Star Party and Guest Speaker at Homolovi State Park

Homolovi State Park

2nd Saturday of the Month, April - November   7 p.m. (April-Aug.) | 6 p.m. (Sept.-Nov.)

The Winslow Homolovi Observatory

Homolovi State Park's astronomy events take place on the second Saturday of each month and are free with paid park entry. Each event features a guest speaker during the first hour; presentations are held in the park's visitor center and museum. Following the presentation, telescope viewing is available through the Winslow Homolovi Observatory's Moore Telescope (Celestron 14" Schmidt-Cassegrain). Night sky targets will be announced for the evening and may include deep space nebulae, star clusters, and more.

Thank you to the Little Colorado River Valley Astronomy Club for supporting these astronomy events. Learn more about them at  www.lcrvac.org  or nightsky.jpl.nasa.gov/clubs/lcrvac.

View the Winslow Homolovi Observatory newsletter for information on the upcoming Star Party guest speaker, as well as to preview night sky targets for telescope viewing.

Camping reservations for the night of the events can be made online at azstateparks.com or by calling (877) MY-Parks (877)-697-2757. Information about guest speakers will be updated as it becomes available.

2026 Schedule

July 11, 2026 at 7-9:30 p.m.
August 8, 2026 at 7-9:30 p.m.*
September 12, 2026 at 6-8:30 p.m.
October 10, 2026 at 6-8:30 p.m.
November 14, 2026 at 6-8:30 p.m.

*See guest speaker/program information below.

Night sky as seen from Homolovi State Park Telescope

 Program Information

A photo of the Lunar Reconnaisance Orbiter in space above the moon with the Earth in the distance. Text promotes the Winslow Homolovi Observatory event on Saturday, August 8 at 7 p.m. which will look at how this orbiter from NASA is paving the way for human and robotic exploration of the moon.

Guest Presenter — August 8

The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera (LROC) Science Operations Center (SOC) team has been acquiring and analyzing high-resolution images of the Moon for about 17 years as part of NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) mission. The team is responsible for the full data lifecycle, including capturing, calibrating, processing, archiving, and distributing observation data through NASA’s Planetary Data System. 

Guest Presenter — September 12

In September, our program is "How to Land a Rover on Mars" with David Mayer. David Mayer is a Geographer at the USGS Astrogeology Science Center where he specializes in creating and analyzing topographic maps of planets and moons throughout our solar system. He also leads the planetary geodesy project team in Astrogeology and helps maintain the digital archive of images collected by NASA spacecraft from 1966 to the present. David earned a master's degree in Earth and planetary geology from Washington University in St. Louis in 2009 and a master's degree in geography from Clark University in 2013. 

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