Basic astronomy and night sky information
Articles about how to understand, find and see solar system objects including planets, the Moon, the Sun, asteroids, meteors, and comets with binoculars, telescopes, and the naked eye.
“There are decades where nothing happens, and there are weeks where decades happen”, said V.I. Lenin. That, in a way, is what October feels like for stargazers and skywatchers who have enjoyed wave after wave of auroral displays, massive sunspots across the solar disk, and a bright, long-tailed comet in the morning and evening skies [Read more…] about Comet Update | Aurora, Aurora Everywhere
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The comet lives! At least so far…
In July, some astronomers suspected the promising comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS) was on its way to breaking into pieces and fading from view. But as the comet became lost in the Sun’s glare from Earth, satellite images showed it apparently still intact. This offers hope that this little interloper from the Oort Cloud will put on an appealing – and possibly spectacular – display in late September and October 2024 [Read more…] about Get Ready for a Bright Comet!
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Many 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 the September 7-8, 2024 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 Guide to Observing Saturn in 2024
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On April 8, 2024, a total solar eclipse will pass in a narrow band across Mexico, the continental United States, and southeastern Canada. Millions of people live within a day’s drive of the narrow path of this eclipse, so it may be one of the most watched astronomical events in history. If you’re heading to the path of totality, or if you’re planning to observe the partial solar eclipse off the path of the lunar umbra, I wish you safe travels and clear skies! And if you’re not traveling, or if you’re facing clouds, or you simply want to know what’s happening with this rare celestial event, here are a few resources and readings about this eclipse and solar eclipses in general. [Read more…] about Live Stream and Resources for the Total Solar Eclipse of April 8, 2024
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The planet Jupiter is always one of the brightest objects in the night sky. It’s brighter than any star, and is only outshone by the planet Venus and the Moon, and, very rarely, by Mars and Mercury. Jupiter reaches a position for optimum viewing in a telescope once every 13 months, roughly, and it makes its latest closest approach to Earth on November 3, 2023 at 5h Universal Time when the planet appears in southern Aries. A couple of months before and after this date, Jupiter is in perfect position for viewing with a small telescope, or even a pair of binoculars. You can’t miss it: the planet is by far the brightest object in the eastern sky as night gets underway in the northern hemisphere and nearly overhead in the southern hemisphere in October and November 2023. The visible face of Jupiter reveals so many interesting features in a small telescope that the planet is a favorite target for new and experienced stargazers [Read more…] about A Guide to Observing Jupiter in 2023
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