Space Center Houston’s Starlight Social returns Oct. 25 with a new time and new activities. Enjoy our happy hour format with drink specials from 5:30-8:30 p.m. and mingle with other space enthusiasts in our social learning environment.
Tickets online are $10.95. Tickets at the door are $12.95. Guests must be 21 or older with valid ID.
Take advantage of our mixed drink specials to refuel your planetary adventure. Food and beverages are available for purchase at our Launch Pad in Independence Plaza.
This Starlight Social will be held in Independence Plaza. Join astronomers from the Lunar Planetary Society and search the skies through a professional telescope. There will also be time for some casual conversations with Lunar Planetary Institute (LPI) fellows Dr. Katie Robinson and Dr. Heather Meyer as well as University of St. Thomas professor Dr. Daniel Engfer.
Robinson is a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Center for Lunar Science and Exploration. Her previous graduate and postdoctoral research involves characterization of volatiles in silicic lunar rocks. She is particularly interested in hydrogen isotopes in lunar apatite, as it can preserve information about the source(s) of the Moon’s water. As part of her work at LPI, she studies water and hydrogen isotopes in Apollo samples and lunar meteorites, as well as carrying out uranium–lead dating of various lunar impact melts.
Meyer’s research encompasses the formation and degradation of planetary surfaces, particularly regarding impact cratering, tectonics and volcanic processes of Mars, Mercury and Europa. She has conducted research on explosive volcanic landforms on Mars, mid-sized impact basins and volcanic plains on Mercury and impact basins and tectonics on Europa. Her current research focuses on the formation of large lunar impact basins and their associated deposits. With the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera Science Team, she integrates available remote sensing datasets to derive insights into the formation and impact features. This work has implications for understanding the basin formation process, the global lunar stratigraphy and future lunar landed and sample return missions.
Engfer is a physics and astronomy professor at the University of St. Thomas. He completed his Ph.D. in physics (with a space physics specialization) at the University of Texas at Dallas, his Master of Science in geophysics at the University of Houston and his undergraduate studies at dinkinson College. His current research interests include planetary geophysics and space weather. He is a lifetime amateur astronomer and space enthusiast.
The sun sets at 6:40 p.m. on Oct. 25. Don’t miss your chance to heat up the night with our Starlight Social. Get your ticket today!