Our members are enjoying this comet season we have been given! Check out these two images of Comet C/2025 A6 (Lemmon) taken by member Mike Madden using his Seestar. The first is from Monday, 27 October... 🔭 🧪

Weather permitting, the next Starry Nights public star party will be held on Saturday, November 15. The viewing site, Rancho Canada del Oro Open Space Preserve, is just 30 minutes south of downtown San Jose. #bayarea 🧪 🔭

PUBLIC TALK: November 1, 2025, 7:30 pm Dr. Bruce Macintosh will discuss the first-ever images of other solar systems – and the technology that has allowed us to discover them, such as the Gemini Planet Imager – as well as the future planet-hunting space telescopes. #bayarea 🔭 🧪

Member Sudhir Bud managed to capture C/2025 A6 Lemmon about a week ago in the eastern skies from Palo Alto, California, around 5 am during a brief dark hour between moonset and sunrise. 🔭 🧪

The shadow of Saturn's largest moon, Titan, transited Saturn from Earth's vantage point on October 5, 2025. Luckily, member Christos Gougoussis captured the transit using his Celestron C11 telescope and ZWO ASI462MC camera. 🔭 🧪

As the waning gibbous Moon rises on Thursday, October 9, it will be passing in front of the famous Pleiades star cluster (aka Messier 45). This type of event, known as an occultation, occurs when one celestial object temporarily blocks the view of another object. 🔭 🧪

Join SJ Astronomy for our next Starry Nights Star Party - Saturday, October 11, 2025, 7:30 pm. 🔭 🧪 You must be a member of the SJ Astronomy Meetup group to register to attend (it's free): www.meetup.com/sj-astronomy/ Link for October 11 Starry Nights registration: www.meetup.com/sj-astronomy...

Member Brad Haakenson captured this lovely image of the entire Veil Nebula on Monday night, September 22, 2025. It was a beautiful night at Rancho Cañada del Oro Open Space Preserve – warm with no dew and very clear. The seeing even improved through the night. 🧪 🔭

Member Michael Madden captured interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS using his Seestar S50 on September 13, 2025, at Rancho Cañada del Oro Open Space Preserve during a Starry Nights event. The Seestar was able to capture about 40 minutes of light until 3I/ATLAS disappeared below the ridge to the southwest. 🔭

Timelapse of the sunspots from the last Solar Sunday at Houge Park, September 7, 2025. This timelapse was captured over 2 hours, with over 8,000 pictures taken. It was taken on a Seestar S30 by member Creighton Voon. #space #science #astronomy #astrophotography

Five celestial events to look out for this autumn. 🔭 🧪 www.bbc.co.uk/weather/arti...

PUBLIC TALK: October 4, 2025, 7:30 pm Our October meeting is for you to share your unique telescope builds, tell the story behind your favorite astro-photos, pass on image processing tips, or share brief astro-travelogues. 🔭 🧪 #BayArea Sign up at our Meetup: www.meetup.com/sj-astronomy...

PUBLIC TALK: September 6, 2025, 7:30 pm Dr. Katya Arquilla will discuss how long-duration exploration missions present challenges more intense than those encountered in low-Earth orbit. Sign up: www.meetup.com/sj-astronomy... #astronomy #bayarea 🔭 🧪

Tomorrow morning Venus continues to appear close to the Beehive Cluster. 🔭 🧪 🎨 #astrophotography #SciArt #photography

Another great image from last week’s event at the Rancho Cañada del Oro Open Space Preserve! This picture of the Western Veil Nebula (Caldwell 34) and Pickering’s Triangle comes from member Kal Krishnan, using two hours of data with a dual-band (L-Enhance) filter on his Astro DSLR. 🔭 🧪

Member Doug Loyer captured this fantastic image of the Elephant Trunk Nebula (IC 1396A) earlier this week from the Rancho Cañada del Oro Open Space Preserve. Collection and processing detail: Askar 120 APO, 63 x 60s images, ASI533MC, ZWO Duo Filter Processed using Nebula Magic 🔭 #astrophotography

Apologies, everyone! The date on the graphic is correct: September 6, 2025, 7:30 pm. #bayarea 🔭 🧪

PUBLIC TALK: July 12, 2025, 7:30 pm Dr. Katya Arquilla will discuss how long-duration exploration missions present challenges more intense than those encountered in low-Earth orbit. Sign up: www.meetup.com/sj-astronomy... #astronomy #bayarea 🔭 🧪

A rare Titan shadow-transit season is happening now! Saturn’s largest moon is casting its shadow on the ice giant every 16 days through early October. So grab a telescope (3-in+), aim at dawn, and don’t miss this once-in-15-years chance. 🔭 🧪 skyandtelescope.org/astronomy-ne...

Tomorrow Jupiter continues to appear close to Venus. Look east from around 3am. If awake enjoy the sight, if asleep have nice dreams. 🔭 🧪 🎨 #astrophotography #SciArt #photography #StormHour #ThePhotoHour

Would you like to see the #Andromeda galaxy? Here's how. 🌌 Tonight, try star-hopping to the Andromeda galaxy - 2.5 million light-years away - from the constellation #Cassiopeia. If your sky is dark, you might even spot this hazy patch of light with no optical aid. buff.ly/zgwwj0y 📸 EarthSky.

Many thanks to the amazing rangers and staff at Yosemite National Park for helping to make this year's SJAA-led Glacier Point star party a huge success! The crescent moon rising over Half Dome, as seen in this all-sky timelapse taken on July 19th, perfectly punctuated this phenomenal experience. 🔭

REMINDER: Our next public talk is this weekend. Come join us! #BayArea 🔭🧪

Join the #ASP on Mon, June 30 at 5:30pm PT for a #FREE online screening of #SALLY — the story of astronaut Sally Ride and the love she kept hidden. Her partner, Tam O’Shaughnessy, shares their 27-year journey in this moving #NatGeo #doc. 🏳️‍🌈🔭🧪 #LoveIsLove 🎥 @sundance.org #filmfest 🔗 buff.ly/ctsFmYN

Nova announcement! A star in the constellation Lupus, the Wolf, typically shines at a faint magnitude 22 but has brightened to naked-eye visibility. Look at this image captured by Joe Fragola during the Starry Nights star party at Rancho Canada del Oro Open Space Preserve. 🔭🧪

PUBLIC TALK: July 12, 2025, 7:30 pm Phil Hinz will discuss the technology development being carried out at the UC Observatories to integrate adaptive optics (AO) and the development of large segmented mirror telescopes (LSMT). Sign up: www.meetup.com/sj-astronomy... #astronomy 🔭🧪

SJAA offers free monthly star parties. Weather permitting, members set up telescopes to share views with the public. Our "In Town Star Party" events are held on the Friday night closest to the 3rd Quarter Moon in the parking lot outside our headquarters at Houge Park in San Jose. 🔭

SJAA offers free monthly star parties. Weather permitting, members set up telescopes to share views with the public. Our "In Town Star Party" events are held on the Friday night closest to the 3rd Quarter Moon in the parking lot outside our headquarters at Houge Park in San Jose. 🔭

A new week! Member Brad Haakenson took this picture of Messier 104, the Sombrero Galaxy, during the recent new moon using fifty minutes of data from his Vaonis Stellina telescope. Seen edge-on, astronomers are unsure if M104 is a spiral or an elliptical galaxy. #astrophotography 🔭

Member Richard Seely processed 18 minutes of data captured from his new William Optics Pleiades 181 telescope (congrats on first light!) of M101, the Pinwheel Galaxy, while at Rancho Cañada del Oro Open Space Preserve last month. 🔭

Happy Friday! Member Kal Krishnan took this image of the Seagull Nebula (IC 2177) in March at Rancho Cañada del Oro Open Space Preserve. Because it is such a large object, he only used his 200mm Canon Prime lens (no scope) and processed it recently. #Astrophotography 🔭🧪

Unable to attend? We have the video! www.youtube.com/watch?v=BQgS...

𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝗱𝗼 𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗻𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗹𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗼 𝗱𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗱𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘂𝗻𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗲? Join our free, hands-on online workshop to explore filters, light, and representational color using just your phone & paper. 🔭🧪 Wed, May 21 @ 6p ET Register: bit.ly/ASPcolorwork... #astronomy #STEMed

Tonight is a great night for some lunar photography! The moment of last quarter moon will fall at 4:59 AM PDT. It’ll rise after midnight and set around noon. Look for it high in the sky before dawn. 🔭 earthsky.org/astronomy-es...

Don't forget to join us tomorrow! 🔭 #BayArea

Unable to attend our May talk? We have a video! Our guest speaker, Dr. Bryan Gaensler, takes us on a journey through the discovery and rediscovery of Fast Radio Bursts, and the state of the art in detecting and analyzing them. 🧪🔭 www.youtube.com/watch?v=_QFA...

This weekend, we are holding our semiannual "All-About-Telescopes Workshop!" This event is open to all members and the public and starts at 1:30 p.m. on Sunday, May 18th. 🔭 #BayArea Details: www.meetup.com/sj-astronomy...

TONIGHT h/t @earthskyscience.bsky.social This month’s full moon is called the Flower Moon. All full moons have unique characteristics, and this one is particularly interesting … What is special about this full moon? It’s a micromoon, or very distant full moon. 🧪🔭 earthsky.org/astronomy-es...

Tomorrow night at Houge Park in San Jose, Professor Bryan Gaensler will give a talk on fast radio bursts. Come join us!

During the last week of April, member Francesco Meschia collected a grand total of 24 hours of light (10 hours in L, 10 hours in RGB, and 4 hours in H-alpha) from the pair of peculiar galaxies NGC 4631 and NGC 4656, known as the Whale and the Hockey Stick galaxies. 🔭

REMINDER: This talk is this Saturday, so please come join us! 🔭🧪 #BayArea

Visible planets and night sky guide for April and May Tonight, see Jupiter near the Moon. Then, the Eta Aquariids shower peaks May 5-6. May's full moon is the Full Flower Moon on May 12-13. Plus so much more! earthsky.org/astronomy-es... h/t @earthskyscience.bsky.social 🔭🧪

PUBLIC TALK: May 10, 2025, 7:30 pm Professor Bryan Gaensler will explain how fast radio bursts were discovered, why they’re so enigmatic, and how they could be key to understanding some of the fundamental properties of the Universe. 🔭🧪 Sign up: www.meetup.com/sj-astronomy...

Welp. #CometF2SWAN may be disintegrating. You can still catch it in the morning sky, though! 🔭 www.cnn.com/2025/04/18/s...

Tomorrow morning, the waning gibbous #moon will hang near #Scorpius the Scorpion and its bright red star #Antares. They’ll rise after midnight and be visible through dawn. For more sky events, visit EarthSky’s night sky guide: buff.ly/EGTWIM4 📸 EarthSky.org.

Our first club member picture of #CometF2SWAN comes from Nicola Nikolov and was taken with a Seestar S50 over two minutes. More photos to come! #astrophotography 🔭🧪

New comet SWAN25F is turning heads — and telescopes — toward the morning sky www.space.com/stargazing/n... It's possible that the comet could brighten past 5th magnitude by the end of April, potentially becoming visible to the naked eye under dark skies. 🔭🧪

Tomorrow night is our next public talk. Come join us! #bayarea

On Monday, March 24, a break in the cloudy weather allowed a group of 11 SJAA Members to set up equipment for visual observing and imaging at Rancho Canada del Oro Open Space Preserve. Starry Nights program manager Joe Fragola captured this gorgeous image of Markarian’s Chain. 🔭🧪

PUBLIC TALK: April 5, 2025, 7:30 pm 🧪🔭 Chasing Asteroid Occultations for Adventure and Science Astronomer Richard Nolthenius will share his experiences, the gear needed, and highlights of the asteroid adventures he’s organized. Sign up: www.meetup.com/sj-astronomy...