Bob Moler's Ephemeris Blog

Ephemeris for Friday, October 17th.  The sun will rise at 8:00.  It’ll be up for 10 hours and 54 minutes, setting at 6:54.   The moon, 2 days past last quarter, will rise at 2:47 tomorrow morning.

Tomorrow night the Grand Traverse Astronomical Society will host a Star Party at Northwestern Michigan College’s Rogers Observatory from 9 p.m. to 11 p.m. On tap, if it’s clear will be the wonders of both the summer and the autumn skies,  The summer Milky Way is still visible moving off to the southwest with its star clusters and nebulae.  The autumn sky has star clusters too, including the famous Pleiades, best seen in binoculars or telescope finders, and the wonderful Double Cluster.  The autumn sky is also host to the closest spiral galaxy to us the Great Andromeda Galaxy, which will get a whole lot closer in 4 billion years.  Come on out to the observatory on Birmley Road, about 2 miles south of South Airport Road.

Times are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan.  They may be different for your location.

Addendum

The Pleiades, about what you’d see in binoculars.

Double Cluster as it would be seen in a small telescope.

The Great Andromeda Galaxy (M31) as seen in binoculars. Visually even in a telescope the hub of this galaxy is all that is seen. However it also can be seen with the naked eye.  However a telescope can also show its two satellite galaxies.