The Star Party for Friday, September 9 is CANCELLED.
We are sorry for any inconvenience this causes.
Please use the bottom below to register for another upcoming Friday this fall.
Follow this link for more general information on Friday Night star parties this fall.
Friday night Star Parties are held at the Campus Observatory on the roof of Brookens Library on Friday nights in September and October. The dates for Friday night star parties in 2025 are September 5, 12, 19, and 10 and October 3, 10, 17 and 24.
Note that these events are all weather dependent. See below for information about cloudy weather.
Can I pre-register for Star Parties?
WHAT: The University of Illinois Springfield Astronomy-Physics Program, Lincoln Memorial Garden and the Sangamon Astronomical Society will host a special Star Party to view the annual Perseid meteor shower.
WHEN: 8:30-10 p.m. Friday, August 12, 2022
WHERE: Lincoln Memorial Garden, 2301 E. Lake Shore Drive, Springfield
The next UIS virtual Star Party is 8-9 pm on Friday May 13. Everyone is invited to join us via Zoom for this free event.
The next UIS virtual Star Party is 8-9 pm on Friday April 22. Everyone is invited to join us via Zoom for this free event.
The University of Illinois Springfield Astronomy-Physics Program will host three virtual star parties via Zoom. The virtual star parties will be held at 8 p.m. on March 11, April 9 and May 13.
(June 2011)
The June 2011 issue of Gemini Focus magazine contains an article written by UIS Assistant Professor John Martin about his use of an infrared camera on the Gemini-South telescope to image the interior of the nebula cocooning the star Eta Carinae.
(July 2011)
On July 1 the National Science Foundation (NSF) announced that a collaboration including UIS Assistant Professor John Martin earned a three-year grant for their proposal entitiled “On the Road to the Supernova: LBVs, Hypergiants, and SN Impostors.” The project will continue and expand on Martin’s collarboration with Kris Davison and Roberta Humphreys (both at the University of Minnesota) to study the end stages and instabilities in the most massive stars in the universe.