SMART Science at The West Virginia Kite Festival

The warm breezes of spring are perfect for flying kites.   The forces that make a kite fly are fun to investigate while you are getting fresh air and exercise. So dust off your kites, repair any damage from last year, and untangle your big ball of kite string.  

If you would like to fly your favorite kite with other people who enjoy using the power of the wind, join us at third annual West Virginia Kite Festival which will be held on Saturday, April 26, 2008. The West Virginia Kite Festival is free and open to the public. The West Virginia Kite Festival is celebrated each year on the last Saturday in April from 1:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. at the Cardinal Shelter at Brooke Hills Park, located about 4 miles East of Wellsburg, WV on Route 27. (www.brookehillspark.org)

The first 100 children attending the West Virginia Kite Festival will receive a free kite with kite string to fly at the event and then take home to enjoy. If you have a favorite kite of your own bring it along to help fill the skies over Brooke Hills Park with a rainbow of kites.

If you wish to join us earlier in the day, Robert Strong and Richard Pollack will be doing a live broadcast of “Radio Science News” from the Cardinal Shelter at Brooke Hills Park from 11:00 – 12:00 just before the kite festival gets officially underway. You can stop by to show off your kites and chat. Bring your science questions and we will talk to you live on the radio at 1370 AM, and streaming to the internet. “Radio Science News” immediately follows the two-hour nature program, “The Wild Side”, hosted by the regional naturalist Dr. Scott Shalaway every Saturday morning. Check the website

http://neofoundation.org/radiosciencenews/ for current topics and information.

After a day of kite flying, an evening public StarWatch will start at 8:00 p.m. at the Cardinal Shelter to discover and share the wonders of the night sky. Telescopes will be provided, if you have your own bring it along to the StarWatch. The annual West Virginia Kite Festival is co-hosted by the Near Earth Object Foundation, Brooke Hills Park, ASTROLABE Astronomy Club, and West Liberty State College.

For more information on the third annual West Virginia Kite Festival and schedule of kite related activities, please visit the SMART-Center website at   

www.smartcenter.org/ovpm/kites

Libby and Robert Strong, and Richard Pollack work at the West Liberty State College SMART-Center. Libby is the director of the West Virginia Handle On Science Program that brings hands-on science kits into the classrooms of K-6 grade public schools in the five counties of West Virginia’s Northern Panhandle. Robert is the Director of the WLSC SMART-Center, the hands-on science center of northern West Virginia, and Richard serves as the Director of Energy Projects. Libby, Robert, and Richard invite you to visit the SMART-Center website at http://smartcenter.org