One of the year’s most popular meteor showers regularly peaks this month, August 2019. Unfortunately, this year’s shower may be only a wash.  The Perseid meteor shower is well known because it’s a major annual shower that occurs during warm weather in the northern hemisphere. The Perseids usually peak around the night of the 12th […]

Header Image: Moon surface taken by the Adler’s Doane Observatory on April 7, 2017. The nation celebrates the 50th anniversary of NASA’s Apollo 11 mission this month, July 2019. It was 50 years ago on July 20 when humans first set foot on Earth’s natural satellite. It’s a big month for the Moon astronomically as well. This […]

From moon phases to meteor showers, the Adler Planetarium has got you covered when it comes to knowing what to look for in the sky. Read our list below to get started! At all times, half of our Moon is lit by the Sun, just as half of the Earth is always lit by the […]

606 TRAIL The western entrance of the 606 Trail at 1801 N. Ridgeway, Chicago, IL is relatively clear of buildings, though not necessarily clear of light pollution. The 606 Trail is open until 11:00 pm daily. FOREST PRESERVE DISTRICT OF COOK COUNTY’S PALOS PRESERVES Did you know the largest Urban Night Sky Place in the […]

The longest days and shortest nights of the year—for Earth’s Northern Hemisphere, anyway—take place this month, June 2019. The first day of summer for the Northern Hemisphere occurs on the solstice, at 10:54 am CDT on the 21st. It’s the longest day of the year, with the Sun rising very early and setting very late. […]

Though the Sun sets later and later each evening this month, there are still plenty of fine night-sky sights in May 2019. After sunset, look about 25 degrees above the west-northwest horizon to see the planet Mars. It’s dimmer than first magnitude in brightness, but it’s still bright enough—and colorful enough—to be easily spotted. The […]

The Adler Planetarium’s Doane Observatory has had a bumpy right over the last 12 months. But it’s finally back in working condition. Learn about its journey to recovery!

Though Spring has begun in the Northern Hemisphere, some of the night sky’s brightest stars—usually associated with wintertime—can still be seen this month, April 2019. Look to the southwest during evening twilight, to see a rhombus-shaped pattern of bright stars—like a long, thin, horizontally-stretched-out square in the sky. The top point of the rhombus is […]

When was the last time you saw more than five stars in the night sky? More than ten? Twenty? How about the Milky Way? Ever looked up a vast, hazy band of light that trails from one end of the night sky to the other and felt as though the heavens were reaching down toward […]

Get ready to move your clocks ahead an hour and to welcome the season of Spring this month—March 2019. Daylight Saving Time starts this year on the 10th at 2:00 a.m. local time. Move your clocks ahead one hour on this date. We’ll get that hour back on November 3, when Daylight Saving Time ends […]