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Sunday, December 31, 2017

 

The Perigee Moon ("Super Moon") of Tuesday January 2, What Can You See?

The  Full Moon of Tuesday, 2 January is a perigee Moon when the Full Moon is closest to the Earth. This is hot on the heels of the Monday, December 4 perigee Moon.

A full Moon at perigee has been called a "Super Moon", this is not an astronomical term (the astronomical term is perigee syzygy, but that doesn't trip off the tongue so nicely), but an astrological one first coined in 1979 (see here).

Still, it is a good excuse to get people out and looking at the Moon.

Chart comparing the binocular/telescopic appearance of the December 2017 Full Perigee Moon and the 2 January 2018 Full Perigee Moon with the apogee Moon of  July 27 2018, all times are at local astronomical twilight, 90 minutes after sunset. . As you can see the January 2 Perigee Moon is slightly larger than the 4 December 2017 Perigee Moon. Click to embiggen.

While perigee (closest approach) of the Moon is actually during daylight hours on the 2nd, the rising Moon is still closer than the December 4 perigee Moon at its closest approach (356946 km at astronomical twilight vs 357493 km on 4 December at closest approach (which was before the Moon rose here in Australia).

Even so it will be hard to distinguish from most normal full Moons. However, if you have a good memory you should be able to distinguish it from the apogee mini-Full Moon of June 8 2017, or keep it is mind for the upcoming apogee mini-Full Moon 27 July 2018.
However, this will be a good opportunity to image the full moon through telescopes or binoculars. During the night the full Moon will recede from Earth, and images taken at hourly intervals (and at the same scale) should show the Moon shrinking. If you then image the Moon at the same scale on the night of the apogee Full Moon of 27 July, the difference in size will be obvious.

Full details and links to hints on imaging the perigee Moon are at the 4 December Perigee Moon page.

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# posted by Ian Musgrave @ 3:22 pm 0 comments
 

Southern Skywatch January 2018 edition is now out!

Evening sky as seen on January 31 at 22:30 ACDST, with the total Lunar eclipse well under way on a "Blue" Moon. Similar views will be seen elsewhere in Australia at the equivalent local time. (click to embiggen).

The January edition of Southern Skywatch is  now up.

This month  sees most of the action move in the morning sky. Speedy Mercury  and Saturn return to the morning twilight.

January 2; Moon at Perigee ("Super Moon").

 Mars and  Jupiter climb higher in the morning sky. January 7; Jupiter and Mars very close. January 12; crescent Moon, Mars and Jupiter form a triangle.

January 13; Saturn and Mercury close. January 15; Moon at Apogee. January 15; Thin crescent Moon close to Saturn and Mercury low in morning twilight.

Jan 15-31; Asteroid Ceres visible in binoculars.

January 29; variable star Mira at maximum brightness.

January 31; "Blue" Moon and total Lunar Eclipse. This is the first total lunar eclipse since September 2015, and the best of the two Lunar eclipses this year.

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# posted by Ian Musgrave @ 12:05 am 0 comments

Friday, December 29, 2017

 

Coming Events: A Year of Southern Astronomy for 2018

The planets on 13 October 2018 at 21:15 ACDST, 45 minutes after sunset, All 5 bright classical planets, Neptune and the crescent Moon form a line in the evening twilight. Uranus is just rising at this time. Click to embiggen.

The table below shows significant astronomical events that can be seen with the unaided eye or minimal equipment in 2018 in Australia (and to some degree elsewhere in the Southern Hemisphere, ocultations and eclipses are very region specific) are listed in this table.

Close pairings of the Moon and bright planets are given special attention as not only is the Moon a ready guide to locating the planets if you are not familiar with them, these massings are rather beautiful. 


Special events are bolded.

Sadly, the partial solar eclipse is just visible from parts of southern Australia, but we have two good total lunar eclipses, the best for some years, and there are a number of beautiful planetary events to keep us occupied. There may even be an unaided eye comet and asteroid Vesta should be visible to the unaided eye too.

UPDATE: reader Scott has created an iCal for this list that you can import into your calendar.  I have htmlised the link http://subscriptions.thismonkey.com//fixtures/astro/calendars/astro/2018/1/astro_1_2018.ics


DateEvent
1 January 2018Mars three finger-widths from Jupiter in the morning skies
2 January 2018Perigee ("Super") Moon
 7 January 2018Jupiter and Mars at their closest, less than half a finger-width apart
12 January 2018Crescent Moon, Mars and Jupiter form a triangle
13 January 2018Mercury less than a finger-width from Saturn in the morning sky
15 January 2018thin crescent Moon near Mercury and Saturn
27-31 January 2018Asteroid Ceres visible in binoculars
31 January 2018Blue Moon, Total Lunar Eclipse ~11pm AEST
8 February 2018Waning Moon close to Jupiter in Morning sky
10 February 2018Waning Moon close to Mars
13 February 2018Crescent Moon close to Saturn
4 March 2018Venus and Mercury very close, low in the evening twilight
7 March 2018Moon close to Jupiter
10-11 March 2018Moon close to Mars
11-12 March 2018Moon close to Saturn
19 March 2018thin crescent Moon close to Mercury and Venus in evening twilight
20 March 2018Mars close to Triffid Nebula
1-3 April 2018Mars and globular cluster M22 less than a finger-width apart in morning sky
 2 April 2018Mars and Saturn close, a finger-width apart
 3 April 2018Moon close to Jupiter in evening sky
15 April 2018thin crescent Moon close to Mercury in morning twilight
18 April 2018crescent Moon close to Venus in evening sky
30 April 2018Moon close to Jupiter in evening sky
1-30 May 2018Saturn within 2finger-widths of globular cluster M22, closest on the 15th
 4 May 2018Moon close to Saturn
6 May 2018Moon close to Mars
6 May 2018Eta Aquariid meteor shower.
 9 May 2018Jupiter at opposition
14-15 May 2018Mars less than half a finger-width from globular cluster M75
17-18 May 2018crescent Moon close to Venus
21 May 2018Venus close to M35
27 May 2018Moon close to Jupiter
 1 June 2018Moon and Saturn close
 3 June 2018Moon and Mars close
16 June 2018Crescent Moon near Venus
19 June 2018Asteroid Vesta at opposition, potentially visible with the unaided eye
20 June 2018Venus in the Beehive cluster
21 June 2018crescent Moon and Venus close
23 June 2018Moon and Jupiter close
27 June 2018Saturn at opposition
28 June 2018Saturn close to the Moon
 1 July 2018Mars and Moon close
 4 July 2018Mercury close to Beehive cluster
13 July 2018Partial Eclipse of the sun, visible only southern SA and VIC
15 July 2018thin crescent Moon and  Mercury close in the twilight
16 July 2018crescent Moon and Venus close
21 July 2018Moon and Jupiter close
25 July 2018Moon and Saturn close
27 July 2018Mars at Opposition, the best since 2003
28 July 2018Total Lunar Eclipse, early morning
30 July 2018Southern Delta Aquarids meteor shower
14 August 2018Crescent Moon close to Venus
17 August 2018Moon close to Jupiter
21 August 2018Moon close to Saturn
30 August 2018Saturn close to Triffid Nebula
1-2 September 2018Venus and Spica close
12-13 September 2018Crescent Moon close to Venus
14 September 2018crescent Moon close to Jupiter
18 September 2018Moon close to Saturn
20 September 2018Moon and Mars close
10-20 October 2018All 5 bright planets visible in early evening sky
10 October 2018Mercury and Crescent Moon close
11 October 2018crescent Moon near Venus
12 October 2018crescent Moon close to Jupiter
15 October 2018Moon close to Saturn
16 October 2018Venus and Mercury close
18 October 2018Moon close to Mars.
22 October 2018Orionid meteor shower
28 October 2018Mercury and Jupiter close
 9 November 2018Jupiter crescent Moon close
11 November 2018Crescent Moon and Saturn close
16 November 2018 Moon close to Mars
17 November 2018Leonid Meteor Shower
26 November 2018Variable star Mira at its brightest
1-20 December 2018 Comet 46P potentially visible to the unaided eye
 4 December 2018Crescent Moon close to Venus in morning twilight
 9 December 2018Crescent Moon close to Saturn in evening twilight
15 December 2018Geminid Meteor shower
14-15 December 2018Moon close to Mars
22 December 2018Jupiter and Mercury very close in dawn sky

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# posted by Ian Musgrave @ 10:29 am 4 comments

Wednesday, December 27, 2017

 

The Sky This Week - Thursday December 28 to Thursday January 5

The Full Moon is  Moon is Tuesday, January 2. This is a perigee moon (so called "Super Moon"). The Earth is at perihelion on January 3. The variable star Mira is now bright enough to see easily. Mars is easy to see and is heading towards bright Jupiter. Jupiter, Mars and the bright star alpha2 Librae form a line. Mercury reappears in the morning sky.

The Full Moon is  Moon is Tuesday, January 2. This is a perigee moon (so called "Super Moon") when the full Moon is closest to the Earth. The Earth is at perihelion on January 3. This when Earth is closest to the Sun.

Evening sky on January 2 looking east as seen from Adelaide at 22:19 ACDST (90 minutes after sunset). The perigee full Moon is rising. The summer constellations of Taurus, Orion, Canis Major, Puppis and Carina are above the horizon. The beautiful clusters of the Pleiades and the Southern Pleiades (Theta Carina) are visible as well.(click to embiggen).

While perigee (closest approach) of the Moon is actually during daylight hours on the 2nd, the rising Moon is still closer than last Months Perigee Moon at its closest approach (356946 km at astronomical twilight vs 357493 km on 4 December at closest approach. Even so it will be hard to distinguish for most normal full Moons.However, if you have a good memory you should be able to distinguish it fro the apogee mini-Full Moon 27 July 2018.

Similar views will be seen elsewhere in Australia at the equivalent local time (90 minutes after sunset). (click to embiggen). Full details and links to hints on imaging the perigee Moon are at the 4 December Perigee Moon page.

 Saturn is lost in the twilight.

Morning sky on Saturday December 30 looking east as seen from Adelaide at 4:57 ACDST (60 minutes before sunrise). Jupiter is prominent and can be seen close to the alpha2 Librae, forming a line with Mars.

Similar views will be seen throughout Australia at the equivalent local time (that is 60 minutes before sunrise, click to embiggen).

Venus  is lost in the twilight.

Jupiter climbs higher in the morning sky and is now quite prominent. It is moving away from  the bright double star alpha2 Librae (Zubenelgenubi). The pair and Mars are visible together in binoculars at the start of the week, by the end of the week Mars and Jupiter can be seen together in low power telescope eyepieces, ahead to their spectacular conjunction on the 7th.

 Mars is moving towards Jupiter and the bright double star alpha2 Librae (Zubenelgenubi). At the begining of the week the trio are visible together in binoculars. At this time Spica, Mars, alpha2 Librae (Zubenelgenubi) and Jupiter form a line in the morning sky. Mars moves towards Zubenelgenubi and Jupiter. Between the 2nd and 4th Mars and Zubenelgenubi are visible together in low power telescope eyepieces. Mars than leaves Zubenelgenubi behind and closes in on Jupiter, on the 5th Mars and Jupiter are visible together in low power telescope eye pieces, ahead of their spectacular conjunction on the 7th.


Mercury is now rising rapidly into the morning skies, and will be highest on the 2nd, it then drops back towards the horizon and a close encounter with Saturn in  the twilight.


Evening sky on January 2 looking north as seen from Adelaide at 22:19 ACDST (90 minutes after sunset). (click to embiggen)

The long period variable star Mira is now near peak brightness, and is easily visible to the unaided eye, even in Moonlight.  The circle marks the location of Mira in the rambling constellation of Cetus. The Arrow shaped head of  Taurus the bull points almost directly at Mira. This is a good time to see this iconic variable star

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

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/

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# posted by Ian Musgrave @ 11:46 am 0 comments

Saturday, December 23, 2017

 

Christmas Day ISS pass in the morning (Dec 25, 2017)

The ISS passes Through Orion, as seen from Melbourne on the morning of Monday 25 December at 4:52 AEDST. Simulated in Stellarium (the ISS will actually be a bright dot), click to embiggen.The ISS passes above Orion, as seen from Adelaide on the morning of Monday 25 December at 4:22 ACDST. Simulated in Stellarium (the ISS will actually be a bright dot), click to embiggen.The ISS passes passes above Orion, as seen from Perth on the morning of Monday 25 December at 3:25 AWST. Simulated in Stellarium (the ISS will actually be a bright dot), click to embiggen.
All sky chart showing local times from Heavens Above for Thursday 21 December for Melbourne.All sky chart showing local  times from Heavens Above for Thursday 21 December for Adelaide.All sky chart showing local times from Heavens Above for Thursday 21 December for Perth.

On Christmas morning there is a very bright ISS pass, (two for some favoured sites) where the ISS passes through or above Orion, in some locations the pass is close to the bright star Sirius in the western sky in others it is close to crux (Canopus for Darwin).

This pass is for people who are up feeding Santa's reindeer at that early hour. If the small ones are up then as well this could be a Santa Sleigh moment.
 
The following tables are from data provided from Heavens Above.

Passes from Adelaide
Date Brightness Start Highest point End Pass type
(mag) Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az.

25 Dec-0.802:43:2310°SSW02:45:3917°SSE02:47:5210°ESEvisible

Passes from Brisbane

25 Dec-1.102:17:0010°S02:19:3520°SE02:22:0810°Evisible
25 Dec-2.603:53:2110°WSW03:55:5822°NW03:58:3310°Nvisible

Passes from Darwin
25 Dec-3.904:58:5010°SW05:02:0782°SE05:05:2210°NEvisible


Passes from Melbourne
25 Dec-2.503:13:1410°SW03:16:2540°SE03:19:3410°ENEvisible
25 Dec-2.404:50:1710°W04:52:4018°NW04:55:0210°Nvisible


Passes from Perth
25 Dec-4.003:22:1810°SW03:25:3771°NW03:28:5210°NEvisible


Passes from Sydney

25 Dec-2.403:15:0010°SSW03:18:0940°SE03:21:1710°ENEvisible
25 Dec-2.104:52:2710°W04:54:2014°NW04:56:1310°NNWvisible


When and what you will see is VERY location dependent, so you need to use either Heavens Above or CalSky to get site specific predictions for your location, a small difference in location can mean the difference between the ISS passing over a star or missing it completely.
 
As allways, start looking several minutes before the pass is going to start to get yourself oriented and your eyes dark adapted. Be patient, there may be slight differences in the time of the ISS appearing due to orbit changes not picked up by the predictions. Use the most recent prediction for your site. 
 
Mars, Jupiter and the bright star Spica from a line in the east was well, so it should be fine viewing for those up at that early hour.

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# posted by Ian Musgrave @ 11:35 pm 0 comments

Friday, December 22, 2017

 

Seeing Comet C/2017 T1 Near the Beehive Cluster (December 25, 2017)


Location of Comet C/2017 T1 Heinze as seen at 3:45 am ACDST at the latitude of Adelaide, looking north, when it is at transit. Click to embiggen.

Comet C/2017 T1 Heinze is currently near M44, the famous Beehive Cluster, and will be closest to the cluster on Christmas. Although faint it is high enough to be readily accessible telescopically from both Northern and southern hemispheres. In Australia it is best for viewing from 1 am local time until astronomical twilight in the morning, being highest at 3:45 am ACDST at the latitude of Adelaide (and equivalent local times elsewhere in Australia). 

Simulated telescopic view of Comet C/2016 R2 PanSTARRS as seen at ACDST at the latitude of Adelaide, when it is at transit. The field of view is approximately than of 10x50 binoculars.  Click to embiggen.

In Australia more Northern locations are favoured. However for most locations the comet is over 39 degrees above the horizon at transit. As with C/2016 R2 there are no really good guide stars, but for the 25th it is roughly between gamma and theta Cancerii. Sadly, the comet is around magnitude 11-12, much dimmer than the cluster and not accessible in binoculars. But still visible in modest telescopes.

Printable B&W charts showing the telescopic view of Comet C/2016 R2 PanSTARRS as seen at 3:45 pm at the latitude of Adelaide, when it is at transit. The large circle is the field of view of 10x50 binoculars small circle is the field of view of a 32mm eyepiece on a 114mm Newtonian. Click to embiggen and print.

You will need a good wide-field eyepiece to see the comet and the cluster in the same field of view. Visually it will look like a fuzzy blob, while not impressive, the Christmas coincidence is nice. For CCD imagers, getting both the comet and the cluster will be a challenge. 

The MPC one line ephemeris is:

CK17T010  2018 02 21.7136  0.580751  1.000503   96.9069  102.3228   96.8246  20170904  12.5  4.0      C/2017 T1 (Heinze)

Ephemeris of C/2017 T1 Heinze as seen from Adelaide (Pretty much the same for latitudes from Melbourne to Brisbane).
Date       Distance Mag Ast Twi E Rise         Transit         Altitude Set         Ast Twi B Geo R.A. Geo Dec
24 Dec 2017 0.4132 11.9 22:17:13 22:27:22 03:45:32 +39° 23' 51" 09:00:16 04:13:02 08h 39m 35.7s +15° 41' 55"
25 Dec 2017 0.3879 11.7 22:17:34 22:27:10 03:38:17 +37° 12' 37" 08:46:04 04:13:39 08h 36m 14.0s +17° 51' 46"
26 Dec 2017 0.3633 11.5 22:17:52 22:27:38 03:30:24 +34° 39' 56" 08:30:03 04:14:18 08h 32m 15.0s +20° 19' 24"
27 Dec 2017 0.3398 11.3 22:18:07 22:28:59 03:21:45 +31° 42' 30" 08:11:42 04:15:00 08h 27m 28.7s +23° 07' 41"
28 Dec 2017 0.3175 11.1 22:18:20 22:31:34 03:12:08 +28° 16' 37" 07:50:23 04:15:45 08h 21m 42.0s +26° 19' 41"
29 Dec 2017 0.2966 10.9 22:18:29 22:35:54 03:01:13 +24° 18' 17" 07:25:06 04:16:32 08h 14m 36.4s +29° 58' 34"
30 Dec 2017 0.2774 10.7 22:18:36 22:43:00 02:48:38 +19° 43' 35" 06:54:24 04:17:21 08h 05m 45.3s +34° 07' 04"
31 Dec 2017 0.2604 10.5 22:18:40 22:54:47 02:33:43 +14° 29' 22" 06:16:02 04:18:12 07h 54m 29.3s +38° 46' 40"
01 Jan 2018 0.2458 10.3 22:18:41 23:16:21 02:15:36 +08° 34' 45" 05:26:06 04:19:06 07h 39m 48.6s +43° 56' 14"
02 Jan 2018 0.2342 10.1 22:18:39 --:--:-- 01:52:52 +02° 08' 11" 04:16:36 04:20:02 07h 20m 10.0s +49° 29' 49"

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# posted by Ian Musgrave @ 5:26 pm 0 comments
 

The ISS shoots Orion and Sirius (21 December 2017)

The ISS passes though Orion and by the bright star Sirius at 21:13 ACDST. Stack of 12 images in ImageJ, 2 second exposures, 800 ASA, Canon IXUS (click to embiggen). Animation of all 12 images from previous shot (click to embigen)

Tonights ISS pass of this International Space Station pass series, sky absolutely clear again. This pass occurred in the twilight, but the ISS was still was brilliant and easy to see as it passed through Orion and close to Sirius. The gap in the series is when the the image automatic sequence finished and I had to continue manually. The ISS passed over Bellatrix.

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# posted by Ian Musgrave @ 12:32 am 0 comments
 

Seeing Comet C/2016 R2 in Outburst from Australia (December 2017)

Comet C/2016 R2 PanSTARRS as seen at 23:45 ACDST at the latitude of Adelaide, when it is at transit. The Comet is currently near the Hyades, under the shield of Orion. Click to embiggen.

Comet C/2016 R2 PanSTARRS is currently near the Hyades. It is high enough to be readily accessible telescopically from both Northern and southern hemispheres from astronomical twilight (northern hemisphere) about an hour after astronomical twilight (Southern hemisphere), being highest around 22:40 am local time for northern scopes and 23:45 local time from SSO. The Northern scopes have the best view. 

In Australia more Northern locations are favoured. However for most locations the comet is over 40 degrees above the horizon at transit. There are no really good guide stars, but for the next few days hunting around in the triangle formed by 90, 93 and 88 Tau should bring up the comet. Visually it will look like a fuzzy blob, which will move position over an hour or so. The tail is visible in extended CCD instrument exposures. 

Telescopic view of Comet C/2016 R2 PanSTARRS as seen at ACDST at the latitude of Adelaide, when it is at transit. The circle is the field of view of a 20mm eyepiece on a 114mm Newtonian, the small squares are the fields of view of SBIG and Starlight express imagers. Note this is d with respect to the spotter chart     above. Click to embiggen and print.

The comet is currently in outburst, having brightened to nearly magnitude 9, a full magnitude brighter than the predicted maximum. It has been reported by several observers to be visible in 20x80 binoculars. Observers in Australia have reported more modest magnitudes around 11, but still reasonably bright. 

The tail is showing some interesting structure (imagers only, not really visual) and is well worth following (see these gifs for the 18th, here and here, and this image from the 19th). It is possible the comet will continue to brighten.

The MPC one line ephemeris is:
CK16R020  2018 05 09.5796  2.602313  0.996530   33.1930   80.5696   58.2198  20170904   7.0  4.0      C/2016 R2 (PANSTARRS)

Ephemeris of C/2016 R2  (PANSTARRS) as seen from Adelaide (Pretty much the same for latitudes from Melbourne to Brisbane), Ignore the magnitude, it is no longer valid.
Ephemeris of comet C/2016 R2 PANSTARRS
Date Distance Mag Ast Twi E Rise Transit Altitude Set Ast Twi B Geo R.A. Geo Dec
21 Dec 2017 2.0542 13.3 22:15:54 18:22:11 23:52:30 +40° 52' 59" 05:28:29 04:11:28 04h 38m 05.9s +11° 05' 38"
22 Dec 2017 2.0539 13.3 22:16:23 18:17:48 23:47:17 +41° 01' 50" 05:22:26 04:11:57 04h 36m 48.2s +11° 22' 56"
23 Dec 2017 2.0540 13.3 22:16:49 18:13:25 23:42:04 +41° 08' 38" 05:16:23 04:12:28 04h 35m 30.9s +11° 40' 19"
24 Dec 2017 2.0545 13.3 22:17:13 18:09:04 23:36:52 +41° 13' 22" 05:10:20 04:13:02 04h 34m 14.3s +11° 57' 47"
25 Dec 2017 2.0553 13.3 22:17:34 18:04:44 23:31:41 +41° 16' 01" 05:04:17 04:13:39 04h 32m 58.4s +12° 15' 19"
26 Dec 2017 2.0565 13.3 22:17:52 18:00:24 23:26:30 +41° 16' 37" 04:58:15 04:14:18 04h 31m 43.1s +12° 32' 55"
27 Dec 2017 2.0580 13.3 22:18:07 17:56:06 23:21:20 +41° 15' 09" 04:52:13 04:15:00 04h 30m 28.7s +12° 50' 35"
28 Dec 2017 2.0599 13.3 22:18:20 17:51:49 23:16:11 +41° 11' 39" 04:46:11 04:15:45 04h 29m 15.1s +13° 08' 18"
29 Dec 2017 2.0621 13.3 22:18:29 17:47:33 23:11:03 +41° 06' 08" 04:40:10 04:16:32 04h 28m 02.4s +13° 26' 03"
30 Dec 2017 2.0646 13.3 22:18:36 17:43:18 23:05:56 +40° 58' 39" 04:34:10 04:17:21 04h 26m 50.7s +13° 43' 51"

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# posted by Ian Musgrave @ 12:12 am 0 comments

Wednesday, December 20, 2017

 

The ISS and Canopus (20 December 2017)

The ISS passes by the bright star Canopus. The Fainter track is either the satellite NOSS 2-1 C or D. Stack of 6 images oin ImageJ, 4 second exposures, 800 ASA, Canon IXUS (click to embiggen). Animation of all 6 images from previous shot (click to embigen)

First night of this International Space Station pass series, sky absolutely clear for the first time in ages. the ISS was brilliant overhead, and still very bright as it passe. Also caught one of the NOSS 2-1 sattelites (either C or D)

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# posted by Ian Musgrave @ 11:39 pm 0 comments
 

Christmas Week ISS passes, (19 December - 25 December 2017)

The ISS passes above Orion, as seen from Melbourne on the evening of Thursday 21 December at 21:44 AEDST. Simulated in Stellarium (the ISS will actually be a bright dot), click to embiggen.The ISS through Orion, as seen from Adelaide on the evening of Thursday 21 December at 21:16 ACDST. Simulated in Stellarium (the ISS will actually be a bright dot), click to embiggen.The ISS passes passes above Orion, as seen from Perth on the evening of Thursday 21 December at 21:44 AWST. Simulated in Stellarium (the ISS will actually be a bright dot), click to embiggen.
All sky chart showing local times from Heavens Above for Thursday 21 December for Melbourne.All sky chart showing local  times from Heavens Above for Thursday 21 December for Adelaide.All sky chart showing local times from Heavens Above for Thursday 21 December for Perth.

Starting Wednesday 20th there are a series of bright evening passes of the International Space Station lasting until Christmas. Some are low to the horizon, some rapidly enter earth's shadow, but for many places in Australia this series has the ISS gliding either close to or through Orion or a series of bright stars (except Darwin, which only gets three bright evening passes low above the horizon).

On the Morning of December 25th, there is a couple of bright Passes of the ISS close to variously Sirius, the Southern Cross or Orion, depending on your location. If you are up feeding Santa's reindeer go have a look.
 
The following tables are from data provided from Heavens Above.

Passes from Adelaide

Date Brightness Start Highest point End Pass type
(mag) Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az.
20 Dec-3.922:05:0110°NW22:08:1986°NE22:11:4010°SEvisible
20 Dec-0.323:43:3510°SW23:45:1313°SSW23:46:5010°Svisible
21 Dec-1.104:35:5710°SSW04:38:4023°SSE04:41:2310°Evisible
21 Dec-3.321:13:0010°NNW21:16:0637°NE21:19:1110°ESEvisible
21 Dec-1.022:50:0610°W22:52:3920°SSW22:55:1310°SSEvisible
22 Dec-0.403:44:1310°S03:46:0814°SSE03:48:0310°ESEvisible
22 Dec-3.905:19:3810°SW05:22:5670°NW05:26:1210°NEvisible
22 Dec-2.021:57:0710°WNW22:00:1135°SW22:03:1710°SSEvisible
23 Dec-3.004:27:2010°SW04:30:3653°SE04:33:5010°ENEvisible
23 Dec-3.521:04:3010°NW21:07:4773°SW21:11:0610°SEvisible
23 Dec-0.222:43:4210°SW22:44:4611°SSW22:45:5110°Svisible
24 Dec-1.603:35:1510°SSW03:38:1027°SE03:41:0410°Evisible
24 Dec-2.705:11:5010°WSW05:14:3424°NW05:17:1610°Nvisible
24 Dec-0.621:49:5110°WSW21:52:0917°SSW21:54:2710°SSEvisible
25 Dec-0.802:43:2310°SSW02:45:3917°SSE02:47:5210°ESEvisible
25 Dec-3.804:19:0510°WSW04:22:2052°NW04:25:3210°NNEvisible

Passes from Brisbane

Date Brightness Start Highest point End Pass type
(mag) Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az.
20 Dec-4.019:59:3810°NW20:02:5478°NE20:06:1210°SEvisible
21 Dec-1.704:09:3210°SSW04:12:3332°SE04:15:3410°ENEvisible
21 Dec-3.019:07:4510°N19:10:4030°NE19:13:3710°ESEvisible
21 Dec-0.620:45:0210°W20:47:1016°SW20:49:2010°Svisible
22 Dec-0.503:17:5410°S03:20:0716°SE03:22:1910°Evisible
22 Dec-1.819:51:4410°WNW19:54:4331°SW19:57:4410°SSEvisible
23 Dec-3.904:01:0310°SW04:04:2275°NW04:07:3810°NEvisible
24 Dec-2.603:08:5110°SSW03:12:0143°SE03:15:1110°ENEvisible
24 Dec-0.319:45:0210°WSW19:46:4013°SW19:48:1810°Svisible
25 Dec-1.102:17:0010°S02:19:3520°SE02:22:0810°Evisible
25 Dec-2.603:53:2110°WSW03:55:5822°NW03:58:3310°Nvisible


Passes from Melbourne

Date Brightness Start Highest point End Pass type
(mag) Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az.
20 Dec-0.201:08:4110°SSW01:09:3011°SSW01:10:1910°Svisible
20 Dec-0.704:22:2810°SSW04:24:5418°SSE04:27:1910°ESEvisible
20 Dec-3.722:36:3610°NW22:39:5475°SW22:43:1510°SEvisible
21 Dec-0.500:15:0010°SW00:16:5214°SSW00:18:4610°SSEvisible
21 Dec-0.403:30:3910°S03:32:1913°SSE03:34:0010°SEvisible
21 Dec-3.205:06:0210°SW05:09:2163°SE05:12:3810°ENEvisible
21 Dec-3.721:44:2510°NNW21:47:3851°NE21:50:5310°ESEvisible
21 Dec-1.023:21:4410°WSW23:24:1920°SSW23:26:5310°SSEvisible
22 Dec0.002:39:3010°S02:39:4010°SSE02:39:5110°SSEvisible
22 Dec-1.904:13:5310°SW04:16:5833°SSE04:20:0110°Evisible
22 Dec-1.822:28:4710°W22:31:4832°SSW22:34:5110°SSEvisible
23 Dec-1.003:21:5010°SSW03:24:2821°SSE03:27:0510°Evisible
23 Dec-3.604:57:5310°WSW05:01:0748°NW05:04:1810°NNEvisible
23 Dec-3.121:36:0610°WNW21:39:2358°SW21:42:4110°SEvisible
23 Dec-0.323:14:5110°SW23:16:2613°SSW23:18:0210°Svisible
24 Dec-0.502:29:5510°SSW02:31:5315°SSE02:33:5010°ESEvisible
24 Dec-3.804:05:2810°SW04:08:4980°SE04:12:0710°NEvisible
24 Dec-0.622:21:2710°WSW22:23:4818°SSW22:26:1010°SSEvisible
25 Dec-0.201:38:1510°S01:39:1311°SSE01:40:1010°SSEvisible
25 Dec-2.503:13:1410°SW03:16:2540°SE03:19:3410°ENEvisible
25 Dec-2.404:50:1710°W04:52:4018°NW04:55:0210°Nvisible
25 Dec-1.321:28:2110°W21:31:1427°SSW21:34:0910°SSEvisibl


Passes from Perth

Date Brightness Start Highest point End Pass type
(mag) Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az.
19 Dec-1.520:24:0510°N20:24:1311°N20:24:1311°Nvisible
19 Dec-1.322:04:2020°S22:04:2020°S22:05:4810°SSEvisible
20 Dec-1.504:31:2210°SSW04:34:2030°SE04:37:1810°ENEvisible
20 Dec-3.121:07:1710°WNW21:10:3156°SW21:13:4810°SEvisible
21 Dec-0.503:39:3810°S03:41:5217°SE03:44:0610°ESEvisible
21 Dec-3.920:14:5910°NW20:18:1461°NE20:21:3110°SEvisible
21 Dec-0.321:53:2310°WSW21:54:5913°SSW21:56:3710°Svisible
22 Dec-3.804:22:5310°SW04:26:1386°SE04:29:3010°NEvisible
22 Dec-1.020:59:4810°W21:02:2822°SW21:05:0810°SSEvisible
23 Dec-2.203:30:4310°SSW03:33:5138°SE03:36:5710°ENEvisible
23 Dec-2.320:06:5110°WNW20:10:0042°SW20:13:1210°SSEvisible
24 Dec-1.002:38:5010°SSW02:41:2320°SE02:43:5610°Evisible
24 Dec-3.004:14:5610°WSW04:17:5229°NW04:20:4710°NNEvisible
24 Dec-0.120:53:3610°SW20:54:3111°SSW20:55:2410°SSWvisible
25 Dec-0.301:47:2810°S01:48:4812°SSE01:50:0910°SEvisible
25 Dec-4.003:22:1810°SW03:25:3771°NW03:28:5210°NEvisible
25 Dec-0.719:59:3110°W20:01:5418°SW20:04:1810°Svisible

Passes from Sydney


Date Brightness Start Highest point End Pass type
(mag) Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az. Time Alt. Az.
20 Dec-0.504:24:3310°S04:26:3916°SSE04:28:4410°ESEvisible
20 Dec-2.921:01:0310°N21:03:5527°NE21:06:4810°ESEvisible
20 Dec-1.322:37:3810°W22:40:2223°SW22:43:0810°SSEvisible
21 Dec-3.305:07:4610°SW05:11:0566°SE05:14:2110°NEvisible
21 Dec-2.621:44:4610°WNW21:47:5744°SW21:51:0910°SEvisible
22 Dec-1.804:15:4110°SSW04:18:4232°SE04:21:4210°ENEvisible
22 Dec-3.920:52:1810°NW20:55:3684°NE20:58:5610°SEvisible
22 Dec-0.222:31:0310°SW22:32:2912°SSW22:33:5510°Svisible
23 Dec-0.803:23:4810°SSW03:26:1318°SSE03:28:3710°Evisible
23 Dec-3.404:59:4010°WSW05:02:4940°NW05:05:5510°NNEvisible
23 Dec-0.821:37:2410°W21:39:5419°SSW21:42:2510°SSEvisible
24 Dec-0.202:32:2410°S02:33:3712°SSE02:34:5010°SEvisible
24 Dec-3.904:07:1210°SW04:10:3287°SE04:13:4910°NEvisible
24 Dec-1.820:44:2010°WNW20:47:2434°SW20:50:2910°SSEvisible
25 Dec-2.403:15:0010°SSW03:18:0940°SE03:21:1710°ENEvisible
25 Dec-2.104:52:2710°W04:54:2014°NW04:56:1310°NNWvisible
25 Dec-0.121:31:1610°SW21:31:5810°SSW21:32:4010°SSWvisible
26 Dec-0.502:22:5910°SSW02:23:1712°SSW02:23:1712°SSWvisible
26 Dec-0.620:37:0610°WSW20:39:1817°SSW20:41:3310°Svisible
   
When and what you will see is VERY location dependent, so you need to use either Heavens Above or CalSky to get site specific predictions for your location, a small difference in location can mean the difference between the ISS passing over a star or 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. Use the most recent prediction for your site.

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# posted by Ian Musgrave @ 12:36 am 0 comments

Tuesday, December 19, 2017

 

The Sky This Week - Thursday December 21 to Thursday December 28

The First Quarter Moon is Tuesday, December 26. The Earth is at Solstice on the 22nd. Mars is easy to see and  is heading towards Jupiter. Jupiter is prominent in the morning sky and is heading towards the bright star alpha2 Librae. Jupiter is closest on the 22nd. A series of bright ISS passes starts on the 20th.

The First Quarter Moon is Tuesday, December 26. The Earth is at Solstice on the 22nd, at this time the day is longest.

Evening sky on Saturday December 23 looking east as seen from Adelaide at 22:15 ACDST (90 minutes after sunset). The summer constellations of Taurus, Orion, Canis Major, Puppis and Carina are above the horizon. The beautiful clusters of the Pleiades and the Southern Pleiades (Theta Carina) are visible as well.(click to embiggen).

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

Mercury and Saturn are lost in the twilight.

Morning sky on Friday December 22 looking east as seen from Adelaide at 4:51 ACDST (60 minutes before sunrise). Jupiter is prominent and can be seen close to the alpha2 Librae, forming a line with Mars.

Similar views will be seen throughout Australia at the equivalent local time (that is 60 minutes before sunrise, click to embiggen).

Venus  is lost in the twilight.

Jupiter climbs higher in the morning sky and is now quite prominent. It is moving towards the bright double star alpha2 Librae (Zubenelgenubi). By the 22nd the stellar pair and Jupiter will be at their closest, less than a finger-width apart (technically 41 minutes of arc apart), and will fit within the field of view of a telescope eyepiece.

 Mars is now well visible in the morning sky, and is moving away from the bright star Spica towards Jupiter. The pair will be under a hand-span apart by the end of the week.At this time Spica, Mars, alpha2 Librae (Zubenelgenubi) and Jupiter form a line in the morning sky.

Evening sky on Thursday December 21 looking east as seen from Adelaide at 21:15 ACDST . The International Space Station passes through Orion and close to Sirius.

This week  there are a series of bright evening passes of the International Space Station. Some are low to the horizon others pass close to bright stars. 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. If you are up early Christmas Morning there is a close pass to Sirius as well. For more charts and details see my Christmas ISS pass page.

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/

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# posted by Ian Musgrave @ 10:57 pm 0 comments

Monday, December 11, 2017

 

Don't Forget the Geminid Meteor Shower 14-15 December 2017

The northern horizon at 4:00 am ACDST as seen from Adelaide on Thursday December 14. 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).

Don't forget the Geminid meteor shower peaks this week on the morning of Thursday the 14th. This year  viewing conditions are good.

Full details, viewing hints and estimated rates are on my Geminid Meteor Shower Page.

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# posted by Ian Musgrave @ 11:56 pm 1 comments
 

The Sky This Week - Thursday December 14 to Thursday December 21

The New Moon is Monday, December 18. Mercury and Saturn are lost in the  twilight.  Mars is relatively easy to see and  isheading towards Jupiter. Jupiter is now prominent in the morning sky and is heading towards the bright star alpha2 Librae. Jupiter is close to the thin crescent Moon on the 15th. The Geminid meteor shower peaks on the morning of the 14th and is still good on the 15th.

The New Moon is Monday, December 18. The Moon is at apogee, when it is furthest from the Earth, on the 19th.

Evening sky on Saturday December 16 looking east as seen from Adelaide at 22:00 ACDST. The summer constellations of Taurus, Orion, Canis Major, Puupis and Carina are above the horizon. The beautiful clusters of the Pleiades and the Southern Pleiades (Theta Carina) are visible as well.(click to embiggen).

Similar views will be seen elsewhere in Australia at the equivalent local time (30 minutes after sunset). (click to embiggen).

Mercury and Saturn are lost in the twilight.


Morning sky on Friday December 15 looking east as seen from Adelaide at 4:50 ACDST (60 minutes before sunrise). Jupiter is prominent and can be seen close to the crescent Moon, forming a triangle with Mars.

 Similar views will be seen throughout Australia at the equivalent local time (that is 60 minutes before sunrise, click to embiggen).

Venus  is lost in the twilight.

Jupiter climbs higher in the morning sky and is now becoming prominent. It is moving towards the bright double star alpha2 Librae (Zubenelgenubi). By the end of the week the stellar pair and Jupiter will be less than a finger-width apart, and will fit within the field of view of a telescope eyepiece.

 Mars is now well visible in the morning sky, and is moving away from the bright star Spica towards Jupiter. The pair will be a hand-span apart by the end of the week.

Geminids as seen from Brisbane facing north at 2:00 am AEST. The Geminid radiant is marked with a starburst . (similar views from elsewhere at equivalent local time eg Sydney 3:00 am AEDST, Adelaide 3:30 am).
 
Similar views will be seen elsewhere at equivalent local times. (click to embiggen).

The Geminids are a fairly reliable meteor and this will be a good year for them with little moon interference.

The radiant doesn't rise until just before midnight (daylight saving time) in most of Australia, so you will still have to disturb your sleep for this one. Australians should see a meteor every two to three minutes under dark skies in the early morning of the 14th, between 1:00 am and 4:00 am local time. The further north you are the better the meteor rates. You can find predictions for your local site at the meteor flux estimator (choose 4 Geminids and date 13-14 December, don't forget to change the year to 2017).

You can find more details on my Geminid page.

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:


# posted by Ian Musgrave @ 11:14 pm 0 comments

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