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Wednesday, July 08, 2020

 

More Bright ISS passes (9-13 July, 2020)

The ISS as seen from Sydney on the evening of Saturday 11 July  at 17:52 AEST. Simulated in Stellarium (the ISS will actually be a bright dot), click to embiggen.The ISS  as seen from Adelaide on the evening of Friday 10 July at 18:08 ACST. Simulated in Stellarium (the ISS will actually be a bright dot), click to embiggen.The ISS as seen from Perth on the evening of Thursday 9 July at 18:59 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 Saturday 11 July  for Sydney.All sky chart showing local  times from Heavens Above for Friday 10 July for Adelaide.All sky chart showing local times from Heavens Above for Thursday 9 July for Perth.

Over the next few days there are a series of  bright ISS passes in the early evening. The outstanding passes are when the ISS passes above the Southern Cross or the pointers, or very close to these bright stars.

The following tables are from data provided from Heavens Above.

Passes from Adelaide (ACST)


Date Brightness Start Highest point End Pass type
(mag) Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az.
08 Jul-2.318:04:0610°SSW18:06:5122°SSE18:08:4215°ESEvisible
08 Jul-1.019:40:3410°WSW19:41:4418°WSW19:41:4418°WSWvisible
09 Jul-3.518:52:4810°SW18:56:1370°NW18:57:1740°NNEvisible
10 Jul-3.718:05:1410°SW18:08:3962°SE18:12:0110°ENEvisible
10 Jul-0.419:44:2010°WNW19:45:0110°NW19:45:4110°NWvisible
11 Jul-0.918:55:0410°W18:57:3619°NW19:00:0610°Nvisible
12 Jul-1.918:06:5710°WSW18:10:0735°NW18:13:1610°NNEvisible
14 Jul0.118:10:3510°WNW18:11:1911°NW18:12:0310°NWvisible

Passes from Brisbane (AEST)


Date Brightness Start Highest point End Pass type
(mag) Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az.
08 Jul-1.618:37:4210°SSW18:38:4217°S18:38:4217°Svisible
09 Jul-2.017:50:4210°S17:53:0517°SE17:54:1315°ESEvisible
09 Jul-0.519:26:5210°WSW19:27:1612°WSW19:27:1612°WSWvisible
10 Jul-3.418:39:0010°SW18:42:2464°NW18:43:1842°NNEvisible
11 Jul-3.717:51:2510°SW17:54:4959°SE17:58:1010°NEvisible
12 Jul-0.618:41:4010°W18:43:4415°NW18:45:4710°NNWvisible
13 Jul-1.517:53:1310°WSW17:56:1530°NW17:59:1510°Nvisible

Passes from Darwin (ACT)


Date Brightness Start Highest point End Pass type
(mag) Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az.
10 Jul-1.519:45:4510°S19:46:2314°S19:46:2314°Svisible
11 Jul-1.818:59:2410°SSE19:00:5813°SE19:02:3110°ESEvisible
11 Jul-1.020:34:5210°WSW20:36:1919°W20:36:1919°Wvisible
12 Jul-3.119:46:4810°SW19:50:0756°NW19:53:2510°NNEvisible
13 Jul-3.718:59:1210°SSW19:02:3357°SE19:05:5110°NEvisible
14 Jul-0.219:50:2010°WNW19:51:2811°NW19:52:3410°NWvisible
15 Jul-0.919:01:0710°WSW19:03:5524°NW19:06:4210°Nvisible
16 Jul-0.406:43:2410°NNE06:45:3216°NE06:47:4110°Evisible

Passes from Hobart (AEST)


Date Brightness Start Highest point End Pass type
(mag) Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az.
08 Jul-3.018:33:4410°WSW18:37:0752°NW18:38:4227°NNEvisible
09 Jul-3.717:46:0610°WSW17:49:3486°NW17:53:0010°NEvisible
09 Jul-0.519:24:3910°WNW19:25:5212°NW19:27:0510°NNWvisible
10 Jul-0.918:35:5710°W18:38:2919°NW18:41:0010°Nvisible
11 Jul-1.717:47:5610°WSW17:51:0231°NW17:54:0510°NNEvisible
13 Jul-0.217:50:5810°WNW17:52:1312°NW17:53:2810°NNWvis

Passes from Melbourne (AEST)


Date Brightness Start Highest point End Pass type
(mag) Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az.
08 Jul-3.718:34:1010°SW18:37:3457°SE18:38:4236°Evisible
09 Jul-3.017:46:4310°SW17:49:5534°SSE17:53:0610°Evisible
09 Jul-1.619:23:4610°WSW19:26:3624°NW19:27:1622°NNWvisible
10 Jul-2.518:35:5010°WSW18:39:0843°NW18:42:2310°NNEvisible
11 Jul-3.617:48:0810°SW17:51:3581°NW17:54:5910°NEvisible
12 Jul-0.518:38:3510°W18:40:2414°NW18:42:1310°NNWvisible
13 Jul-1.017:50:0710°WSW17:52:5724°NW17:55:4610°Nvisible

Passes from Perth (AWST)


Date Brightness Start Highest point End Pass type
(mag) Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az.
08 Jul-1.918:08:0710°S18:10:2216°SSE18:11:4313°ESEvisible
08 Jul-0.819:44:0310°WSW19:44:4515°WSW19:44:4515°WSWvisible
09 Jul-3.918:56:2210°SW18:59:4988°SSE19:00:1962°NEvisible
10 Jul-3.418:08:5410°SSW18:12:1344°SE18:15:2910°ENEvisible
10 Jul-0.619:47:1110°W19:48:4012°NW19:49:2812°NWvisible
11 Jul-1.218:58:2710°WSW19:01:1423°NW19:04:0010°Nvisible
12 Jul-2.518:10:2710°WSW18:13:4445°NW18:16:5910°NNEvisible
14 Jul-0.218:13:2710°W18:14:5912°NW18:16:3010°NNWvisible


Passes from Sydney (AEST)


Date Brightness Start Highest point End Pass type
(mag) Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az.
08 Jul-3.318:35:5310°SW18:38:4249°S18:38:4249°Svisible
09 Jul-2.917:48:3010°SSW17:51:4033°SE17:54:1314°Evisible
09 Jul-0.819:25:4610°W19:27:1617°WNW19:27:1617°WNWvisible
10 Jul-2.218:37:3910°WSW18:40:5036°NW18:43:1815°NNEvisible
11 Jul-3.417:49:5210°SW17:53:1872°NW17:56:4110°NEvisible
12 Jul-0.118:41:2910°WNW18:42:0410°NW18:42:4010°NWvisible
13 Jul-0.617:52:0610°W17:54:3919°NW17:57:0910°Nvisible

When and what you will see is VERY location dependent, so you need to use either Heavens Above or CalSky to get site specific predictions for your location, a small difference in location can mean the difference between the ISS passing over a star or 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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# posted by Ian Musgrave @ 10:22 pm 0 comments
 

Sky This Week - Thursday July 9 to Thursday July 16

The Last Quarter Moon is Monday, July 13. Four bright planets are visible in the morning skies. Venus is in the head of Taurus the Bull and is close to the bright star Aldebaran on the 12th and 13th. Mars is rising before midnight and is close to the waning moon on the evening of the 11th, morning of the 12th. Jupiter and Saturn are easily visible in the evening sky. Jupiter is at opposition, when is is biggest and brightest as seen from Earth, on the 14th.

The Last Quarter Moon is Monday, July 13.  The Moon is at apogee, when it is furthest from the Earth on  the 13th..


Evening sky at 18:51 ACST (90 minutes after sunset) on Tuesday, July 14 facing east as seen from Adelaide. Jupiter and Saturn are high above the Eastern horizon. The Moon forms a line with Jupiter and Saturn.

The insets shows the telescopic views of Jupiter and Saturn at the same scale at this time. Ion is crossing the face of Jupiter and will soon exit.



Similar views will bee seen elsewhere in Australia at the equivalent local time (90 minutes after sunset), click to embiggen.


Morning sky on Sunday, July 12 showing the eastern sky as seen from Adelaide at 6:23 am ACST (60 minutes before sunrise). Crescent Venus is in the Hyades cluster (the head of Taurus the Bull) and closest to the ed star Aldebaran, the eye of the Bull. The inset shows the telescopic view of Venus at this time. 

Mercury is low on the horizon and difficult to see without binoculars.


Similar views will be seen elsewhere in Australia at the equivalent local time (60 minutes before sunrise), click to embiggen.
Morning sky on Sunday, July 12 showing the whole sky as seen from Adelaide at 5:53 am ACST (90 minutes before sunrise).




Four bright planets are visible stretching west to east. Jupiter, Saturn Mars and Venus. Mars is just below the almost last quarter Moon and Venus is close to the bright star Aldebaran. Similar views will be seen elsewhere at the equivalent local time (60 minutes before sunrise)  click to embiggen.


Mercury is difficult to see low in the morning twilight.

Four bright planets grace the morning sky.


Venus  moves through the Hyades (the head of Taurus the Bull) and is closest to the bright red Aldebaran (the eye of the Bull) on the 12th and 13th.

 Mars is visible high in the morning sky to the north, east of Jupiter and Saturn.It enters the evening sky shortly before midnight but is still low to the horizon. Mars is close to the waning Moon on the evening of the 11th and the morning on the 12.
 
Jupiter is lowering in the morning sky and now can be readily seen in the early evening sky. Jupiter and Saturn stay around a hand-span apart during the week. Jupiter is at opposition, when is is biggest and brightest as seen from Earth, on the 14th.

Saturn is also lowering in the morning sky near Jupiter drawing away from Mars. It too is now visible in the early evening skies.

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 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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# posted by Ian Musgrave @ 10:26 am 0 comments

Tuesday, June 30, 2020

 

Sky This Week - Thursday July 2 to Thursday July 9

The Full Moon is Sunday, July 5. Four bright planets are visible in the morning skies. Venus is in the head of Taurus the Bull. Jupiter and Saturn are now rising well before midnight and visible in the evening. The full Moon forms a line with Jupiter and Saturn n the 5th and 6th. Comet C/2016 U6 can be seen in binoculars.

The Full Moon is Sunday, July 5.  The Earth is at aphelion on the 4th, when it is furthest from the Sun.


Evening astronomical twilight at 18:41 ACST on Saturday, July 4 (90 minutes after sunset) looking west as seen from Adelaide. Comet C/2016 U6 can be seen in binoculars above Hydrae (Alphard) making it very easy to spot. It is at it's brightest (around magnitude 6) at this time, but the nearly full Moon may make it more difficult to see.

For comet spotters charts see here.


Similar views will be seen elsewhere in Australia 90 minutes after sunset, click to embiggen.
Evening sky at 21:00 ACST on Sunday, July 5 facing east as seen from Adelaide. Jupiter and Saturn are high above the Eastern horizon. The Moon forms a line with Jupiter and Saturn.

The insets shows the telescopic views of Jupiter and Saturn at the same scale at 21:00 ACST.



Similar views will bee seen elsewhere in Australia at the equivalent local time, click to embiggen.


Morning sky on Saturday, July 4 showing the eastern sky as seen from Adelaide at 6:17 am ACST (60 minutes before sunrise). Crescent Venus is close to the Hyades cluster (the head of Taurus the Bull). The inset show the telescopic view of Venus at this time.




Similar views will bee seen elsewhere in Australia at the equivalent local time (60 minutes before sunrise), click to embiggen.
Morning sky on Saturday, July 4 showing the whole sky as seen from Adelaide at 6:17 am ACST (60 minutes before sunrise).





Four bright planets are visible stretching west to east. Jupiter, Saturn Mars and Venus. Similar views will be seen elsewhere at the equivalent local time (60 minutes before sunrise)  click to embiggen.



Mercury is lost in the twilight.

Four bright planets grace the morning sky.


Venus  climbs higher in the morning skies close to the Hyades (the head of Taurus the Bull) and bright red Aldebaran (the eye of the Bull).

 Mars is visible high in the morning sky to the north, east of Jupiter and Saturn.
 
Jupiter is lowering in the morning sky and now can be readily seen in the evening sky. Jupiter and Saturn stay around a hand-span apart during the week. The Moon forms a line with Jupiter and Saturn on the 5th

Saturn is also lowering in the morning sky near Jupiter drawing away from Mars. It too is now visible in the evening skies. The Moon forms a line with Saturn and Jupiter on the 6th.

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 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/

# posted by Ian Musgrave @ 6:30 am 0 comments

Monday, June 22, 2020

 

Sky This Week - Thursday June 25 to Thursday July 2

The First Quarter Moon is Sunday, June 28. Mercury is lost in the twilight. Four bright planets are visible in the morning skies. Venus is in the head of Taurus the Bull. Jupiter and Saturn are now rising well before midnight and visible in the evening. Comet C/2016 U6 can be seen in binoculars and is brightest on the 27th.

The First Quarter Moon is Sunday, June 28. The Moon is at Perigee, when it is closest to the Earth, on the 30th.


Evening astronomical twilight at 18:44 ACST on Saturday, June 27 (90 minutes after sunset) looking west as seen from Adelaide. Comet C/2016 U6 can be seen in binoculars above Hydrae (Alphard) making it very easy to spot. It is at it's brightest (around magnitude 6) at this time, but the waxing Moon may make it more difficult to see.

For comet spotters charts see here.


Similar views will be seen elsewhere in Australia 90 minutes after sunset, click to embiggen.
Evening sky at 22:00 ACST on Saturday, June 27 facing east as seen from Adelaide. Jupiter and Saturn are high above the Eastern horizon.

The insets shows the telescopic views of Jupiter and Saturn at the same scale at 22:00 ACST.




Similar views will bee seen elsewhere in Australia at the equivalent local time, click to embiggen.


Morning sky on Saturday, June 27 showing the eastern sky as seen from Adelaide at 6:24 am ACST (60 minutes before sunrise). Crescent Venus is close to the Hyades cluster (the head of Taurus the Bull). The inset show the telescopic view of Venus at this time.




Similar views will bee seen elsewhere in Australia at the equivalent local time (60 minutes before sunrise), click to embiggen.
Morning sky on Saturday, June 27 showing the whole sky as seen from Adelaide at 6:23 am ACST (60 minutes before sunrise).





Four bright planets are visible stretching west to east. Jupiter, Saturn Mars and Venus.  Similar views will be seen elsewhere at the equivalent local time (60 minutes before sunrise)  click to embiggen.



Mercury is lost in the twilight.

Four bright planets grace the morning sky.


Venus  climbs higher in the morning skies close to the Hyades (the head of Taurus the Bull) and bright red Aldebaran (the eye of the Bull).

 Mars is visible high in the morning sky to the north, east of Jupiter and Saturn.
 
Jupiter is lowering in the morning sky and now can be readily seen in the evening sky. Jupiter and Saturn stay around a hand-span apart during the week.

Saturn is also lowering in the morning sky near Jupiter drawing away from Mars. It too is now visible in the evening skies.

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 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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# posted by Ian Musgrave @ 9:36 pm 0 comments

Saturday, June 20, 2020

 

Live streams of the Annular eclipse of Sunday, June 21, 2020

Path of Sunday's annular eclipse, image source Fred Espenak,  NASA eclipse website.

Sunday, June 21 is not only the winter Solstice, but also when an annular eclipse of the sun occurs.

In an annular eclipse, the Moon does not fully cover the Sun's dsk leaving a thin rim of sun at maximum eclipse. These so called :ring of Fire Eclipses can be very dramatic especially if caught as the sun is rising or setting.

The eclipse path travels though Asia, the Arabian peninsula and Africa. Asutalia misses out except for DArwin, which sees a tiny chip out of the edge of the Sun just on sunset.

Because of the COVID-19 epidemic, there will be fewer expeditions and few live streams of this event, whoever this Universe Today article links to a couple. 

Gianluca Masi and the Virtual Telescope Project will be doing a live webcast of the "ring of fire" eclipse from across Asia and Africa starting at 5:30 UT (15:30 AEST, 15:00 ACST).

Another is from Indian Astronomer Ajay Talwar starting at 5:00 UT (15:00 AEST. 14:30 ACST)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-DnLP7e3XX0

So set your alarms and happy watching.

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# posted by Ian Musgrave @ 8:14 pm 0 comments
 

Wold Record Light Pollution Monitoring Event, Sunday June 21, 2020

Evening sky looking south as seen from Adelaide at 18:43 ACST at astronomical twilight (90 minutes after sunset). The southern cross is almost directly south and high above the horizon. Click to embiggen.

Sunday June 21 is the solstice, when the night is longest. It is also the night of the new Moon and time for a light pollution monitoring ebent.

The event is an attempt to set a world record for light pollution mapping put on by the Australasian Dark Sky Alliance, details here
https://worldrecordlight.thinkific.com/pages/how-to

You will have to register and do a short lesson on magnitude estimation. The all you have to do is go out and look south on the night of the 21st and contribute to our understanding of light pollution and the creeping loss of our magnificent night skies. There may even be a nice ISS pass to enjoy as well.

Even if it is cloudy you can still add to the record.  Cloud cover predictions can be found at SkippySky.

If you are not sure how to find south, Google maps or any street directory will show you south (or see the chart above, find the Southern Cross and you have found South).


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# posted by Ian Musgrave @ 11:55 am 0 comments

Thursday, June 18, 2020

 

Another series of Bright ISS passes (18-24 June, 2020)

The ISS as seen from Sydney on the evening of Saturday 20 June  at 18:24 AEST just before it enters Earth's shadow.. Simulated in Stellarium (the ISS will actually be a bright dot), click to embiggen.The ISS  as seen from Adelaide on the evening of Monday 22 June at 17:59 ACST. Simulated in Stellarium (the ISS will actually be a bright dot), click to embiggen.The ISS as seen from Perth on the evening of Friday 19 April at 18:43 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 Saturday 20 June  for Sydney.All sky chart showing local  times from Heavens Above for Monday 22 June for Adelaide.All sky chart showing local times from Heavens Above for Friday 19 April for Perth.

Over the next few days there are a series of  bright ISS passes in the early evening. The outstanding passes are when the ISS passes over Sirius or the pointers, or very close to these bright stars.

The following tables are from data provided from Heavens Above.

Passes from Adelaide (ACST)


Date Brightness Start Highest point End Pass type
(mag) Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az.
17 Jun-1.318:37:2910°NNE18:38:0212°NE18:38:0212°NEvisible
18 Jun-1.419:24:1210°NW19:25:3422°NW19:25:3422°NWvisible
19 Jun-3.318:36:3110°NNW18:39:4442°NE18:40:0241°ENEvisible
20 Jun-2.217:49:1310°N17:51:5723°NE17:54:2611°ESEvisible
20 Jun-1.419:25:3310°W19:27:2424°WSW19:27:2424°WSWvisible
21 Jun-3.218:37:1710°WNW18:40:3652°SW18:41:4235°SSEvisible
22 Jun-3.717:49:1610°NW17:52:4082°NE17:55:5611°SEvisible
22 Jun-0.819:27:5810°WSW19:28:5313°SW19:28:5313°SWvisible
23 Jun-1.618:39:0310°W18:41:4020°SSW18:43:0216°Svisible
24 Jun-2.317:50:3010°W17:53:3531°SW17:56:4110°SSEvisible
25 Jun-0.918:42:3710°SSW18:42:5710°SSW18:43:1810°SSWvisible
26 Jun-1.217:52:4610°WSW17:54:4214°SSW17:56:3910°Svisible

Passes from Brisbane (AEST)


Date Brightness Start Highest point End Pass type
(mag) Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az.
17 Jun-1.419:06:2710°WNW19:08:0324°WNW19:08:0324°WNWvisible
18 Jun-3.818:18:2910°NW18:21:5176°NE18:22:3651°ESEvisible
19 Jun-2.817:30:5610°NNW17:34:0234°NE17:37:0511°ESEvisible
19 Jun-0.919:08:4510°WSW19:10:0214°SW19:10:0214°SWvisible
20 Jun-2.018:19:5410°WNW18:22:5027°SW18:24:2619°Svisible
21 Jun-3.117:31:3210°WNW17:34:5152°SW17:38:1210°SSEvisible
23 Jun-1.217:33:4110°W17:35:5316°SW17:38:0610°Svisible

Passes from Darwin (ACT)


Date Brightness Start Highest point End Pass type
(mag) Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az.
17 Jun-1.705:15:5327°E05:15:5327°E05:18:0510°ENEvisible
18 Jun-2.106:03:3220°WNW06:03:4720°NW06:06:1910°Nvisible
18 Jun-1.119:19:4910°W19:21:5515°SW19:24:0010°Svisible
19 Jun-1.305:18:1118°NNE05:18:1118°NNE05:19:1110°NNEvisibl

Passes from Hobart (AEST)


Date Brightness Start Highest point End Pass type
(mag) Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az.
19 Jun-1.019:09:2610°NNW19:10:0214°NNW19:10:0214°NNWvisible
20 Jun-2.018:22:0610°N18:24:2621°NE18:24:2621°NEvisible
21 Jun-1.517:35:2310°NNE17:37:0413°NE17:38:4510°Evisible
21 Jun-1.719:09:5810°WNW19:11:4228°WNW19:11:4228°WNWvisible
22 Jun-3.618:22:0710°NW18:25:2959°NE18:25:5653°ENEvisible
23 Jun-2.817:34:2910°NNW17:37:3735°NE17:40:0514°ESEvisible
23 Jun-1.619:11:0910°W19:13:0226°WSW19:13:0226°WSWvisible
24 Jun-3.318:22:5710°WNW18:26:2055°SSW18:27:0743°SSEvisible
25 Jun-3.717:34:5410°WNW17:38:2086°SW17:41:0915°SEvisible
25 Jun-1.219:12:3710°WSW19:14:0519°SW19:14:0519°SWvisible
26 Jun-2.418:24:1610°W18:27:2129°SSW18:28:0427°Svisible

Passes from Melbourne (AEST)


Date Brightness Start Highest point End Pass type
(mag) Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az.
19 Jun-2.319:07:5710°NW19:10:0233°NNW19:10:0233°NNWvisible
20 Jun-2.718:20:2610°NNW18:23:2831°NE18:24:2626°Evisible
20 Jun-0.219:57:1310°W19:57:2311°W19:57:2311°Wvisible
21 Jun-1.817:33:2110°N17:35:4118°NE17:38:0410°Evisible
21 Jun-2.619:08:5610°WNW19:11:4241°WSW19:11:4241°WSWvisible
22 Jun-3.718:20:5010°NW18:24:1579°SW18:25:5628°SEvisible
23 Jun-3.417:32:5910°NW17:36:2056°NE17:39:4210°ESEvisible
23 Jun-1.519:10:4210°WSW19:13:0220°SW19:13:0220°SWvisible
24 Jun-2.218:22:1010°W18:25:1329°SSW18:27:0718°SSEvisible
25 Jun-2.917:33:5110°WNW17:37:0946°SW17:40:2910°SEvisible
25 Jun-0.919:13:1210°SW19:14:0512°SSW19:14:0512°SSWvisible
26 Jun-1.318:24:1510°WSW18:26:2215°SSW18:28:0412°Svisible

Passes from Perth (AWST)


Date Brightness Start Highest point End Pass type
(mag) Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az.
17 Jun-1.918:39:0110°N18:41:0118°NE18:41:0118°NEvisible
18 Jun-1.719:26:4510°WNW19:28:3228°WNW19:28:3228°WNWvisible
19 Jun-3.818:38:5010°NW18:42:1271°NE18:43:0047°ESEvisible
20 Jun-2.817:51:1610°NNW17:54:2134°NE17:57:2311°ESEvisible
20 Jun-1.119:28:3910°W19:30:2118°SW19:30:2118°SWvisible
21 Jun-2.318:40:0310°WNW18:43:0832°SW18:44:3922°Svisible
22 Jun-3.317:51:4810°NW17:55:0959°SW17:58:3310°SEvisible
23 Jun-1.118:42:4010°WSW18:44:1913°SSW18:45:5810°Svisible
24 Jun-1.617:53:3410°W17:56:1020°SW17:58:4610°SSEvisible


Passes from Sydney (AEST)


Date Brightness Start Highest point End Pass type
(mag) Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az.
17 Jun-1.019:07:2210°NNW19:08:0315°NNW19:08:0315°NNWvisible
18 Jun-2.518:19:5710°N18:22:3627°NE18:22:3627°NEvisible
19 Jun-1.717:33:0610°NNE17:35:0815°NE17:37:0510°Evisible
19 Jun-1.419:08:2410°WNW19:10:0224°W19:10:0224°Wvisible
20 Jun-3.718:20:1810°NW18:23:4278°SW18:24:2651°SSEvisible
21 Jun-3.417:32:3010°NNW17:35:4853°NE17:38:4513°ESEvisible
21 Jun-0.919:10:3210°WSW19:11:4215°SW19:11:4215°SWvisible
22 Jun-1.918:21:4910°W18:24:4225°SW18:25:5620°Svisible
23 Jun-2.817:33:2410°WNW17:36:3942°SW17:39:5710°SSEvisible
24 Jun-1.018:24:4010°SW18:25:5612°SSW18:27:0710°Svisible
25 Jun-1.417:35:2410°WSW17:37:4417°SSW17:40:0410°SSEvisible

When and what you will see is VERY location dependent, so you need to use either Heavens Above or CalSky to get site specific predictions for your location, a small difference in location can mean the difference between the ISS passing over a star or 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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# posted by Ian Musgrave @ 12:37 am 0 comments

Monday, June 15, 2020

 

Sky This Week - Thursday June 18 to Thursday June 25

The New Moon is Sunday June 21. Mercury is visible low in the twilight. On the 22nd the thin crescent Moon and Mercury are close. Four bright planets are visible in the morning skies. On the 19th the crescent Moon is near crescent Venus in the head of Taurus the Bull. Jupiter and Saturn are now rising before midnight and visible in the late evening. Comet C/2016 U6 can be seen in binoculars.

The New Moon is Sunday June 21.the Erath is at Solstice, where the day is shortest in the southern hemisphere, on the 21st

Evening civil twilight at 17:40 ACST on Monday, June 22 (30 minutes after sunset) looking west as seen from Adelaide. Mercury is low above the horizon just above the Moon. You will need a clear, level horizon to see the pair, and probably binoculars too.



Similar views will be seen elsewhere in Australia 30 minutes after sunset, click to embiggen.




Evening astronomical twilight at 18:43 ACST on Wednesday, June 23 (90 minutes after sunset) looking west as seen from Adelaide. Comet C/2016 U6 can be seen in binoculars almost on top of alpha Hydrae (Alphard) making it very easy to spot. For comet spotters charts see here.





Similar views will be seen elsewhere in Australia 90 minutes after sunset, click to embiggen.
Evening sky at 23:00 ACST on Saturday, June 20 facing east as seen from Adelaide. Jupiter and Saturn are high above the Eastern horizon.

The insets shows the telescopic views of Jupiter and Saturn at the same scale at 22:20 ACST (Jupiter, with Io coming out of occultation) and 23:00 ACST (Saturn).


Similar views will bee seen elsewhere in Australia at the equivalent local time, click to embiggen.


Morning sky on Friday, June 19 showing the eastern sky as seen from Adelaide at 6:23 am ACST (60 minutes before sunrise). Crescent Venus and and the crescent Moon are close. The inset show the telescopic view of Venus at this time.


Venus is in the Hyades cluster, which forms the head of Taurus the Bull.


Similar views will bee seen elsewhere in Australia at the equivalent local time (60 minutes before sunrise), click to embiggen.
Morning sky on Friday, June 19 showing the whole sky as seen from Adelaide at 6:23 am ACST (60 minutes before sunrise).





Four bright planets are visible stretching west to east. Jupiter, Saturn Mars and Venus. The Crescent Moon is close to Venus. Similar views will be seen elsewhere at the equivalent local time (60 minutes before sunrise)  click to embiggen.



Mercury is low in the evening sky in the twilight this week, and is increasingly difficult to see. on the 22nd Mercury is low above the horizon just above the Moon. You will need a clear, level horizon to see the pair, and probably binoculars too.

Four bright planets grace the morning sky.


Venus  climbs higher in the morning skies close to the Hyades (the head of Taurus the Bull) and bright red Aldebaran (the eye of the Bull). on the 19th crescent Venus and the thin crescent Moon are close.

 Mars is visible high in the morning sky to the north, east of Jupiter and Saturn.
 
Jupiter is lowering in the morning sky and now can be seen in the evening sky. Jupiter and Saturn stay around a hand-span apart during the week.

Saturn is also lowering in the morning sky near Jupiter drawing away from Mars. It too is now visible in the evening skies.

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 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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# posted by Ian Musgrave @ 10:54 pm 0 comments

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