Saturday, July 30, 2016
Southern Skywatch August, 2016 edition is now out!
The August edition of Southern Skywatch is up.
This month sees all five bright planets in the evening sky and still more nice planetary action. The Perseid meteor shower is visible in northern Australia on the 13th.
Venus, Mercury, Jupiter and Mars and Saturn form a line in the evening sky. Venus and Mercury encounter Jupiter, with a spectacular close approach late in the Month. Mars, Antares and Saturn form a triangle in the evening skies.
Jupiter is very close to the waxing crescent Moon on the 6th.
Mars the Moon, Antares and Saturn form a diamond in the sky on the 12th. Mars passes between Antares and the Moon on the 24th
Saturn has a close encounter with the Moon on the 12th.
Venus climbs higher the evening twilight and is extremely close to Jupiter on the 28th.
Mercury, forms a line-up with Venus and Jupiter, and is close to the pair on the 28th.
Labels: southern skywatch
A Rare Planet Dance in August 2016
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| Western horizon as seen from Adelaide this Saturday (July 30) at 45 minutes after local sunset, when Mercury and Regulus are closest. Similar views will be seen from the rest of the southern hemisphere at the equivalent local time. Click on any image to embiggen | Western horizon as seen from Adelaide Thursday August 4 at 45 minutes after local sunset, when Venus, the Moon and Regulus are close. Similar views will be seen from the rest of the southern hemisphere at the equivalent local time. Click on any image to embiggen |
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| Western horizon as seen from Adelaide Friday August 5 at 45 minutes after local sunset, when Venus and Regulus are closest. Similar views will be seen from the rest of the southern hemisphere at the equivalent local time. Click on any image to embiggen | Western horizon as seen from Adelaide Saturday August 6 at 45 minutes after local sunset, when Jupiter and the Moon are closest. Similar views will be seen from the rest of the southern hemisphere at the equivalent local time. Click on any image to embiggen |
 |  |
| Western sky as seen from Adelaide Tuesday August 9 at 22:00 AEST, when Mars and Dschubba are closest. Similar views will be seen from the rest of the southern hemisphere at the equivalent local time. Click on any image to embiggen | Western sky as seen from Adelaide Friday August 12 at 22:00 AEST, when Mars, Saturn, Antares and the Moon form a triangle. Similar views will be seen from the rest of the southern hemisphere at the equivalent local time. Click on any image to embiggen |
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| Western sky as seen from Adelaide Wednesday August 24 at 22:00 AEST, when Mars, Saturn, Antares form a line. Similar views will be seen from the rest of the southern hemisphere at the equivalent local time. Click on any image to embiggen | Western horizon as seen from Adelaide Sunday August 28 at 60 minutes after local sunset, when Jupiter and Venus are closest, with Mercury close by. Similar views will be seen from the rest of the southern hemisphere at the equivalent local time. Click on any image to embiggen |
You can find your local sunset/twilight times here http://www.heavens-above.com/sun.aspx
or here http://www.timeanddate.com/sun/
This year has been a good one for planetary observers, we have had good oppositions of Jupiter, Saturn and Mars, and we had all 5 planets lined up in the morning sky, the first time such a line up occurred since 2005.
Now we have another fantastic line-up of all bright planets in the evening, which means you don;'t have to get up in the wee hours to see them. The next time all five bright planets line-up is October 2018, so don't miss out.
As well as seeing all the bright planets, there are several beautiful encounters between the Moon and bright planets, the planets themselves and the planets and bright stars which will make the coming weeks exquisite. Almost every night will have something new to see.
Furthermore you do not need any fancy equipment beyond your eyes (although binoculars or a telescope will be good when Jupiter
The Planet Dance starts of this and next evening, (Saturday 30 and Sunday 31 July) when Mercury is close to the bright Star Regulus.
For all of the Mercury and Venus viewing you should look from 30 minutes to an hour after local sunset, with optimal viewing around 45 minutes after sunset (earlier the sky will be too bright to see Mercury easily, later Venus will be too close to the horizon or set). It also helps to have a level western horizon without big trees or buildings in the way.
From the 4th, the crescent Moon climbs the planets like a ladder, giving gorgeous views, with the best on the 6th, with Jupiter less than a Lunar diameter from the crescent Moon.
While most of the attention is on Venus, Mercury and Jupiter, Mars and Saturn will be pretty good higher up in the western sky. Mars and Saturn from a triangle with the bright red star Antares in Scorpius the Scorpion. Mars will move through the Scorpion in August. On the 9th Mars is close to the bright star Dschubba in the head of the Scorpion, and on the 24th Mars, Antares and Saturn from a line as Mars moves between Antares and Saturn.
Down on the horizon Mercury and Venus have been moving towards Jupiter. Mercury is closest to Jupiter on the 18th-21st, and in a spectacular finale Venus and Jupiter are less than a Lunar diameter (half a finger-width) from each other on the 27th and 28th of August.
The planets won't vanish after this, and will still be beautiful for the rest of August and early September, until Mercury and Jupiter vanish into the glare of the sun. So if you have a chance at all this month, get out and look at the sky.
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/ *Don't you love autocorrect! Left the original in for amusement value.
Labels: binocular, Conjunction, Jupiter, Mars, Mercury, Saturn, unaided eye, Venus
Wednesday, July 27, 2016
Astrophiz Podcast 4 is Out
Astrophiz Podcast 4 is 0ut. Interview: Professor Sarah Maddison - Dust and Protoplanetary Disks
History & Theory of radio astronomy: Dr Nadeshzda Cherbakov from
Tver tells us about Grote Reber. Dr Ian Musgrave tells us "What's up in
the sky this week" - The News Roundup: Magdalena Ridge Optical
Interferometry, WIMPS and Kepler Reborn.
https://soundcloud.com/astrophiz/astrophiz-podcast-4-dr-sarah-maddison-protoplanetary-disks-dr-nadeshzda-cherbakov-grote-reber
https://soundcloud.com/astrophiz/astrophiz-podcast-4-dr-sarah-maddison-protoplanetary-disks-dr-nadeshzda-cherbakov-grote-reber
Tuesday, July 26, 2016
Southern Delta Aquariid Meteor Shower 29-31 July, 2016
Evening sky looking east from Adelaide at 2 am local time on July 30th in South Australia. The cross marks the radiant (the point where the meteors appear to originate from) of the Southern Delta Aquariids. Similar views will be seen elsewhere at the equivalent local time (click to embiggen).
The Southern Delta-Aquarids meteor shower runs from from 12 July to 23rd August, peaking on Wednesday July the 30th. The number of meteors you will see depends on how high the radiant is above the horizon, and how dark your sky is. This shower is fairly faint, with the highest rate of around a meteor every 4 minutes (more detail below).
The ZHR for Southern Delta Aquariids is 16 meteors per hour. The figure ZHR is zenithal hourly rate. This is the number of meteors that a single observer would see per hour if the shower's "point of origin", or radiant, were at the zenith and the sky were dark enough for 6.5-magnitude stars to be visible to the naked eye.
In practise, you will never see this many meteors as the radiant will be some distance below the zenith. Also, unless you are out deep in the countryside, the darkness will be less than ideal. As well, moonlight will significantly reduce rates. How many are you likely to see in reality? I discuss this further down, lets talk about when to see them first.
At 10 pm, face east, and look 4 hand spans and two finger widths above the horizon. One finger width right is the 4th magnitude star delta Aquarii. The radiant is just above this star. This meteor shower should be visible from 10.00 pm until dawn. The best rates will be at 2 am in the morning of the 30th. The radiant will be due north then, and close to the Zenith near the bright star Fomalhaut.
At 2 am people in the suburbs should see a meteor around once every 8 minutes, and in the country about once every 4 minutes at 2 am in the morning of the 30th.
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 handspan up or to the side. Be patient, although you should see an average of a meteor every six to three 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 eastern horizon, have a comfortable chair to sit in (a banana lounger is best), or blankets and pillows. Rug up against the cold. A hot Thermos of something to drink and plenty of mosquito protection will complete your observing preparations. As well as meteors, keep an eye out for satellites (see Heavens Above for predictions from your site).
The sky will also be particularly beautiful, with the Milky Way stretching over the sky and constellation of Scorpius and Mars and Saturn gracing the western sky.
Cloud cover predictions can be found at SkippySky.
Labels: Meteors
The Sky This Week - Thursday July 28 to Thursday August 4
The New Moon is Wednesday August 3. Venus and Mercury rise in the early evening sky. The Moon is close to Venus on Thursday August the 4th Jupiter
is visible in the early
evening.
Mars and Saturn are visible all evening long. Saturn is close to the red
star Antares and forms a triangle
with Mars. The Southern Delta Aquariid meteor shower peaks the morning of 30 July.
The New Moon is Wednesday August 3.
Evening sky on Thursday August 4 looking west at 45 minutes after sunset.
Jupiter is above Venus and Mercury. Venus and the crescent Moon are close star Regulus. Similar views
will be seen throughout Australia at the equivalent local time. (click
to embiggen).
Jupiter was at opposition on the March 8th, when it was biggest and brightest as seen from Earth. Jupiter will be an excellent telescopic target but s rapidly coming too close to the horizon.
Jupiter is in the north-western evening sky as the sun sets, and is good for telescopic observation from around 18:00 on until around 8:30 pm when it will be a little too close to the horizon. Jupiter's Moons will be an still be excellent sight.
Venus and Mercury continue to rise above the twilight glow this week, you will need a clear, unobstructed horizon to see them effectively at the beginning of the week, but by the end of the week Mercury will be sufficiently high in the dusk sky to see clearly. A little after half an hour after sunset, Venus, Mercury, the bright star Regulus and Jupiter make a nice line-up in the dusk sky.
Mercury comes closer to the bright star Regulus in the dusk and is closest on the 30th and 31st, Then Venus approaches and on Thurday 4 August Venus, Regulus and the crescent Moon are close in the dusk.
Evening sky on Saturday July 30 looking west as seen from
Adelaide
at 22:00 ACST. Mars, Saturn and Antares form a triangle. The
inset shows telescopic views of Mars and Saturn. Similar views
will be seen elsewhere in Australia at the equivalent local time. (click
to embiggen).
Mars is high in the evening skies near the head of the Scorpion in Libra.
Mars continues to head back towards the head of the Scorpion this week. Mars forms a line with the star Dschubba in the head of the Scorpion and Antares. As well Mars forms a triangle with Saturn and the red star Antares. Mars was at opposition on May 22, and is visibly dimming, but is still a decent telescope object. It is visible all evening long. In even small telescopes Mars will be a visible disk, and you should see its markings. Mars comes visibly closer to Dschubba this week.
Saturn was at opposition on the 3rd of June. However, Saturn's change in size and brightness is nowhere near as spectacular as Mars's, and Saturn will be a reasonable telescopic object for many weeks. Saturn is reasonably high in the evening sky and is readily visible below Scorpius. Saturn forms a triangle with Mars and the red star Antares. It is now high enough for good telescopic observation in the evening. In even small telescopes its distinctive rings are obvious.
Evening sky looking north from Adelaide at 2 am local time in South
Australia. The starburst marks the radiant (the point where the meteors
appear to originate from) of the Southern Delta Aquariids. Similar views
will
be seen elsewhere at the equivalent local time (click to embiggen).
The Southern Delta-Aquarids meteor shower runs from from 12 July to 23rd August, peaking on the morning of Saturday July the 30th. The number of meteors you will see depends on how high the radiant is above the horizon, and how dark your sky is. This shower is fairly faint, with the highest rate of around a meteor every 4 minutes (more detail here).
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.
The New Moon is Wednesday August 3.
Jupiter was at opposition on the March 8th, when it was biggest and brightest as seen from Earth. Jupiter will be an excellent telescopic target but s rapidly coming too close to the horizon.
Jupiter is in the north-western evening sky as the sun sets, and is good for telescopic observation from around 18:00 on until around 8:30 pm when it will be a little too close to the horizon. Jupiter's Moons will be an still be excellent sight.
Venus and Mercury continue to rise above the twilight glow this week, you will need a clear, unobstructed horizon to see them effectively at the beginning of the week, but by the end of the week Mercury will be sufficiently high in the dusk sky to see clearly. A little after half an hour after sunset, Venus, Mercury, the bright star Regulus and Jupiter make a nice line-up in the dusk sky.
Mercury comes closer to the bright star Regulus in the dusk and is closest on the 30th and 31st, Then Venus approaches and on Thurday 4 August Venus, Regulus and the crescent Moon are close in the dusk.
Mars is high in the evening skies near the head of the Scorpion in Libra.
Mars continues to head back towards the head of the Scorpion this week. Mars forms a line with the star Dschubba in the head of the Scorpion and Antares. As well Mars forms a triangle with Saturn and the red star Antares. Mars was at opposition on May 22, and is visibly dimming, but is still a decent telescope object. It is visible all evening long. In even small telescopes Mars will be a visible disk, and you should see its markings. Mars comes visibly closer to Dschubba this week.
Saturn was at opposition on the 3rd of June. However, Saturn's change in size and brightness is nowhere near as spectacular as Mars's, and Saturn will be a reasonable telescopic object for many weeks. Saturn is reasonably high in the evening sky and is readily visible below Scorpius. Saturn forms a triangle with Mars and the red star Antares. It is now high enough for good telescopic observation in the evening. In even small telescopes its distinctive rings are obvious.
The Southern Delta-Aquarids meteor shower runs from from 12 July to 23rd August, peaking on the morning of Saturday July the 30th. The number of meteors you will see depends on how high the radiant is above the horizon, and how dark your sky is. This shower is fairly faint, with the highest rate of around a meteor every 4 minutes (more detail here).
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.
Labels: weekly sky
Friday, July 22, 2016
Astrophiz Podcast 3 is Out
The Astrophiz podcast is out, Interview: Dave Hunter - Magnetometers
and interpreting heliophysical satellite data. History & Theory of
radio astronomy: Dr Nadeshda Cherbakov tells us about Karl Jansky.
ANNNDD someone you might recognize talking about what is up in the sky
this week.
https://soundcloud.com/astrophiz/astrophiz-podcast-3-heliophysics-karl-jansky
https://soundcloud.com/astrophiz/astrophiz-podcast-3-heliophysics-karl-jansky
Thursday, July 21, 2016
See the ISS buzz Jupiter and Mars AGAIN (22-23 July, 2016)
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| The ISS passes between Mars, Saturn and Antares, as seen from Adelaide on the evening of Friday 22 July at 18:03 ACST. Simulated in Stellarium (the ISS will actually be a bright dot), click to embiggen. | The ISS passes near Antares and Saturn, as seen from Alice Springs on the on the evening of Saturday 23 July at 18:46 ACST. Simulated in Stellarium (the ISS will actually be a bright dot), click to embiggen. | The ISS passes just below Jupiter, as seen from Sydney on the evening of Friday 2 July at 18:33 AEST. Simulated in Stellarium (the ISS will actually be a bright dot), click to embiggen. |
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| All sky chart showing local times from Heavens Above for Friday 22 July for Adelaide. | All sky chart showing local times from Heavens Above for Saturday 23 July for Alice Springs. | All sky chart showing local times from Heavens Above for Friday 22 July for Sydney. |
On July 22 and 23 there is series of bright passes of the International Space Station occurring in the early evening. In some places in Australia the ISS will pass close to Mars and Antaresat varying times, others close to Jupiter and in still others there are close passes to bright stars such as the pointers, sometimes close passes to all of the above and in a few places the ISS might even pass over Jupiter or Antares.
Friday evening (22 July) sees the ISS pass close to Antares and Saturn as seen from Perth and Adelaide. Sydney, Alice Springs, Brisbane and Melbourne all see close passes to Jupiter, with Sydney almost seeing the ISS pass in front of it (regions nearby may see the ISS pass over Jupiter).
Saturday evening (23rd) Sees the ISS pass cose to Antareas and Saturn from Alcie SPrings (with the ISS almost passing over Antares) and Brisbane, With Adelaide, Sydney and Perth seeing reasonably close passes to Jupiter.
On both dates there are also closish passes to various other right stars (like the pointers and Arcturus).
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 Jupiter and missing it completely.
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.
Labels: ISS, Jupiter, Mars, Satellite, unaided eye
Tuesday, July 19, 2016
The Sky This Week - Thursday July 21 to Thursday July 28
The Last Quarter Moon is Wednesday July 27. Venus and Mercury rise in the early evening sky. Jupiter
is visible in the early
evening.
Mars and Saturn are visible all evening long. Saturn is close to the red
star Antares and forms a triangle
with Mars.
Comet C/2013 X1 PanSTARRS may be visible in strong binoculars
in the evening sky.
The Last Quarter Moon is Wednesday July 27. The Moon is at perigee, when it is closest to the Earth, on the 27th.
Evening sky on Saturday July 23 looking west at 30 minutes after sunset.
Jupiter is above Venus and Mercury, forming a line with the star Regulus. Similar views
will be seen throughout Australia at the equivalent local time. (click
to embiggen).
Jupiter was at opposition on the March 8th, when it was biggest and brightest as seen from Earth. Jupiter will be an excellent telescopic target but s rapidly coming too close to the horizon.
Jupiter is in the north-western evening sky as the sun sets, and is good for telescopic observation from around 18:00 on until around 9:00 pm when it will be a little too close to the horizon. Jupiter's Moons will be an still be excellent sight.
Venus and Mercury continue to rise above the twilight glow this week, you will need a clear, unobstructed horizon to see them effectively at the beginning of the week, but by the end of the week Mercury will be sufficiently high in the dusk sky to see clearly. A little after half an hour after sunset, Venus, Mercury, the bright star Regulus and Jupiter make a nice line-up in the dusk sky.
Evening sky on Saturday July 23 looking west as seen from
Adelaide
at 22:00 ACST. Mars, Saturn and Antares form a triangle. The
inset shows telescopic views of Mars and Saturn. Similar views
will be seen elsewhere in Australia at the equivalent local time. (click
to embiggen).
Mars is high in the evening skies near the head of the Scorpion in Libra.
Mars continues to head back towards the head of the Scorpion this week. Mars forms a line with the star Dschubba in the head of the Scorpion and Antares. As well Mars forms a triangle with Saturn and the red star Antares. Mars was at opposition on May 22, and is visibly dimming, but is still a decent telescope object. It is visible all evening long. In even small telescopes Mars will be a visible disk, and you should see its markings.
Saturn was at opposition on the 3rd of June. However, Saturn's change in size and brightness is nowhere near as spectacular as Mars's, and Saturn will be a reasonable telescopic object for many weeks. Saturn is reasonably high in the evening sky and is readily visible below Scorpius. Saturn forms a triangle with Mars and the red star Antares. It is now high enough for good telescopic observation in the evening. In even small telescopes its distinctive rings are obvious.
Comet C/2013 X1 (PANSTARRS) rises around 4:00 pm local time, and is clear the of horizon murk from around 7:30 pm. It is currently around magnitude 7.5, by the end of the week the waning Moon will rise sufficiently late that there is good chance of seeing the comet before Moon rise in good binoculars. The comet will be close Centaurus for much of this week. Detailed maps and guides are here.
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.
The Last Quarter Moon is Wednesday July 27. The Moon is at perigee, when it is closest to the Earth, on the 27th.
Jupiter was at opposition on the March 8th, when it was biggest and brightest as seen from Earth. Jupiter will be an excellent telescopic target but s rapidly coming too close to the horizon.
Jupiter is in the north-western evening sky as the sun sets, and is good for telescopic observation from around 18:00 on until around 9:00 pm when it will be a little too close to the horizon. Jupiter's Moons will be an still be excellent sight.
Venus and Mercury continue to rise above the twilight glow this week, you will need a clear, unobstructed horizon to see them effectively at the beginning of the week, but by the end of the week Mercury will be sufficiently high in the dusk sky to see clearly. A little after half an hour after sunset, Venus, Mercury, the bright star Regulus and Jupiter make a nice line-up in the dusk sky.
Mars is high in the evening skies near the head of the Scorpion in Libra.
Mars continues to head back towards the head of the Scorpion this week. Mars forms a line with the star Dschubba in the head of the Scorpion and Antares. As well Mars forms a triangle with Saturn and the red star Antares. Mars was at opposition on May 22, and is visibly dimming, but is still a decent telescope object. It is visible all evening long. In even small telescopes Mars will be a visible disk, and you should see its markings.
Saturn was at opposition on the 3rd of June. However, Saturn's change in size and brightness is nowhere near as spectacular as Mars's, and Saturn will be a reasonable telescopic object for many weeks. Saturn is reasonably high in the evening sky and is readily visible below Scorpius. Saturn forms a triangle with Mars and the red star Antares. It is now high enough for good telescopic observation in the evening. In even small telescopes its distinctive rings are obvious.
Comet C/2013 X1 (PANSTARRS) rises around 4:00 pm local time, and is clear the of horizon murk from around 7:30 pm. It is currently around magnitude 7.5, by the end of the week the waning Moon will rise sufficiently late that there is good chance of seeing the comet before Moon rise in good binoculars. The comet will be close Centaurus for much of this week. Detailed maps and guides are here.
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.
Labels: weekly sky
Monday, July 18, 2016
Venus (and Mercury) Returns to the Evening Sky. (17 July 2016)
Venus and Mercury have returned to the evening sky. Last Sunday (17 July) the pair were very close together, around a lunar diameter apart.
Unfortunately they were also very low to the horizon. However, 10 minutes after sunset I could easily see Venus , but not Mercury. By half an hour after sunset when the pair were a little over 3 finger-widths above the horizon (which in my case was the ocean, lucky me).
I could just see Mercury with averted vision, in another 10 minutes Mercury was reasonably visible but still a little bit prone to disappear if you looked right at it. I took the picture shortly after this, then hied it back home as the cold and some amazing cold-resistant mosquitoes were getting to me.
Mercury will now pull away from Venus, heading towards Regulus and Jupiter, becoming more visible as the month wears on, and heading for a spectacular conjunction with Jupiter and Venus in late August. .
Labels: Mercury, unaided eye, Venus
Tuesday, July 12, 2016
The Sky This Week - Thursday July 14 to Thursday July 21
The Full Moon is Wednesday July 20. Venus and Mercury return to the evening sky. Jupiter
is visible in the early
evening.
Mars and Saturn are visible all night long. Saturn is close to the red
star Antares and forms a triangle
with Mars.
The Moon is close to Mars and Saturn on the 19th. Comet C/2013 X1 PanSTARRS may be visible in strong binoculars
in the evening sky.
The Full Moon is Wednesday July 20.
Evening sky on Saturday July 9 looking west at 30 minutes after sunset. Jupiter is above the close pair of Venus and Mercury. Similar views
will be seen throughout Australia at the equivalent local time. (click
to embiggen).
Jupiter was at opposition on the March 8th, when it was biggest and brightest as seen from Earth. Jupiter will be an excellent telescopic target but s rapidly coming too close to the horizon.
Jupiter is in the north-western evening sky as the sun sets, and is good for telescopic observation from around 18:00 on until around 9:30 pm when it will be a little too close to the horizon. Jupiter's Moons will be an excellent sight all evening.
Venus and Mercury emerge from the twilight glow this week, although they will be difficult to see until late in the week, and even then you will need a clear, unobstructed horizon, like the ocean, to see them effectively. On Sunday 17 July Venus and Mercury are very close together, but are just four finger-widths above the horizon half an hour after sunset, so this will be a challenging observation. You may need binoculars to see Mercury.
Evening sky on Friday July 15 looking west as seen from
Adelaide
at 22:00 ACST. Mars, Saturn and Antares form a triangle, and the waning Moon makes a kite shape with them. The
inset shows telescopic views of Mars and Saturn. Similar views
will be seen elsewhere in Australia at the equivalent local time. (click
to embiggen).
Mars is high in the evening skies near the head of the Scorpion in Libra.
Mars continues to head back towards the head of the Scorpion this week. Mars forms a line with the star Dschubba in the head of the Scorpion and Anatres. As well Mars forms a triangle with Saturn and the red star Antares. Mars was at opposition on May 22, is visibly dimming, but is still a decent telescope object. It is visible all night long. In even small telescopes Mars will be a visible disk, and you should see its markings.
Saturn was at opposition on the 3rd of June. However, Saturn's change in size and brightness is nowhere near as spectacular as Mars's, and Saturn will be a reasonable telescopic object for many weeks. Saturn is reasonably high in the evening sky and is readily visible below Scorpius. Saturn forms a triangle with Mars and the red star Antares. It is now high enough for good telescopic observation in the evening. In even small telescopes its distinctive rings are obvious.
The waxing Moon is close to Mars on the 14th and 15th, and Saturn of the 15th and 16th. The best display is on the 15th when the Moon, Mars, Saturn and Antares form a kite pattern in the sky.
Comet C/2013 X1 (PANSTARRS) rises around 4:00 pm local time, and is clear the of horizon murk from around 7:30 pm. It is currently around magnitude 7.2, however, the waxing Moon is very close to the comet this week, making it very difficult to see even in a telescope. The comet will be close Centaurus for much of this week. Detailed maps and guides are here.
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.
The Full Moon is Wednesday July 20.
Jupiter was at opposition on the March 8th, when it was biggest and brightest as seen from Earth. Jupiter will be an excellent telescopic target but s rapidly coming too close to the horizon.
Jupiter is in the north-western evening sky as the sun sets, and is good for telescopic observation from around 18:00 on until around 9:30 pm when it will be a little too close to the horizon. Jupiter's Moons will be an excellent sight all evening.
Venus and Mercury emerge from the twilight glow this week, although they will be difficult to see until late in the week, and even then you will need a clear, unobstructed horizon, like the ocean, to see them effectively. On Sunday 17 July Venus and Mercury are very close together, but are just four finger-widths above the horizon half an hour after sunset, so this will be a challenging observation. You may need binoculars to see Mercury.
Mars is high in the evening skies near the head of the Scorpion in Libra.
Mars continues to head back towards the head of the Scorpion this week. Mars forms a line with the star Dschubba in the head of the Scorpion and Anatres. As well Mars forms a triangle with Saturn and the red star Antares. Mars was at opposition on May 22, is visibly dimming, but is still a decent telescope object. It is visible all night long. In even small telescopes Mars will be a visible disk, and you should see its markings.
Saturn was at opposition on the 3rd of June. However, Saturn's change in size and brightness is nowhere near as spectacular as Mars's, and Saturn will be a reasonable telescopic object for many weeks. Saturn is reasonably high in the evening sky and is readily visible below Scorpius. Saturn forms a triangle with Mars and the red star Antares. It is now high enough for good telescopic observation in the evening. In even small telescopes its distinctive rings are obvious.
The waxing Moon is close to Mars on the 14th and 15th, and Saturn of the 15th and 16th. The best display is on the 15th when the Moon, Mars, Saturn and Antares form a kite pattern in the sky.
Comet C/2013 X1 (PANSTARRS) rises around 4:00 pm local time, and is clear the of horizon murk from around 7:30 pm. It is currently around magnitude 7.2, however, the waxing Moon is very close to the comet this week, making it very difficult to see even in a telescope. The comet will be close Centaurus for much of this week. Detailed maps and guides are here.
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.
Labels: weekly sky
Thursday, July 07, 2016
Jupiter Meets the Moon (9 July 2016)
Evening sky on Saturday July 9 looking west as seen from
Adelaide
at 21:00 ACST. Jupiter is very close to the Moon.The inset is the telescopic view of Jupiter and the Moon. at this time. Similar views will be seen elsewhere in Australia at the equivalent local time (but see below). (click to embiggen).
This Saturday evening (9 July), the crescent Moon and the bright planet Jupiter will be very close together, just above the western horizon.
Indeed at their closest from most of Australia Jupiter is mostly less than half a lunar diameter from Moon (that is about a quarter of a finger-width) at around 9:00 pm local time (see table for details). Except Perth, which has a really close view of 11 arc minutes (11', the Moon is 30' wide) just on astronomical twilight (and hour and a half after sunset).
| City | Closest approach | Time |
| Adelaide | 14' | 20:30 |
| Alice Springs | 23' | 20:30 |
| Brisbane | 24' | 21:00 |
| Canberra | 17' | 21:00 |
| Darwin | 33' | 20:30 |
| Hobart | 14' | 21:00 |
| Melbourne | 14' | 21:00 |
| Perth | 10' | 18:36 |
| Sydney | 18' | 21:00 |
They will be visible together in binoculars and wide field eyepieces of telescopes. For telescope user, a 24 mm eyepiece (rough field of view 1 degree) will have the pair together for most of the night.
A 12 mm eyepiece will easily fit Jupiter and a large section of the Moon in the same field of view fro around an hour of closest approach, but details of Jupiter's bands may be hard to see.
A 7.5 mm eye piece will show Jupiter nicely, but you will not get much of the Moon in (and Brisbane, Alice Springs and Darwin they will be too far apart to fit in the FOV of a 7.5 mm eyepiece.
If you start observing shortly around astronomical twilight (an hour and a half after Sunset) you will be able to watch the pair coming closer together (except Perth where they are closest around astronomical twilight, and you can watch them pull apart).
Photographing the pair will be a challenge, as it will be difficult to get a good exposure of Jupiter and its Moons without over exposing the Moon, you may have to make a mosiac with differnt exposure times.
Labels: astrophotography, Jupiter, Moon
Wednesday, July 06, 2016
The Sky This Week - Thursday July 7 to Thursday July 14
The First Quarter Moon is Tuesday July 12. Jupiter
is visible in the early
evening and is spectacularly close to the Moon on the 9th.
Mars and Saturn are visible all night long. Saturn is close to the red
star Antares and forms a triangle
with Mars.
Mercury and Venus are
lost in the twilight. Comet C/2013 X1 PanSTARRS is visible in strong binoculars
in the evening sky.
The First Quarter Moon is Tuesday July 12.The Moon is at apogee, when it is furthest from the Earth, on the 13th.
Evening sky on Saturday July 9 looking west as seen from
Adelaide
at 21:00 ACST. Jupiter is very close to the Moon. The inset is the telescopic view of Jupiter and the Moon. at this time. Similar views
will be seen elsewhere in Australia at the equivalent local time. (click
to embiggen).
Jupiter was at opposition on the March 8th, when it was biggest and brightest as seen from Earth. Jupiter will be an excellent telescopic target but is rapidly coming too close to the horizon.
Jupiter is in the north-western evening sky as the sun sets, and is good for telescopic observation from around 18:00 on until around 9:30 pm when it will be a little too close to the horizon. Jupiter's Moons will be an excellent sight all evening. On the 9th Jupiter will be less than a Lunar diameter from the Moon, and the pair will be visible together in binoculars and low power telescope eyepieces.
The early evening is also graced by the constellation of Canis Major with bright Sirius, the dog star, above the western horizon.
Evening sky on Saturday July 9 looking north as seen from
Adelaide
at 22:00 ACST. Mars, Saturn and Antares form a triangle. Comet C/2013 X1
is now visible in the evening, above the tail of the Scorpion. The
inset shows telescopic views of Mars and Saturn. Similar views
will be seen elsewhere in Australia at the equivalent local time. (click
to embiggen).
Mars is high in the evening skies near the head of the Scorpion in Libra.
Mars heads back towards the head of the Scorpion this week. Mars forms a line with the star Dschubba in the head of the Scorpion and Anatres. As well Mars forms a triangle with Saturn and the red star Antares. Mars was at opposition on May 22, but Mars will still be big and bright for this week. It is visible all night long. In even small telescopes Mars will be a visible disk, and you should see its markings.
Saturn was at opposition on the 3rd. However, Saturn's change in size and brightness is nowhere near as spectacular as Mars's, and Saturn will be a reasonable telescopic object for many weeks. Saturn is reasonably high in the evening sky and is readily visible below Scorpius. Saturn forms a triangle with Mars and the red star Antares. It is now high enough for good telescopic observation in the evening. In even small telescopes its distinctive rings are obvious.
Comet C/2013 X1 (PANSTARRS) rises around 4:00 pm local time, and is clear the of horizon murk from around 8 pm. It is currently around magnitude 7.2 and will be visible in dark skies with good binoculars. The comet will be close to the tail of the Scorpion for much of this week. Detailed maps and guides are here.
Venus is lost in the twilight.
Mercury is lost in the twilight.
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.
Here is the near-real time satellite view of the clouds (day and night) http://satview.bom.gov.au/
The First Quarter Moon is Tuesday July 12.The Moon is at apogee, when it is furthest from the Earth, on the 13th.
Jupiter was at opposition on the March 8th, when it was biggest and brightest as seen from Earth. Jupiter will be an excellent telescopic target but is rapidly coming too close to the horizon.
Jupiter is in the north-western evening sky as the sun sets, and is good for telescopic observation from around 18:00 on until around 9:30 pm when it will be a little too close to the horizon. Jupiter's Moons will be an excellent sight all evening. On the 9th Jupiter will be less than a Lunar diameter from the Moon, and the pair will be visible together in binoculars and low power telescope eyepieces.
The early evening is also graced by the constellation of Canis Major with bright Sirius, the dog star, above the western horizon.
Mars is high in the evening skies near the head of the Scorpion in Libra.
Mars heads back towards the head of the Scorpion this week. Mars forms a line with the star Dschubba in the head of the Scorpion and Anatres. As well Mars forms a triangle with Saturn and the red star Antares. Mars was at opposition on May 22, but Mars will still be big and bright for this week. It is visible all night long. In even small telescopes Mars will be a visible disk, and you should see its markings.
Saturn was at opposition on the 3rd. However, Saturn's change in size and brightness is nowhere near as spectacular as Mars's, and Saturn will be a reasonable telescopic object for many weeks. Saturn is reasonably high in the evening sky and is readily visible below Scorpius. Saturn forms a triangle with Mars and the red star Antares. It is now high enough for good telescopic observation in the evening. In even small telescopes its distinctive rings are obvious.
Comet C/2013 X1 (PANSTARRS) rises around 4:00 pm local time, and is clear the of horizon murk from around 8 pm. It is currently around magnitude 7.2 and will be visible in dark skies with good binoculars. The comet will be close to the tail of the Scorpion for much of this week. Detailed maps and guides are here.
Venus is lost in the twilight.
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.
Here is the near-real time satellite view of the clouds (day and night) http://satview.bom.gov.au/
Labels: weekly sky
The Sky This Week - Thursday July 7 to Thursday July 14
The First Quarter Moon is Tuesday July 12. Jupiter
is visible in the early
evening and is spectacularly close to the Moon on the 9th.
Mars and Saturn are visible all night long. Saturn is close to the red
star Antares and forms a triangle
with Mars.
Mercury and Venus are
lost in the twilight. Comet C/2013 X1 PanSTARRS is visible in strong binoculars
in the evening sky.
The First Quarter Moon is Tuesday July 12.The Moon is at apogee, when it is furthest from the Earth, on the 13th.
Evening sky on Saturday July 9 looking west as seen from
Adelaide
at 21:00 ACST. Jupiter is very close to the Moon. The inset is the telescopic view of Jupiter and the Moon. at this time. Similar views
will be seen elsewhere in Australia at the equivalent local time. (click
to embiggen).
Jupiter was at opposition on the March 8th, when it was biggest and brightest as seen from Earth. Jupiter will be an excellent telescopic target but is rapidly coming too close to the horizon.
Jupiter is in the north-western evening sky as the sun sets, and is good for telescopic observation from around 18:00 on until around 9:30 pm when it will be a little too close to the horizon. Jupiter's Moons will be an excellent sight all evening. On the 9th Jupiter will be less than a Lunar diameter from the Moon, and the pair will be visible together in binoculars and low power telescope eyepieces.
The early evening is also graced by the constellation of Canis Major with bright Sirius, the dog star, above the western horizon.
Evening sky on Saturday July 9 looking north as seen from
Adelaide
at 22:00 ACST. Mars, Saturn and Antares form a triangle. Comet C/2013 X1
is now visible in the evening, above the tail of the Scorpion. The
inset shows telescopic views of Mars and Saturn. Similar views
will be seen elsewhere in Australia at the equivalent local time. (click
to embiggen).
Mars is high in the evening skies near the head of the Scorpion in Libra.
Mars heads back towards the head of the Scorpion this week. Mars forms a line with the star Dschubba in the head of the Scorpion and Anatres. As well Mars forms a triangle with Saturn and the red star Antares. Mars was at opposition on May 22, but Mars will still be big and bright for this week. It is visible all night long. In even small telescopes Mars will be a visible disk, and you should see its markings.
Saturn was at opposition on the 3rd. However, Saturn's change in size and brightness is nowhere near as spectacular as Mars's, and Saturn will be a reasonable telescopic object for many weeks. Saturn is reasonably high in the evening sky and is readily visible below Scorpius. Saturn forms a triangle with Mars and the red star Antares. It is now high enough for good telescopic observation in the evening. In even small telescopes its distinctive rings are obvious.
Comet C/2013 X1 (PANSTARRS) rises around 4:00 pm local time, and is clear the of horizon murk from around 8 pm. It is currently around magnitude 7.2 and will be visible in dark skies with good binoculars. The comet will be close to the tail of the Scorpion for much of this week. Detailed maps and guides are here.
Venus is lost in the twilight.
Mercury is lost in the twilight.
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.
Here is the near-real time satellite view of the clouds (day and night) http://satview.bom.gov.au/
The First Quarter Moon is Tuesday July 12.The Moon is at apogee, when it is furthest from the Earth, on the 13th.
Jupiter was at opposition on the March 8th, when it was biggest and brightest as seen from Earth. Jupiter will be an excellent telescopic target but is rapidly coming too close to the horizon.
Jupiter is in the north-western evening sky as the sun sets, and is good for telescopic observation from around 18:00 on until around 9:30 pm when it will be a little too close to the horizon. Jupiter's Moons will be an excellent sight all evening. On the 9th Jupiter will be less than a Lunar diameter from the Moon, and the pair will be visible together in binoculars and low power telescope eyepieces.
The early evening is also graced by the constellation of Canis Major with bright Sirius, the dog star, above the western horizon.
Mars is high in the evening skies near the head of the Scorpion in Libra.
Mars heads back towards the head of the Scorpion this week. Mars forms a line with the star Dschubba in the head of the Scorpion and Anatres. As well Mars forms a triangle with Saturn and the red star Antares. Mars was at opposition on May 22, but Mars will still be big and bright for this week. It is visible all night long. In even small telescopes Mars will be a visible disk, and you should see its markings.
Saturn was at opposition on the 3rd. However, Saturn's change in size and brightness is nowhere near as spectacular as Mars's, and Saturn will be a reasonable telescopic object for many weeks. Saturn is reasonably high in the evening sky and is readily visible below Scorpius. Saturn forms a triangle with Mars and the red star Antares. It is now high enough for good telescopic observation in the evening. In even small telescopes its distinctive rings are obvious.
Comet C/2013 X1 (PANSTARRS) rises around 4:00 pm local time, and is clear the of horizon murk from around 8 pm. It is currently around magnitude 7.2 and will be visible in dark skies with good binoculars. The comet will be close to the tail of the Scorpion for much of this week. Detailed maps and guides are here.
Venus is lost in the twilight.
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.
Here is the near-real time satellite view of the clouds (day and night) http://satview.bom.gov.au/
Labels: weekly sky
Friday, July 01, 2016
Southern Skywatch July, 2016 edition is now out!
The July edition of Southern Skywatch is up.
This month sees all five bright planets in the evening sky and still more nice planetary action.
Jupiter and Mars and Saturn are prominent in the evening sky. Venus and Mercury return to the evening sky late in the month. Mars, Antares and Saturn form a triangle in the evening skies.
Jupiter is very close to the waxing Moon on the 9th.
Mars Between 1 and 5 July Mars is within binocular distance of the faint globular cluster NGC 5897. On the 15th, the Moon, Mars, Antares and Saturn form a diamond in the sky.
Saturn has a close encounter with the Moon.
Venus is returns to the evening twilight and is close to Mercury on the 17th.
Mercury, enters the evening sky late in the month and is close to the bright star Regulus on the 30th and 31st, forming a line-up with Venus and Jupiter.
Labels: southern skywatch
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