The Great Square of Pegasus sets in the western sky. Taurus, the Bull, is almost overhead. Dazzling Orion, the Hunter is high in the southeast, with his two dogs behind him. Sirius, the Big Dog Star, is the brightest star we ever see at night. Leo, the Lion, rises in the east. […]
The Summer Triangle is overhead. This consists of the brightest stars in Cygnus, Lyra, and Aquila. Scorpius, the Scorpion, is in the southwest, with the ‘teapot’ of Sagittarius to his left. Saturn is between these two constellations. From the Big Dipper’s handle, ‘arc to Arcturus’ in the west. The Great Square of […]
Film Screening – Bridge On the River Kwai with Captain Jay Thomas Join Captain Jay Thomas, US Naval History and Heritage Command for a one-night-only screening of this classic 1957 film. Among the forced laborers who built the bridge over the River Kwai were American and Australian sailors who survived the […]
The Moon This Month 1st Quarter: February 2, 10:19am Full: February 10, 6:33pm 3rd Quarter: February 18, 1:35am New: February 26, 9:00am The Full Moon of February 10 almost enters the Earth’s shadow. Rather, it enters the penumbra, a region of space where the Earth only partially […]
It’s been a wet, cloudy year for George Observatory, but flooding and poor viewing nights at Brazos Bend State Park haven’t kept astronomers from dreaming. Big breakthroughs have happened at the George in the past, and with a complete restoration of the 36-inch, deep space Gueymard Research Telescope, a return to astronomical research is quite […]
Jupiter is now high in the southwest at dusk. It outshines all stars we ever see at night, so you can’t miss it. Mars and Saturn are now in the southeast at dusk. As you watch them rise, Mars is to the right and is much brighter. In fact, this month Mars outshines all of […]
Jupiter is now high in the south at dusk. It outshines all stars we ever see at night, so you can’t miss it. Mars and Saturn become late evening objects this month. Tonight, May 2, Mars rises in the southeast at 9:48 p.m. while Saturn comes up soon afterwards, at 10:24 p.m. By May 15, […]
Jupiter is now high in the east-southeast at dusk. It outshines all stars we ever see at night, so you can’t miss it. Mercury is visible just after sunset this month. Face west at twilight, and look low in the sky over the point where the sun sets. Mercury isn’t as brilliant as Venus or […]
Jupiter is now a late evening object, rising in the east. It rises by 9 p.m. on Feb. 1, and by Feb. 29 it comes up just before 7 p.m., which is during evening twilight. Jupiter comes to opposition on March 8, which is when Earth aligns with Jupiter and the Sun. That is why […]
The annual Geminid Meteor Shower peaks this weekend, and we’ve got some tips for stargazers hoping to catch it. The Geminids are unique among meteor showers because they are associated not with a comet but with an asteroid, 3200 Phaethon. Comet orbits are so oblong that that they cross Earth’s orbit almost at right angles. […]
