During the evening of Friday January 23/Saturday January 24 there will be a triple shadow transit. This is a rare occurrence where three of Jupiter's moons (Europa, Callisto and Io) pass between Jupiter and the Earth. For a period of time the shadow of the three moons will be visible on Jupiter's disk.
This is easy to observe with a small telescope, provided it is clear and dark at your location while the transit is taking place. For observers in the eastern United States (in the Eastern time zone) here is the timing....
Friday January 23 22:09 Callisto's shadow appears
Friday January 23 23:36 Io's shadow appears
Saturday January 24 00:03 Io begins transit
Saturday January 24 01:27 Europa's shadow appears
Saturday January 24 01:31 Callisto begins transit
Saturday January 24 01:54 Io's shadow disappears
Saturday January 24 02:07 Io ends transit
Saturday January 24 02:17 Europa begins transit
Saturday January 24 02:59 Callisto's shadow disappears
Saturday January 24 04:23 Europa's shadow disappears
Saturday January 24 04:54 Europa ends transit
(These timings are approximate, it is best to start observe a few minutes before the times indicated to be safe). Observers at other locations can adjust the time zone to determine the timings. If the sun is above the horizon at the specified time, you wont be able to see the transit.
See this article from Astronomy Now: "Jupiter’s moon dance and shadow play to delight observers:" http://astronomynow.com/2014/12/03/jupiters-moon-dance-and-shadow-play-to-delight-observers/
Showing posts with label observing. Show all posts
Showing posts with label observing. Show all posts
Monday, January 19, 2015
Monday, August 18, 2014
The First Planetary Nebula Spectrum
Sky and Telescope has an article "The First Planetary Nebula Spectrum." 150 years ago this month was the first time anyone had take spectrum of a planetary nebula.
At the time the word "nebula" covered a variety of objects that were visible in telescopes, but whose composition was not understood. The observed spectrum gave important clues about one type of nebula, namely the planetary nebula.
See this link....
http://www.skyandtelescope.
At the time the word "nebula" covered a variety of objects that were visible in telescopes, but whose composition was not understood. The observed spectrum gave important clues about one type of nebula, namely the planetary nebula.
See this link....
http://www.skyandtelescope.
Sunday, April 13, 2014
Lunar Eclipse
There will be a lunar eclipse visible the night of April 14-15. The best place to view the eclipse is North/South America and the eastern Pacific. For more details see this article...
http://www.space.com/25447-moon-observing-tips-total-lunar-eclipse.html
http://www.space.com/25447-moon-observing-tips-total-lunar-eclipse.html
Tuesday, April 1, 2014
Mars Opposition is April 8th.
Approximately once every two years Earth and Mars are relatively close together. The time when the Sun and Mars are directly opposite each other is called opposition. The opposition of Mars will occur on April 8th. On April 14th Earth and Mars will be the closest they will be for this two year cycle.
For these reasons, the month of April will be a particularly good time to observe Mars through a telescope. Normally all you will see is a blurry red disk, but for a few weeks before and a few weeks after opposition, it is possible to see surface detail with a ground based amateur telescope. While Mars can be easily seen with the naked eye at other times, it is brighter and easier to find near opposition.
For these reasons, the month of April will be a particularly good time to observe Mars through a telescope. Normally all you will see is a blurry red disk, but for a few weeks before and a few weeks after opposition, it is possible to see surface detail with a ground based amateur telescope. While Mars can be easily seen with the naked eye at other times, it is brighter and easier to find near opposition.
The article http://earthsky.org/astronomy-essentials/mars-2014-opposition-how-to-see-april-best-time-to-see-brightest has more information.
Friday, August 16, 2013
The new nova in Delphinus
In the constellation Delphinus, a bright nova was detected on August 14th. A nova is simply a star that unexpectedly gets much brighter than normal. As of August 15th it is still getting brighter.
It is easy to see in binoculars, and possible to see naked eye (under dark sky conditions).
http://www.skyandtelescope.
It is easy to see in binoculars, and possible to see naked eye (under dark sky conditions).
http://www.skyandtelescope.
Thursday, March 28, 2013
Astronomy Sketch
Generally when people think of amateur astronomy they think of visually looking through a telescope, perhaps naked eye astronomy, binocular astronomy or even astrophotography. However this misses an important skill: making a sketch of what you see in the telescope. Learning how to do this will make you a better observer.
There is this article that describes this process: "Sketch the Skies and Improve your Eyes." by Mark Deprest Printed in Reflections: January, 1997.
Also here is a site with many astronomy sketches: Astronomy Sketch of the Day.
There is this article that describes this process: "Sketch the Skies and Improve your Eyes." by Mark Deprest Printed in Reflections: January, 1997.
Also here is a site with many astronomy sketches: Astronomy Sketch of the Day.
Friday, March 8, 2013
Open Houses at Peach Mountain
After hibernating for the winter, we have two open houses scheduled at Peach Mountain....
Saturday, March 9, 2013.
Saturday, March 16, 2013.
(either one may be cancelled if it is cloudy or too cold).
What is it?
Peach Mountain is a facility owned by the University of Michigan and is located within Stinchfield Woods (a wood lot owned by the University about four miles from Dexter, Michigan). There is a radio telescope and other equipment on Peach Mountain operated by various departments in the University. There is also a 24 inch optical telescope operated by an amateur astronomy club known as the “University Lowbrow Astronomers.”The public has the opportunity to look through the 24 inch telescope and other telescopes. Members of the club often bring their own telescopes and visitors are also encouraged to bring their own telescopes and setup before its dark. Visitors are also encouraged to bring their own binoculars.
When is it open?
Open houses begin at sunset. If conditions are unusually cold or if it is cloudy, the open house may be canceled. If in doubt, call (734) 975-3248 after 4 PM the day of the event to determine the status. Closing time is season dependent: 11:00 PM in winter, later for the rest of the year. Peach Mountain often gets quite cold, dress warmly. In warm weather mosquitoes can be a problem, so do not forget insect repellent.(Go here for a calendar of open houses and other astronomy events.)
How do I get there? & Guidelines for Lowbrows and Guests
See Open Houses at Peach MountainFriday, February 8, 2013
Asteroid 2012 DA14
Next week the asteroid 2012 DA14 will pass close to the earth. As you can tell by the name, this asteroid was discovered last year. The orbit is about one year. At least for the time being, it will be passing close to the earth once a year.
The closest approach is on February 15th. It will not collide with the earth, but there is a very small possibility it could collide with one of our communication satellites (this is highly unlikely, but possible).
Observing the asteroid will be tricky, but possible.
For people living in Michigan, it will still be daylight at the closest approach. On the one hand the asteroid is brightest at closest approach (making it easy to see in a telescope), but it will also appear to be moving very fast (making it difficult to track). Once it gets dark in Michigan, the asteroid will be dimmer (but still very bright), and moving slower (but still quite fast and hard to track).
It is too dim to see with the unaided eye, but it will very bright in a telescope.
Since the asteroid will be close to the earth, there is a large parallax. In other words, the exact location of the asteroid will depend on your observing location. If you use the NASA Horizons interface at http://ssd.jpl.nasa.gov/horizons.cgi you can get an ephemeris for your location. This will show the position of the asteroid in right ascension and declination (RA and DEC) at different. When using this interface make sure you set your observing location correctly, I would suggest generating an ephemeris with time steps of 15 minutes.
The closest approach is on February 15th. It will not collide with the earth, but there is a very small possibility it could collide with one of our communication satellites (this is highly unlikely, but possible).
Observing the asteroid will be tricky, but possible.
For people living in Michigan, it will still be daylight at the closest approach. On the one hand the asteroid is brightest at closest approach (making it easy to see in a telescope), but it will also appear to be moving very fast (making it difficult to track). Once it gets dark in Michigan, the asteroid will be dimmer (but still very bright), and moving slower (but still quite fast and hard to track).
It is too dim to see with the unaided eye, but it will very bright in a telescope.
Since the asteroid will be close to the earth, there is a large parallax. In other words, the exact location of the asteroid will depend on your observing location. If you use the NASA Horizons interface at http://ssd.jpl.nasa.gov/horizons.cgi you can get an ephemeris for your location. This will show the position of the asteroid in right ascension and declination (RA and DEC) at different. When using this interface make sure you set your observing location correctly, I would suggest generating an ephemeris with time steps of 15 minutes.
The Best Conjunction of 2013
Tonight we have the best conjunction of the year!
A conjunction is where two astronomical objects are close together. In this case Mercury and Mars will be only 20 arc minutes apart - 2/3rd the diameter of the moon!
The east coast of the US is under a winter storm warning, but if you live in a location where it is clear, observing the conjunction is relatively easy, provided you have a good horizon to the west (that is there are no buildings or other obstructions in that direction). Wait until after sunset and use binoculars to look in the same direction of the setting sun. Immediately after sunset it will be too bright to see anything, but if it is clear at your location, Mercury and Mars should gradually become visible. Binoculars are not really necessary as both Mercury and Mars are visible without visual aids. It probably will take a few minutes, be patient. Mercury will set about one hour after the sun sets, after that the show is over.
A conjunction is where two astronomical objects are close together. In this case Mercury and Mars will be only 20 arc minutes apart - 2/3rd the diameter of the moon!
The east coast of the US is under a winter storm warning, but if you live in a location where it is clear, observing the conjunction is relatively easy, provided you have a good horizon to the west (that is there are no buildings or other obstructions in that direction). Wait until after sunset and use binoculars to look in the same direction of the setting sun. Immediately after sunset it will be too bright to see anything, but if it is clear at your location, Mercury and Mars should gradually become visible. Binoculars are not really necessary as both Mercury and Mars are visible without visual aids. It probably will take a few minutes, be patient. Mercury will set about one hour after the sun sets, after that the show is over.
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