Cosmic Pursuits

Basic astronomy and night sky information

Solar System Observing

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.

The Two Faces of Pluto

by Brian Ventrudo Filed Under: Science, Solar System

New color images from NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft show two very different faces of the mysterious dwarf planet, one with a series of intriguing spots along the equator that are evenly spaced.
New color images from NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft show two very different faces of the mysterious dwarf planet, one with a series of intriguing spots along the equator that are evenly spaced.

NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft received a final “all clear” as it approaches Pluto at nearly 50,000 km/hr on its way to an historic flyby on July 14, 2015. Mission scientists have been using the spacecraft’s most powerful telescopic camera, the Long Range Reconnaissance Imager (LORRI), to look for potential hazards such as small moons, rings, or dust, since mid-May. But the path looks clear, and the craft will continue on its present course towards Pluto and its five moons.

New color images released July 1 show two very different faces of the dwarf planet. One side of the planet revealed a series of intriguing and evenly-spaced dark spots along the equator. Each spot is about 480 kilometers in diameter with a surface area roughly equal to that of Missouri [Read more…] about The Two Faces of Pluto

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See Mercury in the Eastern Sky

by Brian Ventrudo Filed Under: Solar System

Mercury in the pre-dawn sky in early July 2015. The planet is brighter than any star in the area, and lies near the Pleiades and Hyades star clusters.
Mercury in the pre-dawn sky in early July 2015. The planet is brighter than any star in the area, and lies near the Pleiades and Hyades star clusters.

Early risers can spot the planet Mercury low on the eastern horizon before sunrise in early July 2015. The planet shines at an impressive magnitude -1.5, brighter than any star, but it’s low on the horizon and somewhat diminished by the brightening predawn sky. The bright orange-giant star Aldebaran is nearby Mercury, as are the Hyades and Pleiades star clusters. A pair of binoculars will help pull these stars out of the sky glow.

Mercury moves back towards the horizon for most of July and gets even harder to see. If you’re up for a challenge, have a look for the planet Mars, which will be much fainter than Mercury, just 0.1º to the north on July 16. You will need binoculars or a small scope and a clear view down to the eastern horizon to see these two small worlds.

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Close Conjunction of Venus and Jupiter on June 30, 2015

by Brian Ventrudo Filed Under: Solar System

Venus, Jupiter, and the crescent Moon in the western sky after sunset on June 19, 2015. The two bright planets will come within 0.3 degrees of each other on June 30, 2015.
Venus, Jupiter, and the crescent Moon in the western sky after sunset on June 19, 2015. The two bright planets will come within 0.3 degrees of each other on June 30, 2015.

The bright planets Venus and Jupiter have been moving closer together for weeks, and on June 30, 2015, they make their closest approach when they pass less than a full-Moon-width from each other in the western sky after sunset. This beautiful conjunction of two bright planets is an ideal time for a photo-op and an great opportunity to see the clockwork motion of the solar system in action.

The two planets will fit together in the same low-power field of view in a telescope, and remarkably, they will appear the same size. Venus is a tiny crescent, bright and featureless, while Jupiter displays cloud bands and its four biggest moons. While each spans about 32 arc-seconds in apparent size, in real terms Jupiter is 12x larger and 12x farther away. If the skies are in your favor, wander out and see this remarkable conjunction in the western sky after sunset on June 30 and July 1. It’s visible from the northern and southern hemispheres.

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Venus, Jupiter, the Moon, and a Solstice

by Brian Ventrudo Filed Under: Solar System

Jupiter-Venus-062015Venus and Jupiter continue to move together each night on the way to their closest encounter on June 30, 2015. This weekend the two planets are still 6º apart, but stargazers may get their best photo opportunity during this conjunction as the two planets are joined by a slender crescent Moon in the western sky after sunset on June 19-20. Venus and Jupiter form a straight line with the bright white star Regulus in the constellation Leo to the east, while Castor and Pollux in Gemini linger to the west. In a telescope, brilliant Venus now appears as a thick crescent while Jupiter, which appears smaller and fainter, still shows its cloud bands and four bright moons.

And on June 21, 2015 at 16:39 UT, the Sun appears to stand still at its most northerly point in the sky. This marks the longest day of the year in the northern hemisphere and the beginning of northern summer. At the same time, winter begins in the southern hemisphere as the days begin to grow longer and the world slowly moves from darkness to light.

(Image at top captured from SkySafari 4 Plus)

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New Horizons Approaches Pluto

by Brian Ventrudo Filed Under: Solar System

After more than nine years and 3 billion miles, NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft is closing in on the dwarf planet Pluto. On July 14, 2015, the craft will make the first close-up reconnaissance of Pluto and its five moons and take images and measurements of this distant and still mysterious world.

The National Space Society produced a video that puts the New Horizons mission in perspective, along with some superb animation.

[Read more…] about New Horizons Approaches Pluto

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