Tucson Amateur Astronomy Association

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Tucson Amateur Astronomy Association Enjoy exploring, observing, and learning about our solar system and beyond. We invite you to join us in this exciting and rewarding endeavor.

The TAAA monthly meetings are held the first Friday of the month in the lecture hall (Room N305) at Steward Observatory located at 933 N Cherry Ave on the University of Arizona campus. The meetings are free and open to the public. A non-technical Introductory Lecture starts at 6:30pm and an Invited Lecture (usually presented by a professional astronomer) beginning at 7:30pm. The meeting usually ends by 9pm. See our website for information about joining the TAAA. We have two observing sites. One is located west of the Tucson Mountains and the other is located in Cochise County. Monthly observing at these dark sites are for members only. We publish a monthly Events Bulletin and quarterly Desert Skies Journal. The Events Bulletin is emailed to members to keep them informed of our activities. The Journal is also emailed to members but the public may read it on our website. We have several Special Interest Groups that meet individually. These SIGs are for our members. Our Astronomy Fundamentals group is intended for beginners. Our Astro-imaging group is for those photographing the night sky. Our Starry Messengers group manages our outreach program. Our members support numerous star parties throughout the year for schools, churches, scout troups, and meeting groups. Contact us if you wish to schedule a star party at your location. Some star parties are done without charge but others we expect payment.

For those of you in the east or midwest, you can get a view of the Moon occultation of Jupiter in the morning hours. Ti...
10/05/2026

For those of you in the east or midwest, you can get a view of the Moon occultation of Jupiter in the morning hours. Timing will vary by location, but is generally in the early morning hours.

For updated info and timing, you can go to: https://in-the-sky.org/news.php?id=20261006_16_100

✨ The Heart and Soul Nebulae ✨Tucked into the constellation Cassiopeia, the Heart and Soul Nebulae are two enormous star...
10/05/2026

✨ The Heart and Soul Nebulae ✨

Tucked into the constellation Cassiopeia, the Heart and Soul Nebulae are two enormous star-forming regions located roughly 6,000 to 7,500 light-years from Earth.

The Heart Nebula, IC 1805, gets its nickname from its unmistakable heart-like shape. Near its center is a young star cluster called Melotte 15. Some of these massive stars are only about 1.5 million years old, and their intense radiation and powerful stellar winds help illuminate and sculpt the surrounding clouds of gas and dust.

Right next door is the Soul Nebula, IC 1848, also associated with the larger W5 star-forming region. It is filled with young stars, glowing gas, enormous bubbles, and pillars of material shaped by the energetic stars within it.

Together, the Heart and Soul are part of a vast, active star-forming complex along the Perseus Arm of our Milky Way.

So while they may look peaceful from Earth, a lot is happening inside these cosmic clouds. Stars are being born, gas is glowing, and young stars are continually reshaping their surroundings.

A pretty spectacular heart and soul for our corner of the galaxy. ✨

Image Credit & Copyright: Mario Zauner

Join TAAA for a public astronomy event this month. Saturn, a fantastic observing target through any telescope, reaches o...
10/03/2026

Join TAAA for a public astronomy event this month. Saturn, a fantastic observing target through any telescope, reaches oppostion October 4th. Opposition means the planet is opposite the Sun from Earth and is visible all night long. Also, mark your calendar for the annual Orionid meteor shower, which peaks October 21 into the morning of the 22nd.

Meet NGC 457, better known as the Owl Cluster! ✨🦉This beautiful group of stars sits in the constellation Cassiopeia, abo...
10/03/2026

Meet NGC 457, better known as the Owl Cluster! ✨🦉

This beautiful group of stars sits in the constellation Cassiopeia, about 7,900 light-years from Earth. Look closely, and you may see why it earned its nickname: two bright stars resemble a pair of eyes, while the surrounding stars stretch outward like the body and wings of a cosmic owl.

NGC 457 is an open star cluster, a loose family of relatively young stars that formed together and continue moving through our galaxy together.

And perhaps the best part? Not everyone sees an owl. The cluster has also been compared to a dragonfly and even the little alien from E.T. What do you see? 🌌

Join Tucson Amateur Astronomy Association for our first "Astronomy Gems" presentation live stream on Friday October 2, 2...
10/01/2026

Join Tucson Amateur Astronomy Association for our first "Astronomy Gems" presentation live stream on Friday October 2, 2026 at 6:30 PM (MT). The 15-minute live stream will be on Bright Deep-Sky Objects in Cassiopeia by Dave Eicher. The presentation can be watched on our YouTube Channel at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=94LQL4aw0RI

Join Tucson Amateur Astronomy Association for our first "Astronomy Gems" presentation live stream. The 15-minute live st...
09/30/2026

Join Tucson Amateur Astronomy Association for our first "Astronomy Gems" presentation live stream. The 15-minute live stream will be on Bright Deep-Sky Objects in Cassiopeia by Dave Eicher.

Tucson Amateur Astronomy Association (TAAA) will host our annual Tucson Astronomy Festival at Brandi Fenton Memorial Par...
09/27/2026

Tucson Amateur Astronomy Association (TAAA) will host our annual Tucson Astronomy Festival at Brandi Fenton Memorial Park (3482 E River Rd - Ramada 1) from 3 - 9 pm October 17, 2026. This ia a great FREE Family Event with solar observing and astronomy activities in the afternoon, free door prizes to include a few telescopes at 5:30 pm (must be present to win), and evening observing from 6:30-9 pm to include Saturn and the Moon. If you want help setting up or operating your personal telescope, bring it during daylight and we will give you some help setting it up and operating it. Hang around in the evening to get some practice.

Tucson Amateur Astronomy Association (TAAA) will be hosting our annual Evening Under the Stars at our Chiricahua Astrono...
09/20/2026

Tucson Amateur Astronomy Association (TAAA) will be hosting our annual Evening Under the Stars at our Chiricahua Astronomy Complex (CAC) in Cochise County October 3, 2026. CAC is about 100 miles SE of Tucson and about 15 miles from the Chiricahua National Monument. The gate will open at 6 pm with the event going from 7-9 pm. We request reservations to know about how many will attend and in case of inclement weather and we need to cancel (you will be notified). If you are in the area and want to attend, email [email protected] with number people, number vehicles, and an email address for contact info. More information at: https://tucsonastronomy.org/evening-under-the-stars/

The Tucson Amateur Astronomy Association starts back up in September with our public observing events. Check Facebook ev...
09/10/2026

The Tucson Amateur Astronomy Association starts back up in September with our public observing events. Check Facebook events and the TAAA website calendar for specifics. A great opportunity to see Saturn in all its glory.

Venus dominates the evening sky in the west. Might get a glipse of Mercury in the west towards the end of September. Nep...
09/06/2026

Venus dominates the evening sky in the west. Might get a glipse of Mercury in the west towards the end of September. Neptune rises in the east at sunset (will need a telescope to see) and comes into Opposition on the 25th. Saturn comes back into the evening sky this month and will reach Oppostion in October. An absolutely beautiful view through any telesocope. Join us for one of our public observing events to see these amazing objects.

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Tucson, AZ

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+15207926414

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