Skylights: November 2026
Mercury and Venus shine brightly in the morning sky, Mars meets Jupiter near the heart of the lion, Uranus is at its […]
Author: Jim Hendrickson
Starry, Starry Nite at Chase Farm: Autumn 2026
Lincoln, RITuesday, October 27Weather: Clear 40°Participants: Francine Jackson, John Kocur, Bob Janus, Jim HendricksonAttendees: 52Observed: Waning gibbous Moon, Saturn, Mizar & Alcor, […]
Moonrise in the Seekonk 2026
Providence, RISunday, October 25Weather: Clear, 55°Participants: Francine Jackson, Jim Hendrickson, Bob Swift, Christine Stevens, Terry Turner, Denise Turco, Amer Hodzic, Fred SammartinoAttendees: […]
Seagrave Observatory Night: October 24, 2026
Saturday, October 24Weather: Clear, 35°Participants: Bob Horton, Mike Kerr, Michael Corvese, John Kocur, Jim HendricksonAttendees: 20Observed: Waxing gibbous Moon, Saturn, Double Double, […]
Astronomy Night at River Bend: October 2026
Friday, October 23Weather: Clear, 35°Participants: Francine Jackson, Jim Hendrickson, John KocurAttendees: 20Observed: Waning gibbous Moon, Saturn, Vega & Double Double, Polaris, Vega, […]
Seagrave Observatory Night: October 17, 2026
Saturday, October 17Weather: Clear 35°Participants: Bob Janus, Jim Hendrickson, Jay Baccala, Francine Jackson, John KocurAttendees: 4Observed: First quarter Moon, Saturn, Albireo, Saturn […]
Bristol Land Conservation Trust 40th Anniversary at Audubon Nature Center & Aquarium
Saturday, October 10Weather: Mostly clear, 65°Participants: Michael Corvese, Jay & Lisa Baccala, John Kocur, Francine Jackson, Jim HendricksonAttendees: ~35Observed: Saturn, Vega & […]
Skylights: October 2026
In October, Saturn reaches opposition, and Jupiter hides behind the Moon; Other highlights to be seen this month are Mars crossing the Beehive, an asteroid that can be seen with binoculars, pieces of Halley’s Comet coming out of Orion, and the Moon passing in front of the Pleiades.
Seagrave Observatory Night: International Observe the Moon Night
Saturday, September 19Weather: Mostly cloudy, calm, 58°Participants: Jay Baccala, Mark Munkacsy, John Kocur, Jim Hendrickson, CatherineAttendees: 6Observed: Moon, Alberio, M13, M15, M57Photos: […]
Astronomy Night at River Bend: September 2026
Friday, September 18Weather: Mostly clear, calm, 62°Participants: Francine Jackson, Jim HendricksonAttendees: 25Observed: Moon, ISS, Mizar & Alcor, Albireo, CoathangerPhotos: https://flic.kr/s/aHBqjD5xWsReport by: Jim […]
Skylights: September 2026
September’s sky brings the autumnal equinox, the harvest Moon paired with Saturn, and bright planets visible throughout the night. Also see Jupiter’s moons eclipse each other, the year’s earliest-rising last quarter Moon, and Neptune at its best.
Skylights: August 2026
The skies of August present a 14% partial solar eclipse, a 96% partial lunar eclipse, and a favorable peak of the annual […]
Astronomy Night at River Bend: July 2026
A respite from the wildfire smoke blanketing the region throughout the week and a predicted overnight overcast provided a brief window of […]
Skylights: July 2026
A close pairing of Mars and Uranus gives us a red and blue Independence Day treat, Venus passes Regulus in the evening, Mercury moves to the morning, Pluto at opposition, and a pair of Mooned-out meteor showers all highlight the night sky in July.
50 Years Exploring the Surface of Mars
2026 marks the semiquincentennial (literally “half of five centuries”) of the Declaration of Independence, the founding document of the United States of […]
Seagrave Observatory Night: June 27, 2026
In addition to the usual Public Night this Saturday visitors could also learn about HAM radio operation. The Blackstone Valley Amateur Club […]
Seagrave Observatory Night: The Shortest Night – June 20, 2026
Weather: Clear, calm, 65°Participants: Michael Corvese, Matt White, Jim Meltzer, John Kocur, Jim HendricksonAttendees: 5Observed: 6-day crescent Moon, M13, Alberio, M81 & […]
Seagrave Observatory Night: June 13, 2026
Weather: Clear, calm, 70°Participants: Bob Horton, Jim Hendrickson, Katie Chippendale, John Kocur, Mike Kerr, Laura Landen, Francine JacksonAttendees: 15Observed: Double Double, M5, […]
Skylights: June 2026
The skies of June bring us the shortest nights, a trio of evening planets, a daytime lunar occultation of Venus, and the […]
The Great New England Bolide of 2026
You may have heard, perhaps even felt, or saw social channels light up with questions and speculation, or received a text from […]
Seagrave Observatory Night: May 16, 2026
I arrived at Seagrave Observatory during twilight, Venus and Jupiter had already dipped behind the trees to the west-northwest, and were out […]
Astronomy Night at River Bend: May 2026
Friday, May 1, 2026Weather: Clear, 50°, calm windParticipants: Francine Jackson, Jim HendricksonAttendees: 4Observed: Venus, Aldebaran, Sirius, Jupiter, MoonPhotos: https://flic.kr/s/aHBqjCSWozReport by Jim Hendrickson […]
Welcome to the Artemis Generation
Do you remember when humans flew to the Moon? As a lifelong astronomy and space enthusiast in my early 50s, I didn’t […]
Starry, Starry Nite at Chase Farm: April 2026
Weather: Mostly clear, 45°, wind NEParticipants: Francine Jackson, Bob Janus, Jim Hendrickson, John KocurAttendees: 22Observed: Moon, Venus, Uranus, Jupiter, M45Photos: https://flic.kr/s/aHBqjCRYY4Reports by […]
Seagrave Observatory Night 2026 Season Opener
Weather: Clear, 45° calmParticipants: Bob Janus, Jim Hendrickson, Francine Jackson, Jay Baccala, Mike Kerr, John KocurAttendees: 12Observed: Moon, Mars, M44, M64, M104, […]
Introducing Asteroid 15022 Francinejackson
On February 24, 2025, the International Astronomical Union Working Group for Small Body Nomenclature (WGSBN) recognized Francine Jackson’s contributions to astronomy education […]
The Ships of Sheliak
After two and a half decades of seriously observing the night sky, I have come to the realization that Lyra has become […]
The “Little Big Dipper”
Decades ago, amateur astronomical equipment was dominated by the humble 60mm long-focus achromat. Some time later, the trend migrated towards large aperture […]