The hi-desert’s lessened light pollution means that our night skies have more stars visible to the naked eye than cities or even other rural areas that don’t limit outdoor lights. Tomorrow’s moon will be a waxing crescent with just under 1/3rd of it lit. It’s also the Saturday closest to the new moon and Sky’s the Limit Observatory will be holding their popular monthly Night Sky Program. However – August’s event is for locals only – hopefully giving residents who haven’t had a chance to experience the often filled-to-capacity program.
It starts at 8:30 on Saturday with images of deep sky objects like nebulae, galaxies and star clusters, all captured by the observatory’s telescope camera and narrated by John Watkins, Professor of Physics & Astronomy at Copper Mountain College.
A laser tour of August’s constellations will follow, and guests are welcome to stroll the Walkway to the Stars, which has local astronomers pointing their various telescopes at different wonders in our desert’s vast night skies.
The event is free but because they want to limit it to locals for this month, the observatory is asking for pre-registration online.
Register for Sky’s the Limit Observatory’s Locals Night
From Sky’s the Limit Observatory:
You can arrive between 8:00 and 8:15 to park and enjoy a tour of the Orrery – a model of the Solar System at a scale of 20 billion to 1 – just after sunset.
Please bring comfortable camp chairs, plenty of water, and a red flashlight.
Please wear sturdy, closed-toed shoes.
Sky’s The Limit is at 9697 Utah Trail, just outside the North Entrance to Joshua Tree National Park.
