Knocking on heaven's door

It was an evening like any other, with joggers and their pets doing the rounds of Queen''s Necklace.
Meanwhile, Aadil Desai, secretary, Amateur Astronomers'' Association was on hand, setting up a high magnification telescope through which he plans on viewing the five brightly visible planets of Jupiter, Saturn, Mars, Venus and Mercury, straight aligned in the city skies.
Curious on-lookers stopped to decipher what was written in the stars and questions poured in from all quarters, "What can be seen through that?", "What is this for?", "Is it free?" and the like which Desai patiently answered. And as the skies darkened, excitement grew and so did the volume of crowd.
AAA is planning a series of programmes to spread awareness about plants. In fact Mumbai is already abuzz with the idea of sky viewing.
"Such sessions have always drawn a large audience," Desai said with reference to setting up the telescope in a public premise and so too, this time."
Besides this, a programme in collaboration with the Nehru Planetarium is also on cards. Over the weekend, Desai would be travelling to Karjat with some enthusiasts to view the five planets.
"We started these trips on an amateur level, but now, in the event of AAA''s silver jubilee year, it has evolved into one of our main activities."
On May 4, AAA plans to help enthusiasts interested in viewing the planets, by organising a get-together opposite Marine Plaza hotel.
"Contrary to our expectations, many people possessing their own telescopes. Those with binoculars can also view the planets and understand the universe better," Desai adds.