Saturday, Oct. 20, is International Observe the Moon Night, an annual worldwide celebration that encourages observation and appreciation of the moon. Although all you need to do is look up, UCLA invites the public to come to campus to view the moon as you have likely never seen it — in minute detail through a high-powered, world-class telescope.

The free event, scheduled from 7 to about 9 p.m., will be held on the roof of UCLA’s Mathematical Sciences Building (map).

The celebration also includes a sprinkling of moon dust and meteorites, both available for guests’ inspection. Lunar experts from UCLA’s Earth, planetary and space sciences department and the physics and astronomy department will be on hand to answer questions.

The event is subject to cancellation if the sky is cloudy. See UCLA’s International Observe the Moon Night 2018 page for more information.

And now for a little moon minutiae. Earth’s nearest neighbor is 240,000 miles away. The moon’s surface contains many craters; the larger craters date back billions of years, said UCLA astrophysicist David Jewitt, who added that the event is great fun for people of all ages.

To get to the roof, enter the Mathematical Sciences Building from the Court of Sciences on the fifth floor and take the elevator to the ninth floor. Parking is available in Structure 2, at Hilgard and Westholme avenues, on the east side of the UCLA campus.

The event is presented by UCLA’s Institute for Planets and Exoplanets.