Historic Telescopes at LA Observatory Can Be Yours for the Night
The city of Los Angeles is a buzzing, endless grid of bright lights, concrete, and freeways. But high above the humdrum existence of most LA mortals, among the pine trees and coyotes, there’s a place where you can actually see the stars and planets in the dark winter sky. It’s called the Mt. Wilson Observatory, and for more than a century, it’s been a kind of gateway to the heavens. Inside two white domes, you’ll find a pair of aging but still mighty telescopes that Edwin Hubble, George Ellery Hale, and Albert Einstein have all looked through. And you can too. You can rent them for the whole night. It’s not cheap, but it comes with free snacks, and an astronomer to guide your trip through the astonishing wonders of the dark and endless sky. Reporter Peter Gilstrap went to see what happens on Mt. Wilson when the stars come out.
'We Just Want to Bring Happiness With Our Dances': Farmworkers Release COVID Stress with Holiday Tradition
Every December, Catholic Latinos across the state commemorate Las Posadas, the journey of Joseph and Mary as they searched for refuge and a safe place for her to give birth to the baby Jesus. For people of Mexican descent, the tradition honors the appearance of la Virgen de Guadalupe to an indigenous man named Juan Diego in 1531. That celebration was especially important this year for a farmworker community of about 8,000 people that’s struggled during the pandemic. KVPR’s Madi Bolaños brings us this story from Firebaugh, in Fresno County.
Sean Hayes’ New Album ‘Be Like Water’ Offers Pathway from Worry
Throughout this pandemic, it’s been exhausting to constantly negotiate risk, some of us worrying about the people we love getting sick. Sonoma County songwriter Sean Hayes has been singing the blues for 30 years. He has a new album out called “Be Like Water.” The songs on it were written years before the coronavirus hit – he put the songs in a drawer and let them hibernate. Then late last year, he re-recorded them, as he thought about the importance of healing and accepting things as they are, and moving forward. KQED’s April Dembosky visited Hayes at his studio in Petaluma.
Remembering Mexico’s ‘King of Mariachi’
We mourn the loss of Mexican icon and King of Mariachi, Vicente Fernández, who died December 12th at age 81. In his nearly six-decade career, he sold more than 70 million records, starred in dozens of films, and sold out performances around the world. His song “Volver, Volver” (“Return, Return”) catapulted the singer into stardom in the 1970s, breaking sales records in North and South America. He once said he hoped his fans would sing it when he died. Back in 2007, Fernández came to California on his biggest US tour to date. And the California Report’s Senior Editor Victoria Mauleón brought us a story about the impact he had on his fans on this side of the border. She talked to some of them at a record store in Stockton, and at Fresno City College.