Welcome to the University of Texas Skywatchers Report for Monday October 10 through Sunday October 16.
The moon was full on Sunday the 9th and will reach third quarter on Monday the 17th, so we’ll have a waning gibbous moon all of this week.
Saturn is up in the south-southeast at sunset and is setting at 2:50 a.m.
Jupiter is shining brightly in the east-southeast as the sky darkens after sunset and is still visible most of the night.
Mars is rising at 10:30 p.m. and is now at magnitude -0.8 and 13.2 arcseconds in size. Look for Mars below the moon on Friday night.
Mercury is now moving back towards the sun after last week’s greatest elongation but is still up an hour and 15 minutes before sunrise.
Venus will be in conjunction with the sun next week and is now lost in the sun’s glare.
In space anniversaries this week, Saturday October 15 marks 25 years since the launch of the Cassini-Huygens mission to Saturn. Cassini entered orbit around Saturn on July 1, 2004, and the Huygens probe detached from the main spacecraft on December 25, 2004, and then landed on Saturn’s largest Moon Titan on January 14, 2005, as it sampled the moon’s atmosphere during the descent. The Cassini orbiter was deliberately deorbited into Saturn on September 15, 2017, after 13 years in orbit.
Public viewing at the 16-inch reflector on top of the Physics, Math, and Astronomy building is on Wednesday nights currently from 8 to 10 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 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. 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.
