Welcome to the University of Texas Skywatchers Report for Monday January 22 through Sunday January 28.
The full moon for the month of the January is on Thursday the 25th so we’ll start the week with a waxing gibbous moon and have a waning gibbous moon for the weekend. This full moon is known as the Old Moon, the Moon After Yule, and the Wolf Moon.
Saturn continues to move closer to the sun as it heads towards its next solar conjunction at the end of February and is now low in the west-southwest after sundown. Saturn is setting at 8:20 p.m. at midweek.
Jupiter is high in the south-southwest as the sky darkens in the evening and is setting at 1:05 a.m. at midweek.
Venus is rising at 5:20 a.m., now just over two hours before sunrise. Mars and Mercury follow around 6:15 a.m. Look for the pair to be less than a quarter of a degree apart on Saturday morning.
In space anniversaries this week, Wednesday the 24th marks 20 years since the Mars rover Opportunity landed on the Red Planet, joining its twin Spirit which landed three weeks earlier. Opportunity explored Mars for over 14 years before contact was lost in June 2018 after a large Martian dust storm.
Public viewing at the 16-inch reflector on top of the Physics, Math, and Astronomy building is on Wednesday nights currently from 7 to 9 p.m. PMA 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 currently from 7 to 9 p.m. Painter Hall is located on 24th street about halfway between Speedway and Guadalupe and is northeast of the UT Tower. Take the elevator to the 5th floor then take the stairs up to the 6th floor 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.
Thank you for calling the University of Texas Skywatchers Report.
