This will be the first week of the New Year! The big news starts out on New Year's Day with New Horizons' flyby of the Kuiper Belt Object now known as Ultima Thule.
Thule in Latin refers to a legendary island that is beyond existence and Ultima is the word for furthest. This name is quite savvy as Ultima Thule will be the furthest object we have explored.
NASA TV will have full coverage on this groundbreaking flyby. The link below is a Sky and Telescope article written by New Horizons' Principal Investigator Alan Stern.
New Horizons at the Plutonian System (Image Credit: NASA)
There are other great events happening in the sky that we can see in Calgary! The chart below highlights them.
Date
Event
January 1
Venus 1.3°S of Moon
January 1
Saturn in conjunction with the Sun
January 3
Jupiter 3°S of Moon
January 3
Quadrantid Meteors Peak
January 4
Mercury 3°S of Moon
January 5
New Moon
January 5
Partial Solar Eclipse
January 5
Venus greatest elongation West
There will be a Solar Eclipse occurring on January 5th for those east of the International Date Line and on the 6th for the observers to the west. A map of the eclipse region is found below.
Throughout the week we will have three planetary conjunction with the Moon in the hours prior to sunrise. Venus will be partying with the Moon early on New Year's morning as both will be found within the same telescopic field of view. Two days later it will be Jupiter's turn follow by Mercury a day after that.
There is also a major meteor shower peaking on Thursday night. You can catch the Quadrantids without the horrible glow of a Full Moon of the first week of January last year. In the suburbs you may be able to catch about 10 per hour but may get lucky! Look just above the head of Boötes as the radiant and see if you can catch a few! For more information on viewing and/or recording this shower, follow the link below.
The week ends with a New Moon to start the first lunar cycle of 2019. The same night Venus will reach its westernmost appearance in the sky away from the Sun at a whopping 47°. It will be in a last quarter phase with only 50% of the planet illuminated. This will be a great time to catch it in a telescope.
Get outside and observe the Winter constellations in the spells of great weather!
We are nearly at the end of 2018. What a great year we have been having! Will 2019 top this past year? You'll have to stay tuned to find out! The table below highlights what is happening throughout the upcoming week.
Date
Event
December 24
Moon 0.6°S of Beehive (M44)
December 29
Last Quarter
Comet 46P/Wirtanen is high in our Northern Hemisphere sky this week. It starts off right next to Capella, the brightest star in Auriga. It ends it week in the lesser known constellation of Lynx.
Mars still sits bright and red directly south as it just recently crossed the border into Pisces.
On Christmas Eve the waning gibbous Moon will be within the same telescopic field as the Beehive Cluster. This cluster is also known as Praesepe which is Latin for 'Manger'. This is a perfect conjunction for this date! Unfortunately I do not yet have a great picture of the Beehive but I hope to fix that in 2020!
Beehive Cluster - Praesepe (Manger)
This event will occur in the eastern sky with their closest approach being 10pm. A map of this region can be found below to help you find it. Just follow the line between the twin stars of Gemini towards the Moon and look through binoculars!
Moon/Manger Christmas Conjunction in the East
Just prior to the end of the year the Moon will be at its Last Quarter phase on its way to becoming a New Moon. This New Moon will be quite special as it will cause a Partial Solar eclipse in some of the most populated areas in the world. Beijing, Tokyo, Seoul, and Taipei will all have a glimpse of the Moon covering our very own home star!
We had a couple great nights of public star nights! Unfortunately clouds rolled in but the Moon was still somewhat visible. Public star nights are always a gamble as the weather is perhaps the largest casino in the world. We are looking at having some basic telescope nights early in the new year with some scopes setup at dark locations throughout several communities. This will be an outdoor event only dependent on the weather. Thank-you to the amazing volunteers who helped put on these events and to the facilities who graciously let us use their space.
Public star night volunteers after their last shift
There is only one rocket launch scheduled for this week. The Russian Government is sending observation satellites into orbit to help map forest fires. You can catch this launch live at https://spaceflightnow.com just after 7pm on Boxing Day.
Date
Event
December 26
Soyuz - Kanopus-V 5&6 (19:07)
There are no public events planned for a couple weeks. However, you can mark your calendars for January 10 when the Telus Spark will be hosting an Adult Night entitled 'Embrace Outer Space'. A link to this event can be found below.
Also, look out for a great event at the Rothney Astrophysical Observatory on January 20. There will be a Total Lunar Eclipse that evening which is being called a 'Super Blood Wolf Moon'.
Follow us on Facebook for details of upcoming events!
This week will have the Winter Solstice marking the first day of winter. However, before this occurs mark your calendar for the last astronomical event of the Fall!
There will be a great free event at the Calgary Public Library. A lecture entitled: The Christmas Star, An Astronomer's Perspective will be given on December 20, 2018 starting at 7pm. A link to this event is given below. Don't miss out!
The chart below highlights all the events happening in our cool late autumn skies!
Date
Event
December 21
Aldebaran 1.7°S of Moon
December 21
Mercury 0.9°S of Jupiter
December 21
Winter Solstice
December 22
Full Moon
December 22
Ursid Meteor Shower Peak
There are a few conjunctions occurring throughout the week if you are lucky to catch them. The bright red star of Taurus will be in conjunction with the Moon early Friday morning. You will be able to put both inside the same field of a telescope with the right eyepiece. A couple years ago I had the opportunity to see the Moon occult Aldebaran. Unfortunately that will not be the case this December.
If you wait just before the Sun comes up that same morning you might be able to catch our smallest and largest planet hanging out with each other. Mercury and Jupiter will be under a degree from each other. You may need some optical aid to lure them out of the morning twilight. DO NOT use optical aid when the Sun is above the horizon as you will damage your eyes if you catch our star in your field of view.
The Moon will be Full the next night and cause a great deal of light pollution wiping out faint objects. This brings us to the Ursid Meteor Shower which will likely be mostly destroyed by the Moon. The American Meteor Society estimates an hourly rate of 1 meteor per hour during a Full Moon. Will you catch this 1? The radiant sits just above the scoop of the Little Dipper asterism in Ursa Minor.
Ursid Radiant
What else is there worth watching for in the sky? Comet 46P/Wirtanen is coming further north and will be playing around in the constellation Auriga. A link to the finder charts can be found below. I will update it for the last week of December soon.
Mars is still in our nighttime sky in the northeastern reaches on Aquarius before it moves into Pisces by the end of the week. In February it will have a very close conjunction with Uranus at less than a degree away. This will make for a great picture if the sky is clear!
'Twas the week before Christmas and all through the Earth the rockets were launching! There are five launches scheduled for this upcoming week.
Date
Event
December 18
Falcon 9 - GPS 3-01 (07:11)
December 18
Soyuz - CSO 1 (09:37)
December 18
Delta IV Heavy - NROL-71 (18:57)
December 19
GSLV Mk.2 (03:30)
December 20
Proton - Blagovest No. 13L (17:15)
The most interesting launch will be the Delta IV Heavy that was stopped on December 7 with a mere seven seconds left in the countdown. That same morning a Falcon 9 will be lifting off with a GPS satellite and a Soyuz will be taking a French optical imaging satellite into space.
The next day a GSLV Mk.2 will be lifting off from India carrying a communications satellite for the Indian Air Force. On December 20 a Russian Proton rocket will also put a communications satellite into space to provide high-speed internet, television and much more to a domestic and military audience.
All is not quiet on the public events calendar either! After the event at the library there will be two community star nights for anyone to check out. Click on the links in the chart below for more details!
This year the Geminids were fantastic! The peak of the shower was scheduled for the early morning of Friday, December 14. I was up from 11pm-12:30am on Thursday night to Friday morning. I counted 18 separate meteors during this time including a small green bolide that split into 3 additional meteors.
I used an all-sky map to record the observations of the meteors. This is shown below.
Geminids 2018 - Observation Map
If you look at the observation record you can see that 94% of all recorded meteors radiated from a point just north of Beta Geminorum (Castor). Just one of the observed meteors was recorded to move in the opposite direction towards the typical Geminid radiant (shown below).
Geminid Radiant
I set myself up in an Adirondack chair in my backyard wearing warm winter attire with my clipboard, red flashlight and watch. There were narrow cloud bands running west to east travelling through the region of Gemini. They came and went throughout the entire hour and a half I was outside. Sometimes the clouds fully encompassed Gemini, Orion, Taurus, or Auriga. This may have contributed to a lower count throughout the evening. I complained about this shortly into the evening.
The meteors started off quite slowly and my eyes began to wander to other sights in the sky.
The shower picked up just after midnight with nearly 2/3 of all observed meteors occurring in the last half hour I was out. More clouds started to roll in and work the next day allowed my bed to beckon to me.
My eyes settled on a sweet spot in the sky between Betelgeuse and Castor's foot (of M35 fame). This was basically the center of the Winter Hexagon which is becoming more prominent in our cold skies (shown below). The house blocked a lot of my northern skies but I wasn't too concerned as there was a lot of action in the south.
It was a fun and relaxing evening. The temperature was 3°C and the wind was quite gentle. I could not really expect better conditions at this time of year. I am looking forward to the Quadrantid Meteor Shower next month as it occurs a mere 2 days before the New Moon. If the weather is good I will be out again!
In the sky this week we have a prolific meteor shower peaking. The annual Geminid meteor shower reaches its best on Thursday Night-Friday Morning! Also, there will be a great free event coming up at the Calgary Public Library. A lecture entitled: The Christmas Star, An Astronomer's Perspective will be given on December 20, 2018 starting at 7pm. A link to this event is given below. Don't miss out!
The sights in the sky this week are presented in the chart below.
Date
Event
December 13
RASC on Global Morning (07:40)
December 14
Geminid Meteors Peak
December 14
Mars 4°N of Moon
December 15
First Quarter
December 15
Mercury Greatest Elongation West
Join the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada on the Global Morning Show at 7:40am on December 13 where Roger Nelson will be detailing Comet 46P/Wirtanen.
This year's Geminids are looking to be great. The moon will set a few minutes before 11pm removing the biggest natural source of light pollution in the sky. This will allow for prime viewing of the Geminids if you can escape artificial sources of light pollution. On the same night the Moon will be paired up with Mars in the sky and you will be able to view both through a pair of binoculars. The next evening the Moon will reach its First Quarter phase.
If you are a morning person you should try to find Venus, Mercury and Jupiter. Venus is unmissable in the southeastern sky as it will appear as a very bright looking 'star'. Mercury rises around 6:30am, two hours before the Sun. Jupiter will rise 45 minutes later and be visible to the keen observer who can navigate the sky during twilight. The map below shows how the southeast sky will appear at 7:30am on December 15.
Planets - December 15
The Delta Heavy launch last week was stopped with 7 seconds left in the countdown. I have not seen such an event and was riveted. Live launches are always a wonder to watch and it's a shame I don't see more of them.
There is one launch scheduled for next week out of the North island of New Zealand. It will be carrying several CubeSats into orbit for NASA. I have yet to watch a launch from this location and am looking forward to it. All launches can be watched live from the link below.
We have a good week for conjunctions coming up including an amazing one with two planets! The chart below highlights all the action happening this week!
Date
Event
December 3
Venus 4°S of Moon
December 5
Mercury 1.9°S of Moon
December 6
Mercury Stationary
December 7
New Moon
December 7
Mars 0.04°S of Neptune
December 8
Saturn 1.1°S of Moon
As the Moon ends its cycle watch for a faint waning crescent to coincide with Venus on the morning of December 3. You will be able to see Venus in the southeast sky before the Sun rises. You can't miss this great pairing. Look a little bit to the West and you will also see the bright star of Virgo--Spica. Venus and the Moon will fit in a pair of binoculars and may be worth dusting them off.
Two days later the Moon will pair up with our Solar System's smallest planet, Mercury. The Moon will be so slim that it will be dimmer than Venus that morning. Mercury can be found just South of the Moon. Your best bet may be to grab your binoculars you used two mornings ago. Also, if you look to the East of this pair you may be able to see Jupiter rising above the horizon just before the Sun.
The Moon will eventually die out and become New on the 7th of December. It will pair up with Saturn the next evening on the 8th. This may be a difficult sight as it will be in the evening twilight. However, if you have a good view of the western horizon shortly before 5pm see if you can see them!
The best treat is saved for the evening of December 6 and 7. Mars and Neptune will be within a degree of one another. At their closest they will appear a mere 2.4 arcminutes from each other. That is 6 times closer than Mizar and Alcor in the handle of the Big Dipper. This is certainly worth getting the telescope out for, it is rare that we have two planets so close to each other.
Neptune and Mars
If that is not enough, Comet 46P/Wirtanen is putting on a great show in the southern sky. As of December 2, 2018 it has an average observable magnitude of 5.6. This is a good target with binoculars from the suburbs. If you want a treat, head out to a dark site away from the city. How can you find this comet? Check out the link below where there are sky maps for the days in December.
There are several rocket launches occurring this week that you should check out. Canadian David Saint-Jacques will be taking off in a in a Soyuz Spacecraft headed towards the International Space Station. This launch will be occurring at 4:31am, wake up early or stay up late!
Date
Event
December 3
Soyuz (04:31)
December 3
Falcon 9 - Spaceflight SSO-A (11:31)
December 4
Falcon 9 - SpaceX CRS 16 (11:38)
December 4
Ariane 5 - GSAT 11 & GEO-Kompsat 2A (13:37)
December 7
Long March 3B - Chang'e 4 (11:30)
December 7
Delta 4 Heavy - NROL-71 (21:19)
The rest of the week has a busy schedule of some amazing launches. The Falcon 9 is scheduled for two launches in two successive days taking some satellites into orbit and cargo to the ISS.
An Ariane 5 rocket will be launching an Indian communications satellite and a South Korean weather satellite. This launch is scheduled to take place two hours after the Falcon 9 lifts off with ISS cargo.
In a much anticipated mission to the far side of the Moon a Chinese rocket will be hauling Chang'e 4 into space on December 7. The Chinese hope to land the first robotic craft on the far side of the Moon. A rover will be part of this mission and will certainly give the public a show if successful. This mission was previewed at the beginning of the year on our site. Follow the link below for more information.
The busy week ends with a Delta 4 Heavy lifting off with a classified US spy satellite into orbit. The launch of a Heavy rocket is always amazing to watch, especially live. To watch these launches use the following website.
There is a comet in our skies. Well, there are 6,339 comets in our Solar System that we have discovered. The question is, why is everyone getting excited about 46P?
It was discovered on January 17, 1948 by an American astronomer named Carl Wirtanen at Lick Observatory just outside of San Jose. It was exposed photographically and found through observing its proper motion relative to the background.
Comet 46P's coma extends more than 45 arcminutes in this picture taken on November 26, 2018. Gerald Rhemann (Namibia)
Comet 46P/Wirtanen is a short period comet that orbits the Sun every 5.4 years. Compare this to Halley's Comet which has a period of 75.3 years. Hale-Bopp of 1990s fame orbits the Sun in a little over 2500 years. Some comets may even come for a close approach and then leave the Solar System completely.
46P will be within 11.5 million kilometers of Earth at its closest approach making it the 20th closest comet since the 9th century.
The reason there is excitement over 46P is that it may be bright enough to see with the naked eye in mid-December. As of November 29, 2018 in the Comet Observers Database: https://cobs.si/ the average magnitude for observers is 5.8. In dark sites within 30 minutes of Calgary I tend to be able to see to magnitude 5.0. Each increase in the magnitude number is approximately 2.5 times dimmer.
As you can see from the chart below the magnitude has been steadily becoming brighter. Magnitude 14 is in the range of Pluto which is on my bucket list for backyard astronomy in my largest (14") telescope. It will be very difficult. I can see magnitude 10-12 faintly through a moderately large telescope. 6-10 objects are generally accessible through binoculars and less than 5 can reach the naked eye. Some people can reach 6.5 with their naked eye at a very dark site with no Moon. At my location is suburban Calgary my limit is about 4.3 with my eyes.
Light Curve of Comet 46P/Wirtanen - as of November 29
This curve is approaching magnitude 4-5 which may make it possible to see the comet with just your eyes. A telescope or binoculars on this object will certainly reel it in at this moment in time.
As the comet gets closer to us it will become brighter reaching its peak on December 16. It will also be with the Pleiades (M45) in a wide field binocular view on this evening.
Where can you find the comet?
I have created a PowerPoint presentation that maps the comet between November 29-December 21. If you can make your way around the late Autumn sky you should have no trouble finding it. The stars are mapped to magnitude 6.5 in the charts found below.
We are now in the 48th week of the year and December is soon approaching. Comet 46P/Wirtanen is currently averaging at 5.6 magnitude and still making its way through the Lacaille constellation of Fornax. The table below shows everything happening in our sky this week.
Date
Event
November 25
Neptune Stationary
November 26
Jupiter in Conjunction with Sun
November 27
Mercury at Inferior Conjunction
November 27
Moon 0.7°S of Beehive (M44)
November 29
Last Quarter
December 1
Venus Greatest Illuminated
Neptune will be stationary as it begins its prograde transit East through the sky. Our furthest planet still sits in the middle of Aquarius less than 2° from Lambda Aquarii. This is a worthy target for any beginning or intermediate visual astronomers.
Neptune (Cell Phone Through Telescope Capture)
The following two days we will have two planets in conjunction with the Sun. Jupiter will be aligned behind the Sun and Mercury in front. These planets will not be visible until they move further away from the large star in the middle of our Solar System. Perhaps you will catch a glimpse of Jupiter in the early morning close to the New Year.
The moon is continuing its progression through its waning gibbous phase and approaches the Beehive Cluster on November 27th. This may be a good target for skilled astrophotographers. Two days later the Moon will be at its previous month's Halloween phase of Last Quarter.
Beehive Cluster (M44)
Something you should not miss is Venus at its greatest illumination. In the southeastern sky during morning twilight you will see Venus shining brightly near Virgo's shining star Spica. It will be -4.7 magnitude -- the brightest object in the sky besides the Sun and Moon. This is nearly 20 times brighter than the brightest star -- Sirius. In dark sites, Venus is known to cast shadows in the absence of the Moon.
There will be a couple rocket launches occurring this week. The Falcon 9 with the multi-satellite payload has been rescheduled to November 28. The next day India will be launching an imaging satellite with a few smaller payloads. The time for this launch is yet to be determined but you can watch all flights at: https://spaceflightnow.com/
Date
Event
November 28
Falcon 9 - Spaceflight SSO-A (11:31)
November 29
PSLV - HySIS
I promise to write a full article on Comet 46P/Wirtanen as I am running out of time before it reaches perihelion during the middle of December. Stay tuned for how you may be able to see it with your naked eye in our northern skies!
This week we will have a Full Moon brightening the cool late Autumn sky. The next day the Full Moon will be in conjunction with the bright red star in Taurus called Aldebaran. The chart below highlights these events.
Date
Event
November 22
Full Moon
November 23
Aldebaran 1.7°S of Moon
The other morning I was walking around the house at around 7 in the morning. I looked in the southeastern sky and noticed Venus was very bright. Our closest planetary neighbour was in close proximity to the brightest star in Virgo--Spica. They are less than 2° apart in the sky and would fit quite nicely in binoculars or a wide field telescope.
Venus
It is amazing that Venus is so bright. Only 14% of the planet is currently illuminated in its waxing crescent phase. The above image shows Venus as a waning crescent from 2016. The planet is quite close to the Earth right now at approximately 50 million kilometers. The closest Venus can get to us in around 38 million kilometers.
When you are up in the morning look to the southeast to see this great sight!
The great constellation Orion is now peaking above the eastern horizon early in the evening. By 9pm you should be able to see its bright belt stars above the houses in the suburbs.
Southern Sky This Week (Left is East) 22:30
The Pleiades is in a perfect position to view with your eyes or any optical instrument. In four weeks Comet 46P/Wirtanen will be less than 5° from this famous cluster of stars. The comet may even reach naked eye visibility as it makes its closest approach to Earth on the 18th of December. I am sure you will see this in news reports over the next few weeks when the media catches a hold of this fish.
As of today the comet is current at -30° declination in the constellation of Fornax with a current average estimate of 6.5 magnitude. We will have a full write-up about this comet very soon.
There are two scheduled rocket launches happening this week. A Falcon 9 will be taking off from Vandenburg Air Force Base in California just before Noon on Monday. It is carrying several satellites to a polar orbit for a variety of different countries.
The next day a Vega rocket wll be taking off from French Guiana with an Earth observation satellite for Morocco. If you would like to check out either of these launches live the information is provided in the table below.
Date
Event
November 19
Falcon 9 - Spaceflight SSO-A (11:31)
November 20
Vega - Mohammed VI-B (20:42)
These launches can be viewed from the website below.
This week in the sky we have two Meteor Showers reaching their peaks! The Moon should not even play a role in polluting the light sky with its unnecessary light. The highlights of the week are shown in the chart below.
Date
Event
November 11
Saturn 1.5°S of Moon
November 12
Northern Taurid Meteors Peak
November 15
First Quarter
November 15
Mars 1.0°N of Moon
November 17
Leonid Meteors Peak
The Moon has begun a new cycle and we may have started to see it creep into the evening sky as a waxing crescent. It will be in conjunction with the great ringed planet, Saturn, during Sunday evening. You do not want to miss Saturn, it is currently singing its 2018 swan song and will be below the horizon. The ringed planet is speedily heading towards its solar conjunction on January 2, 2019.
Saturn
The next evening the Northern Taurid Meteor Shower will peak. We talked about these a little bit last week. They are not very prolific but with good eyes and dark skies you may catch a few. The radiant point for the Northern Taurids is shown below.
The peak is in a very convenient position as it sits right next to the Pleiades Star Cluster. By the time Taurus is high in the sky the Moon will be long gone down below the horizon.
Northern Taurid Radiant
The First Quarter Moon follows a few days later with the terminator running right through the middle. This is a great time to see some of the best features on our lunar neighbour. During the same evening you will be able to catch brilliantly red Mars in conjunction with the Moon. They will be only 1° apart. Provided below is a map of the sky at 19:30 on November 15, 2018.
Grab your binoculars, telescope or just your eyes and take in this sight. If you would like to get creative take your camera out and see if you can grab this pairing.
Mars/Moon Conjunction - November 15, 2018
If you think the wonders of the week are over you will be surprised. We have another meteor shower coming up at the end of the week. The Leonid Meteors will peak. This, unfortunately is a morning shower with the radiant coming above the horizon after midnight. However, if you get up early, Leo will be high in the sky and you may be able to catch several Leonids. The radiant point is shown in the map below.
Leonid Radiant
If you would like to sketch some of the observed meteors, please find a fillable map linked below.
The estimated hour rate as stated by the American Meteor Society can be found below. As a person who lives in the suburbs I should hopefully be able to catch 5 per hour. It is more likely I will be catching Zzz's instead.
City
Suburbs
Rural
Optimal
3
5
10
20
I hope to spend some time this week organizing some more personal and public observing. Orion is now heading up into the sky and we hope to showcase this wonderful constellation at a community star night. Also, stay tuned, I may have the opportunity to write new blog posts on things I observed last Summer in Sagittarius.
This week in the sky there will be a meteor shower and some tricks with the planet Mercury. The chart below highlights everything that is going on!
Date
Event
November 4
Daylight Saving Time Ends
November 5
Southern Taurid Meteors Peak
November 6
Mercury Greatest Elongation East
November 7
New Moon
November 8
Mercury 1.8°N of Antares
As we all know Daylight Saving Time ends at 2am on Sunday, November 4. We push the clocks back an hour and hopefully enjoy an extra hour in bed.
The Southern Taurid Meteors will peak during the evening of November 5. The constellationTaurus will be in the eastern sky and certainly visible by 9pm. The Pleiades Star Cluster is a famous sight in the great bull constellation. If you look in the general direction of the Pleiades you may catch a meteor. It is a particularly sparse shower and may only peak at 2-3 per hour from suburban conditions. You may be able to catch a few more in darker skies. The image below provides the location of the shower radiant (M45 - Pleiades).
Southern Taurid Radiant
Mercury is playful this week. It will reach its greatest elongation East on Thursday evening. This means it is as far East of the Sun as it gets this orbit. However, the geometry for Northern Hemisphere observers is not that great. If you are out for a walk with a clear view of the western horizon just after sunset you may have a shot at seeing this diminutive planet. A map to its location can be found below.
Mercury
It is tucked in nice and close to Jupiter and the bright red star Antares. As you can see it also sets right after the Sun. The bright twilight may wash out both the largest and smallest planet of our Solar System. After the Sun goes down try seeking them out with binoculars. Please, wait for the Sun to go down before you try!
Map to Mercury - Thursday, November 8, 2018
There are three rocket launches scheduled at the time of writing. Launch dates and times can change quickly without notice. The chart below indicates when they will occur. As always, you can catch live launches from the following webpage:
A Soyuz rocket will launch from South America and carry a polar-orbiting weather satellite for the ESA. The next day (or 6 hours later) a Pegasus XL rocket will be taking the delayed ionosphere monitoring satellite into orbit. Finally on the 10th of November a Electron rocket will be launching from New Zealand. This launch has been scrubbed since late June.
There are no public events occurring this week but the next RAO open house will be happening the following weekend. Stay tuned for more information soon! If you are reading this and haven't subscribed to our Facebook Page, now is the time. We have an action packed Winter with many free events! Join us below!
This week is Halloween when lots of people will be outside in the dark! This is a perfect time to take in the sky candy! On Halloween we will have a Super Last Quarter Moon; that's right I'm going there. Check out the highlights in the chart below.
Date
Event
October 29
Mercury 3°S of Jupiter
October 31
Moon 1°S of Beehive (M44)
October 31
Last Quarter
The evening of the 29th we will see Mercury sitting just 3° under Jupiter. If you hold your index finger and middle finger together at arms length that will be how close they are. Can you see them in the evening twilight? Try looking in the southwest sky shortly after sunset.
If you like to stay up really late try finding the Beehive Cluster near the Moon on the night before Halloween.
With all the excitement around this time of year don't miss out on a Super Last Quarter Moon! No it's not anything special. I just know that most people like to make a big deal out of perigean Full Moons so why leave Last Quarter out? Here is the deal: The Moon orbits the Earth in an elliptical path. There are times in the 28 day cycle when the Moon is closer to the Earth (perigee) and times when the Moon is further from the Earth (apogee). When the perigee coincides with a Full Moon everyone goes crazy about what has colloquially been termed a 'Super Moon'. The Full Moon is imperceptibly larger than when it is not at perigee. On October 31, 2018 the Last Quarter phase occurs 3 hours and 20 minutes before perigee. Hence, a Super Last Quarter. A picture of Last Quarter is shown below. I am very proud of it because I took it at 04:58. I am never up at that time.
Last Quarter
To learn more about the Moon's phases follow the link below where you can see all my phase pictures at odd times throughout the evening.
There is one rocket launch happening that has a scheduled time. A Japanese H-2A will be taking a greenhouse gas observing satellite for the Japanese Ministry of Environment. Also on board will be a UAE imaging satellite. The date and time can be found below.
Date
Event
October 29
H-2A - GOSAT & KhalifaSat (22:08)
There are no public events happening in Calgary this week. Stay tuned to this space as we will be planning a community stargazing night soon!
We have an action packed week in the sky coming up! With a great forecast it may be worth it to get out under the stars. Just don't let the Full Moon light pollution get you down!
Date
Event
October 21
Orionid Meteors Peak
October 23
Uranus at Opposition
October 24
Full Moon
October 26
Venus at Inferior Conjunction
October 27
Aldebaran 1.6°S of Moon
The Orionid Meteor Shower will peak Sunday evening/Monday Morning. This can usually produce up to 10 meteors per hour from suburban skies. It may be a few less than this due to the light pollution of a large waxing gibbous Moon nearby.
Uranus will be at opposition and at its biggest and brightest all year. It still resides in the constellation of Pisces which I hope to log at some point this year. I'll probably check it out closer to the New Moon.
The astronomers nightmare Full Moon occurs one day later brightening up the sky to the point of being unable to see much else. In news this week China is determined to create spacecraft to simulate this light. They are completely unaware of the damage this artificial light will have on local ecosystems and astronomical observations. Wishing them no luck on this absurd venture.
Full Moon
Venus will be at inferior conjunction and will be basically sitting in front of Sun. Advanced telescope users may be able to see the slim crescent during the day of conjunction. Great caution must be taken to avoid the Sun. Several of us made this observation in March of 2017. Hours before conjunction we were able to see just a bare sliver of our neighbouring planet.
To end the week, the eye of Taurus the bull will be in conjunction with a waning gibbous Moon. Look at the region of space when the Moon has further progressed in its cycle and you will see the Hyades and Pleiades Clusters in all their glory.
If you would like to check out a live rocket launch, NASA will be sending a satellite to study the Earth's ionosphere. Details are found below and all launches can be viewed at the following link.
The chart below highlights the public events happening this week! Don't miss coming to the University of Calgary on Tuesday to learn more about Cassini!
Date
Event
October 23
Cassini to Saturn: The Journey and the Legacy (19:30-22:30) (U of C, ST 148)
There will be a great event held at the University of Calgary this week. Carolyn Porco, leader of Cassini's Imaging Team is coming to give a wonderful lecture about this amazing mission. The synopsis is provided below followed by a link to attend.
Twenty-eight years ago, the United States and Europe joined hands and set off together on a spectacular adventure.
It was a mission named Cassini that called for a long journey across the solar system and entry into orbit around the planet Saturn, followed by an in-depth, comprehensive look at everything in the Saturn system.
Cassini spent 13 years in residence at Saturn. In that time, it revealed a planetary system rich in scientific wonder and splendor beyond compare. Processes at work in the early solar system have been found within Saturn’s rings. The planet itself has been a lavish source of meteorological detail, permitting comparison with the Earth’s atmosphere. And environments found on and within its moons give hope of learning the mechanisms by which life has arisen on our own planet and perhaps elsewhere in the cosmos.
Cassini
In this public lecture, Carolyn Porco, the leader of Cassini’s imaging team and former imaging team member on the Voyager mission to the outer solar system, will guide us through the enchanting realm of Saturn and the mission’s most profound scientific findings, and conclude with the legacy that Cassini and six decades of planetary exploration have left behind.
Dr. Carolyn Porco, planetary scientist and leader of the NASA Cassini Imaging Team will be presenting a free-to-the-public talk on the science of Saturn, its rings and satellites, with particular focus on the moon, Enceladus.
Enceladus
In addition to her work with the Cassini mission, Dr. Porco was also involved in the 1980 Voyager mission to the outer solar system, and is an imaging scientist on the New Horizons mission that did a flyby of Pluto and is now on its way to a second target in the Kuiper Belt. Porco has co-authored over 110 scientific papers and was selected by the London Sunday Times as one of 18 scientific leaders of the 21st century, and by Industrial Week as one of "50 Stars to Watch". In 2012, she was chosen as one of Time's Top 25 Most Influential People in Space.
This week we have some above seasonal temperatures and clear skies. It is the perfect opportunity to get out and enjoy the Fall constellations. The chart below highlights what is happening in the sky this week.
Date
Event
October 14
Saturn 1.8°S of Moon
October 16
First Quarter
October 18
Mars 1.9°S of Moon
Saturn and Mars will both be in conjunction with the Moon and will be within the same view of wide field telescopes. If you have a pair of binoculars it may be worthwhile to witness these events.
Taurus is making its way into our sky later in the evening. Accompanying the great bull is the Pleiades Star Cluster which makes a great sight even with the naked eye. Following Taurus is Orion. This tends to be everyone's favourite constellation with the bright belt stars signifying the coming of Winter. I always look forward to reacquainting myself with the Orion Nebula that is beautiful through any optical instrument.
There are several rocket launches occurring this week from China, Florida and French Guiana. I am excited for the Ariane 5 rocket carrying the BepiColombo mission to Mercury. It will survey the geology, evolution and magnetic field. This will be the third mission to our innermost planet.
BepiColombo
Also on the schedule for this week will be an Atlas 5 launching the 'Advanced Extremely High Frequency' satellite. It will be used for highly secured communication for the US military. China will be launching two satellites for its navigation network on the 14th. All launches can be watched live at the following webpage.
The chart below provides the date and times for all these events.
Date
Event
October 14
Long March 3B - Beidou (22:15)
October 16
Atlas 5 - AEHF (22:15)
October 19
Ariane 5 - BepiColombo (19:45)
There is one public astronomy event in Calgary this week. A public lecture will be held at the Kerby Centre Thursday evening at 7:30pm. I will be giving a talk on Lacaille and his great work in the southern hemisphere. My blog highlighted his work late last year. A link is provided below.
Saturn and Mars are still prominent in the sky this week and are worth checking out before they get hidden in near the Sun. At the Ralph Klein Park Public Star Night last Saturday these two planets put on a great show. Mars was still quite large and bright while trusty Saturn showcased its beautiful rings. Other things happening this week are shown in the chart below.
Date
Event
October 8
Draconid Meteors Peak
October 8
New Moon
October 11
Jupiter 4°S of Moon
October 13
Zodiacal Light Visible
The Draconid Meteor Shower will peak on Monday, October 8. If the sky is clear and you can catch a good view of Draco you may just get lucky and see some meteors. Early reports from the UK indicate that this year is stronger than previous. More information on how to find them can be found at the link below.
Jupiter can still be seen in the dusk sky just after the Sun sets. It will certainly have bad seeing due to the amount of atmosphere its light must pass through. If you can catch it on the 11th you will see it in conjunction with the Moon. This will be a great binocular sight for those out on an evening stroll.
Further East of Jupiter you will catch Saturn and Mars.
Saturn
If you can get out to a dark sight during the next few weeks try to catch the Zodiacal Light. I have not seen it yet but hope to very soon. More information about this phenomenon can be found on a previous blog posting below.
There will be one notable rocket launch this week on October 11. A Soyuz spacecraft will be taking a crew to the International Space Station. Information and live updated can be found at the link below.
The Rothney Astrophysical Observatory will be hosting another Open House and it is the annual Science-Fiction night! There will be a lecture on exploring the ocean moons of the outer solar system and many telescopes setup to observe the sky. More information can be found at the link below.
