SFU Trottier Observatory

10/02/2026

The sky is clearing and that means Starry Nights is ON tonight! Join us in person at Burnaby campus 8-11pm. Please arrive by 10pm to join the virtual queue.

Tonight's target list includes Saturn, the dumbbell nebula and the M13 globular cluster - objects that are bright enough to see even with some clouds. Come up to the observatory for an exclusive view of these objects not possible with a less powerful telescope!

Thanks to Royal Astronomical Society of Canada - Vancouver for helping us make these events happen! https://ow.ly/gYAB50ZU77o

09/25/2026

We're in for a soggy evening on campus so we will not be going ahead with Starry Nights Online tonight. Our next scheduled event will be in-person at Burnaby campus Friday, October 2, if the weather cooperates.

09/18/2026

Starry Nights is ON tonight! Join us in person at Burnaby campus 8-11pm for a rare opportunity to see an active supernova in the galaxy NGC 7331! Get it while it's hot (literally) because the supernova will fade over the coming weeks, never to be seen again from Earth.

Observatory guests will sign up for entry using a queuing website (scanning the QR code that will be on a sign beside the Observatory) for virtual queuing. Last call to sign in to the queue is at 10:30pm.

Thanks to Royal Astronomical Society of Canada - Vancouver for helping us make these events happen! https://ow.ly/aaLH50ZPn0M

09/11/2026

Unfortunately it will be too cloudy tonight for us to go ahead with Starry Nights tonight. Keep your fingers crossed for better weather next week!

09/04/2026

September is here, bringing the fall weather with it! 🍂 There will be NO Starry Nights tonight, September 4, on account of the clouds. ☁️ Happy Academic New Year to all those starting a new term, and we hope to see you next week, with our friends at Royal Astronomical Society of Canada - Vancouver.

08/28/2026

We hope you caught a glimpse of last nights' lunar eclipse between the clouds! Unfortunately those clouds are still piling up, and there will be no Starry Nights Online tonight, August 28. Looking forward to more clear Fridays to keep the Star Party going, with our friends at the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada - Vancouver.

08/21/2026

After another hot summer week, there is rain in the forecast! But that means there will be no Starry Nights tonight, August 21. We hope to see you next week, and our friends at the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada - Vancouver

08/14/2026

Where there is smoke, there are pyrocumulonimbus heat-storms: the hazy air means that there is no Starry Nights tonight, August 14. We hope to see you next week, and our friends at the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada - Vancouver.

08/07/2026

With incoming clouds predicted for this evening, there will be NO Starry Nights, tonight, August 7. We hope to see you under clearer skies next week, along with our friends at Royal Astronomical Society of Canada - Vancouver.

07/31/2026

Starry Nights is ONLINE tonight! Join us on YouTube 10-11pm for views of the ring-ed Rose Cluster (M5), and the gorgeous Iris Nebula, along with brief presentations on the multi-star system Albireo and research on giant star-forming clumps in the early universe.

Watch images of outer space being taken in real time! Live from th...