Tuesday, July 31, 2012
The Sky This Week - Thursday August 2 to Thursday August 9
The Full Moon is Thursday August 2. Mars, Saturn and the star Spica form a triangle in the north-western sky. In the morning
skies
Jupiter and Venus can be seen near each other forming a triangle with
the red star Aldebaran.
Morning sky on Sunday August 5 looking north-east as seen from Adelaide at 6:00 am local
time in South Australia. Jupiter is in the Hyades not far from Venus , making a long triangle with the red star Aldebaran.The Pleiades cluster
is close by. The left
inset shows the telescopic view of Venus. The right inset shows the location of the Moons of Jupiter on the 3rd at the same time. Similar
views will
be
seen elsewhere at the equivalent
local time (click to embiggen).
The Full Moon is Thursday August 2.
Jupiter climbs higher in the morning sky and is now easy to see. Jupiter moves through the Hyades over the week. Early in the week Jupiter forms a second eye for Taurus the Bull. Jupiter and Venus form a long triangle with the red star Aldebaran.
With the Pleiades cluster and the constellation of Orion close by, this is a beautiful morning sight.
Jupiter's Moons are a delight anytime, but on the morning of the 3rd Jupiter's satellites play hide and seek with a transit of Io, an eclipse of Europa and Ganymede reappearing from eclipse. Well worth a look in even a small telescope.
Bright white Venus climbs higher above the horizon this week. Venus looks like the waxing Moon when seen through even a small telescope.
Mercury is lost in the twilight.
Mars is in the constellation of Virgo. It's brightest object in the north-western sky, and its distinctive red colour makes it easy to spot. Mars sets shortly after 10:30 pm local time.
Mars was at opposition on March 4, when it was biggest and brightest as seen from Earth. Sadly, this is a poor opposition and Mars will be fairly small in modest telescopes.
Evening sky looking west as seen
from Adelaide at 10:00 pm local time on Sunday August 5 (when Curiosity arrives at Mars). Mars, Venus and the bright star Spica form a triangle. Similar views will be seen
elsewhere at the equivalent local time. Click
to embiggen.
Saturn is above the north-western horizon, not far from the bright star Spica. Saturn is still high enough in the northern sky for telescopic observation in the early evening. Saturn was at opposition, when it is biggest and brightest as seen from Earth, on the 16th of April, but now is still a good time for telescopic views of this ringed world in the early evening.
Mars, Saturn and the bright white star Spica from an attractive triangle in the evening sky. Over the wekk, the triangle becomes smaller as Mars closes in on Saturn and Spica.
With Saturn still reasonably high in the sky, there are lots of interesting things in the sky to view with a telescope. If you don't have a telescope, now is a good time to visit one of your local astronomical societies open nights or the local planetariums.
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.
Cloud cover predictions can be found at SkippySky.
The Full Moon is Thursday August 2.
Jupiter climbs higher in the morning sky and is now easy to see. Jupiter moves through the Hyades over the week. Early in the week Jupiter forms a second eye for Taurus the Bull. Jupiter and Venus form a long triangle with the red star Aldebaran.
With the Pleiades cluster and the constellation of Orion close by, this is a beautiful morning sight.
Jupiter's Moons are a delight anytime, but on the morning of the 3rd Jupiter's satellites play hide and seek with a transit of Io, an eclipse of Europa and Ganymede reappearing from eclipse. Well worth a look in even a small telescope.
Bright white Venus climbs higher above the horizon this week. Venus looks like the waxing Moon when seen through even a small telescope.
Mercury is lost in the twilight.
Mars is in the constellation of Virgo. It's brightest object in the north-western sky, and its distinctive red colour makes it easy to spot. Mars sets shortly after 10:30 pm local time.
Mars was at opposition on March 4, when it was biggest and brightest as seen from Earth. Sadly, this is a poor opposition and Mars will be fairly small in modest telescopes.
Saturn is above the north-western horizon, not far from the bright star Spica. Saturn is still high enough in the northern sky for telescopic observation in the early evening. Saturn was at opposition, when it is biggest and brightest as seen from Earth, on the 16th of April, but now is still a good time for telescopic views of this ringed world in the early evening.
Mars, Saturn and the bright white star Spica from an attractive triangle in the evening sky. Over the wekk, the triangle becomes smaller as Mars closes in on Saturn and Spica.
With Saturn still reasonably high in the sky, there are lots of interesting things in the sky to view with a telescope. If you don't have a telescope, now is a good time to visit one of your local astronomical societies open nights or the local planetariums.
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.
Cloud cover predictions can be found at SkippySky.
Labels: weekly sky
Carnival of Space #260 is Here!
Carnival of Space #260 is now up at Supernova Condensate. There's memorials to Sally Ride, black holes, harvesting cosmic rays, the Murchison meteorite, playing with fridge magnets for science and much much more. Zip on over and get stuck in.
Labels: carnival of space
Monday, July 30, 2012
A Photo of Crux
Labels: astrophotography
Sunday, July 29, 2012
AVCON 2012
 |  |
| The boys in their Magica costumes | A Dalek, a Doctor and Unit |
I enjoyed AVCON, my favourite part being the panel (actually a lecture) on why Americans perfere superheros and Japanese prefer giant robots by Crispin Freeman, the Diesel Punk panel was interesting too. Saw some good Anime as well (The Disappearance of Harui Suzumiya was excellent, as was the Full Metal Alchemist movie, and SquidGirl was cute) and some interesting art.
EldestOne was a bit disappointed, even though he got to play LAN games for the first time the year. MiddleOne had as much fun as I did though, aided by his friends turning up on Sunday. SmallestOne came in on Sunday and played retrogames. The costumes were pretty cool too.
Labels: home life, miscelaneous
Saturday, July 28, 2012
At AVCON 2012
Mobile Rainbows, train edition
Southern Delta Aquarid Meteor Shower, 28-29 July, 2012
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If you are up looking at the occultation of omicron Scorpii, why not look for some Southern Delta Aquariid meteors as well?
The number of meteors you will see depends on how high the radiant is above the horizon, and how dark your sky is. At 10 pm you should see a meteor about once every 15 minutes (the light from the nearly full Moon greatly reduces the numbers you will see) . At 3:00 am, when the radiant is highest and the Moon has set, those with dark skies can expect to see a meteor every 4 minutes.
When looking, be sure to let your eyes adjust for at least 5 minutes so your eyes can be properly adapted to the dark. Don't look directly at the radiant site, because the meteors will often start their "burn" some distance from it, but around a hand-span up or to the side. Be patient, although you should see an average of a meteor every four minutes, a whole stretch of time can go by without a meteor, then a whole bunch turn up one after the other.
Make yourself comfortable, choose an observing site that has little to obstruct the horizon (and doesn't have street lights getting in the way), have a comfortable chair to sit in (a banana lounger is best), or blankets and pillows. A hot Thermos of something to drink and LOTS of warm clothing will make your observing time comfortable. As well as meteors, keep an eye out for satellites (see Heavens Above for predictions from your site).
The sky will also be beautiful, with the Milky Way sinking in the west, and Jupiter, the Hyades and Pleiades rising in the east.
Use the NASA meteor shower flux estimator for an estimate of what the shower will be like from your location. You need to choose 5 Southern Delta Aquarids and remember to set the date to 27-28 July or 28-29 July 2012.
Labels: Meteors
Occultation of Omicron Scorpii by the Moon July 28, 2012
The evening sky facing East in Adelaide on July 28 at 9:22 pm AEST showing the waning Moon having just about to cover Omicron Scorpii (indicated by circle). (similar views will be seen from other cities at a similar local time eg 10:08 pm AEDST Melbourne.The nearly full Moon passes in front of the moderately bright stars Omicron Scorpii 1 and 2 (magnitudes 3.9 and 4.2) in the head of the Scorpion on the evening of Saturday July 28.
This event is visible from all of Australia, although both stars are covered only in some states. (Map and full timings for more cities in UT here).
The Moon rises in the head of the Scorpion near Omicron Scorpii 1 and 2. The dark limb of the Moon covers the stars at 21:24 pm ACST Adelaide (Omicron Scorpii 1 only), 22:22 AEST Brisbane (Omicron Scorpii 1), 22:14 AEST Canberra (Omicron Scorpii 1 only), 21:36 pm ACST Darwin (Omicron Scorpii 2, Omicron Scorpii 1 graze), 22:19 pm AEST Hobart (Omicron Scorpii 1 only), 22:08 pm AEST Melbourne (Omicron Scorpii 1), 19:03 AWST Perth (Omicron Scorpii 1) and 22:18 pm AEST Sydney (Omicron Scorpii 1 only).
The bright limb of the Moon uncovers the stars at 22:38 pm ACDST Adelaide (Omicron Scorpii 1 only), 23:34 AEST Brisbane, 23:19 AEST Canberra (Omicron Scorpii 1), 22:55 pm ACST Darwin (Omicron Scorpii 2), 22:57 pm AEST Hobart (Omicron Scorpii 1 only), 23:10 pm AEST Melbourne (Omicron Scorpii 1 only), 20:27 AWST Perth (Omicron Scorpii 1) and 23:23 pm AEST Sydney (Omicron Scorpii 1 only).
With the Moon two days past first Quarter, this event is really best seen with binoculars or a small telescope (especially for the reappearance of the stars against the bright edge of the Moon). If you have a tripod or other stand for your binoculars, it will be much easier to observe. With the Moon in the head of the Scorpion it will look rather attractive.
Labels: Moon, Occultation
Thursday, July 26, 2012
Mobile Phone Rainbows (coming home on the train edition)
Tuesday, July 24, 2012
NEO 2012 OQ zips past IC5067
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| Close up of NEO asteroid 2012 OQ as it zooms past | Full field of view with IC5067, the asteroid is a bit difficult to see, but it is near the middle, click to embiggen, it's worth it |
I shot the asteroid using iTelescope T5 earlier this evening when it was close to the nebula IC 5067. Sadly I lost over half of my images to drifting cloud, but I wasn't alone in this. Still, I think it came out rather well with the frames I did get (4x120 sec images stretched in FITSliberator, stacked in ImageJ and despeckeled. While the asteroid is dimmer than 2012 LZ1 the nebula more than makes up for it.
Here's a slightly sad animation I made.
Labels: asteroids, iTelescope, NEO
Carnival of Space #259 is Here!
Carnival of Space #259 is now up at Venus Transit. There's Gaming for Real Science, anti-matter rockets, how a book can launch you into astronomy, lava covered wolds and much, much more. Zip on over and have a read.
Labels: carnival of space
The Sky This Week - Thursday July 26 to Thursday August 2
The Full Moon is Thursday August 2. Mars is in the western
evening sky closing in on Saturn. Saturn is
visible near the star Spica in the north-western sky. In the morning
skies
Jupiter and Venus can be seen near each other forming a triangle with
the red star Aldebaran. On July 28 the Moon will occult Omicron Scorpii, also on that night is the Southern Delta Aquariid meteor shower.
Morning sky on Sunday
July 29 looking east as seen from Adelaide at 6:00 am local
time in South Australia.
Jupiter is not far from Venus in the Hyades, making a long triangle with the red star Aldebaran.The Pleiades cluster is close by. The left inset shows the telescopic view of Venus. Similar views will be seen elsewhere at the equivalent local time (click to embiggen).
Jupiter climbs higher in the morning sky and is now easy to see. Jupiter moves through the Hyades over the week. Jupiter and Venus form a triangle with the red star Aldebaran.
With the Pleiades cluster and the constellation of Orion close by, this is a beautiful morning sight.
Bright white Venus climbs higher above the horizon this week. Venus looks like the waxing Moon when seen through even a small telescope.
Evening sky looking North as seen from Adelaide at 9:22 pm local time on Saturday July 28 showing the Moon. Similar views will be seen
elsewhere at the equivalent local time. Click to embiggen.
The Full Moon is Thursday August 2.
The nearly full Moon passes in front of the moderately bright stars Omicron Scorpii 1 and 2 (magnitudes 3.9 and 4.2) in the head of the Scorpion on the evening of Saturday July 28. This event is visible from all of Australia, although both stars are covered only in some states.
The Moon rises in the head of the Scorpion near Omicron Scorpii 1 and 2. The dark limb of the Moon covers the stars at 21:24 pm ACST Adelaide (Omicron Scorpii 1 only), 22:22 AEST Brisbane (Omicron Scorpii 1), 22:14 AEST Canberra (Omicron Scorpii 1 only), 21:36 pm ACST Darwin (Omicron Scorpii 2, Omicron Scorpii 1 graze), 22:19 pm AEST Hobart (Omicron Scorpii 1 only), 22:08 pm AEST Melbourne (Omicron Scorpii 1), 19:03 AWST Perth (Omicron Scorpii 1) and 22:18 pm AEST Sydney (Omicron Scorpii 1 only).
The bright limb of the Moon uncovers the stars at 22:38 pm ACDST Adelaide (Omicron Scorpii 1 only), 23:34 AEST Brisbane, 23:19 AEST Canberra (Omicron Scorpii 1), 22:55 pm ACST Darwin (Omicron Scorpii 2), 22:57 pm AEST Hobart (Omicron Scorpii 1 only), 23:10 pm AEST Melbourne (Omicron Scorpii 1 only), 20:27 AWST Perth (Omicron Scorpii 1) and 23:23 pm AEST Sydney (Omicron Scorpii 1 only).
With the Moon two days past first Quarter, this event is really best seen with binoculars or a small telescope (especially for the reappearance of the stars against the bright edge of the Moon). If you have a tripod or other stand for your binoculars, it will be much easier to observe. With the Moon in the head of the Scorpion it will look rather attractive.
Mercury is lost in the twilight.
Mars is in the constellation of Virgo. It's brightest object in the north-western sky, and its distinctive red colour makes it easy to spot. Mars sets shortly after 11:00 pm local time.
Mars was at opposition on March 4, when it was biggest and brightest as seen from Earth. Sadly, this is a poor opposition and Mars will be fairly small in modest telescopes.
Evening sky looking east as seen
from Adelaide at 10:00 pm local time on Saturday
July 28 the location of the Southern Delta Aquariid meteor shower radiant. Similar views will be seen
elsewhere at the equivalent local time. Click
to embiggen.
Saturn is above the north-western horizon, not far from the bright star Spica. Saturn is high enough in the northern sky for telescopic observation in the evening, being highest at 5:50 pm local time. Saturn was at opposition, when it is biggest and brightest as seen from Earth, on the 16th of April, but now is still a great time for telescopic views of this ringed world in the early evening.
The Southern Delta Aquariids are a reasonably reliable meteor shower that peaks on Saturday 28 July. The number of meteors you will see depends on how high the radiant is above the horizon, and how dark your sky is. After the Moon sets, at 3:00 am (29th), when the radiant is highest, those with dark skies can expect to see a meteor every 4 minutes.
With Saturn still reasonably high in the sky, there are lots of interesting things in the sky to view with a telescope. If you don't have a telescope, now is a good time to visit one of your local astronomical societies open nights or the local planetariums.
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.
Cloud cover predictions can be found at SkippySky.
Jupiter is not far from Venus in the Hyades, making a long triangle with the red star Aldebaran.The Pleiades cluster is close by. The left inset shows the telescopic view of Venus. Similar views will be seen elsewhere at the equivalent local time (click to embiggen).
Jupiter climbs higher in the morning sky and is now easy to see. Jupiter moves through the Hyades over the week. Jupiter and Venus form a triangle with the red star Aldebaran.
With the Pleiades cluster and the constellation of Orion close by, this is a beautiful morning sight.
Bright white Venus climbs higher above the horizon this week. Venus looks like the waxing Moon when seen through even a small telescope.
The Full Moon is Thursday August 2.
The nearly full Moon passes in front of the moderately bright stars Omicron Scorpii 1 and 2 (magnitudes 3.9 and 4.2) in the head of the Scorpion on the evening of Saturday July 28. This event is visible from all of Australia, although both stars are covered only in some states.
The Moon rises in the head of the Scorpion near Omicron Scorpii 1 and 2. The dark limb of the Moon covers the stars at 21:24 pm ACST Adelaide (Omicron Scorpii 1 only), 22:22 AEST Brisbane (Omicron Scorpii 1), 22:14 AEST Canberra (Omicron Scorpii 1 only), 21:36 pm ACST Darwin (Omicron Scorpii 2, Omicron Scorpii 1 graze), 22:19 pm AEST Hobart (Omicron Scorpii 1 only), 22:08 pm AEST Melbourne (Omicron Scorpii 1), 19:03 AWST Perth (Omicron Scorpii 1) and 22:18 pm AEST Sydney (Omicron Scorpii 1 only).
The bright limb of the Moon uncovers the stars at 22:38 pm ACDST Adelaide (Omicron Scorpii 1 only), 23:34 AEST Brisbane, 23:19 AEST Canberra (Omicron Scorpii 1), 22:55 pm ACST Darwin (Omicron Scorpii 2), 22:57 pm AEST Hobart (Omicron Scorpii 1 only), 23:10 pm AEST Melbourne (Omicron Scorpii 1 only), 20:27 AWST Perth (Omicron Scorpii 1) and 23:23 pm AEST Sydney (Omicron Scorpii 1 only).
With the Moon two days past first Quarter, this event is really best seen with binoculars or a small telescope (especially for the reappearance of the stars against the bright edge of the Moon). If you have a tripod or other stand for your binoculars, it will be much easier to observe. With the Moon in the head of the Scorpion it will look rather attractive.
Mercury is lost in the twilight.
Mars is in the constellation of Virgo. It's brightest object in the north-western sky, and its distinctive red colour makes it easy to spot. Mars sets shortly after 11:00 pm local time.
Mars was at opposition on March 4, when it was biggest and brightest as seen from Earth. Sadly, this is a poor opposition and Mars will be fairly small in modest telescopes.
Evening sky looking east as seen
from Adelaide at 10:00 pm local time on Saturday
July 28 the location of the Southern Delta Aquariid meteor shower radiant. Similar views will be seen
elsewhere at the equivalent local time. Click
to embiggen.Saturn is above the north-western horizon, not far from the bright star Spica. Saturn is high enough in the northern sky for telescopic observation in the evening, being highest at 5:50 pm local time. Saturn was at opposition, when it is biggest and brightest as seen from Earth, on the 16th of April, but now is still a great time for telescopic views of this ringed world in the early evening.
The Southern Delta Aquariids are a reasonably reliable meteor shower that peaks on Saturday 28 July. The number of meteors you will see depends on how high the radiant is above the horizon, and how dark your sky is. After the Moon sets, at 3:00 am (29th), when the radiant is highest, those with dark skies can expect to see a meteor every 4 minutes.
With Saturn still reasonably high in the sky, there are lots of interesting things in the sky to view with a telescope. If you don't have a telescope, now is a good time to visit one of your local astronomical societies open nights or the local planetariums.
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.
Cloud cover predictions can be found at SkippySky.
Labels: weekly sky
Monday, July 23, 2012
Nibiru Fails to Appear on July 21 (Are we Surprised?)
Yet another set of internet rumours have been swirling around the mythical planet Nibiru.
This time the alleged planet (and it's 34 Moons!) was set to collide with us on July 21.The original was sourced from that fount of all knowledge, the World Weekly News (which, although the link says July 21, the page now says November 21). Despite the fact that not one word of the original article was true (it was the World Weekly News, what did you expect?) the rumour spread rapidly to the very corners of the internet.
The internet rumours had many people panicking. This is particularly reprehensible. Often I and other astronomers who write showing that Nibiru cannot exist get emails accusing us of arrogance. Arrogance? Arrogance is when you put rumour before fact checking, when you let your ignorance of the most basic science not dissuade you from causing angst and fear in vulnerable people.
THAT is arrogance.
(other good sites for information are here, here and this video here)
Labels: Pseudoscience
Sunday, July 22, 2012
Support Michael Mann (and other climate scientists)
Climate scientists in particular have borne the brunt of those who feel threatened by reality. Michael Mann in particular has borne the brunt of many of these attacks, as he produced some iconic research the "hockey stick" which has clearly illustrated the unusual nature of recent warming.
He's had to put up with people claiming his research was fraudulent for a long time, despite it being independently replicated by many others (see diagram above). Well, he's finally striking back, yet another correspondent has publicly accused him of doing fraudulent research in print.
Now, the "Hockey Stick" is not fraudulent. This discussion of the "Hockey Stick" goes into much better detail about it (actually, it gets a bit technical), but the take home message is that the results are well validated, reproducible in other studies and most importantly, the statistical treatment (it wasn't a "mathematical formula as most lay people would understand) did not automatically generate "hockey sticks" (It was principle component analysis for crying out loud). See also this discussion of "Hockey Stick" myths.
Anyway, he has, through his lawyers, issued a letter asking for removal of the article and a public apology. Good on you Michael, let's hope you get the apology.
If you are interested in helping climate scientists defend themselves for the numerous attacks on them, you might consider contributing to the Climate Science Legal Defence Fund.
Labels: Climate Change, global warming sillyness
Making Magic Staffs
For Christmas the two eldest boys got Magica robes, (Magica being a computer game where you play slightly inept wizards). The robes were not pre-made, you got the cloth and a pattern and had to make it yourself (which means in practice, the Bettdeckererschnappender weisle gets to make them). Nearly 7 months later they are almost finished in time for AVCON.
So naturally EldestOne and MiddleOne are going as Magica wizards, and I'm "helping" them make the magic staffs ("crafts are not your forte", my beloved says). I'll make a Steam Punk themed costume for myself, but it will be a bit tatty compared to the boys.
Labels: home life, miscelaneous
Celebrate Pi Approximation Day!
Today is pi approximation day! (22/7 get it - note to Americans, we do day-month date order, not month day you celebrate on the 14th of March). You can read about the Real Life of Pi over at RiAus.
Labels: science communicators
Saturday, July 21, 2012
Fog Shrouded Sea
Cool stories about Pluto and the Sun
Over at the Conversation Jonti Horner writes about the New Horizons mission to Pluto and what the new Moon of Pluto means for it.
CometAl shows off some of his latest, stunning images from Helioviewer, (with tips on how you can do it too).
CometAl shows off some of his latest, stunning images from Helioviewer, (with tips on how you can do it too).
Labels: Comet Al, Conversation, Pluto, Sun
Friday, July 20, 2012
Still More Aurora Goodness
The Aurora Australis of 15 July seen from the International Space Station.
Tom Luttrell captured the following video (made of stacking together a lot of 8 second still shots) at Davis Base in Antarctica on the 14th and 15th of July. The green line in the movie is the Australian LIDAR experiment. Previous aurora pictures from this event are here and here.
Labels: aurora
Thursday, July 19, 2012
Venus, Jupiter and the Crescent Moon, July 15 and 16, 2012.
 |  |
| Venus, Jupiter and the Crescent Moon on July 15, 2012 at around 6:00 am. Aldebaran is just above Venus. 4 second exposure at 3x Zoom. Click to embiggen | Venus, Jupiter and the Crescent Moon on July 15, 2012 at around 6:45 am. Taken much later due to cloud. 2 second exposure at 3x Zoom. Click to embiggen |
Labels: Hyades, Jupiter, Pleiades, Venus
Wednesday, July 18, 2012
Comet Machholz has Babies!
Comet Machholz has babies! Well, two fragments really. Leading the main comet by about 5 hours. You can't see them on this image, as my family (looks at eldest son) has used up all our high speed internet this month, I can only download the low resolution images.
But that doesn't matter, there are some high resolution videos from the Sungrazer folks here, LASCO C2: MP4 (1.8M) and C3: MP4 (5.9M).
Comet fragmentation is a lot more common than we might think (remember comets Elenin and Lovejoy), and comet Machholz is a particularly interesting case.
I think it will turn up in the STEREO images, but I really have to wait to get my bandwidth back.
Here's a video I made.
Labels: animation, comet, Soho
More Spectacular Aurora Pictures from July 16, 2012
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Labels: aurora
Tuesday, July 17, 2012
Carnival of Space #258 is Here!
Carnival of Space #258 is now up at The Next Big Future. There's the new moon of Pluto, dark matter filaments, dying stars, sifting starlight, the occultation of Jupiter and much, much more. Zoom on over and have a read.
Labels: carnival of space
The Sky This Week - Thursday July 19 to Thursday July 26
The First Quarter Moon is Thursday July 26. Mars is in the western
evening sky closing in on Saturn. Saturn is
visible near the star Spica in the north-western sky. On the 24th the waxing Moon is close to Mars on the 25th it forms a triangle with Spica and Saturn. In the morning
skies
Jupiter and Venus can be seen near each other forming a triangle with the red star Aldebaran. Mercury is visible low in the evening
twilight, and is close to the Moon on the 20th.
Morning sky on Friday
July 20 looking east as seen from Adelaide at 6:00 am local
time in South Australia.
Jupiter is near Venus in the Hyades, making a triangle with the red star Aldebaran.The the Pleiades cluster is close by. The left inset shows the telescopic view of Venus. Similar views will be seen elsewhere at the equivalent local time (click to embiggen).
Jupiter climbs higher in the morning sky and is now easy to see. Jupiter moves closer to the Hyades over the week. Jupiter and Venus form a triangle with the red star Aldebaran.
With the Pleiades cluster and the constellation of Orion close by, this is a beautiful morning sight.
Bright white Venus climbs higher above the horizon this week. Venus is an obvious crescent seen through even a small telescope.
Evening sky looking west as seen from Adelaide at 6:15 pm local time on Friday July 20 showing
Mercury above the horizon close to the one day old crescent Moon. Similar views will be seen
elsewhere at the equivalent local time. Click to embiggen.
The First Quarter Moon is Thursday July 26.
Mercury is low in the twilight evening sky this week. It is best seen with a flat, uncluttered horizon. On Friday there is a difficult to observe meeting with the day old crescent Moon, you will need a very clear horizon, like the ocean to see this. By the end of the week Mercury is lost in the twilight.
Mars is in the constellation of Virgo. It's brightest object in the north-western sky, and its distinctive red colour makes it easy to spot. Mars is at its highest in the northern sky around 4:55 pm local time and sets shortly after 11:00 pm.
On Tuesday July 24 the waxing Moon is close to Mars.
Mars was at opposition on March 4, when it was biggest and brightest as seen from Earth. Sadly, this is a poor opposition and Mars will be fairly small in modest telescopes.
Evening sky looking north-west as seen from Adelaide at 8:00 pm local time on Wednesday July 25 showing Saturn and Spica forming a triangle with the Moon. Mars is nearby. Similar views will be seen
elsewhere at the equivalent local time. Click to embiggen.
Saturn is above the north-western horizon, not far from the bright star Spica. Saturn is high enough in the northern sky for telescopic observation in the evening, being highest at 5:50 pm local time. Saturn was at opposition, when it is biggest and brightest as seen from Earth, on the 16th of April, but now is still a great time for telescopic views of this ringed world in the early evening.
On Wednesday July 25 the waxing Moon forms a triangle with Spica and Saturn.
With Saturn still reasonably high in the sky, there are lots of interesting things in the sky to view with a telescope. If you don't have a telescope, now is a good time to visit one of your local astronomical societies open nights or the local planetariums.
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.
Cloud cover predictions can be found at SkippySky.
Jupiter is near Venus in the Hyades, making a triangle with the red star Aldebaran.The the Pleiades cluster is close by. The left inset shows the telescopic view of Venus. Similar views will be seen elsewhere at the equivalent local time (click to embiggen).
Jupiter climbs higher in the morning sky and is now easy to see. Jupiter moves closer to the Hyades over the week. Jupiter and Venus form a triangle with the red star Aldebaran.
With the Pleiades cluster and the constellation of Orion close by, this is a beautiful morning sight.
Bright white Venus climbs higher above the horizon this week. Venus is an obvious crescent seen through even a small telescope.
The First Quarter Moon is Thursday July 26.
Mercury is low in the twilight evening sky this week. It is best seen with a flat, uncluttered horizon. On Friday there is a difficult to observe meeting with the day old crescent Moon, you will need a very clear horizon, like the ocean to see this. By the end of the week Mercury is lost in the twilight.
Mars is in the constellation of Virgo. It's brightest object in the north-western sky, and its distinctive red colour makes it easy to spot. Mars is at its highest in the northern sky around 4:55 pm local time and sets shortly after 11:00 pm.
On Tuesday July 24 the waxing Moon is close to Mars.
Mars was at opposition on March 4, when it was biggest and brightest as seen from Earth. Sadly, this is a poor opposition and Mars will be fairly small in modest telescopes.
Saturn is above the north-western horizon, not far from the bright star Spica. Saturn is high enough in the northern sky for telescopic observation in the evening, being highest at 5:50 pm local time. Saturn was at opposition, when it is biggest and brightest as seen from Earth, on the 16th of April, but now is still a great time for telescopic views of this ringed world in the early evening.
On Wednesday July 25 the waxing Moon forms a triangle with Spica and Saturn.
With Saturn still reasonably high in the sky, there are lots of interesting things in the sky to view with a telescope. If you don't have a telescope, now is a good time to visit one of your local astronomical societies open nights or the local planetariums.
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.
Cloud cover predictions can be found at SkippySky.
Labels: weekly sky
Monday, July 16, 2012
Images from the Aurora of 15 and 16 July, 2012
The Coronal Mass Ejection produced by the X class flare from sunspot AR1520 on July the 13th (AEST) impacted Earth on July 15 AEST and produced long lasting geomagnetic disturbances which produced aurora world wide.
In Australia, despite bad weather, aurora were seen in Tasmania and as far north as near Bega in southern coastal New South Wales. The disturbances lasted all through the 16th, with aurora still going on in Tasmania tonight, and a report from Perth.
As with last time, all through this the IPS site carried on as if no aurora were happening at all.
Again there are some fantastic images from the Tasmanians.
From the 15th
Julie Head captured some light pillars in this lovely image from the Forth Valley.
Ian Stewart got this amazing panorama at the boat launch at Tinderbox overlooking Bruny Island. And here is his video.
Maureen Johnston's beautiful image was taken at Howden.
Nick Monk got a nice one from Lymington.
Julien Johnson captured some great colours with this shot.
Katinka Smith blogs the aurora (with pictures)
Paul Albers got this shot from his back veranda in Victoria (not Tasmania)
Loic Le Guilly has some really good images here.
James Garlick has put together a brilliant panorama.
From the 16th
Ivan Hinojosa Toledo caught aurora AND the International Space Station in this stunning shot from Tinderbox.
Jenne Jackson got this shot from Whites Beach.
Images from the June 19 aurora are here and here.
Labels: aurora
Sunday, July 15, 2012
Aurora Happening NOW! (6:41 pm July 15)
A geomagnetic storm is in progress, Bz is -16 nT, Kp index is 5 and aurora have been sighted in Tasmania and Invercargill NZ. Any Tasmanians or Southern New Zealanders should have a look to the south, possibly also southern Victorians if anyone has a gap in the clouds :-(
UPDATE: Apparently good views from Huon region and some from Burnie.
Labels: aurora
Venus, Jupiter and the Moon, mobile phone edition.
Saturday, July 14, 2012
Don't forget, the crescent Moon near Venus and Jupiter 15-16 July
Friday, July 13, 2012
Mobile Rainbows, all at sea edition
Mobile Double Rainbow
Thursday, July 12, 2012
Venus and Jupiter by Mobile phone July 12
Tuesday, July 10, 2012
Mobile Phone Rainbows, Away Edition
The Sky This Week - Thursday July 12 to Thursday July 19
The New Moon is Thursday July 19. Mars is in the western
evening sky closing in on Saturn. Saturn is
visible near the star Spica in the north-western sky. In the morning skies
Jupiter and Venus can be seen near each other, The Moon visits Jupiter and Venus on the 15th and 16th. Mercury is visible low in the evening twilight.
Morning sky on Sunday
July 15 looking east as seen from Adelaide at 6:30 am local
time in South Australia.
Jupiter is near Venus in the Hyades, making a line with the red star Aldebaran.The the Pleiades cluster is close by. The left inset shows the telescopic view of Venus. The right insert shows the locations of the asteroids Vesta and Ceres at this time. Similar views will be seen elsewhere at the equivalent local time (click to embiggen).
Jupiter climbs higher in the morning sky and is now easy to see. Jupiter moves closer to the Hyades over the week. Jupiter and Venus form a triangle with the red star Aldebaran.
With the Pleiades cluster and the constellation of Orion close by, this is a beautiful morning sight.
Bright white Venus climbs higher above the horizon this week. Venus is an obvious crescent seen through even a small telescope.
On July 15 the crescent Moon is close to Jupiter, forming a line with Venus. On the 16th the crescent Moon is below Venus, forming a triangle with Venus and Jupiter, and a line with Venus and Aldebaran.
If you are interested, the bright asteroids Vesta and Ceres are nearby (see inset above). Although at magnitudes 8,4 and 9 respectively, you will needs a pair of strong binoculars or a small telescope under dark skies to see them. The Dawn spacecraft is currently at Vesta, and will soon depart for Ceres.
Evening sky looking west as seen from Adelaide at 6:00 pm local time on Saturday July 14 showing
Mercury above the horizon. Similar views will be seen
elsewhere at the equivalent local time. Click to embiggen.
The New Moon is Thursday July 19.
Mercury is still high in the evening sky this week. It is still best seen with a flat, uncluttered horizon.
Mars is in the constellation of Virgo. It's brightest object in the north-western sky, and its distinctive red colour makes it easy to spot. Mars is at its highest in the northern sky around 5:05 pm local time and sets shortly after 11:30 pm.
Mars was at opposition on March 4, when it was biggest and brightest as seen from Earth. Sadly, this is a poor opposition and Mars will be fairly small in modest telescopes.
Saturn is above the north-western horizon, not far from the bright star Spica. Saturn is high enough in the northern sky for telescopic observation in the evening, being highest at 6:10 pm local time. Saturn was at opposition, when it is biggest and brightest as seen from Earth, on the 16th of April, but now is still a great time for telescopic views of this ringed world in the early evening.
With Saturn still reasonably high in the sky, there are lots of interesting things in the sky to view with a telescope. If you don't have a telescope, now is a good time to visit one of your local astronomical societies open nights or the local planetariums.
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.
Cloud cover predictions can be found at SkippySky.
Jupiter is near Venus in the Hyades, making a line with the red star Aldebaran.The the Pleiades cluster is close by. The left inset shows the telescopic view of Venus. The right insert shows the locations of the asteroids Vesta and Ceres at this time. Similar views will be seen elsewhere at the equivalent local time (click to embiggen).
Jupiter climbs higher in the morning sky and is now easy to see. Jupiter moves closer to the Hyades over the week. Jupiter and Venus form a triangle with the red star Aldebaran.
With the Pleiades cluster and the constellation of Orion close by, this is a beautiful morning sight.
Bright white Venus climbs higher above the horizon this week. Venus is an obvious crescent seen through even a small telescope.
On July 15 the crescent Moon is close to Jupiter, forming a line with Venus. On the 16th the crescent Moon is below Venus, forming a triangle with Venus and Jupiter, and a line with Venus and Aldebaran.
If you are interested, the bright asteroids Vesta and Ceres are nearby (see inset above). Although at magnitudes 8,4 and 9 respectively, you will needs a pair of strong binoculars or a small telescope under dark skies to see them. The Dawn spacecraft is currently at Vesta, and will soon depart for Ceres.
The New Moon is Thursday July 19.
Mercury is still high in the evening sky this week. It is still best seen with a flat, uncluttered horizon.
Mars is in the constellation of Virgo. It's brightest object in the north-western sky, and its distinctive red colour makes it easy to spot. Mars is at its highest in the northern sky around 5:05 pm local time and sets shortly after 11:30 pm.
Mars was at opposition on March 4, when it was biggest and brightest as seen from Earth. Sadly, this is a poor opposition and Mars will be fairly small in modest telescopes.
Saturn is above the north-western horizon, not far from the bright star Spica. Saturn is high enough in the northern sky for telescopic observation in the evening, being highest at 6:10 pm local time. Saturn was at opposition, when it is biggest and brightest as seen from Earth, on the 16th of April, but now is still a great time for telescopic views of this ringed world in the early evening.
With Saturn still reasonably high in the sky, there are lots of interesting things in the sky to view with a telescope. If you don't have a telescope, now is a good time to visit one of your local astronomical societies open nights or the local planetariums.
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.
Cloud cover predictions can be found at SkippySky.
Labels: weekly sky
Monday, July 09, 2012
Toasting Marshmallows
Coffee with added Whales
Sunday, July 08, 2012
Theres a Whale Breaching (a long way) Outside My Window.....
....and I don't have a telephoto lens :-(
Venus and Jupiter, 7-8 July 2012
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| Venus, Jupiter, Pleiades, Hyades and Aldebaran on 7 July, 2012 (click to embiggen) | Venus, Jupiter, Pleiades, Hyades and Aldebaran on 8 July, 2012 (click to embiggen) |
The morning skyshow featuring Jupiter and Venus as seen from Adelaide, Australia. Images taken with a Canon IXUS 100 IS, 400 ASA, 3x Zoom, 4 seconds exposure, roughly around 6:20 and 6:45 am repectively. Venus is the brightest object, and is almost at its closest to Aldebaran. Jupiter is the next brightest object and Aldebaran the brightest after that (and closest to Venus). My previous images are here.
Friday, July 06, 2012
A Bit Frosty This Morning
Wednesday, July 04, 2012
Venus and Jupiter, 3 July 2012
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| Venus, Jupiter, Hyades (seen faintly) and Aldebaran on 30 June, 2012 (click to embiggen) | Venus, Jupiter, Pleiades, Hyades and Aldebaran on 3 July, 2012 (click to embiggen) |
The morning skyshow featuring Jupiter and Venus as seen from Adelaide, Australia. Images taken with a Canon IXUS 100 IS, 400 ASA, 3x Zoom, 4 seconds exposure, roughly around 6:30 am. Venus is the brightest object, Jupiter the next brightest and Aldebaran the brightest after that.
Labels: Hyades, Jupiter, Pleiades, Venus
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