texas

skywatchers report


Welcome to the University of Texas Skywatchers Report for Monday April 4 through Sunday April 10th.

The moon is at first quarter early on Saturday the 9th so we’ll have a waxing crescent moon in our early evening skies for most of the week and we’ll start in to the waxing gibbous phase at the end of the week.

Mercury is now up in the west shortly after sunset but is still emerging from conjunction and is lost in the sun’s glare.

The rest of the planets visible to the unaided eye are up in the morning skies with Saturn and Mars leading the way, rising a little before 5 a.m. Mars and Saturn will be about a third of a degree apart on Tuesday morning.

Venus is rising at 5:10 a.m. at midweek and Jupiter follows an hour later.

In space anniversaries this week, Monday April 4th marks 25 years since the launch of the Space Shuttle Columbia on what was supposed to be a 15-day mission of microgravity experiments. However, a problem with Fuel Cell #2 on the shuttle caused the mission to be cut short after four days in orbit. The mission was re-flown three months later with the same astronauts, the only time in human spaceflight history that two missions consisted of the exact same crew.

Public viewing at the 16-inch reflector on top of the Physics, Math, and Astronomy building (formerly RLM) is on Wednesday nights now from 8:30 to 10:30 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 now from 8:30 to 10:30 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.