The Fort Bend Astronomy Club is a non-profit organization dedicated to the acquisition and dissemination of information pertaining to the science of Astronomy.  Our goal is not only to serve our members, but the general public as well.

FBAC holds monthly meetings and members regularly get together to observe at the George Observatory, a satellite facility of the Houston Museum of Natural Science, located within Brazos Bend State Park.

For information about FBAC membership, please visit the About FBAC page.  For directions to the monthly club meeting, click here. For information about our community outreach activities, click here. For information about the FBAC list server click here.  To contact FBAC, send an email to fbacastro@gmail.com.

The FBAC Novice Presentation - 8/20/10: To be announced

The FBAC Main Presentation - 8/20/10: To be announced

July Astronomy/Space Calendar
(more at JPL Space Calendar)

• Jul 01 - Asteroid 2005 UU3 Near-Venus Flyby (0.006 AU)
• Jul 02 - Comet C/2009 R1 (McNaught) Perihelion (0.405 AU)
• Jul 03 - Asteroid 2010 MY1 Near-Earth Flyby (0.020 AU)
• Jul 04 - Comet 10P/Tempel 2 Perihelion (1.423 AU)
• Jul 05 - Cassini, Distant Flyby of Calypso, Enceladus & Daphnis
• Jul 06 - Earth At Aphelion (1.017 AU From Sun)
• Jul 06 - Lecture: Hydrogen in Earth's Upper Mantle - Transformation Kinetics and Hydrogen Self Diffusion, Houston, Texas
• Jul 08 - Moon Occults Asteroid 7 Iris
• Jul 09 - Comet P/2010 K2 (WISE) Closest Approach To Earth (0.694 AU)
• Jul 10 - Echostar 15 Proton M-Briz M Launch
• Jul 11 - Total Solar Eclipse, Visible in South Pacific, Chile
• Jul 12 - Asteroid 2919 Dali Closest Approach To Earth (1.688 AU)
• Jul 13 - Asteroid 2010 MG1 Near-Earth Flyby (0.064 AU)
• Jul 14 - Lecture: The Role of Fluids in HFSE Fractionation Within the Earth, Houston, Texas
• Jul 14 - 45th Anniversary (1965), Mariner 4, Mars Flyby
• Jul 15 - Lecture: Direct Measurements of Solar Activity in the Past 35,000 Years, Houston, Texas
• Jul 16 - 45th Anniversary (1965), 1st Proton Rocket Launch (USSR)
• Jul 18 - Asteroid 13926 Berners-Lee Closest Approach To Earth (1.319 AU)
• Jul 19 - Asteroid 2008 NP3 Near-Earth Flyby (0.069 AU)
• Jul 20 - 10th Anniversary (2000), Discovery of Jupiter Moon Callirrhoe
• Jul 21 - Comet C/2010 J2 (McNaught) Closest Approach To Earth (2.437 AU)
• Jul 23-24 - Midwest Astro-Imaging Conference & Mac Astro Workshop, Chicagoland, Illinois
• Jul 24 - 60th Anniversary (1950), 1st Rocket Launch from Cape Canaveral (Bumper/V-2 Rocket)
• Jul 25-30 - International Conference On Strings, M-Theory And Quantum Gravity, Ascona, Switzerland
• Jul 26 - Asteroid 2160 Spitzer Closest Approach To Earth (1.664 AU)
• Jul 28 - Cartosat 2B/ Jugnu/ Alsat 2A/ CanX-4/CanX-5 PSLV-C15 Launch
• Jul 29 - South Delta-Aquarids Meteor Shower Peak
• Jul 30 - AEHF F-1 Atlas 5 Launch
• Jul 30 - 400th Anniversary (1610), Galileo Observes Saturn's Rings
• Jul 31 - Asteroid 1941 Wild Closest Approach To Earth (2.229 AU)

FBAC members and friends gather informally each Tuesday evening between 6:00 PM and 8:30 PM at a southwest Houston restaurant just to socialize. FBAC members have been doing this for nearly 20 years. Come join us for dinner and conversation about most anything!

The current location is the Avalon Diner, 12810 SW Freeway (59 near Kirkwood). The Avalon Diner is at the far west end of the Fountains Shopping Center. Off highway 59, take the Kirkwood exit either way.

From 59 north, cross Kirkwood on the service road and enter the Fountains. From 59 south, go up to Kirkwood and loop under the freeway to come back south on the service road and enter the Fountains.
There are a couple of entrances. Go to the far west end near Borders and Sterling Bank. Click here for a map to the location.

Several observing programs are in the works at FBAC. Leonard Ferguson has developed a double star list and Keith Rivich a planetary nebula list.

 The double star list along with rules is available here.

Stay tuned for the planetary nebula list to be published soon.

The double star list by right ascension can be found here.  The original list is still available above.

The globular and planetary files are now available.  Click here for globulars and here for planetaries.

The galaxy observing list is now on line.  Click here to download a PDF file.

The Open Cluster Observing List can be obtained in PDF form by clicking here.

Observing forms are available for download here.

You are here

July 2010 George Observatory Events

You can view all of the monthly George Observatory events by clicking HERE.

Friday Night Groups - All times are 7:30 pm to 10:30 p.m. Volunteers for domes and deck scopes are needed. Bring those laser pointers and instruct the visitors on the constellations and bright objects! Please contact Barbara Wilson to volunteer: gobserve@consolidated.net

July 09 - Friday Night Group -
Cub Scout Pack 1121 - 8:00 p.m. - 10:30 p.m.

July 23 - Friday Night Group - Rain Date for
Cypress Home School Association

July 30 - HMNS Member's Night -
Volunteers Needed

Saturday Public Observing – All times are dusk to 11:00 p.m. Please contact the following building manager teams to volunteer:

July 03: Building Managers - Wilson/Wilson
gobserve@consolidated.net

July 10: Building Managers - McCollum/Sexton
carlsexton@hotmail.com / justinmccollum@hotmail.com

July 17: Building Managers, McKaye/Sexton jemckaye@comcast.net / carlsexton@hotmail.com

July 24: Building Managers, Knauss/Rivich
birdbarn2000@yahoo.com / icgalaxies@cs.com

July 31: Building Managers, Knauss/Lockwood
birdbarn2000@yahoo.com / mplockwood@att.net

Check Moon Phases HERE.

*New members are encouraged to volunteer! No experience is necessary, volunteering is how you can gain experience. Volunteering under the stars is the best public service work in the world. Come and join us!