Where:

Frosty Drew Observatory and Science Center

When:

Fri, Apr 17, 2026 8:00 pm - 10:00 pm

Cost:

Tickets may be required to attend. Please read below.

Welcome to the Frosty Drew Observatory and Science Center's 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 are calling for partly cloudy to mostly clear sky conditions with fog. The landscape will also be potentially quite wet from this afternoon’s rain, which will exacerbate fog on site. The New Moon occurred at 7:54 am this morning, which will leave the sky super dark for the entire nighttime period. Even though we have a threat of fog, the dark sky and cloud clear-out is too tempting to overlook, so we will plan to open tonight and take the night as it goes.

We will open at 8:00 pm in the Observatory and Science Center. If the sky is accessible we will direct our large 24 inch telescope towards Jupiter, and any other objects we can see. We will also have a Courtyard telescope set up on Venus for twilight views of its waning gibbous phase. If the fog stays out, we will check out springtime galaxies and globular clusters once twilight wanes. In the Sky Theatre we will show our regular feature of celestial objects photographed at Frosty Drew Observatory, and the Science Center will have exhibits on display. We will close up at 10:00 pm.

Overall, tonight has the makings of a fantastic night! The concerns we are seeing comes down to the potential for fog, which will be even more likely due to the wet campus conditions following today’s rain. If making the long drive, keep in mind that you may arrive to a fogged out sky. On the flip side, the New Moon will leave the sky super dark all night, which will allow for excellent viewing if weather allows. So give it a shot and swing over to Frosty Drew Observatory for a moment with the cosmos.

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.

Be sure to subscribe to the Frosty Drew Observatory mailing list and follow us on Instagram to receive status updates about our Stargazing Nights program and more.

Preparing for Your Visit:

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

Visit our daily ephemerides tool to find out what Solar System objects are visible this week.

How to Dress for Winter Conditions: The Frosty Drew Observatory is not climate controlled, and the temperature inside the dome need to match the outside air temperature for a stable telescopic view. Frosty Drew Astronomy Team members dress in layers during the winter and for a very good reason. You should consider doing the same. Please read Dressing for All-Night Winter Stargazing to familiarize yourself with adequate dressing measures.

Please note that we do not allow any white lights on our campus or in Ninigret Park from dusk - dawn, with the exception of low beam headlights while in motion. 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.