Latest News and Posts

  • Public observations at Pilot Mountain – Fall 2024

    The Forsyth Astronomical Society and the rangers of Pilot Mountain State Park will host three free public astronomy observation at Pilot Mountain State Park this fall. These events are weather-dependent, and a weather update will be posted on our website (fas37.org) and on our Facebook page with the weather decision made the evening before each…

  • Comet C/2023 A3

    Don’t look now, but comet C/2023 A3 might just be coming our way. Just recently this comet, also known as Tsuchinshan-ATLAS, was seen close to the Sun. It will reach perihelion – its closest approach to the Sun – on September 27. There is a chance – a chance – that it might be visible…

  • September 2024 FAS Meeting (Wednesday, September 11)

    Please join us for the September meeting of the Forsyth Astronomical Society at 7:30 on Wednesday, September 11. The meeting will be held at the new Kaleideum at 120 West 3rd Street downtown in Winston-Salem, NC. FAS member Ralph James will present an overview of Exoplanets and some of the latest discoveries. You don’t have…

  • The Discovery of Neptune

    FAS Astronomers Blog, Volume 32, Number 8. Neptune is the only planet to be discovered through mathematical analysis. The orbit of Uranus was determined to be perturbed by an unknown object farther out in the Solar System, which astronomers thought might possibly be a new planet.  In 1792, Jean Delambre published tables of planetary positions. It…

  • Omega Centauri & Centaurus A

    The largest known globular cluster is Omega Centauri (NGC 5139 & C80). It is a wonderful target for amateur astronomer – if you live in the Southern Hemisphere. However, for a short time earlier this year it was visible from Winston-Salem low in the southern horizon. Two FAS members were out with their telescopes and…

  • Public Solar Observation at The Forsyth County Central Library (Saturday, August 17 from 10 AM to Noon)

    WEATHER UPDATE: Conditions should be mostly sunny on Saturday morning, this event will take place as scheduled. FAS will hold a public solar observation at The Forsyth County Central Library (660 West 5th Street) on Saturday, August 17, from 10 am to 12 Noon. Solar telescopes will be available to safely view the Sun and…

  • August 2024 FAS Meeting (Wednesday, August 14)

    Please join us for the August meeting of the Forsyth Astronomical Society on Wednesday, August 14. The meeting will be held at the new Kaleideum at 120 West 3rd Street downtown in Winston-Salem, NC. FAS member Dr. Andrea Nichols will present a program entitled “Observing the Heavens: Galileo’s Revolutionary Discoveries.” I will be examining the…

  • The Forsyth Astronomical Society Needs You…

    With the opening of Kaleideum at its new downtown location, we have lost our primary urban observing site. Kaleideum North (formerly SciWorks) is no longer available, and the downtown location, with its tall buildings and intense light pollution, is less than optimum for nighttime astronomical viewing. We’re asking the public for possible locations for our…

  • Atoms and Molecules

    FAS Astronomers Blog, Volume 32, Number 7. We all were taught that things are made up of molecules, which, in turn, are made up of atoms. Atoms are composed of electrons (with a negative charge) and a nucleus, which contains protons (with a positive charge) and neutrons (with no charge). Electrons are thought to be…