2018 Week 33: (August 12-August 18)

This upcoming week is usually particularly interesting to the casual observer.  A lot of people get outside under the dome of darkness to witness the Perseid Meteor Shower.  The chart below highlights this upcoming week in the sky.

Date	Event
August 12	Perseid Meteor Shower Peaks
August 14	Venus 6°S of Moon
August 17	Jupiter 5°S of Moon
August 18	Mercury Stationary
August 18	First Quarter

The Moon is brand new and will be a waning crescent until the weekend.  This would be a good time to catch some deep sky objects in the later evening sky after the Moon has set.  Also, this bodes very well for the Perseid Meteor Shower as we will not have as much natural light pollution.  After the Sun sets Sunday evening turn your eyes toward the northeastern sky.

Perseid Radiant Map

The basic idea is to find the well known 'W' asterism in the constellation Cassiopeia in the northeast.  Look just below this region toward the constellation Perseus.  You should be able to find an assortment of meteors falling to Earth that seem to radiate from this area.  The estimate of hourly rates is provided below.  As you can see, the further you get away from the city the more meteors you will expect to see.

City	Suburbs	Rural	Optimal
10	20	50	100

This year we may have to contend with smoke in the air.  This will certainly hinder our ability to catch sight of a Perseid Meteor.  If the smoke is think enough, expect to see zero.  A few evenings last week I had trouble finding the brightest planets in the sky.

The weather for this week is above average temperatures but not like that of the preceding week.  We can only hope the smoke clears from our sky to allow us a great view of the wonders above.  The global dust storm on Mars has cleared up only for us to become encompassed by a shroud of forest fire smoke.

The smoke in the sky has been quite adept at scattering light from bright objects such as the Moon and the Sun.  It is important to note that the smoke does not block all the harmful radiation from the Sun.  It is dangerous to look at the Sun without proper protection.  Many people damage their eyes at this time because it does not immediately feel uncomfortable to look at our solar friend.  If you want to avoid permanent eye damage, DON'T LOOK DIRECTLY AT THE SUN.

However, take a look at the Moon when it sets.  It will likely be quite red as the smoke scatters more of the blue spectrum leaving the red to transmit through to our eyes.

The Parker Space Probe was delayed by a day and will be launching early in the morning on August 12, 2018 at 1:31am.  It will be lifted into space by a Delta IV Heavy which is quite an impressive rocket.  Check this launch out at the following link.

https://spaceflightnow.com/

It is worth watching as this will be a history setting mission that will be talked about for decades to come.

Enjoy the Perseids if the smoke clear out and continue to look up and be amazed each night!

2018 Week 32: (August 5-August 11)

It seems as though we are in for a hot week here in Calgary.  It may lead to perfect evenings to walk outside late and see the stars and planets above.

Date	Event
August 6	Aldebaran 1.1°S of Moon
August 7	Uranus Stationary
August 8	Mercury in Inferior Conjunction
August 11	New Moon
August 11	Partial Solar Eclipse

There will be a partial solar eclipse occurring this upcoming Saturday.  It will not be visible from Calgary.

It is important to note that many media institutions publish misleading information regarding astronomical events.  Online media bases its revenue on the amount of traffic attending the site.  In order to increase traffic they use false hyperbolic information to trick people into following the link to their site.  This occurred during the total lunar eclipse of July 27, 2018.  Several online media organizations dramatized this event as the greatest eclipse in a century that you can witness from Canada.  The Earth's outer shadow (penumbra) barely grazed the Moon on the easternmost point of Canada.  This would be imperceptible to the human eye.  I was asked more than a dozen times what was up with this eclipse.  Nothing.  Unless I was in stationed in the eastern hemisphere.

If you are an individual or media outlet uncertain about an upcoming astronomical event please do not hesitate to contact us below.

Email: simonjastronomy@gmail.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/simonjastronomy
Twitter: www.twitter.com/SimonJAstronomy

Getting back to the partial solar eclipse this weekend, it will be visible from parts of Canada.  However, the region of Canada it will be visible is quite lacking in observers.  The image below highlights the areas around the world it can be seen.  I would like to highlight Iqaluit, the capital of Nunavut.  The eclipse will be visible as the Sun rises around 4:15am and will continue for more than an hour until 5:24am.  I think it would be absolutely fascinating to see a solar eclipse so early in the morning.

August 11, 2018 Partial Solar Eclipse (Image Credit: www.timeanddate.com)

As for other events this week it is a mixed bag.  The waning crescent Moon will be in conjunction with Taurus' bright star Aldebaran.  Taurus is now fully past the Sun and visible in the sky shortly before dawn.  In later months we will see the Pleiades creeping into our evening sky signalling the advent of Winter.

The seventh planet in our Solar System, Uranus, will be stationary on August 7 and it will begin its retrograde motion West against the backdrop stars.  It is still cruising the sky in Pisces and it makes a good target for those with binoculars or a telescope.

Mercury will be in inferior conjunction as its sits in front of the Sun relative to Earth.  It will again be visible later in the month in the morning sky.

The Moon will be New on August 11 and would likely qualify as a Supermoon.  Do not expect the media to jump all over that one since you can't see New Moons.  It will cause larger than normal tides as it lies close to Earth in its orbit at the same time it is aligned with the Sun.  For more information about tides follow the link below.

http://simonjastronomy.blogspot.com/2017/02/the-tides.html

Just for fun I have provided the tidal forecast for Vancouver below.  As the Moon approaches its Supermoon New Phase the tides get higher and higher with a 4.47m differential on the 11th.

I video chatted with my family on the beach while they were in Vancouver during the week of the Full Moon (another high tide time).  They arrived at the beach at low tide and had to walk 10-15 to the water.  The tide moved in quite quickly and recently built sandcastles became buried in mere minutes.

Vancouver Tidal Forecast August 4-12, 2018 (Image Credit: www.tide-forecast.com)

It is a very important week for space missions.  The chart below showcases the two major launches.

Date	Event
August 6	Falcon 9 (Merah Putih) 23:18
August 11	Delta 4 Heavy (Parker Solar Probe) 01:48

A Falcon 9 is scheduled to raise an Indonesian communications satellite to orbit in the late Monday evening.  However, the big event is the launch of the Delta 4 Heavy carrying the Parker Solar Probe.  This is shared in detail on my Space Missions 2018 Preview below.

http://simonjastronomy.blogspot.com/2018/01/2018-preview-i-space-missions.html

This probe will get within 6 million kilometers of the Sun and will be able to study our own star like nothing before.  Even though this launch occurs at nearly 2 in the morning (MDT) it is worth checking out.

Parker Space Probe (Image Credit: John Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory)

I will reiterate again to get outside and view Mars.  It is at its largest but will soon shrink back into insignificance for another two years.  It won't be this large again until the mid 2030s when we have all aged more than a decade.

Mars

The global dust storm is starting to die down and you may be able to catch some surface features.  I intend to take my first 2018 vacation from work to spend some time with the red planet.  Look toward the southeast sky after sunset for your glimpse of Mars and note its colour and brightness.


Also, do not miss Venus, Jupiter and Saturn throughout the evening sky.  Venus and Jupiter are well on their way toward opposition and will not be visible in the evenings of 2018 much longer.

Also, set aside some time the week after for the return of the Perseid Meteor Shower!

2018 Week 31: (July 29-August 4)

This week in the sky has Mars reach its closest approach to Earth during this opposition.  The small red planet will be only 58 million kilometers away.  The table below highlights this week.

Date	Event
July 31	Mars at Closest Approach
August 4	Last Quarter

The Moon will reach its last quarter phase this weekend allowing early evening deep-sky observers the chance to catch a few galaxies or clusters.  As for the rest of the week there is not really anything else too exciting happening.  This, however, doesn't mean there isn't anything to see.  Jupiter and Saturn are still big and bright in the southern sky and worth taking a peek.

Jupiter can be found shining brightly in the southeastern sky just after the Sun sets.  I was only able to catch a quick snapshot of the big planet before it went behind the neighbour's garage.

Jupiter

This week Saturn can still be found directly south after the Sun sets.  It is not as bright as Jupiter or Mars but should still stand out from the stars in the general vicinity.  Due to its direction in the sky I was able to spend more time capturing our ringed planet.  The seeing was not too bad and the Cassini Division was easily visible through my 8" reflector telescope.  I was surprised to see so much detail given how low Saturn is in the sky.

Saturn

Moving to the southwest the famous red planet of Mars can be found.  There is still quite a dust storm raging across the entire globe.  I was getting quite tired by the time I took images and a tree got in my way.  I hope to have more opportunities throughout August to take some more pictures,

Mars

If you are out for an evening walk with a clear view of the western horizon you will still be able to catch Venus as it sets just over an hour after the Sun.  It is currently visible at half phase which can be detected with most telescopes.  I have not imaged Venus recently as it is so low in the sky and causes a logistical nightmare to move equipment.  The image below is from early in 2017 and showcases the waning crescent phase.

Venus

Stay tuned for more great events and things to see in the sky!  Meteor shower season is almost upon us with the Perseids coming up in a couple weeks!

Messier Objects - M18

The northwestern region of Sagittarius is filled with amazing objects to view with a telescope.  The Milky Way goes right through this area filled with many star clusters.  Messier 18 is located here and can be found in the evening during the middle of the Summer.  The Summer is sometimes difficult to observe dim objects in the sky due to the unceasing twilight.  However, by later July and August the sky once again dips into night and deep sky objects are easier to find.

Messier 18 is an open cluster found a degree and a half North of the Sagittarius Star Cloud, M24.  At 9 light years in diameter it is smaller than the nearby M25.  It is also more than twice as far away as its neighbour measuring 4900 light years distant from Earth.  This means it is also quite a lot dimmer with an apparent magnitude of 7.5.  This makes it invisible to the naked eye and thus requiring binoculars or a telescope to resolve.  M18 appears as 9 arcminutes in diameter which is about a third of the size of a Full Moon.

Observation Information

This object was part of my Sagittarius marathon I had during the early Summer weeks of 2018.  At this time Saturn was sitting right in the middle of the Sagittarian Messier heartland.  Messier 24 was located just North of the ringed planet and the bright star Mu Sagittarii.  Using the bright star cloud as a guide I slew the telescope North by one field of view.  I was using a 14" reflector with a 41mm (68° FOV) which created a true field of view of 1.39°.

I saw an open cluster of stars that was sparser than most clusters I have observed.  However, I did recognize a 'Big Dipper' type asterism located within the cluster.  There were 6 relatively bright stars aligned in the formation of a spoon.  I hope to come back to this object in future weeks to see if it is familiar and recognizable.  I measured the cluster to be approximately 20% across the field of view of my 13mm (82° FOV) eyepiece.  This corresponds to an observed value of 7.8 arcminutes which is close to the accepted value of 9 arcminutes.

The weather information at this time is listed in the table below.

Characteristic	Value
Temperature	24°C
Humidity	39%
Wind	N 6 km/h
Barometer	101.91 kPa
Sky	Passing Clouds

The observation record for M18 is found below.

M18 Observation Record

Additional Information

This cluster of stars was first discovered by Charles Messier in 1764 and he reported it as follows.  "In the same night, I have discovered a bit below the nebula reported here above, a cluster of small stars, environed in a thin nebulosity; its extension may be 5 minutes of arc".  The nebula Messier is discussing is M17 which is located just North of M18.  Later observations of M18 in the 19th century indicate no nebulosity.  Admiral William Smyth quipped: "This cluster was discovered by Messier, and registered as a mass of small stars appearing like a nebula in a 3 1/2-foot telescope; which affords another instance that the means of that very zealous observer did not quadrate with his diligence".

Research in 2009 has indicated that M18 is a binary cluster companion to M17.  Both objects are stunning through any telescope and should be sought out on a clear Summer evening.

2018 Week 30: (July 22-July 28)

We have just had another decent week for viewing.  It may have been a tad humid on a few occasions but the waxing crescent Moon was in the sky.  THIS IS THE WEEK we have all been waiting for.  This will likely be one of the stories of the year.  Mars will reach opposition Thursday evening at 23:00.  It will then reach its closest approach several nights later on the morning of July 31 at 02:00.

We have been building up the Mars event over the past few weeks and months.  It will be at its biggest and brightest since 2003 and will not be this close again until 2035.  This is a do not miss event!

The details for the week are presented in the table below.

Date	Event
July 25	Saturn 2°S of Moon
July 26	Mars at Opposition
July 27	Full Moon
July 27	Total Lunar Eclipse
July 27	South Delta-Aquariid Meteors Peak

First of all, do not get excited about the total lunar eclipse.  It will not be visible from Canada.  Actually, Cape Spear in Newfoundland (easternmost point in Canada) will have the Moon's penumbra appear on lunar surface for 19 minutes.  This will not be discernible to the naked eye.

On Tuesday night it might be worth it to head out around 0:00 MDT.  Saturn will be sitting just below the moon.  They can be seen in the same binocular field or wide field telescope view.

Friday night through into early Saturday morning the Southern δ-Aquariid Meteors peak.  This is an annual shower that occurs at the end of July each year.  The maximum estimated rate is usually around 20 per hour under perfect conditions.  Expect to be lucky to catch 5 an hour under suburban skies.  The radiant point is located just east of Delta Aquarii in the constellation Aquarius.  The Full Moon will be in the constellation next door which will add to the light pollution.

Delta Aquariid Radiant

The highlight of the week will be Mars.  Astronomers have been waiting years for this close Martian opposition.

If you would look in the southeastern sky an hour or two after sunset you would see a bright yellow ball of light.  Mars is usually red but with a global dust storm encompassing the planet it appears more yellow than red.  This is quite unfortunate as it will be difficult to see surface features on Mars.  I was hoping to see Mount Olympus and Syrtis Major Planum from my backyard!  It seems we may be lucky to catch a polar ice cap!

If you would like to explore the surface of Mars NASA has a great interactive program that can be found at the link below.

https://mars.nasa.gov/maps/explore-mars-map/fullscreen/

NASA's Explore Mars Map

Mars will remain relatively large in our sky (>20") until the first week of September.  Hopefully the dust storm will settle between now and then.  It will once again be larger than 20" (although not as large as this year) throughout September and October 2020.  However, after 2020 we won't see Mars break the 20" barrier until the mid 30's.

Get outside and see the planets march across the southern sky and know that you will not see Mars this bright again until 2035!

Messier Objects - M25

Sagittarius is full of amazing sights with the naked eye, binoculars and a telescope.  If you live in an urban setting it is best to use optical aid.  There are plenty of star clusters located throughout the heart of our Milky Way galaxy.  One such cluster is known as Messier 25.  It has no special name associated with it but it is quite beautiful.  As with all objects within this constellation the best time to view them is during the Summer.

Messier 25 is an open cluster located in the northwestern region of Sagittarius.  It can be found a mere 6.5° away from the Sagittarius Star Cloud, M24.  It is approximately 19 light years across and it located 2000 light years from Earth.  As viewed from Earth it appears as 32' in diameter; the approximate width of the Full Moon.  It is possible to see it with the naked eye as its apparent magnitude is 4.6.  However, it would be difficult to see from an urban or suburban setting due to light pollution.  

Observation Information

I first located this Messier Object late in the evening of July 8, 2018.  After I had observed M24 I slew my telescope eastward approximately two fields of view.  I noticed three brighter stars above the cluster that seemed to encompass the deep sky object.  I found this object using my 14" reflector telescope with a 41mm (68° FOV) Televue Panoptic eyepiece.  This produced a true field of view of 1.69 degrees.  The tight part of the cluster seemed to take up 40% of the field which works out to an estimate of 41'.  There seemed to be a lot of stars outside of the main cluster.  This is likely due to the rich nature of the Sagittarian region.

The weather information at this time is listed in the table below.

Characteristic	Value
Temperature	24°C
Humidity	39%
Wind	N 6 km/h
Barometer	101.91 kPa
Sky	Passing Clouds

The observation record for M25 is found below.

M25 Observing Record

Additional Information

This cluster was discovered before the time of Messier in 1745 by the Swiss astronomer Jean-Philippe Loys de Chéseaux.  He originally commented: "Another one between the bow and the head of Sagittarius".  Nearly twenty years later Charles Messier recorded this object in his famous catalogue.  Messier noted that the stars of the cluster were seen with some difficulty with an ordinary telescope.  He also noted that it contained no nebulosity.

It is interesting to note that this cluster does not have an NGC number associated with it.  It does however have an Index Catalogue number which means it was included in the major update to the NGC.

If you are ever searching the realms of Sagittarius be sure to seek out M25.

Messier Objects - M24 (Sagittarius Star Cloud)

During the Summer the constellation Sagittarius makes its way in our evening sky.  It is a remarkable region as the Milky Way is highly concentrated as it contains the galactic center.  It is thus home to an exceptional amount of star clusters.  Messier 24 is one such grouping of star, however it is known as a star cloud.  It lies in the Sagittarius Arm next to our own Orion Spur in our area of the galaxy.  For more information on our galaxy's structure see the link below:

http://simonjastronomy.blogspot.com/2018/07/the-milky-way-galaxy.html

The cloud is about 600 light years wide and contains stars 10,000-16,000 light years distant.  Viewed from Earth it will seem to take up an area nine times larger than the Full Moon.  This makes it best to see in a wide-field low power telescope.  A lot of people think low power telescopes are useless.  That is the furthest from the truth, with good optics, they showcase many great wide-field objects.

It is amazing that this cloud contains millions of stars as it is representative of the heart of our galaxy.  Since it is so rich in stars, dark nebula are much easily observed.  Simply put, a dark nebula is a region of gas and dust that obscures the light behind it.  This makes it look pitch black compared to the surrounding area.  The Horsehead Nebula is an example of this phenomenon.

Observation Information

On July 8, 2018 I was able to observe Messier 24 from my backyard.  I was fortunate that it only sat a few telescope fields of view above the bright planet Saturn.  However, I knew Saturn would not always be there so I intended to use stars to guide me to its location.  I used my red dot finder to locate the naked eye star Lambda Sagittarii, the top of the teapot asterism.  Once I had this star in my sight I slew the telescope northward towards a dimmer naked eye star Mu Sagittarii.  M24 lay just one field of view northeast of this star.

It is important to note that at this time I was using a 14" reflector with a focal length of 1650mm.  The eyepiece of choice was a 41mm (68° FOV) Televue Panoptic.  This gave me a true field of view of 1.69 degrees or 101.4 arcminutes.  This is just over three times the diameter of the Moon making it the perfect field for M24.

The weather information at this time is listed in the table below.

Characteristic	Value
Temperature	24°C
Humidity	39%
Wind	N 6 km/h
Barometer	101.91 kPa
Sky	Passing Clouds

It first appeared as a loose collection of bright stars filling the entire field of view.  As I used averted vision it seemed as though the whole field was filled with stars.  It was difficult to measure how large the star cloud was but it appeared to be nearly 2° in diameter.  Astronomical records indicate it is 90' in diameter which is equivalent to 1.5°.

M24 Observation Record

Additional Information

The star cloud contains clusters within its borders most notably NGC 6603 that can be found with a telescope.  There are also a couple planetary nebula that may also be viewed with a keen telescopic eye.

This star cloud has been documented for centuries.  The great comet hunting Charles Messier included it in his 1764 catalogue denoting it as considerable nebulosity about a degree and a half extension.  Other astronomers have taked note of it throughout the 19th and 20th century.  It has been also referred to as 'Delle Caustiche' by famous astronomer Father Pietro Angelo Secchi.  Translated to English this basically means 'of the burning'.

If you find yourself in a dark site at some time throughout the years look above the lid of the teapot and see if you can find this amazing star cloud!