Welcome to the University of Texas Skywatchers Report for Monday April 25th through Sunday May 1st.
The new moon for the month of April is on Saturday the 30th so we’ll have a waning crescent moon in the early morning skies for most of the week. This new moon will also have a partial solar eclipse that will be visible along the western coast of South America and the southeast Pacific Ocean.
Mercury is at its greatest elongation in our evening skies on Thursday night when it will be setting at 9:45 p.m., so this is a good time to look for this otherwise hard to observe planet, especially if you have a good view of the western horizon after sunset.
In the morning skies, Saturn is rising at 3:30 a.m. at midweek, followed by Mars at 4:45 a.m., then Venus and Jupiter around 5:00 a.m. Venus and Jupiter will be separated by two tenths of a degree on Saturday. Look for the waning crescent moon to the right of Mars on Monday and to the right of Venus and Jupiter on Tuesday and then below the pair on Wednesday.
In space anniversaries this week, Tuesday April 26th marks 60 years since the launch of Ariel 1, a joint mission of NASA and the United Kingdom, making it the first international satellite project, and the first British satellite. The mission primarily studied the Earth’s ionosphere and how it is affected by solar flares. The satellite reentered the Earth’s atmosphere in May 1976.
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.
