Next Public Star Gaze
Image credit: club member Jerry Sherman – taken at Grassland Mtn. Observatory
Continue to check this home page as weather could change the venue or postpone and possibly cancel a star gaze. Check again after 4:00 p.m. on the afternoon of the observing session for the latest info and update.
This May 15th star gaze at Lookout Obs. has been CANCELLED.
15 May 2026 — Friday night — The location for this star gaze will be Lookout Observatory on the UNC Asheville campus, with a weather backup date of Saturday, 16 May. While the event is free and open to everyone, pre-registration is required to attend. To learn more about how to register, please visit the UNCA Lookout Observatory website here. Sunset occurs at 8:28 p.m., with shuttle service beginning about 9:15 p.m.
May 2026
– Numerous Bright Flyovers of the ISS
18-20 May 2026
– The Moon Visits Venus and Jupiter
Illustration courtesy of
SKY & TELESCOPE
29-31 May 2026
– A Blue Moon Rises with Antares
Illustration courtesy of
SKY & TELESCOPE
30/31 May 2026
– May’s Full Blue Moon!
4 June 2026 – Club Meeting Presentation
— Thursday night, 7:00 – 8:30 p.m.
This free speaker presentation will be offered in-person at the
UNC-Asheville Reuter Center and virtually online. Registration is not required; use this Zoom link to watch the presentation remotely.
Although parking is free for this event at the UNC-Asheville Reuter Center, you must register your vehicle with a “Visitor 5pm – 6am” permit type at this link. Once registration is complete, visitors will not need to print or display a permit; the system utilizes camera-based License Plate Recognition technology. All vehicles must park front-end in, so that the license plate is visible.
Variable Stars, the AAVSO, Eclipsing Stars, and Backyard Astrophysics
– presented by
Don Collins, PhD,
Professor Emeritus, Warren Wilson College
Cataclysmic variable stars (CV’s) are bizarre systems that vary their light output (as well as ultraviolet and x-rays) in dramatically rapid sequences (hours and minutes – not days!). The presentation will discuss variable stars in general, as well as the strange behavior of CV’s. Dr. Collins will also discuss how amateur astronomers can contribute significantly to the research of variable stars through the AAVSO (American Association of Variable Star Observers).