Next Public Star Gaze
Image credit: club member Alan Davis – taken at Lookout Observatory
Continue to check this home page as weather could change the venue or postpone and possibly cancel a star gaze. Check again after 5:00 p.m. on the afternoon of the observing session for the latest info and update.
Friday, May 19, 2:00 p.m. update: Unfortunately, a cloudy forecast has caused the postponement of this weekend’s star gaze at Grassland Mtn. Observatory to the backup date of Saturday night, May 20. Please check this home page for another weather update on Saturday.
19 May 2023 — Friday night — This public star gaze will be held at Grassland Mountain Observatory in Madison County, with a weather backup night of Saturday, 20 May. This event is free and open to everyone — registration is not necessary to attend. A temporary gate code, required for entry, will be provided here on the day of the star gaze by 5:00 p.m. Directions to Grassland Mountain Observatory can be found here. Sunset occurs at 8:31 p.m.
May 2023
– Venus’
Moon-like Phases Explained
22-24 May 2023
– The Moon Visits Venus and Mars
Illustration courtesy of
Sky & Telescope
1 June 2023 – 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.
The Crab Nebula, a well-known supernova remnant in the constellation Taurus.
(NASA Hubble Space Telescope image)
Cosmic Furnaces and the Origin of the Elements
– presented by
Christian Iliadis, PhD,
J. Ross Macdonald Distinguished Professor, Department of Physics and Astronomy at UNC – Chapel Hill
Since the time of the cavemen, humans have gazed at the stars and tried to understand the universe as well as our place in it. Dr. Iliadis will explain how stardust, the elements once contained in stars, is dispersed into space when stars die and explode. These elements were mixed with other matter and formed not only new stars, but new planets, such as Earth. Read more…
