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10/01/2013 – Ephemeris – Let’s Preview October Skies
Ephemeris for Tuesday, October 1st. The sun will rise at 7:40. It’ll be up for 11 hours and 41 minutes, setting at 7:22. The moon, 3 days before new, will rise at 5:10 tomorrow morning.
Let’s look at the skies for the month of October. The sun will still be moving south rapidly. Daylight hours in the Interlochen/Traverse City area will drop from 11 hours and 41 minutes today to 10 hours 13 minutes on the 31st. The altitude of the sun above the southern horizon at local noon will be 42 degrees today, and will descend to 31 degrees on Halloween, also in the Interlochen/Traverse City area. The Straits area will have the sun a degree lower. Local noon, when the sun is due south will be about 1:30 p.m. in Interlochen/Traverse City. Comet ISON is currently about a sixth as bright as original estimates would predict. However comets can unpredictable in their brightness. So we will know for sure in two months.
Times are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan. They may be different for your location.
Addendum
Star Chart for October 15th, 2013 at 9 p.m. Created by my LookingUp program.
09/30/2013 – Ephemeris – The constellation of Cassiopeia the queen
Ephemeris for Monday, September 30th. The sun will rise at 7:39. It’ll be up for 11 hours and 44 minutes, setting at 7:24. The moon, half way from last quarter to new, will rise at 4:07 tomorrow morning.
The stars of the autumn skies slowly are replacing the summer stars from the east. Look in the northeastern sky by 9 p.m. and you can find the W shaped constellation of Cassiopeia the queen. Cassiopeia is so far north that it never sets for us in Michigan. It is opposite the pole star Polaris from the Big Dipper. There’s a dim star that appears above the middle star of the W which turns the W into a very crooked backed chair. Cassiopeia, in Greek mythology, represents a queen of ancient Ethiopia, the W represents the profile of her throne. She enters in to the great autumn story whose other characters are also seen in the stars as the constellations Andromeda, Pegasus, Perseus, Cetus and her husband Cepheus.
Times are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan. They may be different for your location.
Addendum
Cassiopeis, in the northeast is opposite Polaris from the Big Dipper. For 9 p.m. on September 30th. Created using Stellarium. Artistic credit: Johan Meuris. Click to enlarge.
Bob Moler's Ephemeris Blog 