Tuesday, December 27, 2022
Thursday December 29 to Thursday January 5
The First Quarter Moon is Friday December 30. This is a “blue” first quarter Moon. Jupiter is easy to see as brightest object in the western evening sky aside from the Moon. The crescent Moon is very close to Jupiter on the 29th. Bright Mars, the red star Aldebaran and the Pleiades cluster form a triangle. The waxing Moon is close to Mars on the 3rd. Venus climbs higher in the evening twilight while Mercury falls back towards Venus.
The First Quarter Moon is Friday December 30. This is a “blue” first quarter Moon, the second first quarter Moon of the month.
Similar views will be seen from the rest of Australia at the equivalent
local time (45 minutes after sunset).
Mars was at opposition, when was at its biggest and brightest as seen from Earth, on December the 8th, but is still an excellent sight. The inset is the telescopic view at this time.
Similar views will be seen from the rest of Australia at the equivalent local time (90 minutes after sunset).
Saturn forms a line with delta and gamma Capricornii low in thewest with Jupiter to the north-west.The crescent Moon and Jupiter are close enough to fit into a binocular field.
The insets are the telescopic views of Saturn and Jupiter at the same magnification at this time.
Similar views will be seen from the rest of Australia at the equivalent
local time (90 minutes after sunset).
Between the bright star Canopus and the Southern Cross are another wealth of binocular objects to discover.
Elsewhere
in Australia will see a similar view at the equivalent time (90 minutes after sunset).
Mercury falls back towards the twilight.
Venus climbs out of the twilight.
Mars the red star Aldebaran and the Pleiades cluster form a triangle. The waxing Moon is close to Mars on the 3rd.
Jupiter is now sinking to the west in the late evening sky. Jupiter is visible all evening and is the brightest object in the north-west to western sky.
Saturn forms a line with delta and gamma Capricornii. Saturn is low in the west and sets shortly after the sky is fully dark.
Star Map via Virtual sky. Use your mouse to scroll around and press 8 when your pointer is in the map to set to the current time.
Cloud cover predictions can be found at SkippySky.
Here is the near-real time satellite view of the clouds (day and night) http://satview.bom.gov.au/
Labels: weekly sky
Monday, December 19, 2022
Thursday December 22 to Thursday December 29
The New Moon is Friday December 23. Jupiter is easy to see as brightest object in the evening sky aside from the Moon. The Crescent Moon visits Saturn on the 26th, then is very close to Jupiter on the 29th. Bright Mars and the red stars Aldebaran and Betelgeuse form a triangle. Mercury and Venus climb higher in the evening twilight.on the 24th the thin crescent Moon forms a triangle with Venus and Mercury.
The New Moon is Friday December 23. The Moon is at perigee, when it is closest to the earth on the 24th.
Evening sky on Saturday, December 24 as seen from Adelaide at 21:0
ACDST, (30 minutes after sunset, click
to embiggen). Venus and Mercury are low above the horizon in the twilight and are joined by the crescent Moon. You will need a low, unobstructed horizon to see them clearly.
Similar views will be seen from the rest of Australia at the equivalent
local time (30 minutes after sunset).
Evening sky on Saturday, December 24 as seen from Adelaide at 22:17 ACDST, 90 minutes after sunset (click
to embiggen). Mars, and the red stars Aldebaran and Betelgeuse form a triangle.
Mars was at opposition, when was at its biggest and brightest as seen from Earth, on the 8th, but is still an excellent sight. The inset is the telescopic view at this time.
Similar views will be seen from the rest of Australia at the equivalent local time (90 minutes after sunset).
Saturn forms a line with delta and gamma Capricornii low in thewest with Jupiter to the north-west.The crescent Moon and Jupiter are close enough to fit into a binocular field.
The insets are the telescopic views of Saturn and Jupiter at the same magnification at this time.
Similar views will be seen from the rest of Australia at the equivalent
local time (90 minutes after sunset).
Between the bright star Canopus and the Southern Cross are another wealth of binocular objects to discover.
Elsewhere
in Australia will see a similar view at the equivalent time (90 minutes after sunset).
Mercury climbs out of the twilight.
Venus climbs out of the twilight.
Mars and the red stars Aldebaran and Betelgeuse form a triangle. Mars was at opposition, when it was biggest and brightest as seen from Earth, on December 8th, but is still a very worthwhile sight.
Jupiter is at its highest higher in the late evening sky. Jupiter was at opposition, when it was biggest and brightest as seen from Earth, on the 27th of September. Jupiter is visible all evening.
Saturn forms a line with delta and gamma Capricornii. Saturn was at opposition, when it was biggest and brightest as seen from Earth, on the 15th of August.
Star Map via Virtual sky. Use your mouse to scroll around and press 8 when your pointer is in the map to set to the current time.
Cloud cover predictions can be found at SkippySky.
Here is the near-real time satellite view of the clouds (day and night) http://satview.bom.gov.au/
Labels: weekly sky
Monday, December 12, 2022
Thursday December 15 to Thursday December 22
The Last Quarter Moon is Friday December 16. The Earth is at Solstice on the 22nd. Jupiter is easy to see as brightest object in the evening sky aside from the Moon. Mars is now rising well before midnight. Mars and the the red stars Aldebaran and Betelgeuse form a triangle. Mercury and Venus climb higher in the evening twilight. The Geminid meteor shower December 15.
The Last Quarter Moon is Friday December 16. The Earth is at Solstice, when the day is longest, on the 22nd.
Similar views will be seen from the rest of Australia at the equivalent
local time (30 minutes after sunset).
Mars was at opposition, when was at its biggest and brightest as seen from Earth, last week, but is still an excellent sight. The inset is the telescopic view at this time.
Similar views will be seen from the rest of Australia at the equivalent local time (90 minutes after sunset).
Saturn forms a line with delta and gamma Capricornii with Jupiter to the north-west.
The insets are the telescopic views of Saturn and Jupiter at the same magnification at this time.
Similar views will be seen from the rest of Australia at the equivalent
local time (90 minutes after sunset).
Between the bright star Canopus and the Southern Cross are another wealth of binocular objects to discover.
Elsewhere in Australia will see a similar view at the equivalent time (90 minutes after sunset).
The Geminids are usually a fairly reliable meteor shower and with the
waning Moon nearby rates will not be the best, but still worth.
The Geminids have a broad peak and normally will show good activity
well before and after the peak on
the day before and after. The peak is December 13, but with the Moon almost on top of the radiant the best rates are on the morning of the 15th from around midnight until 2 -3 am. As the radiant doesn't rise until just
before midnight (daylight saving time) in most of Australia, and the Moon rises around 1:00 am you
will still have to disturb your sleep for this one.
Mercury climbs out of the twilight.
Venus climbs out of the twilight.
Mars and the the red stars Aldebaran and Betelgeuse form a triangle. Mars was at opposition, when it was biggest and brightest as seen from Earth, last week, but is still a very worthwhile sight.
Jupiter climbs higher in the late evening sky was at opposition, when it was biggest and brightest as seen from Earth, on the 27th of September. Jupiter is visible all evening.
Saturn forms a line with delta and gamma Capricornii. Saturn was at opposition, when it was biggest and brightest as seen from Earth, on the 15th of August.
Star Map via Virtual sky. Use your mouse to scroll around and press 8 when your pointer is in the map to set to the current time.
Cloud cover predictions can be found at SkippySky.
Here is the near-real time satellite view of the clouds (day and night) http://satview.bom.gov.au/
Labels: weekly sky
Southern Skywatch December 2022 edition is now out!
Evening sky on Thursday December 8 as seen from Adelaide at 22:06 ACDST pm ACDST(90 minutes after sunset). Mars is at opposition, when is at its biggest and brightest as seen from Earth. The Full Moon is just below. The inset is the telescopic view at this time. Mars is below the bright red star Aldebaran and the distinctive "V" shape of the Hyades cluster. It is also close to the iconic constellation of Orion with it's distinctive belt and Mars, Aldebaran and the red star Betelgeuse form a triangle.
Similar views will be seen from the rest of Australia at the equivalent local time (90 minutes after sunset).
The December edition of Southern Skywatch is now up.
This month the planetary action remains mostly in the evening skies, with 3 bright planets visible in the evening. Venus and Mercury climb higher in the evening skies but remain in the twilight. Opposition of Mars. The Geminid meteor Shower is impacted by the waning Moon.
December 1; First Quarter Moon. December 2; the Moon is close to Jupiter. December 8; the Full Moon close to Mars. December 8; Mars at opposition. December 12; apogee Moon. Morning December 15; Geminid meteor shower peaks. December 16; Last Quarter Moon. December 22; Earth at Solstice. December 23; New Moon. December 24; Moon at perigee. December 24; the thin crescent moon forms a triangle with the Mercury and Venus. December 26; the crescent Moon is close to Saturn.December 28th-30; Mercury and Venus are less than 2° apart. December 29; the crescent Moon is close to Jupiter again. December 30; "Blue" First Quarter Moon.
Mercury climbs higher in the evening sky this month, the low angle of the ecliptic means it never gets really although it gets out of the worst of the twilight glow into nautical twilight. In the first week of the moth you will need a clear, level horizon like the ocean and binoculars to see it there after it is easier. Mercury is at its highest on the 22nd. Venus is below Mercury for most of the Month. On the 24th the thin crescent moon form a triangle with the pair (look around 45 minutes after sunset) and on the 28th to 30th Mercury and Venus are less than 2° apart.
Venus climbs higher in the evening sky this month, as with Mercury, the low angle of the ecliptic means it never gets really high although it gets out of the worst of the twilight glow. Venus is below Mercury for most of the Month, and shares its encounter with the Moon. On the 28th to 30th Mercury and Venus are less than 2° apart.
Earth is at solstice on Thursday the 22nd, when the day is longest.Mars is at opposition this Month when it is biggest and brightest as seen from Earth. Mars is in the readily unrecognizable constellation of Taurus the Bull. At opposition Mars is below the bright red star Aldebaran and the distinctive "V" shape of the Hyades cluster. It is also close to the iconic constellation of Orion with it's distinctive belt and Mars, Aldebaran and the red star Betelgeuse form a triangle. Mars will head towards the beautiful cluster the Pleiades during December ad the first half of January, then moves aback down the Horns of the Bull. Mars is now visible all night.
On the 8th Mars is at opposition around 4° from the full moon (very obvious as the brightest object near the moon), mid power binocular fields will just fit the pair in. Unlike Jupiter and Saturn, Mars's increases and decreases in size substantially over the weeks, at opposition it is 17.06 arc seconds in diameter, even modest amateur telescopes should see surface makings (not in great detail though). By the end of the month mars has shrunk to 15 arc seconds, much harder to resolve in modest instruments. This is the best opposition until 2033.
Jupiter rises before the sky is fully dark and is lowering in the north-western evening sky. It is an excellent telescopic object in the early to late evening. Jupiter was at opposition, when it is biggest and brightest as seen from Earth on September the 27th. Jupiter is visible the whole evening setting after midnight.
On the 2nd Jupiter below the waxing Moon, and then again on the 29th Jupiter is 1° from the crescent moon, fitting into the field of view of mid-range binoculars and wide field telescope eye pieces.Saturn is visible in the early evening sky setting just around 11 pm in the early part of the month and around 9 pm by the end of the month. Saturn was at opposition on the 15th of August and is visible above the western sky when the sky is fully dark. Saturn will be high enough for good telescopic observation in the early evening when the sky is full dark. Saturn forms a line with delta and gamma Capricorn. On December 26; the crescent Moon is close to Saturn.
Labels: southern skywatch
The Oppostion of Mars 8 December 2022
At opposition Mars is below the bright red star Aldebaran and the distinctive "V" shape of the Hyades cluster. It is also close to the iconic constellation of Orion with it's distinctive belt and Mars, Aldebaran and the red star Betelgeuse form a triangle.
Mars will head towards the beautiful cluster the Pleiades during December ad the first half of January, then moves aback down the Horns of the Bull. (90 minutes after sunset). (click to embiggen).
On December 8 Mars was at opposition, when is at its biggest and brightest as seen from Earth. Mars will still be very worthwhile to watch for all December and early January. Here is my belated guide to seeing it (Yes, it's late, exam marking and internet outages stopped me up loading, sorry).
http://www.users.on.net/~reynella/skywatch/mars2022.htm
Labels: binocular, Mars, Opposition, telescope, unaided eye
Tuesday, December 06, 2022
Geminid Meteor Shower 13-15 December 2022
 |  |
| The northern horizon at 1:00 am ACDST as seen from Adelaide on Thursday December 15 before the Moon gets too high. The Geminid radiant is marked with a starburst. Similar views will be seen elsewhere in Australia at a similar latitude and the equivalent local time. (click to embiggen). | The northern horizon at 0:30 am AEST as seen from Brisbane on Thursday December 15 before the Moon gets too high. The Geminid radiant is marked with a starburst. Similar views will be seen elsewhere in Australia at a similar latitude and the equivalent local time. (click to embiggen). |
The Geminids are
unusual meteor shower in that their parent body is 3200 Phaethon,
an asteroid, rather than a comet. It is speculated though that Phaeton
is actually a "gassed out" comet, and so the debris that makes up the
Geminids may still be cometary particles, but is more likely broken rock
fragments from its close approach to the sun.
The Geminids are usually a fairly reliable meteor shower however this year the the waning Moon is almost on top of the radiant at the peak and there is a narrow window before Moon rise on the morning of the 15th when the rates should be good.
The Geminids have a broad peak and normally show good activity
well before and after the peak on
the day before and after. The peak is December 14, unfortunately the 75% illuminated waning Moon is close to the radiant. So the best time is on the morning of the 15th, when the Moon is further away. As the radiant doesn't rise until just
before midnight (daylight saving time) in most of Australia, and the Moon rises around 1:00 am you
will still have to disturb your sleep for this one.
Once the Moon rises the meteors will rapidly become washed washed out.
You can find predictions for your local site at the meteor flux estimator (choose 4 Geminids and date 14-15 December, don't forget to change the date to 2022). You will have to enter your local latitude and longitude for your site. I have also made a table for major cities below.
Unfortunately, both Chrome and Firefox have changed their security settings to prevent plugins from running, and the flux estimator only runs under Internet Explorer now.
You can follow the progress of the shower at the IMO Geminids Live page.
At 1.00 am in the morning AEDST (midnight, AEST) Castor (alpha Geminorum) is about three hand-spans above the horizon and roughly north-east. Pollux, the other twin, is less than a hand-span to the right again. The radiant is just below Pollux. The best rates is when the radiant is highest,when it is due north, unfortunately the rising Moons light will begin to wash them out..
When you get up, allow at least 5 minutes for your eyes to adjust and become dark adapted (even if you have stumbled out of bed in the dark, here's some hints on dark adaption of your eyes so you can see meteors better).
Be patient, it may be several minutes before you are rewarded with you first meteor, then a couple will come along in quick succession (a meteor every 1 to 2 minutes is an average, they won't turn up like a ticking clock but more or less randomly).
Predicted meteor rates for selected towns
|
Locations on the same latitude as... |
Morning December 13 |
Morning December 14 (peak) |
Morning
December 15 (best) |
Morning December 16 |
|
Darwin |
5 meteors/hr |
14 meteors/hr |
33 meteors/hr |
9 meteors/hr |
|
Brisbane/Perth |
4 meteors/hr |
10 meteors/hr |
25 meteors/hr |
6 meteors/hr |
|
Sydney/Adelaide/Canberra |
3 meteors/hr |
9 meteors/hr |
19 meteors/hr |
5 meteors/hr |
|
Melbourne |
3 meteors/hr |
8 meteors/hr |
16 meteors/hr |
4 meteors/hr |
|
Hobart |
3 meteors/hr |
6 meteors/hr |
12 meteors/hr |
3 meteors/hr |
A lawn chair or something similar will make your observing comfortable (or a picnic rug spread on the ground and a nice pillow), and having a Thermos of hot coffee, tea or chocolate to swig while watching will increase your comfort. Despite it being summer, make sure you have a jumper or something as the night can still get cold.
Guides to taking meteor photos are here and here.
As well, Mars, Orion and the Hyades will be visible. So it will be a quite nice morning for sky watching. Keep an eye out for satellites! There may be a bright ISS pass on the morning of the 14th from your location.
Cloud cover predictions can be found at SkippySky.
Here is the near-real time satellite view of the clouds (day and night) http://satview.bom.gov.au/
Labels: geminids, Meteors, unaided eye
Monday, December 05, 2022
Thursday December 8 to Thursday December 15
Full Moon is Thursday December 8. Jupiter is easy to see as brightest object in the evening sky aside from the Moon. Mars is now rising well before midnight, and is at opposition, when it is biggest and brightest as seen from Earth, on the 8th, when it is above the full Moon. Mercury and Venus climb higher in the evening twilight. Geminid meteor shower December 15.
Full Moon is Thursday December 8. The Moon is at apogee, when it is furthest from the Earth, on December 12.
Similar views will be seen from the rest of Australia at the equivalent
local time (45 minutes after sunset).
Mars is at opposition, when is at its biggest and brightest as seen from Earth. The Full Moon is just below. The inset is the telescopic view at this time.
Similar views will be seen from the rest of Australia at the equivalent local time (90 minutes after sunset).
Saturn forms a line with iota, delta and gamma Capricornii with Jupiter to the north-west.
The insets are the telescopic views of Saturn and Jupiter at the same magnification at this time.
Similar views will be seen from the rest of Australia at the equivalent
local time (90 minutes after sunset).
Between the bright star Canopus and the Southern Cross are another wealth of binocular objects to discover but the moons light interferes substantially.
Elsewhere in Australia will see a similar view at the equivalent time (90 minutes after sunset).
The Geminids are usually a fairly reliable meteor shower and with the
waning Moon nearby rates will not be the best, but still worth.
The Geminids have a broad peak and normally will show good activity
well before and after the peak on
the day before and after. The peak is December 13, but with the Moon almost on top of the radiant the best rates are on the morning of the 15th from around midnight until 2 -3 am. As the radiant doesn't rise until just
before midnight (daylight saving time) in most of Australia, and the Moon rises around 1:00 am you
will still have to disturb your sleep for this one.
Mercury climbs out of the twilight.
Venus climbs out of the twilight.
Mars forms a triangle the bright stars Elnath and Zeta Taurii, the tips of the horns of the Bull, but is now moving up the horns back towards red Aldebaran. Mars is is at opposition, when it is biggest and brightest as seen from Earth, on the 8th, with the Full Moon below.
Jupiter climbs higher in the late evening sky was at opposition, when it was biggest and brightest as seen from Earth, on the 27th of September. Jupiter is visible all evening. Jupiter is close to the waxing Moon on the 2nd.
Saturn forms a line with iota, delta and gamma Capricornii. Saturn was at opposition, when it was biggest and brightest as seen from Earth, on the 15th of August. Saturn is close to the crescent Moon on the 29th.
Star Map via Virtual sky. Use your mouse to scroll around and press 8 when your pointer is in the map to set to the current time.
Cloud cover predictions can be found at SkippySky.
Here is the near-real time satellite view of the clouds (day and night) http://satview.bom.gov.au/
Labels: weekly sky
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