Despite the problems presented by spread of COVID-19, the UNT Astronomy staff have been busy reaching out to the community recruiting new students, preparing for online experiments, and developing innovative virtual planetarium shows.

UNT's observatory manager Preston Starr is developing a unique program to allow undergraduate astronomy lab students the opportunity to operate UNT's telescopes remotely during their astronomy laboratories. Students will be able to operate telescopes using their personal computers instead of having to travel to the Rafes Urban Astronomy Center. This program makes UNT one of the first universities in the country to offer online telescope labs for undergraduates.

UNT's Astronomy Program is also streaming live shows to its Facebook pages for the entire community to experience. Currently there are two streaming series: Astronomy Trivia and the Weekly Sky Update:

In Astronomy Trivia, participants compete in real-time with friends and family to win prizes. A new theme is presented each week. This streams live to the UNT Sky Theatre Facebook page or the UNT Rafes Urban Astronomy Center on Wednesdays at 7pm.

The Weekly Sky Update is designed to get viewers familiar with constellations and other celestial objects that can be found in the night sky that week. This streams live to both Facebook pages every Saturday at 2pm.

While these streams are free to the public, we have also launched a donation campaign in response to our facilities' closures due to the pandemic. Your donations will sustain and advance our outreach programs. Make your donation to UNT Astronomy at http://astronomy.unt.edu/donate-astronomy.

For more information on the virtual series, visit the UNT Astronomy website. Be sure to like and follow us on the Sky Theater or Rafes Urban Astronomy Center Facebook pages to get the most up-to-date information on our shows.