Stargazing Planetary Lineup and Eclipse Viewing Tips for Cruise Ship Passengers

[neilparker62]

TL;DR Summary

Jupiter, Venus, Mars, Saturn in the pre-dawn sky.

Looking East this morning about 5:15 am. No telescope needed. But the pic is not actual - it is from Stellarium.

 

[Drakkith]

Nice! I'll have to take a look tomorrow morning if the clouds clear!

 

[neilparker62]

Does anyone have any 'tips' on photographing something like this ? I tried my cellphone but it is hopeless - at least with the camera app. What sort of capability would you need on a phone to take a reasonable pic of objects in the night sky ? Or using a digital camera ?

 

[Drakkith]

Best bet is a digital camera like a DSLR on a tracking mount. But a tripod will do if your exposures are short. In astrophotography we usually take many pictures, called sub-exposures (subs), and then digitally stack them together to get rid of noise and make the final image look good. But if you don't have that capability you could probably get a decent image with a single exposure.

 

[neilparker62]

Nice! I'll have to take a look tomorrow morning if the clouds clear!

Where are you located ? Might not be the same view as from here (Johannesburg). More or less the same in Brisbane (Aus) but will be different in the Northern hemisphere.

 

[Drakkith]

Where are you located ? Might not be the same view as from here (Johannesburg). More or less the same in Brisbane (Aus) but will be different in the Northern hemisphere.

I'm up in the United States. Didn't wake up early enough this morning to see it.

 

[neilparker62]

London view: about 6:30pm. I would guess you wouldn't see much because of the rising sun.

 

[neilparker62]

Summary:: Jupiter, Venus, Mars, Saturn in the pre-dawn sky.

Looking East this morning about 5:15 am. No telescope needed. But the pic is not actual - it is from Stellarium.

2 weeks from the above, the planetary line-up is still clearly visible in Southern hemisphere skies just before dawn. Venus and Jupiter have moved closer together and - with the crescent Moon - form a neat right-angled triangle if joined:

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I chanced my arm with this very basic cellphone pic. Point and click only - not even a tripod - but Venus and the Moon are clear enough (if a bit blurred) and you can even pick up Jupiter as a dim dot in the lower left corner. Usually when I try something like this the camera won't even focus on the astro-objects so I think I was lucky with a very clear highveld morning sky. Obviously I have cropped out most of the pic which originally covered a much larger area of the sky.

I'm sure there are better equipped enthusiasts out there - close conjunction of Venus and Jupiter worth recording perhaps ?

 

[neilparker62]

Saturday 30th April 2022 - supposed to be the day Jupiter and Venus are closest. Another two cellphone pics

 

[neilparker62]

Saturday 30th April 2022 - supposed to be the day Jupiter and Venus are closest. Another two cellphone pics

View attachment 300823 View attachment 300824​

27th April to 5th May 2022. "Photo bombed" by the Moon on 27/04!

 

[Oldman too]

This has some interesting events throughout the month of May. I'm curious if @Drakkith will have a chance (and cooperative weather) to do some imaging on the Lunar eclipse coming up.

 

[Drakkith]

I'm curious if @Drakkith will have a chance (and cooperative weather) to do some imaging on the Lunar eclipse coming up.

Unfortunately not. I'll be on a cruise ship in the Caribbean during the eclipse!
Edit: Just double checked. Turns out we'll be getting back to shore the night of the eclipse. So I won't have any equipment with me.

 

[Oldman too]

I'll be on a cruise ship in the Caribbean during the eclipse!

I've seen a lot worse excuses for missing an eclipse, enjoy the cruise!