Welcome to the University of Texas Skywatchers Report for Monday October 14 through Sunday October 20.
The moon is full in the early hours of Thursday the 17th, so we’ll see a waxing gibbous moon for the first part of the week and a waning gibbous moon for the weekend. The full moon of October is known as the Dying Grass Moon and the Hunter’s Moon.
Mercury is emerging from the evening twilight and is setting about half an hour after the sun this week.
Venus continues to shine brightly in the west-southwest at sunset and is setting at 8:45 p.m. at midweek.
Saturn is up in the southeast as night falls and is setting at 4:30 a.m. at midweek. Look for Saturn just off the limb of the moon on Monday night.
Jupiter is rising just after 10 p.m. and Mars follows at 12:30 a.m. Look for Jupiter near the moon on Sunday night.
After it’s discovery in early 2023 and long-held hopes that it would brighten significantly, Comet C2023/A3 Tsuchinshan-ATLAS is finally appearing in our evening skies and should be visible in the west for a few hours after sunset this week. The comet made its closest approach to Earth over the weekend and will gradually be visible higher each night, but it will be moving away from the Earth and will also become fainter. The comet appears to be weakly gravitationally bound to the Sun, so it is not completely known if it will leave the solar system or eventually pass by Earth again in thousands of years.
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 currently from 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.
