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Archive for June, 2023

06/05/2023 – Ephemeris – Venus was it’s farthest apparent distance from the Sun yesterday

June 5, 2023 Comments off

This is Ephemeris for Monday, June 5th. Today the Sun will be up for 15 hours and 25 minutes, setting at 9:24, and it will rise tomorrow at 5:58. The Moon, 2 days past full, will rise at 11:47 this evening.

Yesterday, Venus was as far away from the Sun as it gets in this evening appearance of Venus. The event is called greatest eastern elongation, meaning it’s as far to the east of the Sun as it gets. Both Venus and Mercury have these events, because they orbit the Sun inside of the Earth’s orbit, they never stray far from the Sun. In less than two and a half months, Venus will leave the evening sky, pass between the Earth and Sun in inferior conjunction, and enter the morning sky. Until then Venus will get larger in telescopes and become a thinner and thinner crescent, as we see more of its night side and less of its day side. By mid July, Venus should appear large enough to see its tiny crescent in a pair of binoculars.

The astronomical event times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (EDT, UT –4 hours). They may be different for your location.

Addendum

Size and phase changes in Venus from greatest eastern elongation, June 4, 2023 to July 2nd
Size and phase changes in Venus from greatest eastern elongation, June 4, 2023 to July 2nd. Created using Cartes du Ciel (Sky Charts), GIMP, and LibreOffice Draw.
The Venus Cycle from Earth's point of view
What we see of Venus’ apparent orbit of the Sun from the Earth’s point of view. The Venus Cycle is also known as its synodic period and lasts, on average 583.92 days. Greatest elongations occur only about 70 days before and after inferior conjunction with the Sun, when Venus passes between the Earth and the Sun. Diagram created with LibreOffice Draw and GIMP.
Categories: Ephemeris Program, Observing Tags:

06/02/2023 – Ephemeris – A South Pole adventure and a comet collision presentation – Tonight!

June 2, 2023 Comments off

This is Bob Moler with Ephemeris for Friday, June 2nd. Today the Sun will be up for 15 hours and 22 minutes, setting at 9:22, and it will rise tomorrow at 5:59. The Moon, 1 day before full, will set at 5:14 tomorrow morning.

An Antarctic Odyssey: Winter-Over at South Pole Station will be the presentation by John W. Briggs, via Zoom, at tonight’s meeting of the Grand Traverse Astronomical Society at Northwestern Michigan College’s Rogers Observatory at 9 pm. John was a team member building a 24-inch infrared telescope and related experiments that were set up at the South Pole in time for him and colleagues to observe the July 1994, explosive crash of fragmented comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 into the planet Jupiter. There are two ways to attend: In person at the observatory, south of Traverse City on Birmley Road, or via Zoom with a link provided by the society’s website gtastro.org just prior to the meeting.

The astronomical event times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (EDT, UT –4 hours). They may be different for your location.

Addendum

Images of Jupiter in the infrared before and after Fragment C of Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 struck Jupiter. The brightness reveals temperature of the atmosphere. Credit: University of Chicago.

About the Program

An Antarctic Odyssey: Winter-Over at South Pole Station

A presentation via Zoom by John W. Briggs

Abstract:
In a lavishly illustrated presentation, John W. Briggs of New Mexico will describe his year-long experience living at the Geographic South Pole while working for the Center for Astrophysical Research in Antarctica. In preparation for this at Yerkes Observatory of the University of Chicago, John was a team member building a 24-inch infrared telescope and related experiments that were set up at the Pole in time for him and colleagues to observe the July 1994, explosive crash of fragmented comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 into the planet Jupiter.

John weathered the “winter-over” with 26 other members of the U.S. Antarctic Program in an experience that many believe approximates what life will be like someday at a lunar or Martian outpost. Once begun, South Pole winter-over is an irreversible commitment, since the Program’s special LC-130 ski planes can’t land in the winter temperatures — in 1994, sometimes as low as 107 degrees F. below zero (with windchill, as low as -180 degrees). John will delight the audience with his perspective on the total South Pole experience — the strange natural environment, the odd social atmosphere, and the challenging, ongoing science.

Categories: Comet, Ephemeris Program, GTAS Outreach Event, Infrared Astronomy, Jupiter Tags: , , , ,

06/01/2023 – Ephemeris – Previewing June Skies

June 1, 2023 Comments off

This is Bob Moler with Ephemeris for Thursday, June 1st. Today the Sun will be up for 15 hours and 20 minutes, setting at 9:21, and it will rise tomorrow at 5:59. The Moon, 2 days before full, will set at 4:43 tomorrow morning.

Let’s begin this program’s 49th trip around the Sun by previewing the skies of June. There will be a lot of Sun in June and very little night. The daylight hours will increase a bit from 15 hours and 20 minutes today to 15 hours and 34 minutes on the 21st, retreating back to 15 hours 31 minutes at month’s end. At this time of the year the sunset times for Ludington, Interlochen, Petoskey and Mackinaw City are very nearly the same. However, the sunrise times are at their most divergent. With Ludington’s sunrise being 14 minutes later than Mackinaw City’s. The altitude of the Sun above the southern horizon at local noon around 1:43 p.m. will hover around 68 to 69 degrees. Summer will start on the 21st at 10:58 a.m. Venus will look great in our skies and in telescopes this month.

The astronomical event times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (EDT, UT –4 hours). They may be different for your location.

Addendum

June Evening Star Chart

Star Chart for June 2023 (11 p.m. EDT, June 15, 2023). Created using my LookingUp program. Click or tap on the image to enlarge it.

The planets and stars are plotted for the 15th at 11 p.m. EDT in the evening and 4 a.m. for the morning chart. These are the chart times. Note that Interlochen/Traverse City is located approximately 45 minutes behind our time meridian, West 75° longitude. (An hour 45 minutes behind our daylight saving time meridian during EDT). To duplicate the star positions on a planisphere you may have to set it to 1 hour 45 minutes earlier than the current time.
Note, the chart times of 11 p.m. and 4 a.m. are for the 15th. For each week before the 15th, add ½ hour (28 minutes if you’re picky). For each week after the 15th, subtract ½ hour, or 28 minutes. The planet positions are updated each Wednesday on this blog. For planet positions on dates other than the 15th, check the Wednesday planet posts on this blog for weekly positions.

June Morning Star Chart

Star Chart for June mornings, 2023 (4 am EDT, June 15, 2023). Created using my LookingUp program. Click or tap on the image to enlarge it.

For a list of constellation names to go with the abbreviations, click here.

  • Pointer stars at the front of the bowl of the Big Dipper point to Polaris, the North Star.
  • Leaky dipper drips on Leo
  • Follow the arc of the handle of the Big Dipper to the star Arcturus, and
  • Extend like a spike to Spica,

Twilight Limits, Nautical and Astronomical

      EDT        
  Morning Twilight Evening Twilight Dark Night Moon
Date Astro. Nautical Nautical Astro. Start End Illum.
2023-06-01 3h44m 4h43m 22h46m 23h45m – – 0.95
2023-06-02 3h43m 4h42m 22h48m 23h47m – – 0.99
2023-06-03 3h41m 4h41m 22h49m 23h48m – – 1.00
2023-06-04 3h40m 4h40m 22h50m 23h50m – – 0.98
2023-06-05 3h39m 4h40m 22h51m 23h51m – – 0.94
2023-06-06 3h38m 4h39m 22h52m 23h53m 23h53m – 0.87
2023-06-07 3h37m 4h38m 22h53m 23h54m 23h54m 0h39m 0.79
2023-06-08 3h36m 4h38m 22h53m 23h55m 23h55m 1h18m 0.68
2023-06-09 3h35m 4h38m 22h54m 23h56m 23h56m 1h49m 0.57
2023-06-10 3h35m 4h37m 22h55m 23h58m 23h58m 2h13m 0.46
2023-06-11 3h34m 4h37m 22h56m 23h59m 23h59m 2h34m 0.35
2023-06-12 3h33m 4h36m 22h57m 0h00m 0h00m 2h54m 0.25
2023-06-13 3h33m 4h36m 22h57m 0h01m 0h01m 3h13m 0.16
2023-06-14 3h32m 4h36m 22h58m 0h01m 0h01m 3h32m 0.09
2023-06-15 3h32m 4h36m 22h58m 0h02m 0h02m 3h32m 0.04
2023-06-16 3h32m 4h36m 22h59m 0h03m 0h03m 3h32m 0.01
2023-06-17 3h32m 4h36m 22h59m 0h04m 0h04m 3h32m 0.00
2023-06-18 3h32m 4h36m 23h00m 0h04m 0h04m 3h32m 0.01
2023-06-19 3h32m 4h36m 23h00m 0h04m 0h04m 3h32m 0.04
2023-06-20 3h32m 4h36m 23h00m 0h05m 0h05m 3h32m 0.08
2023-06-21 3h32m 4h36m 23h01m 0h05m 0h05m 3h32m 0.15
2023-06-22 3h32m 4h37m 23h01m 0h05m 0h28m 3h32m 0.22
2023-06-23 3h32m 4h37m 23h01m 0h05m 0h51m 3h32m 0.30
2023-06-24 3h33m 4h37m 23h01m 0h05m 1h11m 3h33m 0.39
2023-06-25 3h33m 4h38m 23h01m 0h05m 1h29m 3h33m 0.49
2023-06-26 3h34m 4h38m 23h01m 0h05m 1h46m 3h34m 0.59
2023-06-27 3h35m 4h39m 23h01m 0h05m 2h03m 3h35m 0.68
2023-06-28 3h35m 4h39m 23h01m 0h04m 2h22m 3h35m 0.78
2023-06-29 3h36m 4h40m 23h01m 0h04m 2h43m 3h36m 0.86
2023-06-30 3h37m 4h40m 23h00m 0h03m 3h10m 3h37m 0.93

The twilight calendar was generated using Cartes du Ciel (Sky Charts), with some corrections.

See my blog post: Twilight Zone for the definitions of the different periods of twilight here: https://bobmoler.wordpress.com/2018/09/27/.

NASA Calendar of Planetary Events

  Date       Time     Event
Jun  1  Th            Venus: 45.4° E
     1  Th   2:22 am  Moon Descending Node
     1  Th  11:30 pm  Mars-Beehive:  0.1° S
     3  Sa   5:19 pm  Moon-Antares: 1.6° S
     3  Sa  11:42 pm  Full Strawberry Moon
     4  Su   6:59 am  Venus Elongation: 45.4° E
     5  Mo  12:21 pm  Moon South Dec.: 27.9° S
     6  Tu   7:07 pm  Moon Perigee: 364,900 km
     9  Fr   4:19 pm  Moon-Saturn: 3° N
    10  Sa   3:31 pm  Last Quarter
    11  Su   1:50 pm  Mercury-Pleiades: 6.2° S
    13  Tu   7:05 am  Venus-Beehive:  0.5° N
    13  Tu   8:05 pm  Moon Ascending Node
    14  We   2:33 am  Moon-Jupiter: 1.6° S
    15  Th   8:47 pm  Moon-Pleiades: 2° N
    16  Fr   4:18 pm  Mercury-Aldebaran: 4.3° N
    18  Su  12:37 am  New Moon
    18  Su   5:07 pm  Moon North Dec.: 27.8° N
    20  Tu   5:10 am  Moon-Pollux: 1.9° N
    21  We   6:38 am  Moon-Beehive: 4° S
    21  We  10:58 am  Summer Solstice
    21  We   8:47 pm  Moon-Venus: 4.1° S
    22  Th   6:09 am  Moon-Mars: 4.2° S
    22  Th   2:31 pm  Moon Apogee: 405,400 km
    26  Mo   3:50 am  First Quarter
    28  We   8:22 am  Moon Descending Node
Jul  1  Sa            Venus: 41.7° E

Sky Events Calendar by Fred Espenak and Sumit Dutta (NASA’s GSFC),
http://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/SKYCAL/SKYCAL.html.

Sun and Moon Rising and Setting Events

     LU                  Ephemeris of Sky Events for Interlochen/TC
June, 2023    Local time zone: EDT
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
| DATE |  SUN     SUN  DAYLIGHT|   TWILIGHT*    |MOON  RISE OR    ILLUM |
|      |  RISE    SET    HOURS |  END    START  |PHASE SET** TIME FRACTN|
+=======================================================================+
|Thu  1| 06:00a  09:21p  15:20 | 10:44p  04:37a |      Set  04:43a   94%|
|Fri  2| 05:59a  09:22p  15:22 | 10:45p  04:36a |      Set  05:14a   98%|
|Sat  3| 05:59a  09:22p  15:23 | 10:46p  04:35a |Full  Rise 09:27p  100%|
+------+-----------------------+----------------+-----------------------+
|Sun  4| 05:59a  09:23p  15:24 | 10:47p  04:35a |      Rise 10:42p   99%|
|Mon  5| 05:58a  09:24p  15:25 | 10:48p  04:34a |      Rise 11:47p   95%|
|Tue  6| 05:58a  09:25p  15:26 | 10:49p  04:33a |      Rise 12:39a   89%|
|Wed  7| 05:57a  09:25p  15:27 | 10:50p  04:33a |      Rise 01:18a   80%|
|Thu  8| 05:57a  09:26p  15:28 | 10:51p  04:32a |      Rise 01:48a   70%|
|Fri  9| 05:57a  09:27p  15:29 | 10:52p  04:32a |      Rise 02:13a   59%|
|Sat 10| 05:57a  09:27p  15:30 | 10:53p  04:31a |L Qtr Rise 02:34a   48%|
+------+-----------------------+----------------+-----------------------+
|Sun 11| 05:56a  09:28p  15:31 | 10:53p  04:31a |      Rise 02:53a   37%|
|Mon 12| 05:56a  09:28p  15:31 | 10:54p  04:31a |      Rise 03:13a   27%|
|Tue 13| 05:56a  09:29p  15:32 | 10:55p  04:30a |      Rise 03:34a   18%|
|Wed 14| 05:56a  09:29p  15:33 | 10:55p  04:30a |      Rise 03:59a   10%|
|Thu 15| 05:56a  09:30p  15:33 | 10:56p  04:30a |      Rise 04:28a    5%|
|Fri 16| 05:56a  09:30p  15:33 | 10:56p  04:30a |      Rise 05:04a    2%|
|Sat 17| 05:56a  09:30p  15:34 | 10:57p  04:30a |      Rise 05:49a    0%|
+------+-----------------------+----------------+-----------------------+
|Sun 18| 05:56a  09:31p  15:34 | 10:57p  04:30a |New   Set  10:36p    1%|
|Mon 19| 05:56a  09:31p  15:34 | 10:57p  04:30a |      Set  11:22p    3%|
|Tue 20| 05:56a  09:31p  15:34 | 10:58p  04:30a |      Set  11:58p    8%|
|Wed 21| 05:57a  09:32p  15:34 | 10:58p  04:30a |      Set  12:27a   13%|
|Thu 22| 05:57a  09:32p  15:34 | 10:58p  04:31a |      Set  12:51a   20%|
|Fri 23| 05:57a  09:32p  15:34 | 10:58p  04:31a |      Set  01:11a   28%|
|Sat 24| 05:57a  09:32p  15:34 | 10:58p  04:31a |      Set  01:29a   37%|
+------+-----------------------+----------------+-----------------------+
|Sun 25| 05:58a  09:32p  15:34 | 10:58p  04:32a |      Set  01:45a   47%|
|Mon 26| 05:58a  09:32p  15:33 | 10:58p  04:32a |F Qtr Set  02:02a   57%|
|Tue 27| 05:59a  09:32p  15:33 | 10:58p  04:33a |      Set  02:21a   66%|
|Wed 28| 05:59a  09:32p  15:32 | 10:58p  04:33a |      Set  02:43a   76%|
|Thu 29| 05:59a  09:32p  15:32 | 10:58p  04:34a |      Set  03:10a   84%|
|Fri 30| 06:00a  09:32p  15:31 | 10:57p  04:34a |      Set  03:45a   92%|
+-----------------------------------------------------------------------+
* Nautical Twilight
** Moonrise or moonset, whichever occurs between sunrise and sunset

Generated using my LookingUp for DOS program.

Categories: Ephemeris Program, Month preview Tags: