Likely you have heard of the asteroid belt, that planetary graveyard between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter, where numerous space rocks revolve around the Sun. The asteroids formed early in the Solar System’s development, when pre-planetary bodies (planetesimals) repeatedly collided under Jupiter’s immense gravitation, continually fragmenting into what we see today. You may know some of their names— Ceres, Vesta, Pallas, Juno. You can add one more to your list-- the strange, spud-shaped world of Psyche.

After a recent presentation on the OSIRIS-Rex mission to asteroid Bennu, someone asked "How do you define the north pole of an asteroid?" According to the International Astronomical Union, the correct answer is that asteroids do not have north poles!

Do you watch space movies? How many have you seen with the hero’s spaceship travelling a dangerous route through the asteroid belt, bobbing and weaving to miss catastrophic collisions with numerous asteroids in order to escape and save the Solar System! Today, we are going to find out what travelling through the asteroid belt would really look like.

When it comes to astronomy, the dark night skies of the Western Slope command most of our attention. It can be easy to forget that the most important astronomical object actually lives in the daytime sky: the Sun!

A starry night sky sparkles with mysteries, such as whether Earth is the only inhabited planet. Are we alone?

Step outside on a clear night this week and gaze upward. You’ll see a bright gibbous Moon – or a full Moon on January 28.

The Moon is iconic, seen and enjoyed from anywhere on Earth. It is so coveted that the U.S. and the Soviet Union were in a space race to see who could reach the Moon first. In 1969, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin were the first to land on its surface. This race inspired the first international space treaty . Dubbed “the Outer Space Treaty,” the 1960s document governed the first international laws about space and forbade any single country from owning celestial bodies, including the Moon. Instead

2021 promises to be a great year for watchers of our Western Slope Skies. The New Year will feature two lunar eclipses, Perseid meteors under a dark August sky, several planetary conjunctions, and increasing solar activity.

Humans have always felt connected to the night sky. Throughout time, we have looked to the stars and found meaning. We have grouped stars into constellations and attached stories to them. These constellations were passed down, generation to generation, creating and influencing culture. However, different cultures haven’t always seen the same things, even in the same stars. Humans have been looking at the stars of the constellation Orion for thousands of years, yet their meaning is different in

The American West of the 1500s would be almost unrecognizable to us moderns. For a moment, step into the shoes of a Native American or an early European explorer. Imagine sharing mountains, forests, and prairies with wild creatures like the American Bison .