Cosmic Pursuits

Basic astronomy and night sky information

Brian Ventrudo

The 2016 Saturn Observing Guide

by Brian Ventrudo Filed Under: Solar System

saturnMany casual observers get hooked on amateur astronomy after a first look at Saturn through a telescope.  More than a few have looked through my small refractor on a night of good seeing and asked of Saturn, “Is it real?”

Oh, it’s real, all right.  And incredibly beautiful… the color, the proportions, the apparent 3D perspective of this grand icy world.  It is arguably the finest sight accessible with a small telescope. The planet reaches opposition on June 3, 2016 and will remain bright and large in a telescope over the next few months. Here’s how to find it and see it in a small telescope.

[Read more…] about The 2016 Saturn Observing Guide

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The 2016 Mars Observing Guide

by Brian Ventrudo Filed Under: Solar System

Mars imaged by the Hubble Space Telescope during its opposition of 2003 (credit: NASA/HST)
Mars imaged by the Hubble Space Telescope during its opposition of 2003 (credit: NASA/HST)

One of the five bright planets visible to the unaided eye, Mars has perplexed and tantalized stargazers since antiquity. Its ochre hue, a consequence of iron-oxide in its surface sands, prompted classical astronomers to name the planet after the Roman god of war, and its dark and changing surface markings inspired early telescopic astronomers to speculate about the presence of life on the planet. The coming weeks offer you the best chance in the next two years to see Mars with a small telescope, so here’s a guide to help you get a good view of the Red Planet in 2016 [Read more…] about The 2016 Mars Observing Guide

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Johannes Kepler: Mathematician, Mystic… Murderer?

by Brian Ventrudo Filed Under: History and Famous Astronomers

Johannes Kepler
Johannes Kepler

The progress of science sometimes comes down to an unlikely partnership, a combination of the right people studying the right problem at the right time. In the pantheon of unlikely partners, few can top the team of Johannes Kepler and Tycho Brahe, two men of polar-opposite personalities who finally cracked the secret of the motion of the planets. Here is their story [Read more…] about Johannes Kepler: Mathematician, Mystic… Murderer?

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Eta Aquarid Meteor Shower – 2016

by Brian Ventrudo Filed Under: Celestial Events, Solar System

An Eta Aquariid meteor over the Devil's Tower in Wyoming (credit: David Kingham)
An Eta Aquariid meteor over the Devil’s Tower in Wyoming (credit: David Kingham)

The usually reliable Eta Aquarid meteor shower runs from April 21 – May 20, 2016, with many meteors still visible for several days on either side of the peak on May 5-6, 2016. This is perhaps the best meteor shower of the year for southern hemisphere stargazers [Read more…] about Eta Aquarid Meteor Shower – 2016

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A Guide to the Transit of Mercury on May 9, 2016

by Brian Ventrudo Filed Under: Celestial Events, Solar System

The disk of Mercury, below and right of the center of the Sun’s disk, during the transit of November 8, 2006. Credit: Brocken Inaglory through Wikipedia Commons.
The disk of Mercury, below and right of the center of the Sun’s disk, during the transit of November 8, 2006. Credit: Brocken Inaglory through Wikipedia Commons.

The planet Mercury will appear to pass across the face of the Sun on Monday, May 9, 2016. This event, known as a transit, will be visible in a small telescope with a proper solar filter from much of North and South America, Africa, and western Europe. It’s a great opportunity to see the mechanics of the solar system in action and to spot the elusive inner planet as it passes across the blazing solar disk [Read more…] about A Guide to the Transit of Mercury on May 9, 2016

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