Calendar of Events

Special Events

At the Observatory...
February 3	All Space Considered	Free admission
February 19 4:00 p.m. and 6:30 p.m.	Free Public Lecture: First American in Orbit; John Glenn and the Flight of Freedom 7 by Griffith Observatory Astronomical Observer Anthony Cook	Free admission
February 20	Presidents Day	Observatory closed
February 25 2:00 - 9:45 p.m.	Public Star Party	Free admission
March 2	All Space Considered	Free admission
March 5	FOTO Cosmic Musings lecture	Reservations and tickets required
March 19 Local Noon (1:01 p.m.) & Sunset (7:05 p.m.)	Spring Equinox press events	Free admission
March 26	Cesar Chavez Day	Observatory closed
March 27	Observatory open	Observatory open Noon -10:00 p.m.
March 31	Public Star Party	Free admission

In the Sky...			Exploring Space...
February 9	Moon near Mars		Late March	SpaceX Dragon Capsule launched to International Space Station on a
February 12	Moon near Saturn			Falcon 9 Rocket from Cape Canaveral, Florida. First commercial
				demonstration of an unmanned
February 25	Moon near Venus			supply mission to ISS.
February 26	Moon near Jupiter		March 8	Twin NASA GRAIL probes start
				mapping moon’s gravitational field.
March 5	Mars closest to earth
March 7	Full moon near Mars		March 29	Delta IV rocket with classified
			Time: TBD	payload to launch from Vandenberg
March 11	Moon near Saturn in the morning sky			Air Force Base. May be visible throughout southern California
March 12	Jupiter closest to Venus
			March 30 Time: TBD	Soyuz launch to carry 3 new crew members to the International Space
March 19 10:14 p.m.	Spring starts			Station.
March 25-26	Venus, Jupiter, Pleiades and Moon grouped together
More Sky Info ... Griffith Observatory's Weekly Sky Report			Note: Launch times are subject to change. The latest launch schedules may be found here.
All times are local Pacific Standard Time through March 10. On March 11 and thereafter all times are local Pacific Daylight Time.

Regular Programs

Griffith Observatory presents daily programs in the Samuel Oschin Planetarium and Leonard Nimoy Event Horizon Theater.
It also hosts periodic special events and monthly public star parties.

Hearing assist devices are available upon request in both the Samuel Oschin Planetarium and the Leonard Nimoy Event Horizon Theater.

2012 Holiday Schedule

New Year's Day (Jan. 1) - OPEN
Martin Luther King, Jr. (Jan. 16) - CLOSED
Presidents' Day (Feb. 20) - CLOSED
Cesar Chavez Day (Mar. 26) - CLOSED
Memorial Day (May 28) - CLOSED
Independence Day (Jul. 4) - OPEN
Labor Day (Sept. 3) - CLOSED
Columbus Day (Oct. 8) - CLOSED
Veteran's Day (Nov. 12) - CLOSED
Thanksgiving Day (Nov. 22) - CLOSED
Christmas Day (Dec. 25) - CLOSED

Free public telescopes...

are available each evening the Observatory is open and skies are clear. Knowledgeable telescope demonstrators are available to guide visitors in observing. Please be aware that the demonstrators must cut off the line for each telescope to enable all viewing to be completed by 9:45 p.m. Hours for telescope operation are not the same as for the building (which closes at 10:00 p.m.).

Phone Contacts

General Information Line: 213-473-0800
L.A. City's "311" Information Line: 866-4LACITY

Those wishing to attend programs at Griffith Observatory may drive up and park in the main lot or along adjacent roads. Please be advised that parking is limited and not guaranteed. Demand for parking is highest on weekends.