100 Hours of Astronomy event starts April 3

The 100 Hours of Astronomy event is a webcast that will feature 80 telescopes, both on and off planet, so everyone can learn about what astronomers around the world are doing.

Here's a description of the program from the 100 hours of Astronomy website:

Find out what's happening at a research observatory in your country, or on the other side of the planet, and discover what astronomers are doing right now! Who is observing? What are they researching? What do they hope to discover?

You'll see a snapshot of life at many different observatories where astronomers will present exclusive images and talk about their work. Some will be observing distant galaxies, searching for extrasolar planets around other stars or studying our own Solar System. Some will be studying the Universe in visible light, others in radio waves or other wavelengths. Some may be working at solar observatories or with telescopes out in space. All of them will have a different story to tell.

Around the World in 80 Telescopes will run from 09:00 (GMT) on April 3 to 09:00 (GMT) April 4. We will begin with the observatories atop Mauna Kea in Hawaii, and move westwards, visiting Australia and New Zealand, Asia, Europe, Africa, Antarctica, and the Americas. We will finish on the west coast of the US. You can see the schedule here as well as information about the observatories participating.

The Penobscot Valley Star Gazers and Jordan Planetarium and Observatory at UMaine (Orono) have teamed up to celebrate this event with Stella-Baloo on April 4. The event will run from 1:00 - 5:00pm and 7:00-10:00pm in Orono.

The Southworth Planetarium at USM's campus in Portland is also celebrating with lots of scheduled events as well April 1-4. Get a full schedule here.

Just wanted to pass on this event info because it sounds like a really cool event for families interested in learning more about the night sky and astronomy.