August 22nd, 2026

Dear you,

After a trip to Thailand and a busy EL CID, I’ve enjoyed a week of being more or less a couch potato. Okay, maybe that’s an exaggeration: as future board, we’ve been quite busy planning the upcoming year to make it at least as memorable as the last! In fact, I’m sending this email from our policy days where we’re not only bonding as a board, but also getting a headstart on next year.

But let’s take a step back, because the EL CID week was quite remarkable, especially if you are/will be an astronomy student. The universe rewarded us with a solar eclipse AND the peak of the Perseid meteor shower in ONE NIGHT. And simultaneously, the Netherlands rewarded us with clear skies. And if that wasn’t enough astronomy for one evening, we continued the streak by giving you what we think was an amazing observing night at the Old Observatory!!

But while a new moon makes for good observing circumstances, the planets decided they didn’t really want to join in on the fun. However, Saturn did make an appearance after midnight, which, for me, was definitely a highlight! Let’s hope there are more targets for the OWL observing night next week!

To end this newsletter, I’d like to introduce a new rubric to replace the Cat of the Week introduced by Bentwee: The Star of the Week! If you have an astronomical object, pet, or other “star” (up to your own interpretation) you would like to see in the spotlight, you can upload a photo, short text, or idea using the form that you can find below!

Hoping you all have a stellar last week of vacation,

Lyra Vranken,

Ab Actis,
On behalf of (Future) Board 34 - f.t. Dragonfly

Contents

• Past activities

  • EL CID Observing Night

• Upcoming activities

  • OWL Observing Night

  • Astroborrel

• Star of the Week

• WhatsApp group chat

• Confidential Counsellors and University Support Systems

Past Activities

Upcoming Activities

OWL Observing Night - 26th of August

If you missed our EL CID observing night, don’t despair: we have another opportunity coming up very soon! Join us at the Old Observatory (Sterrenwachtlaan 11) on August 26th from 22:00 onwards for the OWL observing night! Joined by students attending the OWL this time, we will use three of the Old Observatory's telescopes to explore the night sky above us. If you would like to join, don’t hesitate to come by! 

Astroborrel - 7th of September

September is just around the corner, and that means it’s time for our first activity of the year: the Astroborrel!!! Join us in the Fusie in the Gorlaeus building (Einsteinweg 55) on the 7th of September for a drink!! It’s a great way to get to know us, new people, and (other) Kaiser members! We hope to see all of you there and don’t forget to put on your favourite space socks!! You can sign up below!

Star of the Week

For the first rendition of our new rubric, we’d like to highlight the open cluster M34 (there’s no bias here of course ;)). This cluster, also known as the Spiral Cluster, is a large cluster in Perseus whose stars are distinguishable with any ordinary telescope in dark enough skies. It’s roughly 470 pc away and has a true radius of about 7.5 ly. In very dark skies, it’s even visible by naked eye!! Perhaps you can try to find it next time you find yourself deep in nature at night!

Image credit: Bob Franke / NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day (APOD). Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) and Jerry Bonnell (UMCP). A service of ASD at NASA/GSFC, NASA Science Activation & Michigan Tech. U.

Or send your star to Lyra (+31 6 22 39 95 34)

WhatsApp group chat
Whether you're new to Kaiser or have been with us for a while, you may not know about the Kaiser WhatsApp group chat. Through this platform, we share the lates updates on activities, highlight current astronomical events, and simply enjoy chatting with fellow astronomy enthusiasts. If you'd like to join, just click the link below!

Confidential Counsellors and University Support Systems
If you feel like you need help, know that there are many points of support all around you at all times. You can always reach out to us as board for any solace we can possibly offer, and our study advisor Wouter Schrier (studyadvisor@strw.leidenuniv.nl) is always available to talk. Don't hesitate also to make use of the University facilities for support, by looking at the resources on this website or by booking an appointment with one of our student psychologists (through 071 - 527 8026 or psychologen@sea.leidenuniv.nl).

I'd also like to draw your attention to the Confidential Persons of De Leidsche Flesch and the Observatory Allies of the STRW. We have collected some resources which we as students can reach out to in case there is any situation or person within the university that makes us feel uncomfortable, unwelcome or threatened. If you have any experiences of this kind, don't hesitate to reach out to any of us within the board or the contacts listed in the link.

Know, that there are always many people within the university who are ready to listen, help or act accordingly where needed.