Astronomy Calendar of Celestial Events

[Greg Bernhardt]

Sea and Sky does this the best.

Here are the expect events for the next several years. Feel free to post a new thread for one you are interested in discussing.

http://www.seasky.org/astronomy/astronomy-calendar-current.html

 

[Greg Bernhardt]

Look to Saturn tomorrow night!

May 10 - Saturn at Opposition. The ringed planet will be at its closest approach to Earth and its face will be fully illuminated by the Sun. This is the best time to view and photograph Saturn and its moons. A medium-sized or larger telescope will allow you to see Saturn's rings and a few of its brightest moons.

 

[Greg Bernhardt]

Today is also Astronomy Day! Get outside and look up! :)

 

[davenn]

maybe will see Saturn tonite ... been battling cloudy nights here

Dave

 

[PhysicoRaj]

Aw mann.. clouds everywhere? Would a vortex cannon do for white thin clouds? There are four planets visible: Mercury, Jupiter, Mars and Saturn. Damn weather

 

[Greg Bernhardt]

June 7 - Conjunction of the Moon and Mars. The Moon will pass within two degrees of the the planet Mars in the evening sky. The gibbous moon will be at magnitude -12.2 and Mars will be at magnitude -0.8. Look for both objects high in the eastern sky just after sunset. The pair will be visible in the west later in the evening and will remain visible for about 6 hours after sunset.

 

[Greg Bernhardt]

July 12th Super moon!
http://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2014/10jul_supermoons/

 

[PhysicoRaj]

July 12th Super moon!
http://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2014/10jul_supermoons/

Cool! I missed the Jul-12th. May be I'll get to see the other two mentioned in the site: 10th Aug and 9th Sept !

 

[Greg Bernhardt]

July 28, 29 - Delta Aquarids Meteor Shower. The Delta Aquarids is an average shower that can produce up to 20 meteors per hour at its peak. It is produced by debris left behind by comets Marsden and Kracht. The shower runs annually from July 12 to August 23. It peaks this year on the night of July 28 and morning of July 29. This should be a great year for this shower because the thin crescent moon will set early in the evening leaving dark skies for what should a good show. Best viewing will be from a dark location after midnight. Meteors will radiate from the constellation Aquarius, but can appear anywhere in the sky.

 

[Redbelly98]

Total lunar eclipse coming up this Wednesday, Oct. 8.

From http://www.timeanddate.com/eclipse/lunar/2014-october-8 :

Map Legend
Intense red shading: Observers within this area can see the eclipse from beginning to end.
Red shading left/west of intense shading: Eclipse during end of day/start of night: Can see the eclipse after moonrise/sunset.
Red shading right/east of intense shading: Eclipse during end of night/start of day: Can see the eclipse until moonset/sunrise.
No coloring: Eclipse is not visible at all
Note: Actual eclipse visibility depends on weather conditions and line of sight to the Moon.

Central and eastern time zones will see it in the early hours just prior to sunrise. It will be earlier for western time zone, obviously.

 

[Greg Bernhardt]

• October 20, 21 - Orionids Meteor Shower. The Orionids is an average shower producing up to 20 meteors per hour at its peak. It is produced by dust grains left behind by comet Halley, which has been known and observed since ancient times. The shower runs annually from October 2 to November 7. It peaks this year on the night of October 20 and the morning of October 21. This will be an excellent year for the Orionids because there will be no moon to interfere with the show. Best viewing will be from a dark location after midnight. Meteors will radiate from the constellation Orion, but can appear anywhere in the sky.
  

 

[Greg Bernhardt]

• November 17, 18 - Leonids Meteor Shower. The Leonids is an average shower, producing an average of up to 15 meteors per hour at its peak. This shower is unique in that it has a cyclonic peak about every 33 years where hundreds of meteors per hour can be seen. That last of these occurred in 2001. The Leonids is produced by dust grains left behind by comet Tempel-Tuttle, which was discovered in 1865. The shower runs annually from November 6-30. It peaks this year on the night of the 17th and morning of the 18th. The waning crescent moon will not be much of a problem this year. Skies should be dark enough for a good show. Best viewing will be from a dark location after midnight. Meteors will radiate from the constellation Leo, but can appear anywhere in the sky.
  

 

[davenn]

The last Leonids shower I made significant effort to observe was in the mid-late 1990's
when I was back in Dunedin, NZ
The meteors observed were relatively slow and produced persistent trails stretching across 1/2 the sky
Had, up till that time never seen meteor trails like that

Dave

 

[dlgoff]

• November 17, 18 - Leonids Meteor Shower. The Leonids is an average shower, producing an average of up to 15 meteors per hour at its peak. This shower is unique in that it has a cyclonic peak about every 33 years where hundreds of meteors per hour can be seen. That last of these occurred in 2001. The Leonids is produced by dust grains left behind by comet Tempel-Tuttle, which was discovered in 1865. The shower runs annually from November 6-30. It peaks this year on the night of the 17th and morning of the 18th. The waning crescent moon will not be much of a problem this year. Skies should be dark enough for a good show. Best viewing will be from a dark location after midnight. Meteors will radiate from the constellation Leo, but can appear anywhere in the sky.

I'll have a beer in hand and watching as always ... Until the cold gets to me.

 

[davenn]

well as with 2 other significant astro events this year, it was also clouded out :(
The sky was crystal clear till 1 am then clouded over

Dave

 

[dlgoff]

I thought about going out last night, but it was so cold my beer would have frozen. According to my weather station it was 12°F at midnight.

 

[William Donald]

This month Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn will all be visible!

http://www.space.com/27898-brightes...pr=17610706465&cmpid=514630_20141203_36578307

 

[Greg Bernhardt]

Lyrids: Annual Meteor Shower Expected to Be Visible This Week