Annual Astronomy Festival

2024 Astronomy Festival Dates

The 2025 Astronomy Festival will be held June 26 - 28, 2025.

 

 

NPS

Bryce Canyon Astronomy Festival

There’s no place quite like Bryce Canyon by day, and no time like a new moon in June to enjoy it by night. Astronomy festivals feature family-friendly daytime activities and special evening programs, telescope viewing, and constellation tours.

The 2025 Bryce Canyon Astronomy Festival is scheduled for Thursday, June 26, Friday, June 27, and Saturday, June 28th, 2025.

As always, attending the festival is free with park admission. Some events require advance sign-up. Evening programs have tickets available same-day at 8 a.m. the Visitor Center. There is no advance sign-up. Other programs, such as the astrophotography workshop, can be signed up for in advance. Most other programs, including nightly telescope viewing, are open to the public.

Visit our Ranger Program page for more information on our regularly-offered ranger programs.

Please be patient with us as we continue to plan this event. We will update this page as we get closer to June.

 

2025

Schedule of Events

The following days list events from 2024. These will be updated as soon as the schedule is finalized for 2025.

Day 1: Wednesday, June 25th

Free Astrophotography Workshop

9:00 p.m. - 12:30 a.m.
High Plateaus Institute and Bryce Amphitheater area
See detailed information and sign up below.

Day 2: Thursday, June 26th

Daytime Activities

11:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.
Solar telescopes (weather and staffing dependent) and a special NASA Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope and University of Utah booth.

Evening Programs

Topic Pending

8:30 p.m. 45 minutes
Hear about the history and future of the universe! I'll talk about how cosmology started, how it's going, and where it could take us. Some of the newest research from JWST and DESI have helped refine our views of the early universe and give us new insight into dark energy. Unsurprisingly, there has been some dramatic claims about this research, so come find out what all the hubbub may actually be telling us.

NOTE: Location given at sign-up. This program requires reservations, which can be made same-day at the Visitor Center beginning at 8 a.m. until capacity is reached. Tickets limited to 6 per group.

 

Topic Pending

9:00 p.m. 45 minutes
Rocket through space and sail among billions of stars and galaxies. Utilizing some amazing simulation software Astronomer Dean Regas will guide you through the mind-boggling scale of the universe. Along the way you’ll stop at the Moon and individual planets. Then you’ll make the jump to lightspeed and head to interstellar space and see all the galaxies in the universe. 

NOTE: Location given at sign-up. This program requires reservations, which can be made same-day at the Visitor Center beginning at 8 a.m. until capacity is reached. Tickets limited to 6 per group.

 

Stargazing

10:00 p.m. - Midnight
Aditional Parking lot across from Visitor Center
Shuttle hours will be extended for the festival. As parking at the Visitor Center and evening program locations will be limited, we advise parking at the Shuttle Station or boarding from your campground in the park. Shuttles will run until 12:15 a.m.

Volunteers point their telescopes at some of the night sky's most spectacular sights. White-light flashlights are prohibited due to their negative impact on night vision.

Free Astrophotography Workshop

9:00 p.m. - 12:30 a.m.
High Plateaus Institute and Bryce Amphitheater area
See detailed information and sign up below.

Day 3: Friday, June 27th

Daytime Activities

10:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.
Solar telescopes (weather and staffing dependent) and a special NASA Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope and University of Utah booth.

Evening Program

Topic Pending

8:30 p.m. 45 minutes
Planetarium Educator Dr. Amy Sayle takes you on a trip through the constellations and the eternal legends they tell. Help act out one of the greatest star stories ever told..

NOTE: Location given at sign-up. This program requires reservations, which can be made same-day at the Visitor Center beginning at 8 a.m. until capacity is reached. Tickets limited to 6 per group.

Topic Pending

North Campground Outdoor Theater
9:00 p.m. 45 minutes
Join Astrobiologist, Julia DeMarines, as we discuss three big questions with BIG implications. What would you say to an alien if given the chance? Should we be sending messages to aliens, exposing our location in the cosmos? Who speaks for Earth? Julia will discuss the history of METI (Messaging ExtraTerrestrial Intelligence) and the ethical issues invoIved in sending these powerful messages out there. If you've watched or read The Three Body Problem, this talk is for you! Audience participation is encouraged!

NOTE: If there is inclement weather this program will be moved to the Lodge Auditorium, where tickets will be required. These can be picked up same-day at the Visitor Center beginning at 8 a.m. until capacity is reached. Tickets limited to 6 per group.

Stargazing

10:00 p.m. - Midnight
Aditional Parking lot across from Visitor Center
Shuttle hours will be extended for the festival. As parking at the Visitor Center and evening program locations will be limited, we advise parking at the Shuttle Station or boarding from your campground in the park. Shuttles will run until 12:15 a.m.

Volunteers point their telescopes at some of the night sky's most spectacular sights. White-light flashlights are prohibited due to their negative impact on night vision.

Free Astrophotography Workshop

9:00 p.m. - 12:30 a.m.
High Plateaus Institute and Bryce Amphitheater area
See detailed information and sign up below.

Day 4: Saturday, June 28th

Daytime Activities

10:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.
Solar telescopes (weather and staffing dependent) and a special NASA Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope and University of Utah booth.

Keynote Program

Topic Pending

North Campground Outdoor Theater
9:00 p.m. 45 minutes
Hear from NASA scientist, Dr. Julie McEnery, about the next NASA flagship telescope, the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope. Scheduled to launch before May 2027, Roman is designed to settle essential questions in the areas of dark energy, exoplanets, and infrared astrophysics.
NOTE: If there is inclement weather this program will be moved to the Lodge Auditorium, where tickets will be required. These can be picked up same-day at the Visitor Center beginning at 8 a.m. until capacity is reached. Tickets limited to 6 per group.

Stargazing

10:00 p.m. - Midnight
Aditional Parking lot across from Visitor Center
Shuttle hours will be extended for the festival. As parking at the Visitor Center and evening program locations will be limited, we advise parking at the Shuttle Station or boarding from your campground in the park. Shuttles will run until 12:15 a.m.

Volunteers point their telescopes at some of the night sky's most spectacular sights. White-light flashlights are prohibited due to their negative impact on night vision.

Free Astrophotography Workshop

9:00 p.m. - 12:30 a.m.
High Plateaus Institute and Bryce Amphitheater area
See detailed information and sign up below.

 

New!

Free Astrophotography Workshop

Join astrophotographer Don Riddle and Dr. Michael Kelzenberg from CalTech for a special astrophotography workshop. The workshop is open to all levels of experience, but is geared toward beginners. Workshops are free, but limited to 15 people per night. Classes begin at 9 p.m. with 90 minutes of instruction at the High Plateaus Institute near Sunrise Point, followed by astrophotography among the hoodoos of the Bryce Amphitheater. Open to ages 8 and older.


Review the information below, then sign up by e-mailing [e-mail] or clicking this link.
 

Required Equipment

• Camera with ISO up to 6400 (DSLR or Mirrorless)
• Wide angle lens 50mm or less (stock lenses 18- 55 mm can work. f stop lower than 3.2 recommended)
• Sturdy Tripod
• Red light headlamp
• Warm Clothes
• Memory Card
• Thumb Drive
• Extra Batteries (Recommended)
• Camp Chair (Recommended)
• Remote shutter control (Recommended)

Schedule

9 p.m. - 10:30 p.m.
Classroom instruction on principles of astrophotography and getting your camera set up for the night.

10:30 p.m. - 12:30 a.m. (or as late as you like)
Astrophotography among the hoodoos of the Bryce Amphitheater near Sunrise Point. Experiment with composition and other special effects with Don and Dr. Kelzenberg.

(Optional) Next Day: 10 a.m. - 11:30 a.m. and 1 p.m. - 2:30 p.m.
Learn in-depth how to edit the photos you took the night before with guidance from Don and Dr. Kelzenberg.

 

Map of Festival Activities

Please come back here soon for a 2025 festival map.

 

Daytime Activities

Daytime activities include activity tents, solar telescopes, and other opportunities open to the public at the Visitor Center between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. each day of the festival.

 

Evening Programs

Evening Programs are the only festival events that require a free ticket. Pick up a ticket the day of the program at the Visitor Center Information Desk. Programs are held at 8:30 p.m. and 9 p.m. each night, and the location is shared when you pick up your ticket. See Schedule of Events above for program details.

 

Telescope Stargazing Site

This year's telescope site will be located within the park at the Visitor Center. It will be open each night of the festival from 10 p.m. to midnight and is open to the public. We are excited to share the night sky with our visitors, and thank our partners at the Salt Lake Astronomical Society and University of Utah for their participation, expertise, and generosity with their telescopes.

There will be no night time parking in the Visitor Center parking lot during the event. Parking is available across the street and other locations within the park. The Star Shuttle will be available to bring visitors to the Visitor Center. Please do not walk to the Visitor Center.

Weather Cancellations

In the event that weather requires cancelling telescope viewing, we will post an update no later than 10 p.m. to our Current Conditions page and our Twitter page. No account is needed to view the page.

Transportation

There will be no parking at the Visitor Center in the evening hours. We strongly recommend parking at the Shuttle Station and riding the Star Shuttle into the park. If you're staying at a park campground or the Lodge, you can pick the shuttle up there. The last shuttle bus leaving the Visitor Center will depart each night around 12:15 a.m. and we'll ensure everyone gets where they need to go.

Handicap Parking

Information pending. Please check back later.

What to Bring

Overnight temperatures are typically in the 40s Fahrenheit. A light jacket is a good idea if you plan to be outside for awhile after dark. While red light flashlights are okay, we ask that no white light flashlights be used due to their negative effect on night vision. After using a white light, it can take well over thirty minutes for your eyes to begin to readjust to the profound darkness of Bryce Canyon.

Amenities

Portapotties will be available at the Telescope Site. No other amenities will be available.

 

Star Shuttle

Each night of the festival, shuttle service will continue to limited locations between 8 p.m. and 12:15 a.m. Parking will be limited at Evening Program and Telescope locations, so we strongly recommend parking at the Shuttle Station in Bryce Canyon City (2 miles north of park entrance) and riding the Star Shuttle into the park. Shuttles arrive at each stop every 15 minutes. Use of the Star Shuttle is free with park admission.

Star Shuttle Stops

• Shuttle Station
• Ruby's Inn Campground
• Visitor Center (Telescope Viewing Site)
• Sunset Campground
• Bryce Lodge
• North Campground Outdoor Theater

 

NPS/Keith Moore

 

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Can I park in the Visitor Center during the event?

No. There will be no parking at the Visitor Center. Visitors must ride the Star Shuttle from shuttle parking or other lots within the park. This is to eliminate visitors needing to walk across the main park road.

Is the Star Shuttle free?

Yes, with admission into the park. 

Will there be restrooms available?

Yes. There will be porta-potties located outside the Visitor Center (Telescope Viewing site). No other amenities will be available after the Visitor Center closes.