Stargazing Nights

Stargazing Nights

Where:
Frosty Drew Observatory and Science Center
When:
Fri, May 20, 2022 8:30 pm - 10:30 pm
Cost:
Tickets are NOT required to attend.

Welcome to the Frosty Drew Observatory Stargazing Nights! Every Friday night (weather permitting) we open our Observatory, Science Center, Sky Theatre, and telescopes to the sky and offer free stargazing and astronomy to anybody interested in observing with us.

Tonight's forecasts, which have looked rather great all week long, have bombed at the last minute. At this time, it appears that we can expect a very rapid increase in cloud cover after 8:00 pm, with rain setting in before 10:00 pm. There really doesn’t appear to be much variability in the forecast, unfortunately. This is rather upsetting as we have been clouded out for the entire month of May 2022 so far, and tonight’s 62% waning gibbous Moon does not rise until 1:13 am, and would have kept the sky dark for fabulous viewing. Though we will open tonight, it is unlikely that we will have our telescopes open for viewing.

We’ll open the Observatory, Science Center, and Sky Theatre at 8:00 pm tonight. In the Observatory we will offer tours of the new telescope with the lights on. This is a good chance for some of the techie geeks to come out and get into how everything works. In the Sky Theatre we will show our feature of celestial objects photographed at Frosty Drew Observatory and may host a live commentary with one of our astronomers. In the Science Center, exhibits will be on display. If the sky is clear enough to observe, once it gets dark, then we will direct our primary 24 inch telescope to the sky until clouds move in. We will close up at 10:00 pm.

Overall, tonight is not the night to make the long drive. It will be cloudy and rain has a good chance of setting in. Even if we do get a view in the telescope, it will be very brief and probably during twilight, when most of the sky is not yet visible to our telescope. Though if you want to get into a discussion with our astronomers, or check out our gear and how we have everything working with the new telescope, then tonight could be a unique chance to catch some serious geek overload.

Tickets are NOT required for visitors to attend this event.

Take a moment to catch up on some awesome space-based happenings in:
A Celebration of Space - May 20, 2022

Be sure to subscribe to the Frosty Drew Observatory mailing list, follow us on Twitter (@FrostyDrewOBSY) or on Facebook to receive status updates about our Stargazing Nights program and more.

Check out our page on Visiting Frosty Drew Observatory to learn more about what to expect at the Observatory and to better help you prepare for your visit.

Please note that we do not allow any white lights on our campus from dusk - dawn. This is to ensure an equally awesome view of the night sky for all and to allow for the use of light sensitive astronomical equipment. Learn more about why we have this requirement in The Red Light District.

It is cold at Frosty Drew Observatory during the winter and early spring. Visitors will be completely exposed to the harsh winter environment while standing on frozen ground. Dressing properly is REQUIRED to attend! Lean how the Frosty Drew Astronomers dress for working overnight on the Frosty Drew campus during the winter. Read it! Follow it!

If you are looking for that awesome astronomy thing to do or just want a night out to experience the cosmos under the darkest sky in Rhode Island, then this is your chance.

Please note that due to the evolving COVID-19 pandemic, the detail of this event may change. Please check in regularly, both here and on our SARS-CoV-2 page, to stay up to date.