The Sky is Waiting.
The Winter Solstice… here comes the Sun!
(Credit: Art Explosion).
T�was the night before Christmas, and no doubt dreams of high tech astro-gear is dancing thru the head of many a star stricken astronomer out there. But while you�re awaiting those astro-gifts, the universe marches on. [Read more...]
Our photo of last December’s total eclipse.
Mark your calendars; this Saturday, December 10th a total lunar eclipse graces our fair planet, and a good swath of humanity will get to see it. This particular eclipse occurs at sunset/moonrise for observers in central Europe, the UK, and north-eastern Africa westward, and just before sunrise/moonset for all of North America except the U.S. eastern seaboard and the Maritimes. [Read more...]
Mira, a prototype variable similar to R Gem as seen by the Hubble Space Telescope.
(Credit: NASA/ESA).
Tired of observing M31 for the nth time and ready to do some backyard astrophysics? Eventually, we all go there; you may have even read a recent �how-to� post of our not-so-secret addiction: variable star observing. [Read more...]
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Pictured is a Delta IV rocket launch from Cape Canaveral on November 21st, 2010. The image is a 20 second exposure taken at dusk, shot from about 100 miles west of the launch site. The launch placed a classified payload in orbit for the United States Air Force.
Difficult but not impossible to catch against the dawn or dusk sky, spotting an extreme crescent moon can be a challenge. The slender crescent pictured was shot 30 minutes before sunrise when the Moon was less than 20 hours away from New.� A true feat of visual athletics to catch, a good pair of binoculars or a well aimed wide field telescopic view can help with the hunt.
The Sun is our nearest star, and goes through an 11-year cycle of activity. This image was taken via a properly filtered telescope, and shows the Sun as it appeared during its last maximum peak in 2003. This was during solar cycle #23, a period during which the Sun hurled several large flares Earthward. The next solar cycle is due to peak around 2013-14.
Located in the belt of the constellation Orion, Messier 42, also known as the Orion Nebula is one of the finest deep sky objects in the northern hemisphere sky. Just visible as a faint smudge to the naked eye on a clear dark night, the Orion Nebula is a sure star party favorite, as it shows tendrils of gas contrasted with bright stars. M42 is a large stellar nursery, a star forming region about 1,000 light years distant.
Orbiting the planet in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) every 90 minutes, many people fail to realize that you can see the International Space Station (ISS) from most of the planet on a near-weekly basis. In fact, the ISS has been known to make up to four visible passes over the same location in one night. The image pictured is from the Fourth of July, 2011 and is a 20 second exposure of a bright ISS pass.
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Next to the Sun, the two brightest objects in the sky are the Moon and the planet Venus. In fact, when Venus is favorably placed next to the Moon, it might just be possible to spot the two in the daytime. Another intriguing effect known as earthshine or ashen light is also seen in the image on the night side of the Moon; this is caused by sunlight reflected back off of the Earth towards our only satellite.
A mosaic of three images taken during the total lunar eclipse of December 21st, 2010. The eclipse occurred the same day as the winter solstice. The curve and size of the Earth�s shadow is apparent in the image.
Astro-Event: See Mercury at its Best.
Looking east the morning of December 3rd an hour before dawn.
(Created by the Author in Starry Night).
By now, you�ve no doubt been thrilled by last week�s dramatic passage of Venus and Saturn in the dawn sky. Well, as the old Late-night TV ad clich� says, �But wait, there�s more��
Fresh off of inferior conjunct and a near transit of the Sun that missed the solar limb by less than 8� minutes on November 17th, the planet Mercury joins the pair for a stunning gathering. [Read more...]