Tonight's Observatory Public Night (August 18)

[Stephens Observatory]

Hello! This year has been tough on our efforts to offer monthly public observing at Stephens. The season began with an issue with our old building ... the front door couldn't be opened! Thanks to the maintenance crew at Hiram College that problem was resolved. Then there's the weather. This has seemingly been a summer of many cloudy nights. If an Open Night wasn't canceled, the viewing was only fair to poor.

Multiple forecasts say our skies will be partly-cloudy to clear tonight. Let's hope so because we have the rare opportunity to see several planets, the Moon, and maybe even a little comet all in one night! That would be a wonderful way to make up for lost time.

We will be open by 9:00 and hope to be able to offer views of the Moon, Saturn, (Jupiter will probably be lost behind trees), and Mars (later, as it rises above neighboring trees). If we're lucky we will find Comet 21P/Giacobini–Zinner - discovered in 1900. The comet is currently dim, sporting only the hint of a tail, but hey, it's a COMET!

So, let's hope the forecasters are correct and we have clear skies tonight, there's much to see!

Public Night at Stephens Memorial Observatory

Saturday, August 18

9:00 to 11:00 PM

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James Guilford, Director

Stephens Memorial Observatory

StephensObservatory.org