For a long time, Phil Hahn, president of the Ames Area Amateur Astronomers, has had two fascinations — the infinite expanse and mysteries of the cosmos and learning the culture and history of Native Americans.

As he faced the collected club members and interested onlookers gathered for the club’s monthly public “star party” on Friday, Hahn cast a wide net to show how these two seemingly disparate interests have fascinating common ground.

“Many tribes use the appearance and disappearance of stars to begin and end certain events like festivals,” Hahn says.

He filled his talk with several Native American tales, including the story of a group of hunters who pursued a bear to the edge of the earth and into the sky-world of the stars.

“It’s interesting that some tribes saw the Big Dipper as a bear, just as the Greeks did,” Hahn says.

Each public meeting of the club opens with a themed lecture from a club member or invited speaker, after which visitors are invited to observe the skies for themselves through the club’s six-inch telescope. Friday’s theme was “The Milky Way: Inside Looking Out.”

Hahn says the most popular objects for first timers to view are things that novices are familiar with, like the moon and planets.

“The moon is always the first big hit,” Hahn says. “It’s like astronomy kindergarten.”

A first good look at sights like the moons of Jupiter or the craggy, pock-marked surface of the moon usually draws an enthusiastic reaction, Hahn says.

Nathaniel Smith, 9, a Roland resident, brought his family out for an evening of observing, although they watch him with equal or greater wonder.

“There is only one in our family who knows what he is doing, and he is 9 years old,” Helen Burk, Nathaniel’s mother, says.

Joseph Kollasch, a club member and Ames resident, says the star parties have been a bonding experience for him and his 18-year-old son, Jonathan, since they became members in 2002.

“When Jonathan looked at Saturn for the first time, we drove way out into the country — that was the first time I was awed by a planet,” Kollasch says.

Kollasch agrees closer objects like the moon and planets best attract first time observers.

“It is always good if you can find a planet,” he says. “It is not a point-source — they have more colors and detail.”

Jonathan assists his father in setting up equipment with sightings during public exhibitions like the “star party.”

As the night darkens, the astronomers gather around their telescopes, and fall into thoughtful silence, gazing up at the star-dotted sky. Perhaps they are in search of the lost braves, forever in pursuit of the great bear.