texas

skywatchers report


Welcome to the University of Texas Skywatchers' Report for Tuesday September 7th through Sunday the 12th.

The new moon for the month of September is on the morning of Wednesday the 8th. This new moon occurs close to the moon's perigee (its closest point to the earth in its orbit) so there will be larger than usual high tides that day. After the new moon we will see a waxing crescent moon in the early evening skies for the remainder of the week.

Venus, Mars and Saturn are still visible in the western skies after sunset, although Saturn is now very low and is setting around 8:30 p.m. Venus and Mars set around 9:30 p.m. this week. Look for the slim crescent moon below Venus and Mars on the 10th and to the upper left of Venus on the 11th.

Jupiter is rising at around 8 p.m. this week and is fairly high in the southeast by 10 p.m.

Early risers may be able to catch Mercury in the morning. It is rising about an hour before the sun at the end of the week.

Public viewing at the 16-inch reflector on top of Robert Lee Moore Hall is on Wednesday nights currently from 8 to 10 p.m. 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.

Public viewing at the 9 inch refractor at Painter Hall is on Friday and Saturday nights from currently 8 to 10 p.m. 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. Please note that there will be no Painter Telescope viewing on Saturday evenings when the UT football team has a night home game. This Saturday's game starts at 6 p.m. so there will be no Painter Hall viewing that night. To check the complete football schedule, logon to mackbrown-texasfootball.com.

All events are free and open to all ages and no reservations are required. Note that viewing times and availability change throughout the year. Observing events are weather permitting. Please call 232-4265 for weather cancellation information, which is updated 30 to 60 minutes before the scheduled viewing start time when a viewing is cancelled.

Thank you for calling the University of Texas Skywatchers' Report.