Astronomy

Here’s a brief look at what’s going on in the Mile High City this week.

September 28: DAS E-Board Meeting: Virtual meeting via Zoom (find details on Slack or Membership email): 7:00 PM September 29: Northern Colorado Astronomical Society: Poudre Learning Center Stargazing: Free, in-person event at Greeley High School: 7:15 PM September 30: 60 Minutes in Space with Dr.… Continue reading.

Colorado’s list of places working to protect the night sky continues to grow. Golden Gate Canyon State Park has officially been designated an Urban Night Sky Place by DarkSky International, recognizing the park’s efforts to reduce light pollution and protect the nighttime environment for wildlife, visitors, and future generations.… Continue reading.

by John H. Bickel, Ph.D. Denver Astronomical Society, Member

What is a Wolf-Rayet star?

In 1867, French astronomers Charles Wolf and Georges Rayet using the 40 cm Foucault telescope, at the Paris Observatory [Ref. 1], discovered three stars in the constellation Cygnus (now designated HD191765, HD192103 and HD192641) that displayed broad emission bands instead of the typical absorption lines seen in most stellar spectra.… Continue reading.

Here’s a brief look at what’s going on in the Mile High City this week.

September 21: On this day in 2003, NASA ended the Galileo spacecraft’s mission by sending it into Jupiter’s atmosphere after nearly eight years exploring the giant planet and its moons.… Continue reading.

Here’s a brief look at what’s going on in the Mile High City this week.

September 14: DAS General Meeting: “A Graphical Tour of the Cosmos”w/ Dr. Ed Friedman: Free, in-person event at Secular Hub: 7:00PM Check out the waxing crescent Harvest Moon near Venus: low in the western sky in the constellation Virgo just after sunset at 8:00PM September 15: On September 15, 1966: Gemini 11 returned to Earth after a three-day mission that included rendezvous and docking with an Agena target vehicle and two spacewalks.… Continue reading.

Here’s a brief look at what’s going on in the Mile High City this week.

September 7: Look for the waning crescent Stergeon Moon making a line with Castor and Pollux and Mars nearby in the constellation Gemini low in the eastern skies around 3:00AM until dawn.… Continue reading.

Here’s a brief look at what’s going on in the Mile High City this week.

August 31: Look for the waning gibbous Sturgeon Moon near Saturn low in the eastern sky in the constellation Pisces around 10:30PM September 1: Catch Venus right next to Spica.… Continue reading.

Here’s a brief look at what’s going on in the Mile High City this week.

August 17: 🛰️ Get a glimpse of the ISS passing across Denver’s pre-dawn sky. The International Space Station will move swiftly across the sky from the southwest to the northeast between 5:27 and 05:33AM August 18: ☄️ κ-Cygnid meteor shower peaks with their radiant near the border of Cygnus and Draco and high in the northern sky.… Continue reading.

Look Here’s a brief look at what’s going on in the Mile High City this week.

August 10: 🎤 DAS General Meeting: “Piercing The Veil Under the LA Sky Skyline: Adventures In Breaking Barriers of Art and Science in Backyard Astrophotography” with : Free, in-person event at Secular Hub: 7:00PM 👀 Look for the waning crescent Buck Moon near Castor and Pollux low in the Eastern sky in the constellation Gemini around 4:30 until sunrise 🌘 The waning crescent Buck Moon reaches perigee, it’s closest distance to Earth at 363,284km: 5:18AM August 11: 🖥️ STScI: NASA’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope: Countdown to Exploration: Free, virtual event via YouTube: 5:00PM 👀 Look for the waning crescent Buck Moon next to Mercury low in the eastern sky in the constellation Cancer just before dawn at 5:10AM August 12: 🔭 Standley Lake Stargazing Perseid Meteor Shower Watch Party: Free, in-person event at 📍Majestic View Nature Center: 7:00 PM 🎤 ALCON 2026 Begins in Cincinnati, OH August 13: 👀 The Perseid meteor shower peaks on the night of Aug 12-13.… Continue reading.

Every August, Earth passes through a stream of tiny bits of debris left behind by Comet Swift-Tuttle. As these particles enter our atmosphere at nearly 37 miles (60 kilometers) per second, they burn up in brilliant flashes of light, creating one of nature’s most beautiful annual events: the Perseid meteor shower.… Continue reading.