Eighty-five percent of the matter in our universe is made up of a mysterious invisible substance scientists call “dark matter.”

Comet NEOWISE has been the sensation of our July skies, the first naked-eye comet for the Northern Hemisphere in ages. David Levy knows all about comets that snag the spotlight. Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9, which broke apart in July 1992 and collided with Jupiter in July 1994, garnered the “Canadian comet sleuth” media attention around the world, including the headline on the very first cover of SkyNews 25 years ago.

Do you have a question for one of our astronomers? Our expert team will be live on Tuesday, July 28th at 7pm EDT for a “Cosmos From Your Couch” – Q and A edition! Submit a question for us at events@dunlap.utoronto.ca and then stay tuned to see it answered live on YouTube!

We're diving into some more constellations this week! We'll go over Cygnus, Lyra and Aquila, the three constellations that contain the bright stars in the Summer Triangle, and some of the cool objects you can find in those constellations!

Hover above the Moon like an astronaut and get eye-to-eye with the planets. Find colourful stars, star clusters, bright nebulae and even another galaxy. Our monthly City Star Party is the place to catch universe from within the city limits at Bayview Village Park. If you don't have a telescope then you will find many astronomers who would love to share a view. If you are thinking of buying a telescope, viewing with other people's equipment is the best way to make a good choice. If you have a telescope or binoculars, please bring it!

Everyone is invited to join us and Durham Skies for stargazing at the edge of Lake Ontario. Take a free look through different kinds of telescopes (including solar-filtered scopes) to get close-up looks at sunspots, craters on the Moon, and planets visible in the current night sky. Peer into deep space and try your hand at spotting faint star clusters and nebulae. You can even bring your own telescope along and we'll give you expert advice on how to use it better.

This week we're looking for the constellations that make up the Summer Triangle, an easy-to-find asterism in our night sky. We'll also look at a few more objects on the Moon, and if you're feeling adventurous you can try to spot Jupiter and Saturn right next to the Moon too.

First, receive a detailed introduction to the basics of astronomy through an indoor presentation. Learn your way around the night sky in an amazing portable planetarium. Next, we’ll venture out into the darkness for naked-eye viewing of constellations, more detailed observations with binoculars (provided) and viewing planets and deep-sky objects through telescopes of amateur astronomers. Rain date: Wednesday July 29, 2020

Shortly after the big bang, the universe was a cold, dark place, barely recognizable to those of us used to seeing beautiful telescope images of a sky filled with brilliant lights.

See the Milky Way and galaxies with the unaided eye. Point your telescope to find the many dim deep space objects that sprinkle the sky. Away from Toronto's light polution, there is so much to see. We observe from the Long Sault Conservation area, an hour outside of Toronto. We meet around dusk once a month in the parking lot for views only seen in dark sky conditions. We hold this event on the first clear night of our week-long window. Check our homepage for GO/NO-GO calls as this event is weather dependent.

Are you interested in learning how to navigate the night sky? Do you have a telescope or pair of binoculars and not sure how to use them to their full potential?

Watch the recorded video: https://youtu.be/tpgioCuuks8