Archive
06/27/2022 – Ephemeris – Finding the Summer Triangle
This is Ephemeris for Monday, June 27th. Today the Sun will be up for 15 hours and 33 minutes, setting at 9:32, and it will rise tomorrow at 5:59. The Moon, 1 day before new, will rise at 5:13 tomorrow morning.
We’re nearly a week into summer, and the asterism or informal constellation called the Summer Triangle can be seen rising in the east as it gets dark. Highest of the three bright stars is Vega in the constellation Lyra the harp, whose body is seen in a narrow parallelogram nearby. The second star of the triangle is Deneb, in Cygnus the swan, lower and left of Vega, It appears dimmer than Vega because it is by far the most distant of the three. The third star of the Summer Triangle is seen farther below and a right of Vega. It is Altair in Aquila the eagle, and the closest. Altair is 16.5 light years away, Vega is 27 light years, while Deneb may be a whopping 2,600 light years away. One light year is 6 trillion miles (9 trillion kilometers).
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
The Summer Triangle finder animation showing first the unlabeled sky, Then the Summer Triangle with the stars labeled, then the constellations of those stars. Created using Stellarium and GIMP.
06/24/2022 – Ephemeris – Finding the greatest celestial hero: Hercules
This is Ephemeris for Friday, June 24th. Today the Sun will be up for 15 hours and 34 minutes, setting at 9:32, and it will rise tomorrow at 5:58. The Moon, halfway from last quarter to new, will rise at 3:31 tomorrow morning.
Orion, the hard luck mythical Greek hunter, gets a splashy constellation in the winter sky, but the greatest hero of all, Hercules, gets a dim group of stars on the border between the spring and summer stars. At 11 p.m. Hercules is high in the southeast. It is located right of the bright star Vega, in the east. Hercules’ central feature is a keystone shaped box of stars, called, of course, the Keystone of Hercules tilted to the left, which represents the old boy’s shorts. From the top and left corner stars extend lines of stars that are his legs, from the bottom and right stars, the rest of his torso and arms extend. So in one final indignity, he’s upside down in our sky. For those with a telescope, Hercules contains the beautiful globular star cluster Messier 13.
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
Hercules animation showing neighboring stars at 11 p.m. for mid-June. Click on image to enlarge. Created using Stellarium.
Hercules with all the stars visible in binoculars and its two globular star clusters: M13 and M92. M13 is almost bright enough to be spotted with the naked eye. It is easily visible in binoculars as a tiny fuzzy spot. It takes a telescope with an aperture of 6 – 8″ or 150 – 200 mm to begin to see some individual stars. M92 is dimmer and harder to resolve. Created using Cartes du Ciel (Sky Charts).
M 13, the Great Globular Star Cluster in Hercules. Credit: Scott Anttila.
06/23/2022 – Ephemeris – Corona Borealis, the Northern Crown
This is Ephemeris for Thursday, June 23rd. Today the Sun will be up for 15 hours and 34 minutes, setting at 9:32, and it will rise tomorrow at 5:58. The Moon, 3 days past last quarter, will rise at 3:08 tomorrow morning.
High in the south at 11 this evening can be seen a small nearly circular constellation of Corona Borealis, the Northern Crown. It is just left of Boötes, the kite shaped constellation off the handle of the Big Dipper. According to Greek myth, the crown was given by the gods to the princess Ariadne, daughter of King Minos of Crete. The crown is more like a tiara with the bright star Alphecca at the front. To the Anishinaabe people, who are native to our region, it is the Sweat Lodge. Part of what we call Hercules next to it is the Exhausted Bather, who is lying on the ground after the ceremony. The seven stones that are heated for the Sweat Lodge ceremony are the Pleiades, now close to Venus in the morning twilight.
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
Corona Borealis and Sweat Lodge finder animation. Looking high in the south at 11 pm, June 23rd. The tail of Ursa Major or the handle of the Big Dipper is in the upper right. Created using Stellarium and GIMP. Both star lore images are embedded in Stellarium. The Anishinaabe images are embedded in Stellarium and is from Ojibwe Giizhig Anung Masinaaigan – Ojibiwe Sky Star Map created by A. Lee, W. Wilson, and C. Gawboy.
06/22/2022 – Ephemeris – Let’s search for the naked-eye planets for this week
This is Ephemeris for Wednesday, June 22nd. Today the Sun will be up for 15 hours and 34 minutes, setting at 9:32, and it will rise tomorrow at 5:57. The Moon, 2 days past last quarter, will rise at 2:48 tomorrow morning.
Let’s search for the naked-eye planets for this week. All the naked-eye planets are in the morning sky, although Mercury may be too close to the Sun to be seen. It might just be visible low in the east-northeast after 5. That’s at least for those as far north as we are. At 5 am tomorrow the planets will be spread out from Mercury, actually invisible, near the horizon, brilliant Venus low in the east-northeast to Saturn higher in the south. To the right of Venus, tomorrow morning, stretching from east to southeast, will be the Moon, Mars and Jupiter. Mars is quite a bit dimmer than Jupiter. All will be in line sloping to the upper right with Saturn all by its lonesome in the south. The naked-eye planets are arranged in the morning sky, in the same order as their distances from the Sun.
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
The morning planets and the waning crescent Moon at 5 am tomorrow morning, June 23, 2022. Click on the image to enlarge it. The span of the planets from Venus to Saturn is 95 degrees. Click on the image to enlarge it. Created using Stellarium.
Waning crescent Moon closeup, annotated, as seen in binoculars or a small telescope. Created using Stellarium, Libreoffice and GIMP.
Views of Saturn, Jupiter, and Venus (north up) as they would be seen in a small telescope, with the same magnification, tomorrow morning at 5:00 am, June 23, 2022. I do not show planets less than 10 seconds of arc in diameter. Apparent diameters: Saturn 17.99″, its rings 41.90″; Jupiter 39.86″. Mars is not shown, its apparent diameter is 7.00″ and is 86.1% illuminated; Venus 12.27″, 84.1% illuminated. The ” symbol means seconds of arc (1/3600th of a degree). Created using Cartes du Ciel (Sky Charts).
The naked-eye planets and the Moon at sunset and sunrise on a single night, starting with sunset on the right on June 22, 2022. The night ends on the left with sunrise on the 23rd. Notice that all the naked-eye planets are in the morning sky now. Click on the image to enlarge it. Created using my LookingUp program.
06/17/2022 – Ephemeris – What’s that weird twinkly star low in the south?
This is Ephemeris for Friday, June 17th. Today the Sun will be up for 15 hours and 34 minutes, setting at 9:30, and it will rise tomorrow at 5:56. The Moon, halfway from full to last quarter, will rise at 12:55 tomorrow morning.
At this time of year, there is a star that appears low in the south-southeast that appears red and twinkles mightily. The twinkling caused by the Earth’s atmosphere is enhanced when viewing it in binoculars. In a telescope, it appears as a virtual sparkler. It’s been called in to authorities as a UFO, unidentified flying object, or as the Defense Department now calls them UAPs, or unidentified aerial phenomena. Anyway, this light is identified. It is the red giant star Antares, in the heart of Scorpius the scorpion, one of the constellations of the zodiac. Antares other claim to fame is embodied in its name. Decoded, Antares means Rival of Mars due to its color and the fact that Mars passes by every couple of years. Ant means anti, and Ares is the Greek god of war that the Romans appropriated as Mars.
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
Antares low in the south-southeast at 10:30 pm, June 17, 2022, without Mars for competition. At this time, Antares is only 13 degrees above the horizon. Click on the image to enlarge it. Created Using Stellarium and GIMP.
Scorpius at its highest as seen from the Grand Traverse area. Antares at this time is not quite 19 degrees altitude. This is 1 am, June 18th. Perceptive viewers of this image may spot a teapot in the stars to the left of Scorpius. That’s what we modern folk see in the stars of Sagittarius the archer. Created using Stellarium.
06/15/2022 – Ephemeris – Let’s search for the naked-eye planets for this week
This is Ephemeris for Wednesday, June 15th. Today the Sun will be up for 15 hours and 33 minutes, setting at 9:30, and it will rise tomorrow at 5:56. The Moon, 1 day past full, will rise at 11:27 this evening.
Let’s search for the naked-eye planets for this week. All the naked-eye planets are in the morning sky, although Mercury may be too close to the Sun to be seen. It might just be visible low in the east-northeast after 5. That’s at least for those as far north as we are. At 5 am tomorrow the planets will be spread out from Mercury near the horizon, brilliant Venus low in the east to Saturn higher in the south-southeast. To the right of Venus, tomorrow morning, in the east-southeast are Mars and Jupiter. Mars is quite a bit dimmer than Jupiter. All will be in line sloping to the upper right with Saturn all by its lonesome in the south-southeast. The naked-eye planets are arranged in the morning sky, in the same order as their distances from the Sun.
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
The Moon as it might appear at midnight June 16, 2022, through binoculars or a small telescope. Atmospheric refraction will affect the shape of the Moon when it’s very low in the sky. Created using Stellarium.
Morning planets at 5 am tomorrow morning, June 16, 2022. Click on the image to enlarge it. The span of the planets from Venus to Saturn is 87 degrees. Click on the image to enlarge it. Created using Stellarium.
Views of Saturn, Jupiter, and Venus (north up) as they would be seen in a small telescope, with the same magnification, tomorrow morning at 5:00 am, June 16, 2022. I do not show planets less than 10 seconds of arc in diameter. Apparent diameters: Saturn 17.80″, its rings 41.47″; Jupiter 39.02″. Mars is not shown, its apparent diameter is 6.81″ and is 86.4% illuminated; Venus 12.66″, 82.2% illuminated. The ” symbol means seconds of arc (1/3600th of a degree.) Created using Cartes du Ciel (Sky Charts).
The naked-eye planets and the Moon at sunset and sunrise on a single night, starting with sunset on the right on June 15, 2022. The night ends on the left with sunrise on the 16th. Notice that all the naked-eye planets are in the morning sky now. Click on the image to enlarge it. Created using my LookingUp program.
06/14/2022 – Ephemeris – All about tonight’s full moon
This is Bob Moler with Ephemeris for Flag Day, Tuesday, June 14th. Today the Sun will be up for 15 hours and 33 minutes, setting at 9:29, and it will rise tomorrow at 5:56. The Moon, at full today, will rise at 10:22 this evening.
The actual instant that the Moon was full, that is opposite the Sun in the sky, is 7:52 this morning. That’s why the Moon will rise nearly an hour after the Sun sets tonight. It’s also a supermoon, though I dare anyone to be able to tell it apart from any other rising full Moon, since there is nothing to compare its size too. Both the Sun and Moon appear larger than normal when seen on the horizon. The Moon’s perigee or closest point in its orbit of the Earth occurs at 7:52 this evening. This month’s full Moon is also called the Strawberry Moon by Native Americans, because this is the month that strawberries ripen. Also, the term honeymoon comes from the fact that many weddings are in June, when the full moon is low in the sky in the south and has a yellowish or honey color due to haze and atmospheric preferential scattering of blue light.
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
Mini Moon (Moon at apogee) and Super Moon (moon at perigee) for 2017. Created using Cartes du Ciel (Sky Charts).
The distance of the Moon at perigee this month, at 7:21 pm June 14th is 357,400 kilometers, or 222,100 miles. The Moon reaches apogee twice this month: On the 1st at 406,200 kilometers, or 252,400 miles, and again on the 29th at 406,600 kilometers or 252,600 miles. The reason for the differences in aphelion distances, which also occur with perigee distances, is the additional gravitational influences of the Sun, Jupiter and Venus, plus all the other planets to a lesser degree.
06/09/2022 – Ephemeris – Looking at the gibbous Moon tonight
This is Bob Moler with Ephemeris for Thursday, June 9th. Today the Sun will be up for 15 hours and 29 minutes, setting at 9:27, and it will rise tomorrow at 5:57. The Moon, 2 days past first quarter, will set at 3:29 tomorrow morning.
By tonight, the gibbous moon will be quite bright. At the moon’s left edge, just coming into sunlight, will be what looks like a large half crater at the edge of the lunar sea called Mare Imbrium, the Sea of Showers. That feature is Sinus Iridium, or Bay of Rainbows. The arc of its mountainous edge is rainbow shaped, but it is as colorless as the rest of the Moon. The crater Copernicus sports few shadows and appears mostly as a bright spot surrounded by its ray system of ejecta craters that appear bright when the sun is high in their sky. At the south end of the Moon are the lunar highlands, bright, rugged and covered by large, mostly very old craters. Largest of these craters is Clavius, named for Christophorus Clavius who, working for Pope Gregory XIII, devised the Gregorian Calendar we use today.
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
Binocular Moon as it might appear tonight, June 9, 2022. Below, we’ll look closer to the terminator area of the Moon. Created using Virtual Moon Atlas.
Northern gibbous Moon terminator area with labels for some prominent features. Created using Virtual Moon Atlas, LibreOffice and GIMP.
Southern gibbous Moon terminator area with labels for some prominent features. Created using Virtual Moon Atlas, LibreOffice and GIMP.
Translations
Mare Frigoris – Sea of Cold
Mare Imbrium – Sea of Showers
Mare Nubium – Sea of Clouds
Montes Alpes – Alps Mountains
Montes Appinenninus – Apennines Mountains
Sinus Iridium – Bay of Rainbows
06/08/2022 – Ephemeris – Let’s search for the naked-eye planets for this week
This is Ephemeris for Wednesday, June 8th. Today the Sun will be up for 15 hours and 29 minutes, setting at 9:26, and it will rise tomorrow at 5:57. The Moon, 1 day past first quarter, will set at 3:08 tomorrow morning.
Let’s search for the naked-eye planets for this week. All the naked-eye planets are in the morning sky, although Mercury may be too close to the Sun to be seen. It might just be visible low in the east-northeast after 5 am around mid-month. That’s at least for those as far north as we are. At 5 am tomorrow the planets will be spread out from brilliant Venus low in the east to Saturn higher in the south-southeast. To the right of Venus, tomorrow morning, in the east-southeast are Mars and Jupiter. Mars is quite a bit dimmer than Jupiter. All will be in line sloping to the upper right with Saturn all by its lonesome in the south-southeast. The naked-eye planets are arranged in the morning sky, in the same order as their distances from the Sun.
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
Waning gibbous Moon tonight with prominent features labeled. Created using Stellarium, GIMP and LibreOffice.
Morning planets at 5 am tomorrow morning, June 9, 2022. Click on the image to enlarge it. The span of the planets from Venus to Saturn is 79 degrees. Created using Stellarium.
Views of Venus, Jupiter, and Saturn (north up) as they would be seen in a small telescope, with the same magnification, tomorrow morning at 5:00 am, June 9, 2022. I do not show planets less than 10 seconds of arc in diameter. Apparent diameters: Venus 13.10″, 80.3% illuminated; Saturn 17.60″, its rings 41.01″; Jupiter 38.23″. Mars is not shown, its apparent diameter is 6.63″ and is 86.8% illuminated. The ” symbol means seconds of arc (1/3600th of a degree.) Created using Cartes du Ciel (Sky Charts).
The naked-eye planets and the Moon at sunset and sunrise on a single night, starting with sunset on the right on June 8, 2022. The night ends on the left with sunrise on the 9th. Notice that all the naked-eye planets are in the morning sky now. Click on the image to enlarge it. Created using my LookingUp program.
06/07/2022 – Ephemeris – The Moon’s Straight Wall
This is Ephemeris for Tuesday, June 7th. Today the Sun will be up for 15 hours and 28 minutes, setting at 9:25, and it will rise tomorrow at 5:57. The Moon, at first quarter today, will set at 2:49 tomorrow morning.
Around the first quarter Moon there is, among all the circular formations on the Moon like craters, something that’s straight. Its name is Rupes Recta, better known as the Straight Wall. Tonight it’s a dark line seen near and parallel to the terminator, the sunrise line on the Moon, about a third of the way down from the center of the Moon’s disc to the edge. It looks like a cliff that’s 900 feet (300 meters) high and 67 miles (110 kilometers) long. It’s not. It is apparently a rectilinear fault, and its slope is only 7 degrees. It will disappear as the sun rises higher and illuminates the slope. It can be spotted in a small telescope, though it requires something generally larger and more powerful than a pair of binoculars. Near last quarter, the Straight Wall appears as a bright line.
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
Moon’s Straight Wall locator, though it may not be visible at this magnification. Created using Virtual Moon Atlas.
Enlargement of the area of the Straight Wall with labels blinking on and off. Created using Virtual Moon Atlas, Libreoffice, and GIMP.
Enlargement of the area of the Straight Wall near last quarter. Created using Virtual Moon Atlas.
