Upcoming Public Star Gazes
Continue to check this home page as weather could change the venue or postpone and possibly cancel a star gaze. Check-in again after 5:00 p.m. on the afternoon of the observing session for the latest info and update. (image by Alan Davis, taken from Grassland Mountain Observatory)
23 August 2019 – Friday night – The location for this star gaze will be Lookout Observatory on the UNC Asheville campus, with a weather backup night of
Saturday, 24 August. While the event is free and open to the general public, pre-registration is required to attend. To learn more about how to register, please visit the UNCA Lookout Observatory website here. Sunset occurs at 8:10 p.m., with shuttle service beginning at 8:30 p.m.
30 August 2019 – Friday night – This public star gaze site will be held at Grassland Mountain Observatory in Madison County, with a weather backup night of
Saturday, 31 August. This event is free and open to the general public — registration is not necessary to attend. A temporary gate code, required for entry, will be provided on the day of the star gaze by 5:00 p.m. Directions to Grassland Mountain Observatory can be found here. Sunset occurs at 8:00 p.m.
5 September 2019 – Next Club Meeting
Thursday night, 7:00 – 9:00 p.m. – In the Reuter Center‘s Manheimer Room, located on the UNC Asheville campus. The meeting is free and open to the general public.
Is There Life Inside the Icy Moons of Jupiter and Saturn? – presented by Paul Byrne, North Carolina State University
The icy satellites of our Solar System’s giant planets hold substantial promise as extraterrestrial, habitable environments. Underneath their icy exteriors, these moons could host large water oceans, some of which could be in direct contact with rocky seafloors. On Earth, the seafloor teems with life, and the hydrothermal vents there might even be the sites where life itself originated on our planet.
However, there is almost no geophysical information about the interiors of these enigmatic, extraterrestrial moons, much less whether there might be hydrothermal vents or other environments there conducive to life. Read more…
4 – 8 September 2019 – Conjunction of the Harvest Moon with Jupiter and Saturn
Image courtesy of Sky & Telescope
