TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – The University of Alabama’s astronomy department will hold a free public sky viewing of galaxies, star clusters and nebulae at the Moundville Archaeological Park on Friday, Sept. 17, from 7 p.m. until 10 p.m.

Drs. Bill Keel and Ron Buta, both professors of astronomy, will help visitors see into the night sky as they look through the two telescopes at Moundville. The telescopes are set up on a pad in the field across the road from the museum. The park does not charge after-hours admission for this program.

One of the benefits of the Moundville location is fewer city lights to interfere with night sky viewing. Keel said visitors should even be able to eyeball some of the galaxies, like the Milky Way.

Guests will be encouraged to find several objects in the night sky. The Globular star cluster, M22, is one of the most spectacular globular clusters in the sky.

“It is a prominent binocular object, and a naked-eye one under good conditions,” Keel said.

The Dumbbell nebula, M27, is bright enough to be a distinct fuzzy spot through binoculars under dark skies. The Ring nebula and the Andromeda galaxy also will be visible. The Omega or Swan nebula, M17, is notable for being part of an enormous cloud of molecular gas, the raw material of star formation.

This is the first public viewing of the fall semester. Contact UA’s department of physics and astronomy at 205/348-5050 to check on sky conditions and for more information. Cloudy conditions are not conducive to star gazing.

The department of physics and astronomy is housed in the College of Arts and Sciences, the University’s largest division and the largest public liberal arts college in the state with 6,600 students and 360 faculty. Students from the College have won numerous national awards including Rhodes Scholarships, Goldwater Scholarships and memberships on the USA Today Academic All American Team.