Welcome to the University of Texas Skywatchers Report for Monday June 24 through Sunday July 7.
The moon is at third quarter late on Friday June 28th and then we’ll have a waning crescent moon until we reach new moon on Friday July 5th.
Venus is still emerging from solar conjunction and is still too close to the sun to see.
Mercury has climbed a bit higher in the evening skies and is setting at 9:50 p.m. at the end of June and at 10 p.m. by the end of the first week in July.
Saturn is rising at 12:30 a.m. at the end of June and will be visible just off the limb of the Moon on the morning of June 27th.
Mars is up just after 3 a.m. on July 1st and will be visible near the waning crescent moon that morning.
Jupiter is rising at 4:25 a.m. at the beginning of July and will be near the very thin crescent moon on the morning of Wednesday July 3rd.
The Earth is at aphelion, its farthest point from the Sun, in the early morning hours of Friday July 5th. At that point, the Earth will be 152 million kilometers from the Sun, compared to 147 million kilometers at its closest point back in early January.
In space anniversaries this week, Monday July 1st marks 20 years since Cassini-Huygens became the first spacecraft to enter orbit around the planet Saturn. The mission orbited the ringed planet for just over 13 years before it was deliberately crashed into Saturn’s atmosphere when it was almost out of onboard fuel. The spacecraft was disposed of in this manner to keep it from crashing into any of Saturn’s moons to avoid contamination with Earth bacteria.
Public viewing at the 16-inch reflector on top of the Physics, Math, and Astronomy building is on Wednesday nights from 9:00 to 10:30 p.m. this summer. 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.
There will be no viewing at PMA on Wednesday July 3rd.
There will be no public viewing at the Painter Hall Telescope this summer. Friday and Saturday night viewing at Painter Hall will resume in the fall semester.
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.
