Welcome to the University of Texas Skywatchers Report for Monday November 10th through Sunday November 16th.

The moon is at third quarter late on Tuesday night into early Wednesday morning, and then we’ll have a waning crescent moon for the rest of the week.

Mercury is sinking back towards the sun and its next solar conjunction and is setting at 6 p.m. by the end of the week, just 30 minutes after the sun.

Mars continues to be low in the west-southwest in the early evening and is setting a little under an hour after the sun.

Saturn is us up in the south-southeast at sunset and is setting at 2:40 a.m. at midweek.

Jupiter is rising at 9:50 p.m. at midweek as it moves towards opposition in early 2026.

Venus is up about an hour before the sun as it continues to move towards its next solar conjunction a few days into the new year.

The Leonid meteor shower peaks on Monday November 17th, but the shower runs from early November to early December, so we should already be seeing an increase in activity this week. The Leonids get their name because they appear to come from a point in the constellation Leo the Lion, which is fully above the horizon by 2:00 a.m. and are caused by the Earth passing through the debris from Comet Tempel-Tuttle. By the end of the week, there won’t be much interference from the waning crescent moon, which rises a little before 4 a.m. on Sunday morning. Known for meteor storms about every 30 years, this year’s Leonids are only expected to have about 15-20 meteors an hour near the peak.

Public viewing at the Physics, Math, and Astronomy building is on Wednesday nights now from 7 to 9 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 7 to 9 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 star party status information, which is updated 30 to 45 minutes before the scheduled viewing start times.

Thank you for calling the University of Texas Skywatchers Report.