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Tuesday, December 24, 2024

 

Thursday December 26 to Thursday January 2

The New Moon is Tuesday December 31. In the evening Venus is coming closer to Saturn. Jupiter, Saturn, Venus and Mars are visible all together (briefly) in the evening sky. On the 2nd the thin crescent Moon, Venus and Saturn form a line. Jupiter is past opposition and is visible all night long. In the morning Mars and Jupiter continue to draw apart. On the 29th Mercury is below the thin crescent Moon in the morning twilight.

The New Moon is Tuesday December 31.

Western evening sky on Thursday, January 2 as seen from Adelaide at 21:39 ACDST (60 minutes after sunset, click to embiggen).   

Venus is readily visible from early twilight to when the sky is fully dark. Venus is coming closer to Saturn.

The insets are the telescopic views of Venus and Saturn at this time.




Similar views will be seen from the rest of Australia at the equivalent local time (60 minutes after sunset). 

 
North-eastern evening sky on Saturday, December 28 as seen from Adelaide at 22:18 ACDST (90 minutes after sunset), Jupiter is rising in the north-east.
 
The inset is the telescope view of  Jupiter at this time.  (click to embiggen).

 

 

 

 

Similar views will be seen from the rest of Australia at roughly the equivalent local time (90 minutes after sunset).

North-western sky on Saturday, December 28 as seen from Adelaide at 4:56 ACDST (60 minutes before sunrise, click to embiggen). Mars is coming closer to Castor and Pollux.

The inset is the telescope view of  Mars at this time.  (click to embiggen).

 

 

 

 

 

Similar views will be seen from the rest of Australia at roughly the equivalent local time ((60 minutes before sunrise).
 
Eastern sky on Sunday, December 29 as seen from Adelaide at 5:12 ACDST (45 minutes before sunrise, click to embiggen). Mercury is below the thin crescent Moon.

 

 

 

 

 

Similar views will be seen from the rest of Australia at roughly the equivalent local time (45 minutes before sunrise).
 
Whole sky on Saturday, December 28 as seen from Adelaide at 22:33 ACDST, 105 minutes after sunset (click to embiggen).


Mars is just rising in the east. Jupiter is rising in the north-east. Saturn is now above the north-western horizon and coming closer to Venus. Venus is just setting.  Orion  the hunter now high in the north-east. The Southern Cross isrising in the Southern sky.  The moon is gone and the fainter clusters and nebula are now readily visible.

 

    

 

 Elsewhere in Australia will see a similar view at the equivalent time (105 minutes after sunset).

 

 

Mercury is low in the morning twilight. On the 29th Mercury is below the thin crescent Moon.

Venus climbs higher in the evening twilight and is readily visible in the evening twilight. Venus is coming closer to Saturn.

Mars is rising in the evening sky but is still better in the morning.

Jupiter is rising in the the evening sky when the sky is fully dark and was at opposition, when it was biggest and brightest as seen from Earth, on the December the 8th.

Saturn is lowering in the evening sky coming closer to Venus.

Printable PDF maps of the Eastern sky at 10 pm AEST, Western sky at 10 pm AEST. For further details and more information on what's up in the sky, see Southern Skywatch.


 

Star Map via Virtual sky. Use your mouse to scroll around and press 8 when your pointer is in the map to set to the current time.

Cloud cover predictions can be found at SkippySky.

Here is the near-real time satellite view of the clouds (day and night) http://satview.bom.gov.au/





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Monday, December 23, 2024

 

Bright ISS passes for Christmas!

ISS as seen from Adelaide on the evening of  Wednesday 25 December at 22:09 ACDST. Simulated in Stellarium. Click to embiggen.ISS  as seen from Melbourne on the evening of  Wednesday 25 December at 22:28 AEDST. Simulated in Stellarium (the ISS will actually be a bright dot). Click to embiggen.ISS as seen from Perth on the evening of  Wednesday 25 December at 21:12 AWST. Simulated in Stellarium (the ISS will actually be a bright dot). Click to embiggen.
All sky chart showing local times from Heavens Above for Wednesday 25 December for Adelaide.All sky chart showing local  times from Heavens Above for Wednesday 25 December for Melbourne.All sky chart showing local times from Heavens Above for Wednesday 25 Decemberfor Perth. 

Over the next few days most of Australia will see some very nice bright passes of the ISS, some passing bright stars or Venus or Jupiter. For most of Australia (sorry Darwin and Brisbane) there is a very nice pass on Christmas day. 

The following tables are from data provided from Heavens Above.

 

Passes from Adelaide (ACDST/ACST) 

Date Brightness Start Highest point End Pass type
(mag) Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az.
22 Dec-2.122:56:5410°SSW22:59:3429°SSE22:59:3429°SSEvisible
23 Dec-1.622:08:0710°SSW22:10:3819°SSE22:12:0515°ESEvisible
23 Dec-0.923:44:1510°WSW23:44:5615°WSW23:44:5615°WSWvisible
24 Dec-1.121:19:3310°S21:21:1213°SSE21:22:5110°SEvisible
24 Dec-2.822:54:5610°SW22:57:2947°SW22:57:2947°SWvisible
25 Dec-3.122:05:4810°SW22:09:0645°SE22:10:0434°Evisible
26 Dec-2.121:16:4810°SSW21:19:4526°SE21:22:4010°Evisible
26 Dec-1.822:53:3010°WSW22:55:3123°WNW22:55:3123°WNWvisible
27 Dec-3.322:03:5410°WSW22:07:1353°NW22:08:1038°Nvisible
28 Dec-3.721:14:3310°SW21:17:5775°SE21:20:5113°NEvisible
29 Dec-1.522:02:4810°W22:05:0116°NW22:06:2613°NNWvisible
30 Dec-2.321:12:4510°WSW21:15:4831°NW21:18:4910°NNEvisible

 


Passes from Brisbane (AEST) 

 

Date Brightness Start Highest point End Pass type
(mag) Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az.
23 Dec-0.421:41:4510°SSW21:42:0512°SSW21:42:0512°SSWvisible
24 Dec-1.120:53:2410°S20:54:3813°SSE20:54:3813°SSEvisible
25 Dec-0.521:39:3010°SW21:40:0414°SW21:40:0414°SWvisible
26 Dec-2.220:50:2510°SSW20:52:4031°S20:52:4031°Svisible
27 Dec-1.920:01:3710°S20:04:1621°SE20:05:1918°ESEvisible
28 Dec-1.219:13:2310°SSE19:14:4712°SE19:16:1110°ESEvisible
28 Dec-2.520:48:2410°SW20:50:5138°W20:50:5138°Wvisible
29 Dec-3.819:59:0110°SW20:02:2372°SE20:03:3536°ENEvisible
30 Dec-2.619:09:5410°SSW19:13:0033°SE19:16:0310°ENEvisible
30 Dec-1.120:47:4310°W20:49:1313°WNW20:49:1313°WNWvisible
31 Dec-2.119:57:1510°WSW20:00:1027°NW20:02:0316°Nvisible

Passes from Darwin (ACST) 

Date Brightness Start Highest point End Pass type
(mag) Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az.
31 Dec-2.021:03:0210°SSW21:04:5530°SSW21:04:5530°SSWvisible


Passes from Hobart (AEDST/AEST)  

Date Brightness Start Highest point End Pass type
(mag) Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az.
23 Dec-3.622:37:3610°WSW22:40:5862°NW22:42:0536°NNEvisible
24 Dec-3.721:48:2210°SW21:51:4779°SSE21:54:3814°ENEvisible
24 Dec-1.323:26:1310°W23:27:2913°WNW23:27:2913°WNWvisible
25 Dec-2.122:36:1510°W22:39:0224°NW22:40:0420°NNWvisible
26 Dec-2.921:46:4110°WSW21:49:5540°NW21:52:4013°NNEvisible
28 Dec-1.421:45:3310°W21:47:4416°NW21:49:5310°Nvisible

 

Passes from Melbourne (AEDST/AEST) 

Date Brightness Start Highest point End Pass type
(mag) Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az.
23 Dec-3.122:38:0410°SW22:41:2347°SE22:42:0539°ESEvisible
24 Dec-2.221:49:0410°SSW21:52:0629°SSE21:54:3813°Evisible
24 Dec-1.723:25:4610°WSW23:27:2922°W23:27:2922°Wvisible
25 Dec-3.622:36:1810°WSW22:39:3857°NW22:40:0452°Nvisible
26 Dec-3.721:47:0010°SW21:50:2574°SE21:52:4019°ENEvisible
27 Dec-1.822:35:0510°W22:37:3319°NW22:38:1018°NWvisible
28 Dec-2.621:45:1610°WSW21:48:2435°NW21:50:5114°NNEvisible
30 Dec-1.121:44:3910°WNW21:46:0412°NW21:47:2810°NNWvisible


Passes from Perth (AWST) 

Date Brightness Start Highest point End Pass type
(mag) Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az.
22 Dec-1.322:00:3910°SSW22:02:2419°S22:02:2419°Svisible
23 Dec-1.221:12:1210°S21:14:0114°SSE21:14:5613°SEvisible
23 Dec-0.322:47:4010°SW22:47:4611°SW22:47:4611°SWvisible
24 Dec-1.821:58:2610°SW22:00:1930°SSW22:00:1930°SSWvisible
25 Dec-2.621:09:2610°SSW21:12:3333°SE21:12:5432°SEvisible
26 Dec-1.720:20:3710°SSW20:23:1019°SE20:25:3111°Evisible
26 Dec-1.521:56:5010°WSW21:58:2121°W21:58:2121°Wvisible
27 Dec-3.821:07:2010°SW21:10:4271°NW21:11:0065°Nvisible
28 Dec-3.420:18:0410°SW20:21:2554°SE20:23:4218°ENEvisible
29 Dec-1.821:06:0010°W21:08:3220°NW21:09:1718°NWvisible
30 Dec-2.720:16:0610°WSW20:19:1940°NW20:22:0412°NNEvisible

 

Passes from Sydney (AEDST/AEST) 

Date Brightness Start Highest point End Pass type
(mag) Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az.
23 Dec-2.122:39:4910°SW22:42:0534°S22:42:0534°Svisible
24 Dec-2.221:50:5410°SSW21:53:5027°SE21:54:3824°ESEvisible
25 Dec-1.421:02:0810°SSW21:04:2717°SSE21:06:4510°ESEvisible
25 Dec-2.022:38:0310°WSW22:40:0430°WSW22:40:0430°WSWvisible
26 Dec-3.821:48:4410°SW21:52:0880°SE21:52:4059°ENEvisible
27 Dec-2.920:59:3510°SSW21:02:5040°SE21:05:1915°ENEvisible
27 Dec-1.122:37:1410°W22:38:1013°WNW22:38:1013°WNWvisible
28 Dec-2.421:47:0710°WSW21:50:0629°NW21:50:5126°NNWvisible
29 Dec-3.420:57:3110°SW21:00:5160°NW21:03:3514°NNEvisible
31 Dec-1.420:56:1110°W20:58:3318°NW21:00:5410°Nvisible

 

 

When and what you will see is VERY location dependent, so you need to use  Heavens Above  to get site specific predictions for your location, a small difference in location can mean the difference between ISS passing over the Moon or a planet or missing it completely. 

As always, start looking several minutes before the pass is going to start to get yourself oriented and your eyes dark adapted. Be patient, there may be slight differences in the time of the ISS appearing due to orbit changes not picked up by the predictions. Use the most recent prediction for your site.

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Tuesday, December 17, 2024

 

Thursday December 19 to Thursday December 26

The Last Quarter Moon is Monday December 23. Earth is at solstice on the 21st. In the evening Venus is coming closer to Saturn. Jupiter , Saturn and Venus are visible in the evening sky. Jupiter is just past opposition and is visible all night long. In the morning Mars and Jupiter continue to draw apart. Mars is close to the  Moon on the morning of the 19th.

The Last Quarter Moon is Monday December 23.The Moon is at apogee, when it is furthest from the earth, on the 24th. Earth is at solstice on the 21st, when the night is shortest.

Western evening sky on Saturday, December 21 as seen from Adelaide at 21:35 ACDST (60 minutes after sunset, click to embiggen).   

Venus is readily visible from early twilight to when the sky is fully dark. Venus is coming closer to Saturn.

The insets are the telescopic views of Venus and Saturn at this time.




Similar views will be seen from the rest of Australia at the equivalent local time (60 minutes after sunset). 
 
North-eastern evening sky on Saturday, December 21 as seen from Adelaide at 22:16 ACDST (90 minutes after sunset), Jupiter is rising in the north-east.
 
The inset is the telescope view of Jupiter at this time.  (click to embiggen).

 

 

 

 

Similar views will be seen from the rest of Australia at roughly the equivalent local time (90 minutes after sunset).

North-western sky on Thursday, December 19 as seen from Adelaide at 4:51 ACDST (60 minutes before sunrise, click to embiggen), Mars is near the waning Moon

 

 

 

 

 

Similar views will be seen from the rest of Australia at roughly the equivalent local time ((60 minutes before sunrise).
 
Whole sky on Saturday, December 21 as seen from Adelaide at 22:16 ACDST, 90 minutes after sunset (click to embiggen).


Jupiter is rising in the north-east. Saturn is now above the north-western horizon and coming closer to Venus. Orion  the hunter is rising in the east. The Southern Cross is low in the Southern sky.  The moon is gone and the fainter clusters and nebula are now readily visible.

 

    

 

 Elsewhere in Australia will see a similar view at the equivalent time (90 minutes after sunset).

 

 

Mercury is lost in the twilight.

Venus climbs higher in the evening twilight and is readily visible in the evening twilight. Venus is coming closer to Saturn.

Mars is rising in the morning sky and near Jupiter. The pair continue to draw apart. Mars is close to the  Moon on the morning of 19th.

Jupiter is rising in the the evening sky when the sky is fully dark and wss at opposition, when it is biggest and brightest as seen from Earth, on the 8th.

Saturn is lowering in the evening sky coming closer to Venus.

Printable PDF maps of the Eastern sky at 10 pm AEST, Western sky at 10 pm AEST. For further details and more information on what's up in the sky, see Southern Skywatch.


 

Star Map via Virtual sky. Use your mouse to scroll around and press 8 when your pointer is in the map to set to the current time.

Cloud cover predictions can be found at SkippySky.

Here is the near-real time satellite view of the clouds (day and night) http://satview.bom.gov.au/





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Tuesday, December 10, 2024

 

Thursday December 12 to Thursday December 19

The Full Moon is Sunday December 15. In the evening Venus is coming closer to Saturn. Jupiter , Saturn and Venus are visible in the evening sky. Jupiter is at opposition and is visible all night long. Jupiter is close to the nearly full Moon on the 14th. In the morning Mars and Jupiter continue to draw apart. Mars is close to the  Moon on the 18th and 19th. The Geminid meteor shower peaks on the morning of the 14th, but moonlight interferes.

The Full Moon is Sunday December 15.

Western evening sky on Saturday, December 14 as seen from Adelaide at 21:31 ACDST (60 minutes after sunset, click to embiggen).   

Venus is readily visible from early twilight to when the sky is fully dark. Venus is coming closer to Saturn.

The insets are the telescopic views of Venus and Saturn at this time.




Similar views will be seen from the rest of Australia at the equivalent local time (60 minutes after sunset).
 
North-eastern evening sky on Saturday, December 14 as seen from Adelaide at 22:12 ACDST (90 minutes after sunset), Jupiter is rising in the north-east and is close to the Moon.
 
The inset is the telescope view of the Jupiter at this time (Io is eclipsed by Jupiter).  (click to embiggen).

 

 

 

 

Similar views will be seen from the rest of Australia at roughly the equivalent local time (90 minutes after sunset).

North-eastern sky on Wednesday, December 18 as seen from Adelaide at midnight ACDST, Mars is rising just above the waning Moon

 

 

 

 

 

Similar views will be seen from the rest of Australia at roughly the equivalent local time.
 
Northern morning sky on Saturday, December 14 as seen from Adelaide at 03:13 ACDST, when the Geminid meter shower is at it's highest.
 
Mars and Jupiter form a line with the red star Aldebaran. the Geminid meteor shower radiant is approximately between them and is marked with a star burst.

More detailed viewing instructions are at my Geminid viewing page.

 

 

 

Similar views will be seen from the rest of Australia at roughly the equivalent local time, exact timings at my Geminid viewing page.
 
Whole sky on Saturday, December 14 as seen from Adelaide at 22:12 ACDST, 90 minutes after sunset (click to embiggen).


Jupiter is rising in the east Saturn is now above the north-western horizon and coming closer to Venus. Orion  the hunter is rising in the east. The Southern Cross is low in the Southern sky.  The moon is nearly full and the fainter clusters and nebula are hard to see.

 

    

 

 Elsewhere in Australia will see a similar view at the equivalent time (90 minutes after sunset).

 

 

Mercury is lost in the twilight.

Venus climbs higher in the evening twilight and is readily visible in the evening twilight. Venus is coming closer to Saturn.

Mars is rising in the morning sky and near Jupiter. The pair continue to draw apart. Mars is close to the  Moon on the 18th and 19th.

Jupiter is rising in the the evening sky when the sky is fully dark and is at opposition, when it is biggest and brightest as seen from Earth. Jupiter is close to the nearly full Moon on the 14th.

Saturn is lowering in the evening sky coming closer to Venus.

Printable PDF maps of the Eastern sky at 10 pm AEST, Western sky at 10 pm AEST. For further details and more information on what's up in the sky, see Southern Skywatch.


 

Star Map via Virtual sky. Use your mouse to scroll around and press 8 when your pointer is in the map to set to the current time.

Cloud cover predictions can be found at SkippySky.

Here is the near-real time satellite view of the clouds (day and night) http://satview.bom.gov.au/





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Monday, December 09, 2024

 

Geminid Meteor Shower 13-15 December 2024

The northern horizon at 3:13 am ACDST as seen from Adelaide on Saturday December 14 when the Geminid radiant is at its highest. The Geminid radiant is marked with a starburst. Similar views will be seen elsewhere in Australia at  a similar latitude and the equivalent local time. (click to embiggen).The northern horizon at 1:46am AEST as seen from Brisbane on on Saturday December 14 when the Geminid radiant is at its highest. The Geminid radiant is marked with a starburst. Similar views will be seen elsewhere in Australia at  a similar latitude and the equivalent local time. (click to embiggen).The northern horizon at 3:17 am AEDST as seen from Melbourne on Saturday December 14 when the Geminid radiant is at its highest. The Geminid radiant is marked with a starburst. Similar views will be seen elsewhere in Australia at  a similar latitude and the equivalent local time. (click to embiggen).


This year is a poor year for the Geminid meteor shower. The Geminids are an unusual meteor shower in that their parent body is 3200 Phaethon, an asteroid, rather than a comet. It is speculated though that Phaeton is actually a "gassed out" comet, and so the debris that makes up the Geminids may still be cometary particles, but is more likely broken rock fragments from its close approach to the sun.

The Geminids are usually a fairly reliable meteor shower but this year there will be significant  interference from the Moon.

The Geminids have a broad peak and normally show good activity well before and after the peak on the day before and after. The nominal peak is December 14, 01h UT, that means in Australia this year most of the activity is concentrated on the morning of the 14th after sunrise, but there will still be decent rates before twilight (although lower this year because of the moonlight).

As the radiant doesn't rise until just before midnight (daylight saving time) in most of Australia and the radiant is highest (with the best meteor rates) in the early hours in a narrow band around 3 am local time, so you are going to lose some sleep for this.  Fortunately this is a Saturday, so you can sleep in after. 


Northern Australians should see a meteor every 1 to 2 minutes under dark skies in the early morning of the 14th. Obviously under suburban skies you will see fewer. 

You can find predictions for your local site at the meteor flux estimator (choose 4 Geminids and date 13-14 December, don't forget to change the date to 2024). You will have to enter your local latitude and longitude for your site. I have also made a table for major cities below.

Unfortunately, both Chrome and Firefox have changed their security settings to prevent plugins from running, and the flux estimator only runs under Internet Explorer now OR Edge in Internet Explorer mode (click on the triple dots once the page has loaded ), you have to have the JAVA plug-in loaded.

You can follow the progress of the shower at the IMO Geminids Live page


At 3.00 am in the morning AEDST (midnight, AEST) Castor (alpha Geminorum) is about four hand-spans above the horizon and almost due north. Pollux, the other twin, is less than a hand-span to the right again and below Castor. The radiant is just below Pollux. The best rates are when the radiant is highest, when it is due north, the Moon is low to the horizon and before astronomical twilight. This is around 3:30 am ACDST Adelaide ~4:00 ACST Darwin, ~3-3:30 am local time Perth and Brisbane and ~ 3:30-4:00 am AEDST Melbourne, Sydney and Hobart.

CityTime Radiant HighestMoon setAstronomical Twilight
Adelaide ACDST3:13
4:18
4:09
Brisbane AEST1:46
3:08
3:14
Darwin ACST2:43
4:43
4:57
Hobart AEDST2:38
3:16
2:39
Melbourne AEDST3:17
4:14
4:00
Perth AWST2:13
3:31
3:25
Sydney AEDST2:52
4:00
3:56


When you get up, allow at least 5 minutes for your eyes to adjust and become dark adapted (even if you have stumbled out of bed in the dark, here's some hints on dark adaption of your eyes so you can see meteors better). 

 
Be patient, it may be several minutes before you are rewarded with you first meteor, then a couple will come along in quick succession (a meteor every 1 to 2 minutes is an average, they won't turn up like a ticking clock but more or less randomly).

Predicted meteor rates for selected towns
 

Locations on the same latitude as...

Morning December 13

Morning December 14 (UT peak)

Morning December 15

Morning December 16

Darwin

19 meteors/hr

48 meteors/hr

11 meteors/hr

2 meteors/hr

Brisbane/Perth

13 meteors/hr

37 meteors/hr

10 meteors/hr

2 meteors/hr

Sydney/Adelaide/Canberra

10 meteors/hr

27 meteors/hr

7 meteors/hr

2 meteors/hr

Melbourne

9 meteors/hr

22 meteors/hr

7 meteors/hr

2 meteors/hr

Hobart

7 meteors/hr

17 meteors/hr

6 meteors/hr

2 meteors/hr

 
 
Locations at similar latitudes to the towns in the list will have similar rates, the more north you are the higher the rate. Choose a viewing spot where you can see a large swathe of sky without trees or buildings getting in the way, or with street lights getting in your eyes. Try and choose a spot where the moon is hidden from view to preserve your night vision.The darker the spot the better (but do be sensible, don't choose a spot in an insalubrious park for example). 
 
While the radiant is where the meteors appear to originate from, most of the meteors will be seen away from the radiant, so don't fixate on the radiant, but keep your eye on a broad swath of sky roughly centered just above the radiant (as the radiant doesn't rise very high, looking exactly at the radiant will mean you miss some higher up).

A lawn chair or something similar will make your observing comfortable (or a picnic rug spread on the ground and a nice pillow), and having a Thermos of hot coffee, tea or chocolate to swig while watching will increase your comfort. Despite it being summer, make sure you have a jumper or something as the night can still get cold. Also, plenty of insect repellent is a good idea.

Guides to taking meteor photos are here and here.

As well, Orion and the Hyades will be visible, with Jupiter in the Hyades and Mars Not far from Castor and Pollux. . So it will be a quite nice morning for sky watching. Keep an eye out for satellites! There may be a bright ISS pass on the morning of the 15th from your location.

Cloud cover predictions can be found at SkippySky.  

Here is the near-real time satellite view of the clouds (day and night) http://satview.bom.gov.au/

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