Events
Public Astronomy Observations
Physics hosts free monthly public astronomy observations on the Neckers rooftop observation deck in partnership with the Astronomical Association of Southern Illinois. Check back for the Fall 2025 schedule.
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About the Observation Decks
The observation deck is 624 square feet in size. It is built out of 2" thick rubber matting for vibration isolation. The primary telescope is a 14" Meade LX600. This computer guided telescope is used for all observation events as well as the lab portion of PHYS 103 (Astronomy). Several additional scopes are setup for observations as needed including Celestron 8" SCTs, a Coronado SolarMax II, and a Stellarvue SV105 Raptor (105mm refractor).
Neckers Observation Deck
Located on the South West (A-Wing) roof of the Neckers building at 1245 Lincoln Drive. Closest parking in the lot between Neckers and the Public Policy Institute. Enter the building through the west doors facing the parking lot. Take the stairs up to the fourth floor. Meet outside Neckers 456 or follow the signs from there up the South West stairwell.
SIU Farms Astronomy Observation Area
Located 2 miles west of the main SIUC campus, this is a remote, semi-dark observation site. The area contains 10 concrete telescope pads and a large field. It is used for large scale star parties and public observations, Astronomical Association of Southern Illinois club observations and research. The site is located on Autumn Point Road at GPS coordinates: 37.70983444852103, -89.2544444. Note that parking is limited at the site. For large observations and star parties, shuttles will run from the SIU campus parking lot #63 to the site.
What Can You See?
The most spectacular viewing is of the Moon and major planets such as Jupiter, Saturn, Venus and Mars. On clear nights, you can easily see the rings of Saturn and detailed striations on Jupiter. Brighter objects such as the Great Orion Nebula, the Andromeda Galaxy and several clusters are also visible visually.
Dimmer deep sky objects are typically only visible during evenings with low humidity and not much cloud cover. On select night, deep sky cameras are utilized to display images of objects otherwise not visible though visual observations.
Bringing A Group to A Public Observation
Groups in excess of 10 visitors should contact rbaer@siu.edu in advance of your visit to insure adequate space for your group.
Previous Event Photos
Mars Opposition Star Party 2018. Star party at the SIU Farms for the Mars Opposition. See photos of the event on Bob Baer's Flickr photo stream.
April 4 - 8, 2024 for four days of eclipse theme events capped off by Eclipse Day at Saluki Stadium. Check out the photos at: eclipse.siu.edu