@okobservatory.bsky.social
Mon Nov 17 The Leonid meteor shower will peak after midnight tonight. The Leonids are known as among the fastest meteors, hitting the Earth's atmosphere head on. The Leonids are not a strong meteor shower with only around 10 - 15 streaks per hour but this year Luna will be out of the way.
November 17, 2025 at 6:03 PM
Mon Nov 17 The Leonid meteor shower will peak after midnight tonight. The Leonids are known as among the fastest meteors, hitting the Earth's atmosphere head on. The Leonids are not a strong meteor shower with only around 10 - 15 streaks per hour but this year Luna will be out of the way.
The phenomenon is caused by the Sun illuminating dust in the solar system's equatorial plane. Having the Moon out of the way will help, but a dark sky location is also needed for the delicate triangle of light to show. 2/2
November 14, 2025 at 5:42 PM
The phenomenon is caused by the Sun illuminating dust in the solar system's equatorial plane. Having the Moon out of the way will help, but a dark sky location is also needed for the delicate triangle of light to show. 2/2
The N'ern one reaches its maximum tonight with the radiant just SW of the Pleiades in Taurus. Luna's glare will interfere however, the debris from Comet 2P/Encke includes pebbles as well as dust grains and these produce the dramatic fireballs which will still be visible 2/2
November 11, 2025 at 5:28 PM
The N'ern one reaches its maximum tonight with the radiant just SW of the Pleiades in Taurus. Luna's glare will interfere however, the debris from Comet 2P/Encke includes pebbles as well as dust grains and these produce the dramatic fireballs which will still be visible 2/2
Sun. Nov. 9 – The moon, now in waning gibbous phase will find herself among interesting company tonight. Not only will she be in a straight line below Castor and Pollux in Gemini, but brilliant Jupiter will provide the leg of a capital ‘L’ off to the lower right.
November 9, 2025 at 4:42 PM
Sun. Nov. 9 – The moon, now in waning gibbous phase will find herself among interesting company tonight. Not only will she be in a straight line below Castor and Pollux in Gemini, but brilliant Jupiter will provide the leg of a capital ‘L’ off to the lower right.
Thurs. Nov. 6 – If you have a notion to have a look at the inner ice giant Uranus, tonight would be a good time to choose since the Moon and the stars of Taurus will provide a bit of a road map. The small pale green disk will form a triangle with the Moon and the Peiades.
November 6, 2025 at 5:34 PM
Thurs. Nov. 6 – If you have a notion to have a look at the inner ice giant Uranus, tonight would be a good time to choose since the Moon and the stars of Taurus will provide a bit of a road map. The small pale green disk will form a triangle with the Moon and the Peiades.
Wed Nov 5 This is Full Moon night and Luna will look down from high in the sky among the stars of Aries for any signs of an early winter. So she can make sure, Luna is now at perigee, the closest part of her orbit from the Earth and may be noticed to look a bit more impressive because of it.
November 5, 2025 at 5:46 PM
Wed Nov 5 This is Full Moon night and Luna will look down from high in the sky among the stars of Aries for any signs of an early winter. So she can make sure, Luna is now at perigee, the closest part of her orbit from the Earth and may be noticed to look a bit more impressive because of it.
Tues Nov 4 Another opportunity to catch ‘the Demon Star’ in one of its blinks. Algol in Perseus, high in the E, will reach its minimum brightness in a 2-hr period centered at 10.12pm. Compare its its regular brightness before 9pm with its dimmer self around 10.30pm and the difference will be evident
November 4, 2025 at 5:01 PM
Tues Nov 4 Another opportunity to catch ‘the Demon Star’ in one of its blinks. Algol in Perseus, high in the E, will reach its minimum brightness in a 2-hr period centered at 10.12pm. Compare its its regular brightness before 9pm with its dimmer self around 10.30pm and the difference will be evident
Sun. Nov. 2 – Luna’s waxing gibbous face will be high in the sky tonight as our neighbour passes above bright Saturn amongst the faint stars of the ‘water constellations’ below Pegasus.
November 2, 2025 at 5:15 PM
Sun. Nov. 2 – Luna’s waxing gibbous face will be high in the sky tonight as our neighbour passes above bright Saturn amongst the faint stars of the ‘water constellations’ below Pegasus.
Wed. Oct. 29 – This is First Quarter Moon night and Luna will celebrate it by surveying Okanagan fall scenes from among the faint stars of Capricorn low in the southern sky.
October 29, 2025 at 4:16 PM
Wed. Oct. 29 – This is First Quarter Moon night and Luna will celebrate it by surveying Okanagan fall scenes from among the faint stars of Capricorn low in the southern sky.
Mon. Oct. 27 – Depending on how low your eastern horizon is, there’ll be a dramatic rising late tonight with bright Jupiter posed just below the Gemini Twins Castor and Pollux.
October 27, 2025 at 3:50 PM
Mon. Oct. 27 – Depending on how low your eastern horizon is, there’ll be a dramatic rising late tonight with bright Jupiter posed just below the Gemini Twins Castor and Pollux.
The Okanagan Observatory is now closed for the 2025 season. Thanks for visiting and hope to see you again when we reopen in Spring 2026. ocrasc.ca okanaganobservatory.ca @okobservatory @okobservatory.bsky.social
October 24, 2025 at 3:50 AM
The Okanagan Observatory is now closed for the 2025 season. Thanks for visiting and hope to see you again when we reopen in Spring 2026. ocrasc.ca okanaganobservatory.ca @okobservatory @okobservatory.bsky.social
from a dark sky location. May Aquarids and October Orionids share the same famous parent: Halley’s Comet. In May Earth encounters dust shed by the comet on its outward path, while tonight we will cross Halley’s inbound track. 2/2
October 20, 2025 at 3:48 PM
from a dark sky location. May Aquarids and October Orionids share the same famous parent: Halley’s Comet. In May Earth encounters dust shed by the comet on its outward path, while tonight we will cross Halley’s inbound track. 2/2
Sun. Oct. 19 – Depending on how low your eastern horizon is, there’ll be a dramatic dual rising of a very thin crescent Moon and brilliant Venus just as dawn is beginning to break this morning.
October 18, 2025 at 3:48 PM
Sun. Oct. 19 – Depending on how low your eastern horizon is, there’ll be a dramatic dual rising of a very thin crescent Moon and brilliant Venus just as dawn is beginning to break this morning.
The Okanagan Observatory will not be open tonight, Fri Oct 17. The next night for free public viewing will be Fri Oct 24. Check the Event Phone, 250-300-8759, that day for updates. ocrasc.ca okanaganobservatory.ca @okobservatory @okobservatory.bsky.social
October 17, 2025 at 7:50 PM
The Okanagan Observatory will not be open tonight, Fri Oct 17. The next night for free public viewing will be Fri Oct 24. Check the Event Phone, 250-300-8759, that day for updates. ocrasc.ca okanaganobservatory.ca @okobservatory @okobservatory.bsky.social
The effect is subtle, but dramatic, as sunlight reflecting off dust particles in the equatorial plane of the solar system creates the phenomenon. 2/2
October 16, 2025 at 4:38 PM
The effect is subtle, but dramatic, as sunlight reflecting off dust particles in the equatorial plane of the solar system creates the phenomenon. 2/2
Wed Oct 15 Tonight offers another chance to catch ‘the Demon Star’ in action. The eclipsing binary Algol will reach its minimum brightness in a 2-hr time period centered around 9.30pm. See it in its full glory before 8.30pm, then revisit it around 9:30pm to observe it in its dim mode.
October 15, 2025 at 3:56 PM
Wed Oct 15 Tonight offers another chance to catch ‘the Demon Star’ in action. The eclipsing binary Algol will reach its minimum brightness in a 2-hr time period centered around 9.30pm. See it in its full glory before 8.30pm, then revisit it around 9:30pm to observe it in its dim mode.
Tues. Oct. 14 – Early risers this morning will have a visual treat waiting for them in the pre-dawn sky. The just past Last Quarter Moon will be found in the company of brilliant Jupiter to her lower right, while the Gemini Twins Castor and Pollux will form a set of triangles with the pair.
October 14, 2025 at 3:14 AM
Tues. Oct. 14 – Early risers this morning will have a visual treat waiting for them in the pre-dawn sky. The just past Last Quarter Moon will be found in the company of brilliant Jupiter to her lower right, while the Gemini Twins Castor and Pollux will form a set of triangles with the pair.
Sun Oct 12 Algol will do its slow blink tonight. ‘The Devil Star’ will reach its minimum brightness in a 2-hr period centered around 9.42pm tonight. The brightness of Algol can be compared with its neighbouring stars in Perseus before 8.30pm and then revisited for its dim phase sometime around 10pm.
October 12, 2025 at 5:35 PM
Sun Oct 12 Algol will do its slow blink tonight. ‘The Devil Star’ will reach its minimum brightness in a 2-hr period centered around 9.42pm tonight. The brightness of Algol can be compared with its neighbouring stars in Perseus before 8.30pm and then revisited for its dim phase sometime around 10pm.
The Okanagan Observatory will not be open tonight, Fri Oct 10. The next night for free public viewing will be Fri Oct 17. Check the Event Phone, 250-300-8759, after 3pm that day for updates. ocrasc.ca okanaganobservatory.com @okobservatory @okobservatory.bsky.social
October 10, 2025 at 4:57 PM
The Okanagan Observatory will not be open tonight, Fri Oct 10. The next night for free public viewing will be Fri Oct 17. Check the Event Phone, 250-300-8759, after 3pm that day for updates. ocrasc.ca okanaganobservatory.com @okobservatory @okobservatory.bsky.social
Thurs Oct. 9 Tonight the waning gibbous Moon will be get up close and personal with the beautiful Pleiades cluster, so close that she’ll occult some of the members as the evening progresses. Too bad that Luna will be so bright since observing the occultations will be made difficult by the glare.
October 9, 2025 at 2:31 PM
Thurs Oct. 9 Tonight the waning gibbous Moon will be get up close and personal with the beautiful Pleiades cluster, so close that she’ll occult some of the members as the evening progresses. Too bad that Luna will be so bright since observing the occultations will be made difficult by the glare.
Saturn. If the Moon appears a big larger than usual, she is, since she’ll reach perigee, the closest point in her orbit to the Earth tomorrow. As well this is Harvest Moon night! 2/2
October 6, 2025 at 4:10 PM
Saturn. If the Moon appears a big larger than usual, she is, since she’ll reach perigee, the closest point in her orbit to the Earth tomorrow. As well this is Harvest Moon night! 2/2
Sun. Oct. 5 – Luna will be celebrating this fall night in the company of Saturn just left of the circlet of Pisces. This might be an invitation to view them both with your telescope!
October 5, 2025 at 5:01 PM
Sun. Oct. 5 – Luna will be celebrating this fall night in the company of Saturn just left of the circlet of Pisces. This might be an invitation to view them both with your telescope!
Fri Oct 3 There will be a number of opportunities this month to observe transits or shadow transits by the 4 Galilean moons of Jupiter. One happens tonight. It will be a double shadow transit by the black dots cast by Io and Europa from 11.49pm until 1.17am.
October 3, 2025 at 4:43 PM
Fri Oct 3 There will be a number of opportunities this month to observe transits or shadow transits by the 4 Galilean moons of Jupiter. One happens tonight. It will be a double shadow transit by the black dots cast by Io and Europa from 11.49pm until 1.17am.
The Okanagan Observatory will not be open tonight Fri Oct 3. The next night for free public viewing will be Fri Oct 10. You can check the Event Phone, 250-300-8759, after 3pm that day for updates. ocrasc.ca okanaganobservatory.ca @okobservatory @okobservatory.bsky.social
October 3, 2025 at 4:32 PM
The Okanagan Observatory will not be open tonight Fri Oct 3. The next night for free public viewing will be Fri Oct 10. You can check the Event Phone, 250-300-8759, after 3pm that day for updates. ocrasc.ca okanaganobservatory.ca @okobservatory @okobservatory.bsky.social
Stellarium Basics, Oct 7. Everyone Welcome! Meetings are held in Rm C368 of the Kelowna Okanagan College Campus on KLO Road. ocrasc.ca/meetings.html DO NOT PAY FOR PARKING! Come to the meeting, tell us your License Plate number and we will arrange for free parking. 2/2
October 1, 2025 at 9:16 PM
Stellarium Basics, Oct 7. Everyone Welcome! Meetings are held in Rm C368 of the Kelowna Okanagan College Campus on KLO Road. ocrasc.ca/meetings.html DO NOT PAY FOR PARKING! Come to the meeting, tell us your License Plate number and we will arrange for free parking. 2/2