The Fort Bend Astronomy Club (FBAC) is a long-standing 501(c)(3) non-profit organization and a 509(a)(2) public charity, with a mission of “Observing, Sharing, Teaching, and Promoting Astronomy”.  Our members and the public we serve predominantly live in Fort Bend, Brazoria, Harris, and Waller counties.

The Fort Bend Astronomy Club was formed in the fall of 1984 by a group of amateur astronomers in Stafford, Texas.  In 1985, FBAC merged with the Southwest Astronomy Club and continued developing its goal of serving people in the community who love astronomy.  Club members have highly diverse interests: astrophotography, deep sky observing, minor planet and supernova search, astrophysics are among the areas of astronomy in which club members participate.  Members own and use telescopes from the smallest refractors to giant trailer-transported reflectors.  Many of us enjoy only a pair of binoculars or just our eyes to view the spectacle of the night sky.

We pride ourselves on our outreach efforts to schools, public, and private entities through our Astronomy on Wheels program, which provides lectures and stargazing to area schools and organizations, Astronomy Day, and club sponsored stargazing events.

The club also supports our community by providing expertise and volunteers to the Houston Museum of Natural Science‘s George Observatory at Brazos Bend State Park, 30 miles southwest of Houston, where we operate the East Dome. 

In 2024, we installed a CDK-17-inch telescope in the East Dome (one of three domes at the George), which was made possible by the support of our members and the community.  We are very proud of this telescope and being able to continue our mission at the George Observatory. 

Club members serve as volunteers, operating FBAC’s 17-inch east dome telescope plus the 36-inch and 14-inch telescopes in the other two domes.  Public stargazing nights, ordinarily on Saturdays, give us a chance to help educate people in the science of astronomy.  

FBAC has touched the lives of over 200,000 people through the astronomy outreach we perform at the Houston Museum of Natural Science’s George Observatory and over 70,000 students, teachers and parents through the club’s Astronomy On Wheels program.

New members are always welcome.  Come and join us!  For more information on membership, click here.