CELESTIAL ATTRACTION SPECIAL TREAT FOR HALLOWEEN.

Byline: Carol Rock Staff Writer

VALENCIA - If trick-or-treaters in the Northbridge neighborhood stop by the Somers house, they will get a double dose of Mars and Milky Ways on Halloween night.

A path lighted by smiling orange pumpkins leads through the garage to a small domed structure out back, where youngsters dipping into the candy bowl can also get an eyeful of the heavens. Resident ``witch'' Eufemia Somers will be there to help each visitor look through the lens of a powerful telescope.

``There's no gory display,'' she said. ``It's a little dark with a red light, but we don't want to scare the kids.''

For the last seven years, Eufemia and her husband, astronomy professor James, have added the treat of celestial gazing to their Halloween offerings. One by one, costumed children step into the tiny backyard observatory lined with reference books and peer into the eyepiece of the Somers' Takahashi telescope with its 5-inch refractor for an up-close and personal encounter with the stars.

It's become a neighborhood event, drawing children from all over - plus adults on the block who've run out of candy because of the larger-than-anticipated crowd of little stargazers.

``We're sucking everyone else dry,'' James said, laughing. ``We'll definitely tell them what we're expecting; we'll even give them some candy.''

The couple estimates that an average of 400 people, young and old, come through their observatory every year, all of them leaving in amazement.

``When people see the craters on the moon, they always say 'Wow, look at this' to the people in line,'' Eufemia said.

``We've had a line out to the driveway,'' James said. ``I'm not sure who gets more excited about it, the parents or the kids.''

James, who teaches at Moorpark College, has been on the staff of the Griffith Observatory for 25 years. He and Eufemia are familiar faces at places like CityWalk and The Block in Orange, where they have set up their telescopes for the curious to take a peek.

``It varies, what's available each night,'' James explained. ``People have seen the images on TV or in books, but to see it with your own eyes is something so magical.''

His fascination with the heavens started when his third-grade teacher handed him a book on astronomy and told him she thought he'd like the subject. After getting his job at the observatory, Somers went back to visit her to let her know she was right. And he and Eufemia continue to spread the word about the bounty of riches above Earth.

``It's an educational experience,'' Eufemia said. ``At a young age, you need to inspire kids to do something worthwhile.''

``One young man has gone on to work at JPL,'' James added, remembering the boy who got his first look at the stars during one of their events.

The couple, who have a 9-year-old son as well as four telescopes, said their stargazing equipment has brought more than one curious neighbor to the driveway.

``We've got one that sits in the middle of the garage that's so big, people think it's a water heater,'' he said. ``We even chose our van by what telescope would fit.''

``The salesman commented, 'Why do you need a big car? There's only the three of you,''' Eufemia said. ``We had to tell him the telescope is our second child.''

The Somers' observatory will be open to trick-or-treaters from 6 to 10 p.m. Friday.

Carol Rock, [phone]

carol.rock(at)dailynews.com

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Photo:

Andrew Somers, 9, of Valencia is dressed for Halloween night, when he'll stand guard as his parents, James and Eufemia Somers, open their backyard observatory to give local trick-or-treaters a firsthand view of the stars. Andrew's dad teaches astronomy at Moorpark College.

John Lazar/Staff Photographer