North Dakota Historic Observatory

North Dakota Historic Observatory Northern Sky Astronomical Society has inherited observatory equipment from Geography and Space Studies, we have begun building our own public facility

In 1967 and 1968 two University of North Dakota Geography department faculty built the first "modern" astronomical observatory, north of campus on the Bronson Property. That observatory operated until the early-mid 70's and was abandoned. In 2007, a shift in research faculty at the University of North Dakota department of Space Studies caused the destruction of the Planetary Science Observatory. Both facilities had astronomical telescopes which were offered to the Northern Sky Astronomical Society. NSAS's primary mission is to be the public outreach arm of astronomy on UND campus. We have decided to build a public observatory and utilize equipment donated to us from Geography as well as Space Studies for this facility. We have partnered with East Grand Forks Heritage Village to permanently house the historic observatory and telescopes. And will be able to use the historic observatories for public observing each month.

10/05/2026

Our next family astronomy night at heritage village will be the 16th of October, if cloudy or snowstorm it'll have a backup day of the 17th. Scope viewing will begin at 8pm. The crescent moon and planet Saturn should be good visibility. This could be the last of the year since winters on its way, so if you were waiting for one, this could be it. Updates as the date draws nearer.

09/20/2026

We've canceled observe the moon night due to weather forecast of clouds. Oct 3 will be our next telescopes at turtle river.

International observe the moon night @ Heritage Village in East Grand Forks. (Amundson classroom building) Starts 7:30...
09/16/2026

International observe the moon night @ Heritage Village in East Grand Forks. (Amundson classroom building) Starts 7:30pm with moon activities with Dakota Science Center and Northern Sky Astronomical Society. Telescopes will begin at 8:30pm and event runs until 10:30pm.

This event is free of charge, and is weather dependent i.e. clear skies no snow. Friday 18th or Saturday 19th whichever night is clearer. Check the northern sky Astronomical Society Facebook for last minute changes.

09/10/2026

Next event. International observe the moon night at heritage village. September 18/19 depending on weather. Start time will be 8:30pm. Dakota science center will have certificates and other neat stuff and our astronomy club will be setting up our telescopes.

09/06/2026

Astronomy club meeting.
UND odegard hall atmospherium
Wednesday 7pm
Monthly meeting followed by a planetarium show, what's up in the night sky.

08/28/2026

Thank you to the folks who came out tonight to view the eclipse at heritage village. Awesome turnout tonight.

We have another event coming NEXT WEEKEND our Turtle River State Park Star party for September. There are going to be more announcements.

08/27/2026

So our members are saying there could be northern lights during the eclipse tomorrow night. Sounds like a party, an eclipse party.

08/24/2026

Lunar eclipse August 27th maximum around 11. We will have the observatory open at 9pm and scopes and cameras will be on hand to view the event. This all depends on clear skies and clouds will cause a cancelation.

08/22/2026

Our next event will be next weekend, lunar eclipse. Details will be posted.

Address

East Grand Forks, MN

Website

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when North Dakota Historic Observatory posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Shortcuts

Share