Astronomy

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

October 27: Astronomy on Tap – Boulder with Dr. Hal Levison, Dr. John Spencer, and Matt Benjamin: Free In-person presentation: 📍Rayback Collective: 6:00 PM DAS E-Board Meeting: Online Meeting via Zoom (check membership email for details): 7:00 PM October 28: Look for the ringed gas giant Saturn between the constellations Aquarius and Pisces about 45° above the southern horizon: 10:00 PM October 29: Screening of Gathered in Darkness, a 2024 total solar eclipse documentary premiere, followed by a panel and Q&A with scientists Amir Caspi, Sarah Kovac, and Paul Bryans, and filmmaker Daniel Zietlow: Free in-person presentation (Registration is required): 📍 Frasier Retirement Community: 7:30 PM 60 Minutes in Space – Dr.… Continue reading.

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

October 20: Look for the gas giant Jupiter next to the twins Castor and Pollux in the constellation Gemini in the eastern sky after midnight. October 21: Catch comets C/2025 R2 (SWAN) and C/2025 A6 (Lemmon) with your naked eye: 7:30 PM & 10:00 PM Boulder Stargazing – Dark Skies & Deep Space: Orionids and the Science of Starlight (Registration required): 📍 Beech Shelter, Boulder: 5:45 PM  New Beaver Moon: 6:25 AM October 22: Orioinid Meteor Shower Peaks: After Midnight Dark Sky Salida Presentation: 📍 Valley View Nature Learning Center: 6:00 PM October 23: Look for the waxing crescent Beaver Moon meeting up with Mercury and Mars in the constellation Libra just above the horizon after sunset Standley Lake Stargazing: How to Observe the Planets: Virtual Program via Zoom: 6:00PM Last day of the DAS Fall Astronomical Equipment Auction: Midnight.… Continue reading.

On the evening of October 21, 2025, skywatchers are in for a rare celestial treat: not one but two comets—C/2025 R2 (SWAN) and C/2025 A6 (Lemmon)—will be bright enough to spot with the naked eye. To make the night even more special, it also falls on the new moon, meaning the sky will be as dark as it gets, free of interfering moonlight.… Continue reading.

October is one of the best months of the year to catch a meteor shower. This year, skywatchers get a bonus: two meteor showers active at the same time. The famous Orionids will peak in late October, and the slower but often brighter Southern Taurids will also be putting on a show.… Continue reading.

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

October 13 (Indigenous People’s Day): Catch the 3rd quarter Hunter’s Moon with the twin stars Castor and Pollux in the constellation Gemini in the early morning eastern sky.… Continue reading.

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

October 6: Full Hunter’s/Harvest Moon: 9:47 PM October 7: Look for Jupiter occulting the Twinkling Comet Cluster in the low eastern skies in Gemini – The “Twinkling Comet Cluster” (NGC 2420) is a rich open cluster often described as a ghostly glow that fans out like a comet’s tail before resolving into stars: 1:00 AM October 8: The waxing gibbous Hunter’s Moon reaches perigee (it’s closest distance to Earth at distance 359,819km) at 6:50 AM.… Continue reading.

Last month, we discussed the Hubble’s Night Sky Observing Challenge and the September targets announced by the Astronomical League and NASA to celebrate 35 Years of the Hubble Space Telescope. These organizations have announced a new set of targets for the month of October.… Continue reading.

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

September 29: Denver Astronomical Society E-Board Meeting: Virtual via Zoom (check membership email or Slack for details): 7:00 PM First Quarter Hunter’s Moon: 5:54 PM September 30: Look for the waxing gibbous Hunter’s Moon next to the Summer Rose Star globular cluster (M51) in the constellation Sagittarius low in the southwest: 10:00 PM October 1: Catch the waxing gibbous Hunter’s Moon next to the M 75 globular cluster in the constellation Capricornus in the southern sky: 10:00 PM DAS Astrophotography Special Interest Group (ASIG) – General & Beginner Meeting: Virtual on Zoom (Check membership email or Slack): 7:00 PM October 2: Standley Lake Stargazing Virtual Program “October Highlights – News and Observing”: Zoom Virtual Meeting: 6:00 PM Venus at Perihelion, when the morning star reaches the closest point in its slightly elliptical orbit around the Sun, about 107.5 million kilometers (66.7 million miles) away, where it travels faster due to the Sun’s stronger gravitational pull, marking a key point in its orbital cycle.:… Continue reading.

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

September 22 (Autumnal Equinox): Astronomy on Tap – Boulder with Dr. KaChun Yu, Dr. Jane Bright, Dr. John Keller, and Marcel Corchado: Rayback Collective: 6:00 PM September equinox is the time when the Sun reaches the point along the ecliptic where it crosses into the southern celestial hemisphere marking the start of autumn in the Northern Hemisphere and spring in the Southern Hemisphere: 12:19 PM September 23: Look for the waxing crescent Harvest Moon near Spica in the constellation Virgo low in the western sky – catch them before they set: 7:15 PM September 24: Catch the waxing crescent Harvest Moon near Mars low in the western sky in the constellation Virgo – catch them before they set: 7:30 PM 60 Minutes in Space Free Lecture: Denver Museum of Nature & Science: 7:00 PM September 25: Find the morning star, Venus within 3 degrees of the Leo I Galaxy Group, including M95, M96, and M105 low in the eastern sky in the constellation Leo until sunrise: 5:00 AM Standley Lake Stargazing Virtual Program: “Headlines and Highlights”: Zoom Virtual Meeting: 6:00 PM September 26: The Harvest Moon reaches apogee (it’s farthest from Earth at 405,548km): 4:00 AM September 27 (Astronomy Day): Look for the waxing crescent Harvest Moon near Antares, the red heart of the scorpion, low in the southwestern sky in Scorpius: 8:00 PM Denver Astronomical Society Open House: Saturn!… Continue reading.

Who Was William Henry Pickering?

William Henry Pickering (1858–1938) was an American astronomer celebrated for his careful studies of the Moon, planets, and comets. He earned his early training at Harvard and later became a professor of astronomy at MIT, where he taught and conducted research for many years.… Continue reading.