We will be open the evening of Friday, July 26 from 10 to 11 pm. There is a chance that it may be too cloudy to observe, in which case we will close early.
Friday, July 19
We will be open the evening of Friday, July 19 from 9:30 pm to 11 pm. There’s a chance clouds will roll in and force us to closer early.
2024 Student Research Symposium
The 2024 MDSGC Student Research Symposium will be held on Friday, August 2, beginning at approximately 8 a.m. EDT. The venue will be the Mt. Washington Conference Center in Baltimore, MD. For GPS navigation, aim for “Johns Hopkins At Mt. Washington, Smith Avenue, Baltimore, MD” (link) and park in the nearby visitor parking lot/garage. Here is an image from Google showing the relative locations of parking and the conference venue:
This year’s symposium will showcase presentations by student interns and researchers working at sites across Maryland. The cohort of presenters represent diverse institutions, including: Capitol Technology University, Hagerstown Community College, Morgan State University, NASA, Towson University, University of Maryland Baltimore County, University of Maryland College Park, and University of Maryland Eastern Shore. The program will be posted to this page in advance of the event.
Friday, July 12
Due to poor weather, we will not be open on the evening of Friday, July 12.
Friday, July 5
Due to poor weather, we will not be open tonight.
Friday, June 28
Because of some clouds, we’ll be closed for maintenance tonight, hoping for better conditions next week.
Friday, June 21
We will be open the evening of Friday, June 21 from 9:15 to 10:45pm. See you tonight!
Friday, June 14
Due to a chance of storms, we will not be open on Friday, June 14. Have a good weekend!
Scholarship Applications
The regular application period for Academic Year 2024-2025 scholarships has closed. The deadline to apply was Friday, May 31. Any student may still submit an off-cycle application for consideration if funding becomes available. For information about the program and to apply, visit the MDSGC Scholarships page.
April 8, 2024: Solar Eclipse
On Monday, April 8th, 2024, the Moon crossed in front of the Sun as seen from much of North America, giving millions of Americans another chance to experience a solar eclipse. Like in October 2023 and August 2017, Maryland experienced a partial solar eclipse. During a partial eclipse the Sun is never fully blocked by the Moon. This means that it is never safe to look directly at a partial eclipse without special eye protection — regular sunglasses are not okay! Please see below for more information on safe observing practices.
From Maryland, the beginning of Monday’s eclipse (aka “first contact”) was be at approximately 2:05 p.m. according to timeanddate.com, depending slightly on the viewer’s location. Maximum eclipse depth of approximately 90% coverage occurred at 3:21 p.m. and the show was all over at around 4:30 p.m.
For eclipse watchers in the Baltimore area, a couple of opportunities to come out (or stay in) and see the spectacle were:
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- On JHU’s Homewood campus – weather permitting – free! Here are some photos from the day.
- At the Maryland Science Center – with paid admission or membership.
- NASA’s online broadcast – free!
Eclipse safety: It is very important not to look at the partial eclipse directly unless you have appropriate eye protection such as special eclipse glasses (NOT regular sunglasses) from a reputable manufacturer. Courtesy of NASA, here is a summary of information about eclipse safety. Key takeaways: either use special eclipse glasses or use an indirect viewing method, such as a projected image from a pinhole camera.
While Maryland experienced only a partial eclipse, a swath of the USA stretching from Texas to New England briefly fell into darkness as the Moon fully covered the Sun, creating the fateful (and amazing) condition known as a total eclipse. The image below shows the approximate locations where this occurred; for more detail see NASA’s Where & When.
To all eclipse watchers, we wish you clear skies!