Astronomy Events

Mercury is going to be at greatest elongation on Feb. 10th – go outside and look for a low, bright spot near the horizon. Click to read more!

It’s easy to do real hands-on science to teach yourself to learn the night sky! Astronomy is an amazing way for you to learn about science and astronomy since it includes so many different areas as well: geometry (where did that planet go?), algebra (how far is that planet?), cartography [Read More…]

Japan’s Hayabusa-2 spacecraft is an asteroid-sampling return0mission spacecraft that follows on the mission a decade ago that returned samples in 2010. Hayabusa-2 was launched in 2014 and could is expected back at Earth in December 2020 with samples! Learn more about it here.

You may already know about the informal & informative astronomy get-togethers known as “Astronomy on Tap” in Santa Barbara.  They are free, short astronomy-related presentations at a bar. They are at the Matrix Nightclub & Lounge and this one is the first Astronomy on Tap of 2020.  

As a THANK YOU to all who attended our January meeting, (hint – it was AMAZING), Dr. Pogge decided to let us have his slides for viewing! Click here to download the PDF of his presentation. 

Comet Borisov 2I was spotted in our solar system, and it was only spotted once before. It has a sun-centered orbit that is not bound to the sun. It passed through our solar system at the end of Oct in 2019 and made its closest approach on Dec 8th of [Read More…]

2020 is going to be a GREAT year for astronomy! There are a couple of near-new moon meteor showers (Lyrids on Apr 22, Leonids on Nov 17 and Geminids on Dec 14). Venus is going to take center stage with two elongations (March 28th and August 15th) and also swing [Read More…]

This astronomy calendar of celestial events contains dates for notable celestial events including moon phases, meteor showers, eclipses, oppositions, conjunctions, and other interesting events. Most of the astronomical events on this calendar can be seen with unaided eye, although some may require a good pair of binoculars for best viewing. [Read More…]

NASA’s Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) will be open for viewing to invited individuals on Saturday, Oct. 19, 2019, in Silicon Valley. SOFIA is a Boeing 747SP jetliner modified to carry a 106-inch diameter telescope. Flying into the stratosphere at 38,000-45,000 feet puts SOFIA above 99 percent of Earth’s [Read More…]

CCAS is busy this month! We have two different star gazing events at local wineries: Venteux Winery in Templeton and also Riverstar Winery in San Miguel.  If you’d like to help out, just let us know by filling out our Volunteer Form.