Public Astronomy Observations
Observation Schedule Fall 2024
Sunday, August 18, 9 – 10:30pm
Free public astronomy observation at the Southern Illinois University Carbondale, School of Physics and Applied Physics Astronomy Observation Deck, located on the roof of the Neckers building. Join SIU Physics and the Astronomical Association of Southern Illinois for an evening of guided telescopic observations of the night sky.
Visible this evening: The Moon will be full this evening providing views of the lunar surface, but illuminating the sky making dim objects difficult to see. Saturn rises just before 9pm this evening and will be visible shortly after the start of the observation throughout the evening. A few deep sky objects such as M13 (Hercules Cluster), M57 (Ring Nebula) will be directly overhead and visible through larger telescopes with clear conditions.
Children accompanied by adults are welcome. Dress weather appropriate for this outdoor viewing. Please note that the observation deck is not handicap accessible and is only accessible via stairs. Note that while this is an outdoor activity, you may be in close proximity to people throughout the evening. Masks for this event are optional.
Sunday, September 8, 8pm – 9:30pm
Free public astronomy observation at the Southern Illinois University Carbondale, School of Physics and Applied Physics Astronomy Observation Deck, located on the roof of the Neckers building. Join SIU Physics and the Astronomical Association of Southern Illinois for an evening of guided telescopic observations of the night sky.
Visible this evening: The Moon will be a thin crescent this evening and will be setting just after the end of the observation. It will provide interesting views of the lunar surface which will be illuminated in part by direct sunlight and to a lesser amount by earth shine - light reflected off of the earth onto the lunar surface. Saturn is at opposition this week as well as Neptune making this the best time of the year to see these planets. Saturn will appear large with the rings mostly edge on with Neptune appearing as a small blue dot. One of the most difficult planets to see, Neptune is mostly indistinguishable from background stars.
Children accompanied by adults are welcome. Dress weather appropriate for this outdoor viewing. Please note that the observation deck is not handicap accessible and is only accessible via stairs. Note that while this is an outdoor activity, you may be in close proximity to people throughout the evening. Masks for this event are optional.
Tuesday, September 17, 9:00pm – 10:30pm Partial Lunar Eclipse
Free public astronomy observation at the Southern Illinois University Carbondale, School of Physics and Applied Physics Astronomy Observation Deck, located on the roof of the Neckers building. Join SIU Physics and the Astronomical Association of Southern Illinois for an evening of guided telescopic observations of the night sky.
Visible this evening: A partial lunar eclipse will be visible this evening between 9:13pm and 10:15pm in our region. During this time, the Moon will go from being full to being slightly obscured by the earth's shadow. The maximum obscuration will occur at 9:46 PM and will only be a small part of the lunar surface. We will also have excellent views of Saturn this evening and possibly some deep sky objects if skies are clear.
Children accompanied by adults are welcome. Dress weather appropriate for this outdoor viewing. Please note that the observation deck is not handicap accessible and is only accessible via stairs. Note that while this is an outdoor activity, you may be in close proximity to people throughout the evening. Masks for this event are optional.
Saturday, October 19, 4pm - 10:30pm - Southern Illinois Star Party
Join SIU Carbondale, the Astronomical Association of Southern Illinois, and the Adler Planetarium of Chicago for a free night of guided telescope observations as well as family friendly astronomy and science activities. Enjoy an evening under the stars at the SIU University Farms Astronomy Observation Area. The site is 2 miles west SIU’s main campus in a semi-dark area that offers good views of the night sky.
Several night time and solar telescopes operated by amateur astronomers and SIU School of Physics and Applied Physics faculty, staff, and students will be available to the public this evening. Visitors will be able to see the Sun, Moon, Mercury, Venus, Saturn, Jupiter and other celestial objects.
Visitors are welcome to bring their own lawn chairs and blankets as well as photography or telescope equipment. Free shuttles will run from SIU Parking lot #63 at the corner of Oakland and Chautauqua streets throughout the evening. Parking at the site is very limited and available by permit only.
Children accompanied by adults are welcome. Dress weather appropriate for this outdoor viewing. s. Note that while this is an outdoor activity, you may be in close proximity to people throughout the evening. Masks for this event are optional.
Food and soft drinks will be available for purchase.
For disability accommodations call 618-453-5738. Disabled visitors or those bringing telescope equipment that would be difficult to transport by shuttle may contact events@siu.edu or call SIU Events and Outreach at 618-453-7424 for a free onsite parking permit.
For more information, see the Southern Illinois Star Party website.
Sunday, November 10, 7:00pm – 10pm - Lunar Occultation of Saturn
Free public astronomy observation at the Southern Illinois University Carbondale, School of Physics and Applied Physics Astronomy Observation Deck, located on the roof of the Neckers building. Join SIU Physics and the Astronomical Association of Southern Illinois for an evening of guided telescopic observations of the night sky.
Visible this evening: The Moon and Saturn will appear very close to each other this evening in Southern Illinois and most of the world while in parts of Florida, southern Mexico, the Caribbean, and South America, Saturn will be occulted by the Moon as Saturn disappears from the night sky. Also visible this evening are Jupiter and some of the brighter deep sky objects.
Children accompanied by adults are welcome. Dress weather appropriate for this outdoor viewing. Please note that the observation deck is not handicap accessible and is only accessible via stairs. Note that while this is an outdoor activity, you may be in close proximity to people throughout the evening. Masks for this event are optional.
Sunday, December 8, 6pm – 7:30pm
Free public astronomy observation at the Southern Illinois University Carbondale, School of Physics and Applied Physics Astronomy Observation Deck, located on the roof of the Neckers building. Join SIU Physics and the Astronomical Association of Southern Illinois for an evening of guided telescopic observations of the night sky.
Visible this evening: Jupiter is at opposition this evening and will appear big and bright in the night sky. Saturn, the Moon and Venus will also be visible as well as some of the brighter deep sky objects.
Children accompanied by adults are welcome. Dress weather appropriate for this outdoor viewing. Please note that the observation deck is not handicap accessible and is only accessible via stairs. Note that while this is an outdoor activity, you may be in close proximity to people throughout the evening. Masks for this event are optional.
All observations are weather dependent. For more information, visit https://physics.siu.edu/events/astronomy.php.
Observation Deck and Telescopes
The observation deck is 624 square feet in size. It is built out of 2" thick rubber matting for vibration isolation. The primary telescope is a 14" Meade LX600. This computer guided telescope is used for all observation events as well as the lab portion of PHYS 103 (Astronomy). Several additional scopes are setup for observations as needed including Celestron 8" SCTs, a Coronado SolarMax II, and a Stellarvue SV105 Raptor (105mm refractor).
What Can You See?
The most spectacular viewing is of the Moon and major planets such as Jupiter, Saturn, Venus and Mars. On clear nights, you can easily see the rings of Saturn and detailed striations on Jupiter. Brighter objects such as the Great Orion Nebula, the Andromeda Galaxy and several clusters are also visible visually.
Dimmer deep sky objects are typically only visible during evenings with low humidity and not much cloud cover. On select night, deep sky cameras are utilized to display images of objects otherwise not visible though visual observations.
Bringing a Group to aPublic Observation
Groups in excess of 10 visitors should contact rbaer@siu.edu in advance of your visit to insure adequate space for your group.
Previous Event Photos
Mars Opposition Star Party 2018. Star party at the SIU Farms for the Mars Opposition. See photos of the event on Bob Baer's Flickr photo stream.
Eclipse 2017 at SIU Carbondale. Southern Illinois University Carbondale hosted 30,000+ visitors to campus August 18 - 21, 2017 for four days of eclipse theme events capped off by Eclipse Day at Saluki Stadium. If you missed this, you'll want to mark your calendars for the next total solar eclipse to pass through Carbondale on April 8, 2024. Check out the photos at: eclipse.siu.edu