Skywatching
Take a guided tour of the night sky.
Explore the night sky with Morehead each month with our free skywatching sessions! Morehead educators along with our partners, RAC (Raleigh Astronomy Club) and CHAOS (Chapel Hill Astronomical & Observational Society) bring telescopes and guide you through fun observations of stars, planets, moons, nebulae, and other celestial objects. You might even see a few meteors!
Download the April/May 2023 star chart and use it on clear nights in your own backyard!
As a part of our Morehead At Home series, our educators virtually explored the night sky using Stellarium and discussed celestial happenings and other astronomy-related topics like how to identify constellations, measuring distances between objects in the sky, and more. You can check out the recordings of these sessions on our YouTube channel here.
You can also explore Morehead At Home for other educational resources to try at home.
Skywatching sessions are very informal and family-friendly. Each session is scheduled for two hours, but you can arrive and leave at any time during the session. During the evening, you might do any of these things:
- Peek through telescopes for up-close views of celestial objects
- Take a laser-guided “star tour” of the night sky
- Learn where to look for major constellations
- Listen to legends told by ancient cultures about the constellations
- Ask the astronomers for answers to all the astronomy questions you have!
Still have questions about Skywatching? Check out our Skywatching FAQs.
Please note: Because of Earth’s rotation, some sky objects may be visible during only part of a skywatching session, depending on the times they rise and set. Click here for our current star chart.
Morehead skywatching sessions are offered at a variety of sites throughout the Triangle region.
Currently, our main sites are:
- Little River Regional Park, off of Guess Road at the Durham/Orange county border (click here for directions)
- Dorothea Dix Park located in downtown Raleigh, near Umstead Drive (click here for directions)
Skywatching sessions may also be hosted at Stagville State Historic Site, The Durham Hotel, and other special locations. Please see the calendar events for location details.
To request a skywatching session at another location, contact planets@unc.edu.
Morehead Planetarium Box Office
mpsc_tickets@unc.edu
919.843.7997
Do you still have questions about skywatching? Check out our Skywatching FAQs!