Friday, Sept 13, 8:30-10:30 p.m.. ONU Observatory, 800 W Lincoln Ave. Check for cancellation after 2:00 p.m. HERE.

Weather permitting, the ONU Observatory will be open to the public on Friday, Sept 13, from 8:30 - 10:30 p.m. On Sunday, Sept 8, Saturn will be at opposition.

``Opposition" is the planetary configuration in which the planet appears in the opposite direction as the Sun from the Earth's perspective. It is also the time of closest approach to the Earth, making Saturn look bigger and brighter than usual.

By Sept 13, Saturn is still close to Earth, but it will be higher in the sky by 9 p.m. making it easier to see through the telescopes. It will be 10 degrees above the horizon at 8:30 pm, and 20 degrees by 9:30 p.m.

This planet has a beautiful ring system, but it is getting closer to disappearing as an edge-on sliver of light as we approach the ring-plane crossing of March, 2025. The last ring-plane crossing was 29 years ago (1995). The Moon will be 78% lit and will also be fun to look at.

The forecast (as of 9/10) is calling for 87% cloud cover on Friday. Unless the forecast improves by Friday at 2:00 p.m, a cancellation message will appear here: https://jpastro.net/astro/publicevents.html.