Dear Macquarie University Association for Astronomy members,

March is already underway and we have reopened the observatory and planetarium for business: every friday night both planetarium (at 6:00-7:00PM) and observatory (at 8:00-9:30PM, during light-saving time and at 7:00-8:30 otherwise) welcome members of the public. Thanks to Duane Hamacher, recent PhD graduate in aboriginal astronomy and now manager in charge of the AfA, all bookings have moved to an on-line system, which is helping us tremendously with organising the sessions. We are still working towards getting the word out about the planetarium. So, please let all your friends know! The new planetarium sits 40 people on chairs and it is a really great experience.

Other than our busy AfA activities all the faculty of the Astronomy Astrophysics and Astrophotonics Research Centre are back teaching, except for Dan Zucker who, having been awarded a Future Fellowship will be primarily on research duties for the next 4 years. Thanks to that we will hire a 4-year lecturer to replace Dan. Several of us are also hiring new post-doctoral research assistants and PhD students thanks to several grants awarded over the last 2 years. The group is therefore going to grow further. This is a very good time for Astronomy at Macquarie!

Best Regards,

March 18^th,19^th, 11:30pm

Fort Phillip: the fort that never was - Sydney Observatory

Discover the complex and intriguing history of the fort that never was. All that links Fort Phillip and her British Redcoats, French Flintstones and the Transit of Venus will be presented in a short tour. Discover why English is our official language!More...

March 26^th,27^th, 7:00 pm

Astronomy after work: Venus, Jupiter and the Moon - Sydney Observatory

This is a special telescope viewing session (weather permitting) to view a beautiful evening sight as Jupiter, the crescent Moon and Venus line-up in the early evening sky looking to the west. More...

Every Friday, 6:00 pm

Planetarium - Macquarie University Observatory

Our brand-new Digitarium Epsilon planetarium projector system and portable 7-m GoDome is available, by arrangement, for groups of up to 45 people per session. The planetarium simulates the night sky, including special events such as the transit of Venus or an eclipse of the sun. It allows an up-close look at the motions of celestial objects, the surfaces of planets, deep sky objects, and constellations. You can take a tour of the local Solar System, peer into the depths of the galaxy, or watch amazing new planetarium movies. Presentations can be tailored to the interests and age of your groups. More...

Every Friday, 8:00 pm

Astronomical Observatory - Macquarie University Observatory

The Association for Astronomy and the Department of Physics & Astronomy invite you to observe the cosmos with your own eyes at the Macquarie University Astronomical Observatory. You will be guided through the night sky by our professional astronomy staff, who will show you planets, binary stars, nebulae, star clusters, and even bright galaxies through our 16" and 12" professional in-dome telescopes. All are welcome! More...

Every day, 8:00 pm

Public Observing Program - Sydney Observatory

Sydney Observatory is open every night (session times vary) and day (10am to 5pm) except Christmas Day and Good Friday. The links at left have all the information you need to plan your visit. Charges apply to night and day telescope viewing sessions which include visits to the telescope domes, telescope viewing* and 3D space theatre experience - guided and explained by one of the Observatory's astronomy educators. More...

The best time to view the Moon with a small telescope or binoculars is a few days either side of the first quarter Moon on the 1st or 31st. Low in the east is Saturn, visible as a faint star-like object in Virgo. Mars is located in Leo towards the north-east. Jupiter and Venus are low in the west during the early evening and are close to each other on the 15th. On the 26th at 8 pm Jupiter, the crescent Moon and Venus are located next to each other low in the western sky. The Autumn Equinox occurs on the 20th. The word equinox is Latin meaning equal night, and is one of two days (usually 21st March and 21st September) when the Sun spends an equal amount of time above and below the horizon for every place on Earth. Constellations visible this month include Canis Major (the Great Dog), Orion (the Hunter), Gemini (the Twins) and Leo (the Lion). Crux (the Southern Cross) is low in the south-east and is located just above the two bright Pointer stars.