Bakersfield Night Sky 2023

Saturday, June 18, 2023 Happy Father’s Day to all of the fathers, whether they are fathers by biology or by the role and care they provide in our lives! In three days on June 21, the season of summer will officially begin with the June solstice....

Saturday, June 4, 2023 Venus is at “greatest eastern elongation” tonight, meaning it is at its farthest angular distance from the sun on our sky. It is also now close enough to us in its orbit that the geometry of its position with respect to the...

Saturday, May 21, 2023 Tonight a very thin waxing crescent moon will be just above the western horizon at sunset. The following night, it will be to the lower right of Venus, close enough for both to just barely fit within the field of view of your...

Sunday, May 7, 2023 It is now final exams week at Bakersfield College. On Friday will be the largest graduating class ever with a record-breaking group who will walk across the stage to get their diploma with family and friends cheering them on....

Sunday, April 16, 2023 In this evening's sky shortly after sunset, you'll see the three planets closest to us making a line on the sky in the southwest-west: Mercury closest to the western horizon, then super-bright Venus, and then Mars, highest up....

Sunday, April 2, 2023 Bakersfield College and the K12 school districts in our area are on spring break. I'm enjoying the break and I sure need it! Tickets are on sale for the “Black Holes” show (on April 13) and for the “Ice Worlds” show (on April...

Sunday, March 19, 2023 Just one more day left of the winter season, according to the calendar. The beginning of spring happens when the mid-point of the sun is on the celestial equator—the projection of Earth's equator onto the sky. On March 20 at...

Sunday, March 5, 2023 Evening planetarium shows will start up again this spring now that the Chronos star projector has been serviced and all parts are functioning correctly. We'll start with “Incoming!” on March 16 and then do Black Holes on April...

Sunday, February 19, 2023 Yesterday, February 18, marked the second anniversary of the Perseverance rover's landing in Jezero Crater on Mars. The launch and landing happened in the middle of the pandemic. The four science objectives of the...

Sunday, February 5, 2023 How did observing Comet ZTF (C/2022 E3) turn out for you? Comet ZTF passed closest to Earth last Thursday, February 2 at a distance of 26 million miles. Comets are notoriously unpredictable in the amount of the gas and dust...