Upcoming events

18 May 2012 • Canyon of the Eagles, Eagle Eye Observatory
08 Jun 2012 7:30 PM • RLM Room 4.102 (The Wheeler Lecture Hall), in the Robert Lee Moore
16 Jun 2012 • Canyon of the Eagles, Eagle Eye Observatory

Venus Transit of the Sun

The Transit of Venus is an astronomical phenomenon that occurs when Venus passes between the Earth and the Sun. The silhouette of Venus becomes visible against the disc of the sun. This is one of the rarest forms of predicted astronomical activity. 

This June's transit of the second planet will be the first to occur since June 8, 2004. Transits occur in pairs separated by eight years and then the pairings are separated by 105 and 121 years. Very few, if any, of us will be around to view such a display the next time, in 2117.

Join AAS, the University of Texas at Austin's Astronomy Department, and the Astronomy Students Association as we take over the roof top of the Robert Lee Moore Building, on the UT Austin campus, to view this planetary feat through solar telescopes and with solar safe glasses. The Transit will begin shortly after the 5:00 p.m. and last until almost half past 8:00 p.m. 

Members of the public are encouraged to show up early.  Click here for more information.

May Observing

by Dawn Davies

The weather in Texas may be yelling summer, but the skies are still spring and they are putting on quite a show. Mars, Venus and Saturn continue to dazzle in May. Some bright magnitude stars also shine brilliantly in the evening sky. Sirius, the brightest, has dipped below our horizon. Other big hitters such as Arcturus in Bootes, Capella in Auriga and Procyon in Canis Minor have replaced it. Vega, the fifth brightest star in the night sky, once again graces the night sky: it is one third of the summer triangle and foreshadows the hotter months to come.

The deep spring months bring an abundance of astronomical displays to our eyepieces, including the Eta Aquarid meteor shower peak, slightly hindered by the bright moon this month. A unique element of the night sky begins to emerge this month. The green star visible in the constellation Libra, close to the southern horizon, is Beta Librae, also known as Zuben el Chamali or the Northern Claw.

If you are an observing astronomer working toward your pins and certificates May is a great month to start the AL’s Constellation Hunter list. Seventy-five percent of the constellations on the list are visible this month, leaving just nine to view by the end of the year. If you are looking to complete your lunar list look no further than May 6 when the Moon will be full and at perigee. This will be the closest Full Moon to the earth in the past 100 years.

Should your travels mid-month take you westerly keep your protected eyes out for the annular solar eclipse on May 20.

All these events build up excitement for the night sky and are a great segue into June when we welcome the Venus Transit.

 

6   May full moon & moon at perigee

12 May last quarter moon

19 May moon at apogee

20 May new moon

28 May first quarter moon       

Welcome to the Austin Astronomical Society  

Welcome to the website of the Austin Astronomical Society! We are a club of 300 or so amateur astronomers, and we love to share our hobby with others. Our monthly meetings usually take place on the University of Texas Campus in Room 4.102 of RLM Hall (Dean Keeton and Speedway) on the second Friday of the month starting at 7:30. (We move to Wild Basin in May and December due to UT finals.)

We have an observatory with two large telescopes at Canyon of the Eagles Nature Park on Lake Buchanan near Burnet. Once a month we hold a public star party there, and members have access to the observatory grounds for their own observing activities also.

Twice a year AAS and St. Stephen's Episcopal School sponsor a public star party, Austin Under the Stars, and we work with Wild Basin Wilderness Preserve to conduct stargazing and moonlighting events numerous times during the year. We have also gone to many schools and other places in the community, such as Central Market, to share our telescopes with the public. 

You can find more information about our activities on other pages of this website. You may contact us by clicking the link at the bottom of this page.

We hope to see you soon at a meeting or star party.

Joyce Lynch, President

Member Photo of the Month

by Taylor Chonis

M31 (Andromeda Galaxy)

Captured 09/20/2011 Canyon of the Eagles, Burnet Texas

Scope: Takahashi FSQ106N (f/5)
Mount: Celestron CGE
Camera: SBIG STL-11000M

click to view more of Taylors photos

click to view past photos

click to submit your own photo

 

 Austin Clear Sky Chart  Eagle Eye Observatory Clear Sky Chart
   
 

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For AAS Members

Enter the email address you use for AAS at top right of this page, then click the box marked “Forgot Password” (even though you don't have one yet!). An email message will be sent to you with a password, which you can then use to enter the member's section of this website. You can change your password to one of your choosing simply by clicking the “change password” line at the top right corner of each page. If you have any questions about this, please contact aastreasurer@yahoo.com
 
 
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Austin Astronomical Society
P.O. Box 12831, Austin, TX 78711
mailto:contactaas@austinastro.org
copyright © 2010 All Rights Reserved

  
 

Supporting members of the Astronomical League , Night Sky Network and International Dark Skies Association.

For any questions or more information about AAS - please email us at contactaas@austinastro.org.