Night Sky Viewing ~ Niabi Zoo Parking Lot

Name: Night Sky Viewing ~ Niabi Zoo Parking Lot
Start: 2026-04-18T19:30:00-05:00
End: 2026-04-18T23:30:00-05:00
Location: Niabi Zoo Rd, Coal Valley, IL 61240, United States

Schedule

Sat Apr 18 2026 at 07:30 pm to 11:30 pm

UTC-05:00

Location

Niabi Zoo Rd, Coal Valley, IL 61240, United States | Coal Valley, IL

Please join us after sunset at the Niabi Zoo Parking Lot for a tour of the Spring night sky. Telescopes will be set up or bring your own and join us. The planets Jupiter and Venus will be visible shortly after sunset. Jupiter's four Gallilean moons will all be visible, with Io & Europa closely approaching each other (from our line of sight) at around 8:35PM. The Orion Nebula will still be visible in the southwest. Double stars Cor Caroli and Gamma Leonis will be visible.
An amazing red supergiant carbon star called La Superba will be visible. Wonderful globular cluster M3 will also be visible. The Beehive, an open cluster in Cancer, will be observable as well as the M104 (the Sombrero Galaxy) in Virgo and M51 (the Whirlpool Galaxy) in Canes Venatici . These and many other fine objects will be visible, weather permitting.
Please dress for the weather and keep in mind restroom facilities are not available. Weather related updates will be posted on April 18 if needed. FREE & FAMILY FRIENDLY!!