The vastness of space

Henriette Lamprecht – In the beginning, it was the fascination to see something basically invisible. A speck of light that becomes Saturn. Today it’s mostly the beauty of it all, says ardent astronomer and lover of the stars and night skies, Lutz von Dewitz.

Lutz grew up on a lodge in the Omaruru area, which had an observatory with a telescope. Seeing the planets Jupiter and Saturn and the moon, he was mesmerised.

Leaving the lodge when he was nine years old, he continued his journey with the stars, this time with binoculars.

“With a telescope, you can go and explore a vast area and see even more stars. There is also the vastness of space. It looks so near, yet the distances are virtually incomprehensible. One can lose or send all troubles and anxieties into this emptiness and be rewarded with the beauty of it all,” Lutz explains.

There are several books on his shelf to empower him with more knowledge, but the most knowledge is gained when meeting other stargazers.

“The chance to share your knowledge with other people that attend a stargazing evening and try and answer questions that you will have to research is the main contributor,” says Lutz.

Favourite and most memorable experiences are plenty, but the planet Jupiter is one of the most dynamic things to observe, he admits.

“Due to its high rotational speed, one day on Jupiter lasts 9 hours and 55 minutes. Therefore, you can observe a day on Jupiter during the whole night. The same holds true for the 4 Galilean moons.”

The observation of the shadow and transit of one moon in front of Jupiter with two other moons occulted each other.

“I had to consult an old friend in Germany to understand what I was observing!”

With Jupiter being his favourite planet, his favourite star side it is a globular cluster called Omega Centauri, a “big ball with a couple of million stars inside”.

“The ball measures 300 lightyears across, and contrary to a magician’s slogan, the more you look, the more you see.”

To start a journey with the stars, one can see quite a lot with a good pair of binoculars, says Lutz.

“The size should be 8 x 40 or 8 x 50 up to 10 x 50, 10 is the magnification, and 40 or 50 is the diameter of the front lens.”

Anything bigger requires a good tripod to stabilise, he explains.

“There are plenty of good and free Apps for a tablet or smartphone. Also, look for Stargazing for the Novice by Franz Conradie. It is concise and easily understandable for everyone, especially a novice.”

Namibia’s clear skies “most definitely” lends itself to astronomy, with the whole Milky Way visible just 30 to 40 km outside Windhoek, says Lutz.

For the future, a total eclipse of the sun is "number one, two, and three" on his bucket list.

“I missed the last one in Namibia due to a thick cloud of mist in Swakopmund. A visit to Sutherland in the Cape is also on the list!”

Lutz is part of the SSFT, a German acronym for the Southern Star Party, which conducts a yearly stargazing weekend open to the public and free of charge. However, last year and this year, it had to be cancelled due to Covid restrictions. Following the reduction of tourists because of the pandemic, a local tour consultant and lodge teamed up for stargazing weekends.

This is hugely popular and the next weekend is expected to take place between the 1st and 3rd of October. In addition, the Astronomy group of the Scientific Society of Namibia also conducts stargazing evenings at the observatory outside Windhoek.

“For me, all these events are most enjoyable, to share the wonders of the universe with others.” – [email protected]; [email protected]