Stargazers to Catch Martian Views

Westmont’s powerful Keck Telescope will zoom in on Jupiter and its Galilean moons on Friday, March 21, beginning at 7:30 p.m. and lasting several hours. The Westmont Observatory is open to the public every third Friday of the month and held in conjunction with the Santa Barbara Astronomical Unit whose members bring their own telescopes to share with the public.

Jen Ito, Westmont assistant professor of physics, says stargazers may also catch a glimpse of Mars. “Orion's nebula and the Owl Cluster are also up which, as you may know by now, are two of my favorites,” she says. “If you haven’t seen either through a telescope, I highly recommend it.”

Free parking is available near the observatory, which is between the baseball field and the track and field/soccer complex. To enter Westmont's campus, please use the Main Entrance off of La Paz Road. The lower entrance off of Cold Springs Road is closed to visitors after 7 p.m. In case of cloudy weather, please call the Telescope Viewing Hotline at (805) 565-6272 to see if the viewing has been canceled.