Welcome to the University of Texas Skywatchers Report for Monday June 19th through Sunday June 25th.
The new moon for the month of June is on the night of Friday June 23rd so we'll have a waning crescent moon for most of the week and the beginnings of a waxing crescent moon at the end the weekend.
Mercury is in superior conjunction with the sun on Wednesday the 21st and will pass behind the sun from the Earth's point of view. It will gradually re-emerge in our evening skies over the next few weeks.
Mars is very low in the west-northwest at sunset and is setting at 9:20 p.m.
Jupiter is up in the south-southwest at nightfall and is setting at 2:15 a.m.
Saturn is low in the southeast shortly after sunset and is visible most of the night.
Venus is rising at 3:40 a.m. and is visible in the pre-dawn twilight.
The summer solstice for the northern hemisphere occurs at 11:24 p.m. on
the night of Tuesday June 20th for the US central time zone. The summer solstice marks the longest amount of daylight for the year and the shortest night. From here out the days will start to get shorter until we hit the winter solstice in December.
Public viewing at the 16-inch reflector on top of Robert Lee Moore Hall is on Wednesday nights from 9:00 to 10:30 p.m. this summer. RLM is located on the southeast corner of Dean Keeton and Speedway. Take the elevator to the 17th floor and follow the signs to the telescope.
Due to staffing issues, viewing at the Painter Hall telescope may not occur every Friday and Saturday this summer. The schedule will be updated on our website at outreach.as.utexas.edu. Click on the top link for the Public Viewing on UT Campus Telescopes and then choose the link for Painter Hall.
When Painter Hall is open the hours will be from 9:00 to 10:30 p.m. this summer. Painter Hall is located on 24th street about halfway between Speedway and Guadalupe and is northeast of the UT Tower. To get to the telescope, take the elevator to the 5th floor and exit to the left. Follow the 5th floor hallway to the end and take the staircase through the double doors on the left. Once you reach the 6th floor, go to your right and follow the signs up to the telescope.
All events are free and open to all ages and no reservations are required. Note that viewing times and availability change throughout the year so please check the schedule before planning a visit. Observing events are weather permitting. Please call 512-232-4265 for weather cancellation information, which is updated 30 to 45 minutes before the scheduled viewing start time. This line will be updated on Friday afternoons for any weekend that we will not have Painter Hall viewing.
Thank you for calling the University of Texas Skywatchers Report.
