suburban public libraries are doing more than lending books, video games and DVDs to cardholders. For example, Arlington Heights Memorial Library has started circulating GoPro cameras.

Elsewhere around the country, American Library Association President-elect Sari Feldman said, people now may borrow sewing machines, gardening tools and toys. She said it's part of how libraries are trying to better serve communities.

"I think telescopes are a fantastic example of that," said Feldman, who also is executive director of the Cleveland-area Cuyahoga County Public Library system. "For individuals to own a telescope is a big investment."

Mundelein's Fremont Public Library District and Indian Trails Library District in Wheeling, with one telescope each, began circulating them in March. Fremont plans to soon add two more telescopes.

"We have about 11 or 12 holds on that one (telescope)," Fremont spokeswoman Jan Oblinger said. "It's pretty popular."

At the Wheeling, Lake Zurich and Mundelein libraries, the telescope programs are modeled after an initiative launched by the New Hampshire Astronomical Society in 2008. New Hampshire now has 16 libraries lending telescopes through the astronomy club's efforts.

New Hampshire Astronomical Society President John Bishop said the club has assisted in placing 100 Orion StarBlast 4.5-inch telescopes in the libraries, an effort believed to be the first of its kind in the United States. Bishop said the New Hampshire group has heard from domestic and foreign astronomy clubs interested in starting similar library programs.

Libraries in the St. Louis area, Maine and Kalamazoo, Michigan, are part of the growing list offering telescopes.

"Our librarian friends tell us that the telescopes are extremely popular and most libraries have a waiting list for their telescopes," Bishop said.

Wagner, a Lake Zurich resident, said his group became aware of what's been happening in New Hampshire and received advice from that group about how to bring the telescope concept to the Ela, Indian Trails and Fremont libraries.

Each library received one Orion StarBlast 4.5-inch telescope donated by the astronomical society. Wagner said the club modifies the telescopes to handle heavy use and they are circulated as part of a package including an owner's manual, compass, sky map and website address to check for further guidance.

In addition, the astronomical society will be responsible for cleaning and maintaining the library telescopes.

Melissa Keegan is among those who have checked out the Orion StarBlast telescope from the Ela library. An astronomy buff, Keegan said she has a beginner, refractor telescope at home but wanted to use something more powerful when she went on a family trip to northern Wisconsin, where the night sky is free from light pollution.

Keegan, who works at the Ela library, said she read the instructions that came with the easy-to-use telescope. She said it's powerful enough to see something after pointing it to the sky on the first try.

"Some of the highlights of what I saw when I was using it were both Mars and Saturn," Keegan said. "We could easily see Saturn's rings. Plus, we could see the Andromeda Galaxy really well. I think that was my favorite."

Ela Assistant Director Erica Christianson said she figured the telescope program would take off, based on the crowds at the moon-viewing events led by the astronomical society. Obinger said 200 or so visitors have been common for the Fremont moon viewings.

Similar to other facilities, Christianson said, Ela cardholders must be 12 and older to check out a telescope and sign a lending agreement for the three-week period they may use it. She said Ela plans to buy a seventh telescope for one-week availability.

Telescopes used for the program cost about $200, but Wagner said the astronomy club pays an additional $100 to modify them for public use. Ela library head Womack said it's easy to see the appeal.

"Who doesn't love astronomy?" he said. "At a real basic level, there's something really fascinating about looking up there and wondering what's up there. I think it's kind of a gateway to a broader interest in science. That's what I'm hoping this (telescope) program will help trigger here."