The Rock Regional Observatory volunteers Michael Maher, Gregory Lewis, Wayne Girdlestone, Grant O’Neil, and (seated) Keith Goode. Photo: Marguerite McKinnon.
Rare events in our solar system in the early part of 2025 will make for some spectacular viewing at the The Rock Regional Observatory, say regular stargazers.
Planetary alignments – where multiple planets appear close together when viewed from Earth – have been partially visible since January.
Four of the solar system’s planets – Venus, Saturn, Jupiter and Mars – started the alignment, with Uranus and Neptune joining earlier this month.
On 28 February, Mercury rounds out the number of aligned planets to seven in what astronomers call the ‘grand alignment’. This full planetary parade has not been visible from Earth since 2010.
Semi-retired RAAF engineer Wayne Girdlestone says it’s an incredible time to stargaze.
“Within the planetary alignment, Saturn and Venus are going to be within two degrees of each other vertically, which is quite close,” he said.
“Our closest neighbour Alpha Centauri is four and a half light-years away thereabouts. Well, if you count four and a half light-years into kilometres, then convert Sydney to Brisbane to millimetres, to reach it, you’d have to go to Sydney to Brisbane, to Sydney to Brisbane, and back to Sydney again, in millimetres.”
Viewing area at The Rock Regional Observatory – a large flat area naturally, with AstroTurf for easy setup of telescopes and viewing. Photo: Marguerite McKinnon.
The Rock Regional Observatory opens its doors to the public every Saturday night from sunset (around 8 pm) to let people take in the view.
Casual observers are supported by knowledgeable volunteers with a passion for astronomy.
“The quality of the telescopes and phones have really improved, so you have a much clearer view of nebulas and clusters and all sorts of interesting things out there,” observatory director Michael Maher said.
“When you get dark-adjusted and you’ve got a decent spot and a decent collection of telescopes like we do at the observatory, you can see the way.”
Volunteer Greg Lewis connected with Michael Maher over trains and then found a deeper friendship forged in advances in stellar photography.
“I took this picture of the Carina Nebula while in my backyard at Tabletop,” Mr Lewis said, proudly showing a remarkably sharp picture of the star-forming region that’s 7500 light-years away.
Greg Lewis shows a picture he took of the Carina Nebula. Photo: Marguerite McKinnon.
Retired mechanical engineer Grant O’Neil thanks his father for his interest in astronomy.
“My dad flew bombers during World War II, and part of his training was having to do celestial navigation so they could find their way. This was before radios were invented, so he sparked my interest in astronomy,” Mr O’Neil said.
The planetary alignment is the first of many events for 2025 that continue with the blood moon and partial solar eclipse in March. This is followed by the apparent disappearance of Saturn’s rings later that month, which happens every 13 years because the Earth’s axis obscures Saturn’s orbit.
There’s also a Lyrid meteor shower and triple conjunction (which some call the smiley face) in April. In May, there is the Eta Aquariid, which are two major meteor showers.
A total lunar eclipse occurs on 8 September, and there’s a chance to see three supermoons (when the moon appears close to the Earth) later this year – the harvest moon on 7 September, the hunter’s moon on 8 October, and the diva’s moon on 4 November.
The Rock Regional Observatory, 3778 Lockhart-the Rock Rd, is open every Saturday (weather permitting) from sunset to 10:30 pm between October and April and sunset to 9:30 pm during the winter months. Entry is free, donations are appreciated.
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