06/19/2020 – Ephemeris – Summer arrives tomorrow with an eclipse of the Sun the next day
This is Ephemeris for Friday, June 19th. Today the Sun will be up for 15 hours and 34 minutes, setting at 9:31, and it will rise tomorrow at 5:57. The Moon, 2 days before new, will rise at 5:25 tomorrow morning.
Tomorrow afternoon at 5:43 pm summer will begin, as the Sun reaches its greatest northerly excursion, right over the tropic of Cancer, 23 ½ degrees north latitude on the Earth’s surface. It’s called the summer solstice for those of us north of the equator. Early Sunday morning there will be an annular eclipse of the Sun. We won’t see it in the United States, however it will be visible for parts of Africa and southern Asia. The Moon will be too far away to completely cover the face of the Sun leaving a ring or annulus at maximum eclipse, a so-called Ring of Fire. It is the second of a triad of eclipses this eclipse season. Two weeks ago there was a slight eclipse of the Moon and two weeks from now another slight eclipse of the Moon to finish the season.
The event times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan. They may be different for your location.
Addenda
Annular Eclipse
Areas of the Earth where the solar eclipse of June 21, 2020 will be visible. The central double red line delineates the path of annularity. Click on the image to see the original chart. Credit NASA GSFC, Fred Espenak.
My photograph of the Annular eclipse May 10 1994 taken east of Toledo, Ohio, May 10, 1994.
Summer Solstice
Earth and magnified local area near summer solstice. Image taken near local noon June 17, 2020. Credit NOAA DSCOVR satellite orbiting the Sun-Earth L1 point 994,970 miles (1,601,432 kilometers) sunward from the Earth. For once it’s clear enough to see the mitten of the Lower Peninsula of Michigan.
The Sun’s path through the sky on the summer solstice day from Traverse City, MI. Created using my LookingUp program..
06/18/2020 – Ephemeris – Finding the constellation Hercules
This is Ephemeris for Thursday, June 18th. Today the Sun will be up for 15 hours and 34 minutes, setting at 9:31, and it will rise tomorrow at 5:56. The Moon, 3 days before new, will rise at 4:48 tomorrow morning.
Orion, the hard luck mythological 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 very high in the east-southeast. It is located above and right of the bright star, Vega in the east. Hercules’ central feature is a box shaped of star wider at the top than the bottom, called the Keystone, which represents the old boy’s shorts. From each top corner extend lines of stars that are his legs, from the bottom stars, the rest of his torso and arms extend. So in one final indignity he’s upside down in our sky. Some see him crouched down, club upraised holding the Hydra about to throttle it. For those with a telescope it contains the beautiful globular star cluster M13.
The event times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan. 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.
M13, the Great Globular Star Cluster in Hercules. Credit: Scott Anttila
Stars and M13 (Great Star Cluster in Hercules) visible in binoculars in the Keystone of Hercules. Click in the image to enlarge. Created using Stellarium.
06/17/2020 – Ephemeris – Let’s look for the naked-eye planets for this week
This is Bob Moler with Ephemeris for Wednesday, June 17th. Today the Sun will be up for 15 hours and 34 minutes, setting at 9:31, and it will rise tomorrow at 5:56. The Moon, half way from last quarter to new, will rise at 4:18 tomorrow morning.
Let’s look for the naked-eye planets for this week. Jupiter now rises before midnight at 11:12 pm in the east-southeast. Saturn will rise 17 minutes later at 11:29 right behind Jupiter. Mars, is stretching its lead left of Saturn and will rise at 1:53 am in the east. Its now down to 83.4 million miles (134.3 million km) away, as the Earth slowly overtakes it at the rate of about 4.3 million miles (7.0 million km) a week. Jupiter and Saturn will be hanging out between Sagittarius and Capricornus this year while Mars is slowing its rapid eastward motion now two constellations over in Pisces. Finally, Venus will rise at 4:51 am in the east-northeast low in the twilight as our new Morning Star.
The event times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan. They may be different for your location.
Addendum
Jupiter and Saturn finder animation for midnight June 18, 2020. For other locations, approximately 2 1/2 hours after sunset. Also showing the stars of the Teapot of Sagittarius to the upper right of the SE compass point and most, except the bottom stars of Scorpius in the south. Click on the image to enlarge. Created using Stellarium and GIMP.
Panorama of the morning planets at 5:15 am or about 45 minutes before sunrise tomorrow June 18, 2020. Click on the image to enlarge. Created using Stellarium.
The Moon as it might be seen in binoculars tomorrow morning before sunrise June 18, 2020. Created using Stellarium.
The planets as seen in a telescope (north up) with the same magnification. Jupiter and Saturn tomorrow morning of June 18, 2020. Apparent diameters: Jupiter, 46.34″; Saturn, 18.14″, rings, 42.36″ and Mars, 41.38″. Mars also shows an enlargement showing surface detail. The ” symbol means seconds of arc (1/3600th of a degree.) Click on the image to enlarge. Created using Cartes du Ciel (Sky Charts).
Planets and the Moon at sunset and sunrise of a single night starting with sunset on the right on June 17, 2020. The night ends on the left with sunrise on the 18th. The closeness of Jupiter and Saturn in the morning sky unfortunately overlays planets and labels. Click on the image to enlarge. Created using my LookingUp program.
06/16/2020 – Ephemeris – One circlet of stars, two constellations: old world and new world
This is Ephemeris for Tuesday, June 16th. 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, 3 days past last quarter, will rise at 3:52 tomorrow morning.
High in the south-southeast at 11 this evening can be seen a small nearly circular constellation of Corona Borealis, the Northern Crown. It is just below 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 natives of 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 are the Pleiades, now too close to the Sun to be seen.
The event times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan. They may be different for your location.
Addendum
Animated Corona Borealis/Sweat Lodge Finder Chart looking to the south-southeast at 11 p.m. June 16th. Click on the image to enlarge Created using Stellarium and GIMP.
06/15/2020 – Ephemeris – Now is the date of the earliest sunrise and it isn’t even summer yet
This is Ephemeris for Monday, 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, 2 days past last quarter, will rise at 3:30 tomorrow morning.
Today, give or take a day is the date of the earliest sunrise. The latest sunrise was about January 2nd, leaving only about 165 days for the transition of three hours, 24 minutes and since we still have five days to the longest day. The sunset change rate is a lot more leisurely. It has to do with the tilt of Earth’s axis and its slightly elliptical orbit. It’s why sundials don’t keep proper time. Though most sundials appear to be decorative and are not set up correctly anyway. Besides sundials can’t cope with time zones, and daylight time unless they are specially built for a particular location. Anyway the latest sunset will be on the 26th, 200 days since the earliest sunset, on December 9th, last year. The sunset retreat to December 9th will take 165 days, and the sunrise advance will take 200 days until next January 2nd next year.
The event times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan. They may be different for your location.
06/12/2020 – Ephemeris – The Summer Triangle proclaims that summer is almost here
This is Bob Moler with Ephemeris for Friday, June 12th. Today the Sun will be up for 15 hours and 32 minutes, setting at 9:29, and it will rise tomorrow at 5:56. The Moon, 1 day before last quarter, will rise at 2:27 tomorrow morning.
Summer skies are coming. It’s only 8 days until summer officially arrives. It is a calendar day early this year because of the extra day added in February for the leap year. Looking to the eastern sky at 11 pm are three bright stars in a large triangle. The top star Vega is about half way up the sky to the zenith, and the brightest of the three. It’s in the small constellation of Lyra the harp. Lowest of the stars and just about due east is Altair in Aquila the eagle. Completing the triangle is Deneb in the northeast in the tail of Cygnus the swan or the head of the horizontal Northern Cross. These three stars make up the Summer Triangle. Be that as it may, the Summer Triangle will be in our evening sky moving slowly westward until December.
The event times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan. They may be different for your location.
Addendum
Finder animation for the Summer Triangle, seen in red for 11 pm, June 12th. Created using Stellarium and GIMP.
06/11/2020 – Ephemeris – The Moon passes Mars starting tomorrow morning
This is Ephemeris for Thursday, June 11th. Today the Sun will be up for 15 hours and 31 minutes, setting at 9:28, and it will rise tomorrow at 5:56. The Moon, 2 days before last quarter, will rise at 2:04 tomorrow morning.
In the morning sky tomorrow and Saturday morning the Moon will be passing Mars. Actually you’ll see a before and after shot of them because the Moon’s passage south of Mars will occur about 6 pm tomorrow evening when we can’t see them. Mars is getting brighter as we, on the Earth approach it. It is also getting larger in telescopes. On Wednesdays on this blog besides showing where the planets are, I show what they might look like in a small telescope. Until this week Mars appeared too small for me to show detail on Mars. However it is now large enough to maybe see a polar cap and some other detail depending on telescope size. Mars will double its apparent size between now and October.
The event times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan. They may be different for your location.
Addendum
Moon and Mars animation for 5 am Friday June 12, 2020 and 4:56 am Saturday June 13th. The Jump between of 23 hours, 56 minutes and 4 seconds is the Earth’s sidereal day, the true period of its rotation in relation to the stars. Note that the few stars visible do not move, but Mars and the Moon do. Created using Stellarium and GIMP.
06/10/2020 – Ephemeris – Let’s look at the naked-eye planets for this week
This is Bob Moler with Ephemeris for Wednesday, June 10th. Today the Sun will be up for 15 hours and 31 minutes, setting at 9:28, and it will rise tomorrow at 5:56. The Moon, 3 days before last quarter, will rise at 1:38 tomorrow morning.
Let’s look at the naked-eye planets for this week. Mercury is close to the end of its visibility in the evening sky seen low in the northwest after sunset, it will set tonight at 11:03 pm. Jupiter now rises before midnight at 11:41 pm in the east-southeast. It’s still called a morning planet because it’s in the sky at sunrise. Saturn will rise 17 minutes later at 11:58 right behind Jupiter. Mars, is stretching its lead left of Saturn and will rise at 2:10 am in the east. Its now down to 87.6 million miles (141.0 million km) away, as the Earth slowly overtakes it at the rate of about 4.3 million miles (7.0 million km) a week. Jupiter and Saturn will be hanging out Sagittarius and Capricornus this year while Mars is moving rapidly eastward now two constellations over.
The event times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan. They may be different for your location.
Addendum
Mercury, very difficult to spot, in the evening tonight at 10 pm, June 10, 2020. Click on the image to enlarge. Created using Stellarium.
The Morning planets tomorrow at 5 a.m., about an hour before sunrise, June 11, 2020. lick on the image to enlarge. Created using Stellarium.
The waning gibbous Moon tomorrow at 5 am June 11, 2020 as it might appear in binoculars or small telescope. Created using Stellarium.
The planets as seen in a telescope with the same magnification. Jupiter and Saturn tomorrow morning of June 4, 2020. Apparent diameters: Jupiter, 45.80″; Saturn, 18.03″, rings, 41.99″ and Mars, 9.95″. Mars also shows an enlargement showing surface detail. The ” symbol means seconds of arc (1/3600th of a degree.) Created using Cartes du Ciel (Sky Charts).
Planets and the Moon at sunset and sunrise of a single night starting with sunset on the right on June 10, 2020. The night ends on the left with sunrise on the 11th. The closeness of Jupiter and Saturn in the morning sky unfortunately overlays planets and labels. Click on the image to enlarge. Created using my LookingUp program.
06/09/2020 – Ephemeris – The constellation of the crow and a star often mistaken for a UFO
This is Ephemeris for Tuesday, June 9th. Today the Sun will be up for 15 hours and 30 minutes, setting at 9:27, and it will rise tomorrow at 5:56. The Moon, half way from full to last quarter, will rise at 1:06 tomorrow morning.
I don’t want spring to get away from us without pointing out a small but distinctive constellation now low in the southwest at 11 pm called Corvus the crow that to me looks like an odd shaped box. Wider at the bottom than the top and left side taller than the right. It’s supposed to be a crow in flight diagonally to the upper right. I find it easy to find by that odd shaped box. Also at 11 pm, the summer constellation of Scorpius the scorpion is rising with its bright red star Antares twinkling madly. This red giant star stays low in the southern sky, so we always, here in Michigan, see it through lots of atmosphere whose turbulence accentuates its twinkling. I call it my UFO star. It’s a riot in binoculars or a telescope.
The event times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan. They may be different for your location.
Addendum
Corvus the crow and Antares the star in Scorpius at 11 pm tonight, June 9, 2020. Created using Stellarium and its embedded art. This is not how I see either constellation. Everyone gets to use their own imagination. Mine doesn’t agree with either image, but I’m not artistic enough to show how I imagine them. Though for Corvus I just see the distinctive box. Click on the image to enlarge it.
06/08/2020 – Ephemeris – Tomorrow’s Moon and the morning planets
This is Ephemeris for Monday, 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, 3 days past full, will rise at 12:28 tomorrow morning.
This afternoon the Moon will pass south of Jupiter, and this evening it will pass south of Saturn. By tomorrow morning the Moon will be to the lower left of both of them. However to see them one should get up by 5 am. By 5:30 the planets will be pretty much lost in twilight. The Moon should still be easily visible low in the south at that time. A careful observer, over time, may notice that both Jupiter and Saturn are moving slowly westward, rather than their normal eastward movement. We call this motion retrograde motion. This motion baffled the ancient Greeks, who thought the Earth to be stationary and the planets moved uniformly in perfect circles. They kind of solved it by adding smaller circles to the original ones.
The event times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan. They may be different for your location.
Addendum
The Moon and morning planets at 5 a.m. tomorrow morning in the eastern US at 5 am, June 12, 2020. Created using Stellarium.
Bob Moler's Ephemeris Blog 