All of our nights are amazing! That's why you can book any night of year with us. BUT THE BEST NIGHTS ARE the ones we call "BRYCE NIGHTS!"
Use the events list below to plan your telescope tour so that you don't just have just a nice night with the Dark Rangers®. Plan ahead so you can enjoy the best of the best -- a "Bryce Night!" Once you picked your "Bryce Night" book that telescope tour here, or follow this link if you would prefer to book a private tour.
PLAN HERE, BOOK THERE:
...because this page is NOT where you book... You'd be surprised how many people don't read this part.
If you found this page you are the kind of person that seeks out the best. You might also be a seeker of explanations -- if so keep reading. But if you are just the kind of person who accepts advice unquestioningly, than you can save yourself a few minutes and avoid learning anything interesting by JUST matching-up the color coded headings with colored text in the calendar below.
BEST SEASON OF THE YEAR:
Winters are cold in Southern Utah at 7777 ft (2370m) but if you can handle the cold, temperatures range between 25F (-4C) and -10F (-23C), you are going to be rewarded with amazing sky. Cold air holds less water and since water molecules disrupt starlight, winter sky is the most transparent revealing detail in deep space objects you simply can't see in the summer. Unfortunately almost 60% of winter nights can be cloudy. However, if you can stay in the Bryce Canyon region 2-3 nights it will dramatically increase (Alternate Night booking) your chances of catching a clear night. November and January are our least cloudy winter months.
BEST NON-WINTER MONTHS:
If freezing temperatures are a deal-breaker for you, then plan for June, September, and October which are the 2nd Bryce-est Night months with only a 20% chance of having a cloudy night.
BEST NIGHTS OF ANY MONTH:
Days closest to the New Moon are the darkest nights. You will be able to see a Milky Way arm extend from horizon to horizon! If Venus or Jupiter are in the sky they will be so bright they will cause you to cast a shadow. Many famous deep space objects are visible to the naked eye - and stunning when viewed through our BIG telescopes. Similar levels of darkness can be experienced on nights 5 or more days after the full Moon when you can enjoy 2-3 hours of high quality darkness before the moon rises. Realize that having a Full Moon in the sky is the equivalent of enduring the Light Pollution of 500,000 people.
Q: So the Dark Rangers are Moon haters?
A: To the contrary, some of us are even selenophiles. Unlike most observatories we remain open on full Moon nights. We LIKE working full moon nights, ESPECIALLY when our guests have read these trade-offs (below) and adjusted their expectations accordingly.
FULL MOON NIGHTS:
Many deep space objects (galaxies, star-birth nebulae, star-death nebulae, etc.) are washed-out by moonlight, however our telescopes are large enough that we can still show you at least 1 example of each even during a full Moon. Any planets that happen to be in the sky are mostly unaffected by Moon light. The main thing you will miss out on is seeing the Milky Way. If that's important to you then realize the you are NOT catching us at our best when you book 5 days before a full Moon through 5 days after a full Moon. Yet, exploring the lunar surface with 300-500x magnification, is exciting too. Our largest telescopes can show you the Apollo Mission landing locations. No, you won't be able to see "The Flag," but you will see see the sounding landforms, which include mountain ranges that rival most on Earth, craters so large they fill the eyepiece, and other uniquely lunar features.
ASTRONOMICAL EVENT NIGHTS:
We Dark Rangers get so excited about these nights that we set up our very best telescopes and astronomy equipment and uncork our most unbridled enthusiasm. These nights are usually the first ones to fill up in our schedule because to the serious stargazers it doesn't matter how cold it could get, what phase our Moon is going to be in, or even what the chance of encountering clouds might be. These are the most sought after nights because these nights feature meteor showers, eclipses, transits, and/or anniversaries of triumphant moments in space exploration. What could be Brycer than that?
Though meteor showers are dated by their peak, some last for a few weeks. There are also plenty of random meteors not associated with any meteor shower. This means that because of our ultra dark sky, on any given night, we normally see 3-7 meteors per hour. Therefore we don't advertise the meteor showers that are predicted to be less productive than 7 per hour, because we see that many anyway. Famously productive meteor showers can produce over 100 meteors per hour, when their peak occurs on a moonless night. Also realize that meteor showers usually peak after midnight (after our observatory normally closes), and the best direction to look is northeast. Why? Because it's only after midnight that Earth has rotated far enough away from our Sun that we are looking in the same direction that Earth is moving in its orbit around our Sun. Imagine riding in a convertible in a snow storm. You will see a lot more snowflakes when you look forward thru the windshield than when you look behind you.
Q: I know the so-called shooting stars are not really stars, but what are meteors anyway?
A: Sand-grain sized particles (usually rock, but sometimes ice) that burn-up when colliding with Earth's atmosphere. Some meteor are random, but the meteors that occur during meteor showers can be sourced back to individual comets or asteroids which are eroded by our Sun when they return to the inner Solar System, leaving debris fields along their orbital path.
SPACE STATION VISIBLE PASSES
Both the International Space Station (ISS), and the smaller Chinese Space Station (CSS), (aka Tiangong), pass over every 90 minutes. However like all satellites they are only visible when angled so they reflect sunlight to the exact location an observer happens to be standing. This means that since most satellites are like ISS, in low-Earth orbits, they are only viewable 90 minutes after sunset and 90 minutes before sunrise. Though we can see several satellites each night, nothing is as impressive as seeing The International Space Station (ISS) fly over. It can almost as bright as Venus. Joining us for one of these nights is good planning! In the calendar below we are only advertising visible passes of the 2 space stations that occur during our business hours.
NOTE: occasionally space station orbits are adjusted, with thrusters being fired to avoid space junk or just to increase orbital elevation. This throws visible pass predictions out of wack, and it takes the experts, that we rely on, time to calculate new passes. And of course additional time for us to update this page. For the most update info on all satellites (including some of the ones certain governments don't admit exist) download the app Heavens Above.
Q: What about the 1000s of SpaceX's starlink satellites? Does all the light pollution they make annoy Dark Rangers? A: No. Because except when they are still in a "train" (tight formation shortly after being launched) and thrusting to their functional orbital positions, they are VERY hard to see, even in our near-pristine dark sky. What annoys us are the so-called "professional" astronomers shrieking about this nothing-burger contribution to light pollution and yet being entirely mute about real light pollution issues. Clearly these kind of astronomers work during the daytime and look at computer data instead of the actual night sky. They are letting their imaginations run away with them to the extent that even astrologers would caution, "Relax, dude! Do you have any data supporting your doomsday predictions?"
SYZYGY CELEBRATIONS (TLDR? Planetary Alignments.. and stuff)
Finally, on special nights where the planets "align", we focus (that was fun) on the planets. A syzygy /SIZ-ə-jee / (spelled just like it sounds, but vexs Scrabble® players) is what astronomers, dating back to Ancient Greece , call a planetary "alignment" when they don't want to be mistaken for an astrologers. It's all just about being collinear - 3 or more bodies (including Earth) that end up on, or near , the same imaginary line. So when you ask an astronomer "What does an alignment mean?" the best answer will be a resounding "Absolutely NOTHING!" But they are fun to see. So we want you to now when they occur. But first, here's your vocabular list of zyzygies.
Appulse /ap - pulse/ (think "what a heartbeat app measures" as you try and pronounce):
Is when two sky objects move to where they appear to be as close to each other (as viewed from Earth) as they are going to get in an orbital cycle. This the term that should be used instead of the catch-all phrase, conjunction.
Conjunction:
In the most strict sense a conjunction is when 2 solar system bodies have the same Right Ascension (longitudinal degrees between east and west extended into the sky). Because our Moon is on it's own plane, it can pass high above or below another planet and still be "in conjunction." If you want to describe "appearing close" then just say "appulse." Most often an appulse between Moon and Venus is more interesting than a true conjunction of the same.
Q: So what is the term for having 3 or more objects in the same section of sky?
A: There isn't one. So we (even the pros) just say a conjunction. Okay, in this 1 regard, I guess we agree with astrologers.
BTW the most impressive conjunction (crescent Moon and all naked-eye visible planets will be grouped in 20 degrees of sky), that has ever occurred, in entire 6 billion year history of the Solar System AND will EVER occur, in the entire 8 billion year future (before our Sun explodes) will happen just after sunset on Sept 8, 2040. Tickets are not yet available because we haven't decided if they are going to be $10,000 or $1,000,000 each. Meh... What's a couple orders of magnitudes to astronomers anyway?
Occultation (which includes Solar Eclipses):
An occultation is a extra special kind of 2-body conjunction where Right Ascension (left & right) and Declination (up and down) are perfect enough that the closer object obscures the view of the distant one by passing in front of it. Another more common example than a Solar Eclipse, is when our Moon passes in front of other stars or ocassionally other planets.
Transit:
Transits are like occultations except that when the closer object, moves in front of the distant object, it is not visually large enough to obscure the background object. Examples include Jupiter's 4 largest moons as they appear to disappear when they move in front of Jupiter's much brighter and bigger body. When a transiting moon of Jupiter casts a shadow on the surface of Jupiter, we are seeing that location on Jupiter experiencing a Solar Eclipse. The most dramatic transits occur when Mercury, 13-14 times per century, (next one Nov. 13, 2032) and Venus, 8 years apart but then gapped by 121.5 years alternating with 105.5 years, (next one Dec. 10, 2117), pass in front of our Sun as viewed from Earth. Technically, both partial Solar Eclipses and Annular Solar Eclipse (where our Moon is too far away from Earth to entirely block the Sun) are transits.
Opposition:
Earth crosses the a line in between our Sun and another body farther away from our Sun. By definition inner planets (Mercury and Venus) can never be at opposition. When this alignment occurs with the outer planets, they are also said to be at their closest approach to Earth. For bodies that are not on the same plane as Earth and our Sun (Earth's Moon, comets, Pluto and other asteroids), the true closest approach to Earth can often even closer than when that body is at opposition.
Q: Whew! I didn't come here to learning anything. I was just trying to pick a great night. But since I made it this far... what the hell is a Lunar Eclipse then?!
A: Because our Moon is the only world in the Solar System that can be both closer and farther away from our Sun than Earth, a Lunar Eclipse (i,e. caused by our Moon moving through Earth's shadow), doesn't entirely fit into any of these kinds of syzygy. But, the closest match would be to call it an infrequent opposition. Infrequent, because the plane of our Moon's orbit is different enough, that on average, and as viewed from the same place on Earth, only 1 of every 42 full moons happens to cross the exact opposition line of Sun and Earth.
PLAN HERE, BOOK THERE:
...because this page is NOT where you book... You'd be surprised how many people don't read this part.
If you found this page you are the kind of person that seeks out the best. You might also be a seeker of explanations -- if so keep reading. But if you are just the kind of person who accepts advice unquestioningly, than you can save yourself a few minutes and avoid learning anything interesting by JUST matching-up the color coded headings with colored text in the calendar below.
BEST SEASON OF THE YEAR:
Winters are cold in Southern Utah at 7777 ft (2370m) but if you can handle the cold, temperatures range between 25F (-4C) and -10F (-23C), you are going to be rewarded with amazing sky. Cold air holds less water and since water molecules disrupt starlight, winter sky is the most transparent revealing detail in deep space objects you simply can't see in the summer. Unfortunately almost 60% of winter nights can be cloudy. However, if you can stay in the Bryce Canyon region 2-3 nights it will dramatically increase (Alternate Night booking) your chances of catching a clear night. November and January are our least cloudy winter months.
BEST NON-WINTER MONTHS:
If freezing temperatures are a deal-breaker for you, then plan for June, September, and October which are the 2nd Bryce-est Night months with only a 20% chance of having a cloudy night.
BEST NIGHTS OF ANY MONTH:
Days closest to the New Moon are the darkest nights. You will be able to see a Milky Way arm extend from horizon to horizon! If Venus or Jupiter are in the sky they will be so bright they will cause you to cast a shadow. Many famous deep space objects are visible to the naked eye - and stunning when viewed through our BIG telescopes. Similar levels of darkness can be experienced on nights 5 or more days after the full Moon when you can enjoy 2-3 hours of high quality darkness before the moon rises. Realize that having a Full Moon in the sky is the equivalent of enduring the Light Pollution of 500,000 people.
Q: So the Dark Rangers are Moon haters?
A: To the contrary, some of us are even selenophiles. Unlike most observatories we remain open on full Moon nights. We LIKE working full moon nights, ESPECIALLY when our guests have read these trade-offs (below) and adjusted their expectations accordingly.
FULL MOON NIGHTS:
Many deep space objects (galaxies, star-birth nebulae, star-death nebulae, etc.) are washed-out by moonlight, however our telescopes are large enough that we can still show you at least 1 example of each even during a full Moon. Any planets that happen to be in the sky are mostly unaffected by Moon light. The main thing you will miss out on is seeing the Milky Way. If that's important to you then realize the you are NOT catching us at our best when you book 5 days before a full Moon through 5 days after a full Moon. Yet, exploring the lunar surface with 300-500x magnification, is exciting too. Our largest telescopes can show you the Apollo Mission landing locations. No, you won't be able to see "The Flag," but you will see see the sounding landforms, which include mountain ranges that rival most on Earth, craters so large they fill the eyepiece, and other uniquely lunar features.
ASTRONOMICAL EVENT NIGHTS:
We Dark Rangers get so excited about these nights that we set up our very best telescopes and astronomy equipment and uncork our most unbridled enthusiasm. These nights are usually the first ones to fill up in our schedule because to the serious stargazers it doesn't matter how cold it could get, what phase our Moon is going to be in, or even what the chance of encountering clouds might be. These are the most sought after nights because these nights feature meteor showers, eclipses, transits, and/or anniversaries of triumphant moments in space exploration. What could be Brycer than that?
Though meteor showers are dated by their peak, some last for a few weeks. There are also plenty of random meteors not associated with any meteor shower. This means that because of our ultra dark sky, on any given night, we normally see 3-7 meteors per hour. Therefore we don't advertise the meteor showers that are predicted to be less productive than 7 per hour, because we see that many anyway. Famously productive meteor showers can produce over 100 meteors per hour, when their peak occurs on a moonless night. Also realize that meteor showers usually peak after midnight (after our observatory normally closes), and the best direction to look is northeast. Why? Because it's only after midnight that Earth has rotated far enough away from our Sun that we are looking in the same direction that Earth is moving in its orbit around our Sun. Imagine riding in a convertible in a snow storm. You will see a lot more snowflakes when you look forward thru the windshield than when you look behind you.
Q: I know the so-called shooting stars are not really stars, but what are meteors anyway?
A: Sand-grain sized particles (usually rock, but sometimes ice) that burn-up when colliding with Earth's atmosphere. Some meteor are random, but the meteors that occur during meteor showers can be sourced back to individual comets or asteroids which are eroded by our Sun when they return to the inner Solar System, leaving debris fields along their orbital path.
SPACE STATION VISIBLE PASSES
Both the International Space Station (ISS), and the smaller Chinese Space Station (CSS), (aka Tiangong), pass over every 90 minutes. However like all satellites they are only visible when angled so they reflect sunlight to the exact location an observer happens to be standing. This means that since most satellites are like ISS, in low-Earth orbits, they are only viewable 90 minutes after sunset and 90 minutes before sunrise. Though we can see several satellites each night, nothing is as impressive as seeing The International Space Station (ISS) fly over. It can almost as bright as Venus. Joining us for one of these nights is good planning! In the calendar below we are only advertising visible passes of the 2 space stations that occur during our business hours.
NOTE: occasionally space station orbits are adjusted, with thrusters being fired to avoid space junk or just to increase orbital elevation. This throws visible pass predictions out of wack, and it takes the experts, that we rely on, time to calculate new passes. And of course additional time for us to update this page. For the most update info on all satellites (including some of the ones certain governments don't admit exist) download the app Heavens Above.
Q: What about the 1000s of SpaceX's starlink satellites? Does all the light pollution they make annoy Dark Rangers? A: No. Because except when they are still in a "train" (tight formation shortly after being launched) and thrusting to their functional orbital positions, they are VERY hard to see, even in our near-pristine dark sky. What annoys us are the so-called "professional" astronomers shrieking about this nothing-burger contribution to light pollution and yet being entirely mute about real light pollution issues. Clearly these kind of astronomers work during the daytime and look at computer data instead of the actual night sky. They are letting their imaginations run away with them to the extent that even astrologers would caution, "Relax, dude! Do you have any data supporting your doomsday predictions?"
SYZYGY CELEBRATIONS (TLDR? Planetary Alignments.. and stuff)
Finally, on special nights where the planets "align", we focus (that was fun) on the planets. A syzygy /SIZ-ə-jee / (spelled just like it sounds, but vexs Scrabble® players) is what astronomers, dating back to Ancient Greece , call a planetary "alignment" when they don't want to be mistaken for an astrologers. It's all just about being collinear - 3 or more bodies (including Earth) that end up on, or near , the same imaginary line. So when you ask an astronomer "What does an alignment mean?" the best answer will be a resounding "Absolutely NOTHING!" But they are fun to see. So we want you to now when they occur. But first, here's your vocabular list of zyzygies.
Appulse /ap - pulse/ (think "what a heartbeat app measures" as you try and pronounce):
Is when two sky objects move to where they appear to be as close to each other (as viewed from Earth) as they are going to get in an orbital cycle. This the term that should be used instead of the catch-all phrase, conjunction.
Conjunction:
In the most strict sense a conjunction is when 2 solar system bodies have the same Right Ascension (longitudinal degrees between east and west extended into the sky). Because our Moon is on it's own plane, it can pass high above or below another planet and still be "in conjunction." If you want to describe "appearing close" then just say "appulse." Most often an appulse between Moon and Venus is more interesting than a true conjunction of the same.
Q: So what is the term for having 3 or more objects in the same section of sky?
A: There isn't one. So we (even the pros) just say a conjunction. Okay, in this 1 regard, I guess we agree with astrologers.
BTW the most impressive conjunction (crescent Moon and all naked-eye visible planets will be grouped in 20 degrees of sky), that has ever occurred, in entire 6 billion year history of the Solar System AND will EVER occur, in the entire 8 billion year future (before our Sun explodes) will happen just after sunset on Sept 8, 2040. Tickets are not yet available because we haven't decided if they are going to be $10,000 or $1,000,000 each. Meh... What's a couple orders of magnitudes to astronomers anyway?
Occultation (which includes Solar Eclipses):
An occultation is a extra special kind of 2-body conjunction where Right Ascension (left & right) and Declination (up and down) are perfect enough that the closer object obscures the view of the distant one by passing in front of it. Another more common example than a Solar Eclipse, is when our Moon passes in front of other stars or ocassionally other planets.
Transit:
Transits are like occultations except that when the closer object, moves in front of the distant object, it is not visually large enough to obscure the background object. Examples include Jupiter's 4 largest moons as they appear to disappear when they move in front of Jupiter's much brighter and bigger body. When a transiting moon of Jupiter casts a shadow on the surface of Jupiter, we are seeing that location on Jupiter experiencing a Solar Eclipse. The most dramatic transits occur when Mercury, 13-14 times per century, (next one Nov. 13, 2032) and Venus, 8 years apart but then gapped by 121.5 years alternating with 105.5 years, (next one Dec. 10, 2117), pass in front of our Sun as viewed from Earth. Technically, both partial Solar Eclipses and Annular Solar Eclipse (where our Moon is too far away from Earth to entirely block the Sun) are transits.
Opposition:
Earth crosses the a line in between our Sun and another body farther away from our Sun. By definition inner planets (Mercury and Venus) can never be at opposition. When this alignment occurs with the outer planets, they are also said to be at their closest approach to Earth. For bodies that are not on the same plane as Earth and our Sun (Earth's Moon, comets, Pluto and other asteroids), the true closest approach to Earth can often even closer than when that body is at opposition.
Q: Whew! I didn't come here to learning anything. I was just trying to pick a great night. But since I made it this far... what the hell is a Lunar Eclipse then?!
A: Because our Moon is the only world in the Solar System that can be both closer and farther away from our Sun than Earth, a Lunar Eclipse (i,e. caused by our Moon moving through Earth's shadow), doesn't entirely fit into any of these kinds of syzygy. But, the closest match would be to call it an infrequent opposition. Infrequent, because the plane of our Moon's orbit is different enough, that on average, and as viewed from the same place on Earth, only 1 of every 42 full moons happens to cross the exact opposition line of Sun and Earth.
2021 Bryce Nights
2022 Bryce Nights
JANUARY (Winter) 7:00pm start time
Sat. 1: New Moon
Sun. 2: New Moon
Mon. 3: New Moon Peak of Quadrantid Meteor Shower (120/hr before dawn)
Tues. 4: Crescent Moon appulse with Saturn
Wed. 5: Crescent Moon appulse with Jupiter
Fri. 14: ISS @ 7:42pm
Sun. 16: Full Moon with ISS @ 7:43pm
Mon. 17: Full Moon with ISS @ 6:55pm
Tues. 18: Full Moon with ISS @ 7:45pm
Wed. 19: ISS @ 6:57pm
Thurs. 20: ISS @ 7:47pm
Fri. 21: ISS @ 6:59pm
Sun. 23: ISS @ 7:02pm
Thurs. 27: CSS
Fri. 28: CSS @ 7:36pm
Sat. 29: ISS 7:06pm
Sun. 30: New Moon with ISS @6:54 and CSS @ 7:13pm
Mon. 31: New Moon with ISS @ 7:06pm
Sat. 1: New Moon
Sun. 2: New Moon
Mon. 3: New Moon Peak of Quadrantid Meteor Shower (120/hr before dawn)
Tues. 4: Crescent Moon appulse with Saturn
Wed. 5: Crescent Moon appulse with Jupiter
Fri. 14: ISS @ 7:42pm
Sun. 16: Full Moon with ISS @ 7:43pm
Mon. 17: Full Moon with ISS @ 6:55pm
Tues. 18: Full Moon with ISS @ 7:45pm
Wed. 19: ISS @ 6:57pm
Thurs. 20: ISS @ 7:47pm
Fri. 21: ISS @ 6:59pm
Sun. 23: ISS @ 7:02pm
Thurs. 27: CSS
Fri. 28: CSS @ 7:36pm
Sat. 29: ISS 7:06pm
Sun. 30: New Moon with ISS @6:54 and CSS @ 7:13pm
Mon. 31: New Moon with ISS @ 7:06pm
FEBRUARY (Winter) 8:00pm start time
Tues. 1: New Moon with ISS @ 7:54pm
Wed. 2: New Moon
Thurs. 3: ISS @ 7:55pm
Sat. 5: ISS @ 7:57pm
Tues. 15: Full Moon
Wed. 16: Full Moon
Thurs. 17: Full Moon
Tues. 1: New Moon with ISS @ 7:54pm
Wed. 2: New Moon
Thurs. 3: ISS @ 7:55pm
Sat. 5: ISS @ 7:57pm
Tues. 15: Full Moon
Wed. 16: Full Moon
Thurs. 17: Full Moon
MARCH 1-12 (Winter) 8:00pm start time
Tues. 1: New Moon
Weds. 2: New Moon
Thurs. 3: New Moon
Sun. 6: Crescent Moon appulse with Uranus
MARCH 13-31 (Winter) 8:30pm start time
Tues. 15: ISS @ 9:31pm (brief but bright)
Weds. 16: ISS @ 8:43pm
Thurs. 17: Full Moon with CSS @ 8:55pm and ISS @ 9:31pm
Fri. 18: Full Moon with ISS @ 8:42pm
Sat. 19: Full Moon with CSS @ 8:30 and ISS @ 9:32pm
Sun. 20: ISS @ 8:43pm and CSS 9:05pm
Tues. 22: ISS @ 8:44pm
Weds. 23: CSS @ 9:15pm
Fri. 25: CSS @ 8:49pm
Sat. 26: CSS @ 9:24pm
Sun. 27: CSS @ 8:22pm and ISS @ 9:33pm
Tues. 29: ISS @ 9:31pm
Weds. 30: ISS @ 8:43pm and 10:19pm
Thurs. 31: New Moon and ISS @ 9:30pm
Tues. 1: New Moon
Weds. 2: New Moon
Thurs. 3: New Moon
Sun. 6: Crescent Moon appulse with Uranus
MARCH 13-31 (Winter) 8:30pm start time
Tues. 15: ISS @ 9:31pm (brief but bright)
Weds. 16: ISS @ 8:43pm
Thurs. 17: Full Moon with CSS @ 8:55pm and ISS @ 9:31pm
Fri. 18: Full Moon with ISS @ 8:42pm
Sat. 19: Full Moon with CSS @ 8:30 and ISS @ 9:32pm
Sun. 20: ISS @ 8:43pm and CSS 9:05pm
Tues. 22: ISS @ 8:44pm
Weds. 23: CSS @ 9:15pm
Fri. 25: CSS @ 8:49pm
Sat. 26: CSS @ 9:24pm
Sun. 27: CSS @ 8:22pm and ISS @ 9:33pm
Tues. 29: ISS @ 9:31pm
Weds. 30: ISS @ 8:43pm and 10:19pm
Thurs. 31: New Moon and ISS @ 9:30pm
APRIL (Winter) 8:30pm start time
Fri. 1: New Moon with ISS @ 9:13pm
Sat. 2: New Moon with ISS @ 8:24pm
Sun. 3: ISS @ 9:11pm
Mon. 4: ISS @ 8:21pm and ISS @ 10:00pm
Tues. 5: ISS @ 9:09pm
Wed. 6: ISS @ 8:19pm
Fri. 15: Full Moon
Sat. 16 Full Moon
Sun. 17: Full Moon
Tues. 19: The 42 nights of Great Galaxies (best galaxies visible from Northern Hemisphere) begin!
Fri. 22: Lyrid Meteor Shower (18/hr)
Fri. 29: New Moon
Sat. 30: New Moon
Fri. 1: New Moon with ISS @ 9:13pm
Sat. 2: New Moon with ISS @ 8:24pm
Sun. 3: ISS @ 9:11pm
Mon. 4: ISS @ 8:21pm and ISS @ 10:00pm
Tues. 5: ISS @ 9:09pm
Wed. 6: ISS @ 8:19pm
Fri. 15: Full Moon
Sat. 16 Full Moon
Sun. 17: Full Moon
Tues. 19: The 42 nights of Great Galaxies (best galaxies visible from Northern Hemisphere) begin!
Fri. 22: Lyrid Meteor Shower (18/hr)
Fri. 29: New Moon
Sat. 30: New Moon
MAY (Summer) 9:00pm start time
Sun. 1: New Moon
Thurs. 5: CSS @ 9:48pm
Fri. 6: Aquariid Meteor Shower (30/hr before dawn) with CSS @ 8:47pm and 10:24pm
Sat. 7: CSS @ 9:22pm
Mon. 9: CSS @ 8:55pm
Wed. 11: CSS @ 10:28pm
Fri. 13: ISS @ 10:25pm and CSS @ 10:02pm
Sat. 14: Full Moon with CSS @ 10:00pm and ISS (-3.9 lm) @ 9:35pm and 11:13pm
Sun. 15: Full Moon with a TOTAL lunar eclipse 8:28pm - 11:55pm (84 minutes of totality) with CSS @ 9:35pm and ISS @ 10:22pm
Mon. 16: Full Moon with ISS @ 9:37pm
Tues. 17: CSS @ 9:09pm and ISS @ 10:25pm
Wed. 18: ISS @ 9:34pm
Fri. 20: ISS @ 9:33pm
Mon. 23: ISS @ 11:53pm
Tues. 24: ISS @ 11:04pm
Wed. 25: ISS @ 10:14pm and 11:49pm
Thurs. 26: ISS @ 11:00pm
Fri. 27: ISS @ 10:10pm and 11:46pm
Sat. 28: ISS @ 9:20pm and (-3.5 lm) 10:56pm
Sun. 29: New Moon with ISS @ 10:06pm and 11:43pm
Mon. 30: New Moon with ISS @ 9:16pm and 10:52pm
Tues. 31: New Moon and with ISS (-3.8 lm) @ 10:02pm and The 42 nights of Great Galaxies (best galaxies visible from Northern Hemisphere) concludes.
Sun. 1: New Moon
Thurs. 5: CSS @ 9:48pm
Fri. 6: Aquariid Meteor Shower (30/hr before dawn) with CSS @ 8:47pm and 10:24pm
Sat. 7: CSS @ 9:22pm
Mon. 9: CSS @ 8:55pm
Wed. 11: CSS @ 10:28pm
Fri. 13: ISS @ 10:25pm and CSS @ 10:02pm
Sat. 14: Full Moon with CSS @ 10:00pm and ISS (-3.9 lm) @ 9:35pm and 11:13pm
Sun. 15: Full Moon with a TOTAL lunar eclipse 8:28pm - 11:55pm (84 minutes of totality) with CSS @ 9:35pm and ISS @ 10:22pm
Mon. 16: Full Moon with ISS @ 9:37pm
Tues. 17: CSS @ 9:09pm and ISS @ 10:25pm
Wed. 18: ISS @ 9:34pm
Fri. 20: ISS @ 9:33pm
Mon. 23: ISS @ 11:53pm
Tues. 24: ISS @ 11:04pm
Wed. 25: ISS @ 10:14pm and 11:49pm
Thurs. 26: ISS @ 11:00pm
Fri. 27: ISS @ 10:10pm and 11:46pm
Sat. 28: ISS @ 9:20pm and (-3.5 lm) 10:56pm
Sun. 29: New Moon with ISS @ 10:06pm and 11:43pm
Mon. 30: New Moon with ISS @ 9:16pm and 10:52pm
Tues. 31: New Moon and with ISS (-3.8 lm) @ 10:02pm and The 42 nights of Great Galaxies (best galaxies visible from Northern Hemisphere) concludes.
JUNE (Summer) 9:15pm start time: Comet 2017 K2 PANSTARRS becomes visible in our telescope all during last week of June!
Wed. 1: ISS @ 9:12pm and 10:50pm
Tues. 2: ISS @ 9:58pm
Mon. 13: Full Moon
Tues. 14: Full Moon
Wed. 15: Full Moon
Thurs. 23: CSS @ 10:04pm
Fri. 24: CSS @ 10:38pm
Sat. 25: CSS @ 9:36pm
Sun. 26: CSS @ 10:10pm
Mon. 27: New Moon
Tues. 28 : New Moon
Wed. 29: New Moon
Thurs. 30: CSS @ 10:52pm
Wed. 1: ISS @ 9:12pm and 10:50pm
Tues. 2: ISS @ 9:58pm
Mon. 13: Full Moon
Tues. 14: Full Moon
Wed. 15: Full Moon
Thurs. 23: CSS @ 10:04pm
Fri. 24: CSS @ 10:38pm
Sat. 25: CSS @ 9:36pm
Sun. 26: CSS @ 10:10pm
Mon. 27: New Moon
Tues. 28 : New Moon
Wed. 29: New Moon
Thurs. 30: CSS @ 10:52pm
JULY (Summer) 9:15pm start time Comet 2017 K2 PANSTARRS visible in our telescopes all month!
- Stay until midnight to see Saturn and Pluto. Yes, our telescopes are big enough to reach Pluto on a Moonless night!
Sat. 2: CSS @ 10:24pm
Mon. 4: CSS @ 9:55pm
Wed. 6: CSS @ 9:27pm
Sun. 10: ISS @ 10:54pm
Mon. 11: ISS @ 9:57pm
Tues. 12: Full Moon with ISS @ 10:42pm
Wed. 13: Full Moon with ISS @ 9:52pm and 11:30pm
Thurs. 14: Full Moon with ISS @ 10:38pm
Fri. 15: Appulse of Moon and Saturn with ISS @ 9:47pm
Sat. 16: ISS @ 10:35pm
Sun. 17: ISS @ 9:43pm
Tues. 19: ISS @ 9:40pm
Wed. 20: Pluto at opposition
Fri. 22: ISS @ 11:58pm
Sat. 23: ISS @ 11:08pm
Sun. 24: ISS @ 10:18pm and 11:53pm
Mon. 25: ISS @ 11:02pm
Tues. 26: ISS @ 10:11pm and 11:47pm
Wed. 27: New Moon with ISS @ 9:21pm and 10:56pm
Thurs. 28: New Moon with ISS @ 10:06pm and 11:42pm
Fri. 29: New Moon with ISS @ 9:15pm and 10:51pm
Sat. 30: Southern Alpha Capricornid meteor showers peak (10/hr) with ISS (-3.9 lm) @ 10:00pm
Sun. 31: ISS @ 9:09pm and 10:47pm
- Stay until midnight to see Saturn and Pluto. Yes, our telescopes are big enough to reach Pluto on a Moonless night!
Sat. 2: CSS @ 10:24pm
Mon. 4: CSS @ 9:55pm
Wed. 6: CSS @ 9:27pm
Sun. 10: ISS @ 10:54pm
Mon. 11: ISS @ 9:57pm
Tues. 12: Full Moon with ISS @ 10:42pm
Wed. 13: Full Moon with ISS @ 9:52pm and 11:30pm
Thurs. 14: Full Moon with ISS @ 10:38pm
Fri. 15: Appulse of Moon and Saturn with ISS @ 9:47pm
Sat. 16: ISS @ 10:35pm
Sun. 17: ISS @ 9:43pm
Tues. 19: ISS @ 9:40pm
Wed. 20: Pluto at opposition
Fri. 22: ISS @ 11:58pm
Sat. 23: ISS @ 11:08pm
Sun. 24: ISS @ 10:18pm and 11:53pm
Mon. 25: ISS @ 11:02pm
Tues. 26: ISS @ 10:11pm and 11:47pm
Wed. 27: New Moon with ISS @ 9:21pm and 10:56pm
Thurs. 28: New Moon with ISS @ 10:06pm and 11:42pm
Fri. 29: New Moon with ISS @ 9:15pm and 10:51pm
Sat. 30: Southern Alpha Capricornid meteor showers peak (10/hr) with ISS (-3.9 lm) @ 10:00pm
Sun. 31: ISS @ 9:09pm and 10:47pm
AUGUST (Summer) 9:00pm start time Comet 2017 K2 PANSTARRS visible in our telescopes all month (and maybe even the human eye on moonless nights) ! Pluto, Saturn, Neptune, and Jupiter in the night sky, ALL month! Yes, our telescopes are big enough to reach Pluto on a Moonless night!
Mon. 1: ISS @ 9:55pm
Tues. 2: ISS (-3.6 lm) @ 9:04pm
Wed. 3: ISS @ 9:51pm
Thurs. 4: ISS @ 8:59pm
Wed. 10: Full Moon
Thurs. 11: Full Moon with appulse of Moon and Saturn
Fri. 12: Full Moon
Sat. 13: Peak of Perseid meteor shower (50/hr) diminished by full Moon.
Sun. 14: Saturn at opposition with appulse of Moon and Jupiter with CSS @ 9:19pm
Mon. 15: CSS @ 9:52pm
Tues. 16: CSS @ 8:48pm
Wed. 17: CSS @ 9:22pm
Fri. 19: CSS @ 8:52pm
Sun. 21: CSS @ 9:59pm
Tues. 23: CSS @ 9:29pm
Thurs. 25: CSS @ 8:59pm
Fri. 26: New Moon with CSS @ 9:33pm
Sat: 27: New Moon
Sun. 28: New Moon
Mon. 1: ISS @ 9:55pm
Tues. 2: ISS (-3.6 lm) @ 9:04pm
Wed. 3: ISS @ 9:51pm
Thurs. 4: ISS @ 8:59pm
Wed. 10: Full Moon
Thurs. 11: Full Moon with appulse of Moon and Saturn
Fri. 12: Full Moon
Sat. 13: Peak of Perseid meteor shower (50/hr) diminished by full Moon.
Sun. 14: Saturn at opposition with appulse of Moon and Jupiter with CSS @ 9:19pm
Mon. 15: CSS @ 9:52pm
Tues. 16: CSS @ 8:48pm
Wed. 17: CSS @ 9:22pm
Fri. 19: CSS @ 8:52pm
Sun. 21: CSS @ 9:59pm
Tues. 23: CSS @ 9:29pm
Thurs. 25: CSS @ 8:59pm
Fri. 26: New Moon with CSS @ 9:33pm
Sat: 27: New Moon
Sun. 28: New Moon
SEPTEMBER (Summer) 8:30pm start time - All the outer planets (Saturn, Neptune, Jupiter, Uranus, Mars) and Pluto in the night sky, ALL month! Yes, our telescopes are big enough to reach Pluto on a Moonless night!
Thurs. 1: Aurigid Meteor Shower (6/hr)
Thurs. 8: Appulse of Moon and Saturn
Fri. 9: Full Moon
Sat. 10: Full Moon
Sun. 11: Full Moon with appulse of Moon and Jupiter
Mon. 12: ISS @ 8:26pm and 10:01pm
Tues. 13: ISS (-4.0 lm) @ 9:09pm
Wed. 14: Appulse of Moon and Jupiter with ISS (-3.5 lm) @ 8:18pm and 9:55pm
Thurs. 15: ISS @ 8:18pm and 9:55pm
Fri. 16: Neptune at opposition with appulse of Moon and Mars with ISS (-3.6 lm) @ 8:11pm and 9:50pm
Sat. 17: ISS @ 8:57pm
Sun. 18: ISS @ 8:05pm
Mon. 19: ISS @ 8:52pm
Sat. 24: New Moon
Sun. 25: New Moon
Mon. 26: New Moon with Jupiter at opposition and ISS @ 9:19pm
Tues. 27: ISS @ 8:30pm
Wed. 28: ISS @ 9:13pm
Thurs. 29: ISS @ 8:22pm
Fri. 30: ISS @ 9:06pm
Thurs. 1: Aurigid Meteor Shower (6/hr)
Thurs. 8: Appulse of Moon and Saturn
Fri. 9: Full Moon
Sat. 10: Full Moon
Sun. 11: Full Moon with appulse of Moon and Jupiter
Mon. 12: ISS @ 8:26pm and 10:01pm
Tues. 13: ISS (-4.0 lm) @ 9:09pm
Wed. 14: Appulse of Moon and Jupiter with ISS (-3.5 lm) @ 8:18pm and 9:55pm
Thurs. 15: ISS @ 8:18pm and 9:55pm
Fri. 16: Neptune at opposition with appulse of Moon and Mars with ISS (-3.6 lm) @ 8:11pm and 9:50pm
Sat. 17: ISS @ 8:57pm
Sun. 18: ISS @ 8:05pm
Mon. 19: ISS @ 8:52pm
Sat. 24: New Moon
Sun. 25: New Moon
Mon. 26: New Moon with Jupiter at opposition and ISS @ 9:19pm
Tues. 27: ISS @ 8:30pm
Wed. 28: ISS @ 9:13pm
Thurs. 29: ISS @ 8:22pm
Fri. 30: ISS @ 9:06pm
OCTOBER (Summer, but STILL cold) 8:00pm start time All the outer planets (Saturn, Neptune, Jupiter, Uranus, Mars) and Pluto in the night sky, ALL month! Yes, our telescopes are big enough to reach Pluto on a Moonless night!
Sat. 1: ISS @ 8:14pm
Sun. 2: ISS @ 8:59pm
Mon. 3: ISS (-3.9 lm) @ 8:07pm
Tues. 4 ISS @ 8:53pm
Wed. 5: Appulse with Moon and Saturn with ISS @ 8:00pm
Thurs. 6 CSS @ 8:15pm
Fri. 7 ISS @ 8:00pm
Sat. 8: Full Moon and appulse with Moon and Jupiter
Sun. 9: Full Moon with Draconid Meteor Shower (5/hr) peaks just after dark but diminshed by full Moon and CSS @ 8:15pm.
Mon. 10: Full Moon with: Taurid Meteor Shower (5/hr) peaks at 10pm but diminished by full Moon.
Wed. 12: Moon occults Uranus between 10:54pm and 11:49pm with CSS @ 8:16pm
Fri. 14: Appulse with Moon and Mars
Sat. 15: CSS @ 8:17pm
Mon. 17: Epsilon Geminid Meteor Shower (3/hr)
Tues. 18: ISS @ 8:17pm
Thurs. 20: Orionids Meteor Shower (13/hr)
Mon. 24: New Moon
Tues. 25: New Moon
Weds. 26: New Moon
Sat. 1: ISS @ 8:14pm
Sun. 2: ISS @ 8:59pm
Mon. 3: ISS (-3.9 lm) @ 8:07pm
Tues. 4 ISS @ 8:53pm
Wed. 5: Appulse with Moon and Saturn with ISS @ 8:00pm
Thurs. 6 CSS @ 8:15pm
Fri. 7 ISS @ 8:00pm
Sat. 8: Full Moon and appulse with Moon and Jupiter
Sun. 9: Full Moon with Draconid Meteor Shower (5/hr) peaks just after dark but diminshed by full Moon and CSS @ 8:15pm.
Mon. 10: Full Moon with: Taurid Meteor Shower (5/hr) peaks at 10pm but diminished by full Moon.
Wed. 12: Moon occults Uranus between 10:54pm and 11:49pm with CSS @ 8:16pm
Fri. 14: Appulse with Moon and Mars
Sat. 15: CSS @ 8:17pm
Mon. 17: Epsilon Geminid Meteor Shower (3/hr)
Tues. 18: ISS @ 8:17pm
Thurs. 20: Orionids Meteor Shower (13/hr)
Mon. 24: New Moon
Tues. 25: New Moon
Weds. 26: New Moon
NOVEMBER (Winter) 7:30pm start time - All outer planets and Pluto in the sky, ALL month! Yes, our telescopes are big enough to reach Pluto on a Moonless night!
Fri. 4: Appulse with Moon and Jupiter
Mon. 7: Full Moon
Tues. 8: Full Moon and 85-min long Total Lunar Eclipse (3:17am to 4:42 am) The DRO will probably NOT be open that late/early.
Wed. 9: Full Moon with Uranus at opposition
Fri. 11: Appulse with Moon and Jupiter
Sat. 12: Northern Taurid Meteor Shower (5/hr)
Thurs. 17: Leonid Meteor Shower (15-50/hr diminished by full Moon) Booked as a Special Event Telescope Tour
Mon. 21: Monocerotid Meteor Shower (5/hr)
Tues. 22: New Moon
Weds. 23: New Moon
Thurs. 24: New Moon
Mon. 28: Appulse with Moon and Saturn Nov. Orinid Meteor Shower (5/hr diminished by full Moon)
Wed. 30: Mars at closes approach to Earth (only 4 minutes at light speed .. . or about 6 months at Starship speed)
Fri. 4: Appulse with Moon and Jupiter
Mon. 7: Full Moon
Tues. 8: Full Moon and 85-min long Total Lunar Eclipse (3:17am to 4:42 am) The DRO will probably NOT be open that late/early.
Wed. 9: Full Moon with Uranus at opposition
Fri. 11: Appulse with Moon and Jupiter
Sat. 12: Northern Taurid Meteor Shower (5/hr)
Thurs. 17: Leonid Meteor Shower (15-50/hr diminished by full Moon) Booked as a Special Event Telescope Tour
Mon. 21: Monocerotid Meteor Shower (5/hr)
Tues. 22: New Moon
Weds. 23: New Moon
Thurs. 24: New Moon
Mon. 28: Appulse with Moon and Saturn Nov. Orinid Meteor Shower (5/hr diminished by full Moon)
Wed. 30: Mars at closes approach to Earth (only 4 minutes at light speed .. . or about 6 months at Starship speed)
DECEMBER (Winter) 7:30pm start time - All outer planets in the sky, ALL month!
Thurs. 1: Appulse with Moon and Jupiter
Mon. 5: Close appulse with Moon and Uranus (visible in the same eyepiece!)
Tues. 6: Full Moon
Wed. 7: Full Moon and Moon occultation of Mars! (Mars disappears behind Moon from 7:42pm until 10:48pm
Thurs. 8: Full Moon
Wed. 14: Geminid Meteor Shower (80-100/hr diminished by rising quarter Moon at 11pm)
Thurs 22: New Moon and Ursid Meteor Shower (10/hr)
Weds. 23: New Moon
Thurs. 24: New Moon
Mon. 26: Appulse with Moon and Saturn
Thurs. 29: Appulse with Moon and Jupiter
Thurs. 1: Appulse with Moon and Jupiter
Mon. 5: Close appulse with Moon and Uranus (visible in the same eyepiece!)
Tues. 6: Full Moon
Wed. 7: Full Moon and Moon occultation of Mars! (Mars disappears behind Moon from 7:42pm until 10:48pm
Thurs. 8: Full Moon
Wed. 14: Geminid Meteor Shower (80-100/hr diminished by rising quarter Moon at 11pm)
Thurs 22: New Moon and Ursid Meteor Shower (10/hr)
Weds. 23: New Moon
Thurs. 24: New Moon
Mon. 26: Appulse with Moon and Saturn
Thurs. 29: Appulse with Moon and Jupiter
Stay tuned for our 2023's Bryce Nights...
Once you picked your "Bryce Night" book that telescope tour here, or follow this link if you would prefer to book a private tour.
