Note to would-be stargazers: This week, keep an eye out for the Perseids meteor shower, which peaks on August 12 and 13. Jump down to see details on how to attend these stargazing events.
The Bay Area isn’t exactly known for its stargazing, what with the unreliable weather, fog, and light pollution. But you might have more of a chance if you head over the Benicia-Martinez Bridge into the Delta, where the hills flatten out into the Sacramento Valley. Here, suburbia disappears, grasslands and tidal marshes take over, big skies open up. At Rush Ranch Open Space Preserve, two miles south of Suisun City in Solano County, the night sky is clear more often than not.
The preserve, which is managed by the Solano Land Trust, stretches over 2,000 acres. It’s a hotspot for birders, anglers, and about once a month during the summer and fall—stargazers.
On the drive in, the dying light washes over dozens of loudmouthed red-winged blackbirds flying across the flat marshland. We are welcomed to the visitor center by crowds of cows and a large sign stating “FREE HORSE MANURE.” There are rows of animal skulls, some certifiably vintage tractors, a blacksmithing shop, and a splendid old windmill. A crowd of about 60 people is filing in, some setting up telescopes in the parking lot.
Jim Lowe, a regular volunteer, calls us over to his telescope. It’s a Dobsonian, named after John Dobson, who was a Vedantan monk in San Francisco until he got kicked out of the monastery in the 1960s for sneaking out to build telescopes and show people stars. Shortly after that he invented a way to make inexpensive telescopes inexpensively, “based on stuff that’s readily available in flea markets,” Lowe says. “He used a cardboard tube, and he would get a big chunk of glass to grind his own mirrors.”
Lowe points out the telescope’s optical finder, which places a red dot you can see through the eyepiece, marking what you’re supposed to be looking at. Sticking an eye real close to the eye piece, a sliver of the moon comes into focus, yellowed and dimpled. Lowe, who owns at least a dozen telescopes, is a frequent flier at these stargazing events. “It’s just a nice thing to do on a Friday night,” he says. “You know, if you don’t want to go to a bar.”
Just after sunset, the group heads indoors, where astronomer Jon Pannier gives a presentation on Greek myths, perhaps a nod to The Odyssey hitting the theaters this summer. Kids and adults alike lean forward as Pannier goes through a few myths. The Greek gods and their myths are still among us today, he says. They inspired the names of our planets and stars, they show up in TV commercials. Pannier introduces the kids to Nike, the Greek goddess of victory, and how she relates to the Nike Swoosh. The crowd, on cue, says, “Swooooosh!” The indoor portion of the evening draws to a close when a confused barn swallow crashes in on the presentation. By now, the night has fully fallen on Rush Ranch.
Get Bay Nature’s Free Weekly Newsletter
We step outside into a blackened world, illuminated only by the moon and stars, with Suisun City glowing in the distance.
Jon Pannier has been hosting these Astronomy Nights at Rush Ranch for about 10 years. He tried to get out of it this year but his fellow volunteers with the Solano Land Trust talked him into staying.
Like many astronomers, he’s been in love with the stars since he was a kid. He was 12 when his parents gave him his first telescope, a 60-millimeter refractor beginner’s model. He typically shows visitors anything from open star clusters to planetary nebulas. But lately, he’s found that light pollution is more of a hurdle. “We used to be able to see the Milky Way from above, all the way down to the horizon, and people would say, ‘What is that?’ Because they never looked up, in the city,” says Pannier. He could see it just from his backyard. “But one night I stepped outside in front and said, ‘When did the light pollution get so bad?’” The city, it seemed, had upgraded the street lights.
The Bortle scale is a way to classify the impact of light pollution on the night sky, Class 1 being amazing sky viewing, Class 9 meaning you might see a few stars if you’re lucky. One light-pollution app estimates Rush Ranch is around 5.3 this month. Not too shabby, but you won’t be able to make out the Milky Way any time soon.
Some stars are still out, though, for those wanting to look. And telescopes help. Pannier says these nights can be a great experience for people to test different types of telescopes and what they can do with them. He strongly encourages folks to start with going to star parties, getting a pair of binoculars and a sky chart, and seeing what they’re capable of.
Mike Chibnik has brought a telescope (“scope,” as they say) made with his own two hands. He chuckles. “You know what the difference between an amateur scope and a professional scope is? An amateur is never done,” he says. “There’s always something to fix. ”
Chibnik’s father was a janitor at Mayflower Optical, one of the main importers of Japanese telescopes back in the late ’50s. Ever since, he’s had the itch to build. He made the telescope he’s brought tonight with foam board and plywood, using Exacto knives and wood glue—“the stuff kids use for their science project,,” Chibnik says. He has also souped it up with a Raspberry Pi, a tiny, cheap computer originally made to teach computer science in schools. It finds exactly where the telescope is pointing at in the sky and compares it to its own catalogue of stars, a technique called plate solving. It’s like a GPS, but for the night sky.
Three main telescopes are set up, and lines begin to form, whirring sounds of the telescopes shifting positions fill the air. Lowe, Chibnik, and Pannier each man a scope, explaining what people are seeing.
Paula Garcia and her group of friends are some of the many first-timers tonight. She had been looking for local community events and happened upon this stargazing night online. She has just seen the Wild Duck Cluster, an open star cluster that’s 6,200 light-years away. It’s supposed to look a bit like a migrating group of ducks in the shape of a V. Garcia doesn’t agree, but she enjoys it anyway. “It’s just so insane how we have access to this.”
Speaking of ducks. Pannier recounts one of his favorite moments at these events. “I was trying to explain to a lady that we’re looking at the Swan Nebula,” he says. “And she said, ‘Oh, I see the cloud. I really don’t see the swan.’ I was trying to explain to her what it’s supposed to look like, and I said, ‘Well, actually, the image in the telescope is upside down, so it probably looks more like a dead duck.’ She says, ‘Oh, I see it now.’ And she hollers over to her husband, ‘Honey, we’re looking at the Dead Duck Nebula!’”
DELTA STARGAZING
If you go
Rush Ranch Astronomy Nights are usually held about monthly, May–October. They are free, and registration is strongly encouraged. The remaining 2026 events are on August 14, September 11, and October 2.
- The draw: A unique tidal marsh, fairly starry skies, and lively, knowledgeable volunteers with telescopes.
- Bring: Bug spray and a warm jacket. (Optional: Your own binoculars or telescope to share.)
- Tip: When arriving after dusk, dim your headlights and avoid using lights that are not red, including phone flashlights. (Human eyes adapt to the dark and let in more light, letting us see stars. Red lights allow us to keep our night vision.)
- Accessibility: Wheelchair-accessible entrance and parking lot
- Getting there: By car, 38 miles northeast of Berkeley, 2 miles south of Suisun City. Address: 3521 Grizzly Island Road, Suisun City, CA 94585
Upcoming Astronomical Events in 2026
Find more at Earthsky Magazine.
- Aug 12–13: Perseids meteor shower
- September 23: September equinox
- September 25: Neptune at opposition (when the Earth moves directly between Neptune and the sun)
- October 4: Saturn at opposition
- October 7: Draconids meteor shower
- October 21–22: Orionids meteor shower
- November 4–5: Taurids meteor shower
- November 17: Leonids meteor shower
- November 24: Supermoon
- November 25: Uranus at opposition
- Dec 13–14: Geminids meteor shower
- December 21: December solstice
- December 21-22: Ursids meteor shower
- Dec 24: Supermoon
