Archive
08/24/2016 – Ephemeris – Planets gather into two groups this evening
Ephemeris for Wednesday, August 24th. The Sun rises at 6:56. It’ll be up for 13 hours and 36 minutes, setting at 8:32. The Moon, at last quarter today, will rise at 12:31 tomorrow morning.
Tonight we still have all the bright classical planets in the evening sky, barely. Mercury, Venus and Jupiter are very low in the west and will set at 9:08, 9:24 and 9:29 p.m. respectively. Saturday evening, right after sunset, Venus will be passing very close to Jupiter while they are low in the west, well within a low power telescope field. Mars, Saturn and the star Antares start the evening in the southwestern sky in a nearly perfect line. Antares, whose name means Rival of Mars is On the bottom with brighter Mars just above it, with Saturn above. Mars, moving rapidly to the east against the stars will set at 12:15 a.m. Saturn, spectacular in telescopes with its rings, will set at 12:39 a.m.
Times are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan. They may be different for your location.
Addenda
The Planets Tonight
Looking very low in the west at 9 p.m., 28 minutes after sunset, August 24, 2016. For scale, Jupiter is a bit less than 5 degrees above the horizon, Mercury a bit lass than 2. Created using Stellarium.
Mars breaks out the Saturn-Antares lineup at 9:30 p.m., August 24, 2016. Created by Stellarium.using Stellarium.
Saturn and some of its moons at 9:30 p.m. August 24, 2016. Created using Cartes du Ciel (Sky Charts).
Planets at sunset and sunrise of a single night starting with sunset on the right on August 24, 2016. The night ends on the left with sunrise on August 25. Actually all the naked eye planets are in the evening sky. If you are using Firefox right-click on the image and select View Image to enlarge the image. That goes for all the large images. Created using my LookingUp program.
Mars, Antares and Saturn Last Night
Saturn, Mars and Antares and the setting Scorpius to the right of the tree, and the Sagittarius Teapot with the Milky Way boiling out of the spout at 11:03 p.m. EDT, August 24, 2016. Credit Bob Moler from my back yard.
08/10/2016 – Ephemeris – The planets tonight
Ephemeris for Wednesday, August 10th. The Sun rises at 6:39. It’ll be up for 14 hours and 15 minutes, setting at 8:55. The Moon, at first quarter today, will set at 12:55 tomorrow morning.
Today we turn from the small meteoroids that orbit the Sun that are producing the Perseid Meteor Shower to the larger members of the solar family, namely the bright planets. Venus and Mercury are very low in the west-northwest and will set at 9:44 and 9:50 p.m. respectively. Jupiter is in the west in the evening. It will set at 10:19 p.m. Mars, Saturn and the star Antares start the evening in the south-southwestern sky as a tightening triangle, moving to the southwest during the evening. Antares, whose name means Rival of Mars is below Saturn with brighter Mars to the right. The Red Planet is back in Scorpius. It will set at 12:46 a.m. Mars is moving rapidly to the east against the stars. Saturn is spectacular in telescopes, with its rings. Saturn will set at 1:34 a.m.
Times are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan. They may be different for your location.
Addendum
Venus, Mercury and Jupiter at 9:25 p.m. (30 minutes after sunset), August 10, 2016. Created using Stellarium.
The planets, Moon and constellations at 10 p.m., August 10, 2016. Created using Stellarium.
The Moon as it might appear in binoculars tonight, August 10, 2016 at 10 p.m. Created using Stellarium.
Saturn and its moons at 10 p.m. August 10, 2016. Created using Cartes du Ciel (Sky Charts).
Planets at sunset and sunrise of a single night starting with sunset on the right on August 10, 2016. The night ends on the left with sunrise on August 11. Actually all the naked eye planets are in the evening sky. Also shown is the Perseid meteor shower radiant. If you are using Firefox right-click on the image and select View Image to enlarge the image. That goes for all the large images. Created using my LookingUp program.
Also shown is the Perseid meteor shower radiant.
08/05/2016 – Ephemeris – Star party at NMC’s Rogers Observatory tonight
Ephemeris for Friday, August 5th. The Sun rises at 6:34. It’ll be up for 14 hours and 28 minutes, setting at 9:02. The Moon, 3 days past new, will set at 10:31 this evening.
There will be a star party this evening at Northwestern Michigan College’s Rogers Observatory hosted by the Grand Traverse Astronomical Society and the NMC Astronomy Club starting at 9 p.m. On tap, if it’s clear, will be Jupiter and the Moon early, then Mars and Saturn. Mars will appear quite small. As it gets darker the stars will appear. Some will show companion stars, while between the stars, what we call deep sky objects will be seen. Clusters of stars, and nebulae which can be either the birthplaces of stars or markers of dying stars. While other galaxies can be spotted our eyes are dazzled by our galaxy, the Milky Way spanning the sky from northeast to the south, in which these other objects dwell. The months of August and September are the months when the heart of the Milky Way is best seen.
Times are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan. They may be different for your location.
Addendum
The Milky Way from the Sleeping Bear Dunes last August by Mark Stewart.
This year Saturn and Mars will be in the picture. In this picture Saturn is low and to the right.
08/03/2016 – Ephemeris – Jupiter is slipping toward the setting Sun
Ephemeris for Wednesday, August 3rd. The Sun rises at 6:31. It’ll be up for 14 hours and 33 minutes, setting at 9:05. The Moon, 1 day past new, will set at 9:29 this evening.
Venus and Mercury are in the evening sky but too close to the Sun to be easily seen. Check below for more information on the apparent interactions between the two. Jupiter will join the fray later this month. Jupiter is in the west in the evening. It will set at 10:44 p.m. Mars starts the evening in the south-southwestern sky, moving to the southwest. It’s right of its dimmer look-a-like star Antares, whose name means Rival of Mars. The Red Planet is back in Scorpius. The planet will set at 1:07 a.m. Mars is resuming its rapid eastward motion against the stars. The ringed planet Saturn is low in the south. It’s to the left of Mars. Saturn will pass due south at 9:25 p.m. and will set at 2:02 a.m.
Times are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan. They may be different for your location.
Addendum
Venus, Mercury the day old Moon (not really visible) and Jupiter at 9:25 p.m. (20 minutes after sunset), August 3, 2016. Created using Stellarium.
Spotting the Moon and these planets requires a Lake Michigan horizon and may be futile. The farther one is to the south the greater the angle that the line of planets make with the horizon. This is not a good apparition of Mercury for us, but a good one for folks in the southern hemisphere.
The planets and constellations at 10 p.m., August 3, 2016. Created using Stellarium.
Jupiter and its satellites at 10 p.m., August 3, 2016. It will be close to the horizon and fuzzy in telescopes. Created using Cartes du Ciel (Sky Charts).
Saturn and its moons at 10 p.m. August 3, 2016. Created using Cartes du Ciel (Sky Charts).
Planets at sunset and sunrise of a single night starting with sunset on the right on August 3, 2016. The night ends on the left with sunrise on August 4. Actually all the naked eye planets are in the evening sky. If you are using Firefox right-click on the image and select View Image to enlarge the image. That goes for all the large images. Created using my LookingUp program.
07/27/2016 – Ephemeris – All the bright planets are now in the evening sky
Note: Mercury and Venus are in the evening sky but too low to be easily spotted, even with a Lake Michigan horizon, so I did not cover them in the program below but see the addendum.
Ephemeris for Wednesday, July 27th. The Sun rises at 6:24. It’ll be up for 14 hours and 49 minutes, setting at 9:13. The Moon, 1 day past last quarter, will rise at 1:48 tomorrow morning.
Our evening planets are moving with the stars to the west, and setting almost a half hour earlier each week. Jupiter is in the west in the evening. It will set at 11:08 p.m. Binoculars can make out some of Jupiter’s moons, but a telescope is required to see all four bright moons and Jupiter’s cloud features. Mars starts the evening in the southern sky, moving to the southwest. It’s above and right of its dimmer look-a-like star Antares, whose name means Rival of Mars. The planet will set at 1:24 a.m. The Earth is pulling ahead of Mars so it’s now 65 million miles away and tiny in telescopes. The ringed planet Saturn is low in the south. It’s to the left of Mars. Saturn will pass due south at 9:53 p.m. and will set at 2:30 a.m.
Times are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan. They may be different for your location.
Addendum
Venus, Mercury and Jupiter at 9:45 p.m. a half hour after sunset. Venus is 2 degrees above the horizon, and Mercury is 4 degrees. Created using Stellarium.
Jupiter, Mars and Saturn with the southern summer constellations at 10:30 p.m., July 27, 2016. Created using Stellarium.
Jupiter and its Galilean moons at 10:30 p.m. July 27, 2016. Jupiter’s apparent diameter will be 32.3″. Europa will be transiting the planet, and will probably not visible. Created using Cartes du Ciel (Sky Charts).
Saturn and its moons at 10:30 p.m. July 27, 2016. The apparent diameter of the planet will be 17.6″, larger than Mars’ disk. The rings span 41.1″, larger than the apparent diameter of Jupiter. Created using Cartes du Ciel (Sky Charts).
Planets at sunset and sunrise of a single night starting with sunset on the right on July 27, 2016. The night ends on the left with sunrise on July 28. If you are using Firefox right-click on the image and select View Image to enlarge the image. That goes for all the large images.
07/20/2016 – Ephemeris – The evening planets are moving with the stars to the west
Ephemeris for Wednesday, July 20th. Today the Sun will be up for 15 hours and 4 minutes, setting at 9:21, and it will rise tomorrow at 6:17. The Moon, 1 day past full, will rise at 9:42 this evening.
Our evening planets are moving with the stars to the west, and setting almost a half hour earlier each week. Jupiter is in the west in the evening. It will set at 11:33 p.m. Binoculars can make out some of Jupiter’s moons, but a telescope is required to see all four bright moons and Jupiter’s cloud features. Mars starts the evening in the southern sky, moving to the southwest. It’s above and right of its dimmer look-a-like star Antares, whose name means Rival of Mars. The planet will set at 1:46 a.m. The Earth is pulling ahead of Mars so it’s now 61 million miles away and tiny in telescopes. The ringed planet Saturn is low in the south. It’s to the left of Mars. Saturn will pass due south at 10:21 p.m. and will set at 2:58 a.m.
Times are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan. They may be different for your location.
Addendum
The evening planets at 10 p.m., July 20, 2016. Created using Stellarium.
Jupiter and its Galilean moons at 10 p.m. July 20, 2016. Jupiter’s apparent diameter will be 32.7″. Callisto is about to be occulted by Jupiter at 10:08 p.m. (2:08 UT, July 21st). Created using Cartes du Ciel (Sky Charts).
Mars as it might be seen in a large telescope with high power at 10 p.m. July 20, 2016. Mars’ apparent diameter is 14.1″. The central meridian will be 25.04 degrees. Created using Cartes du Ciel (Sky Charts).
Saturn and its moons at 10 p.m. July 20, 2016. The apparent diameter of the planet will be 17.8″, larger than Mars’ disk. The rings span 41.5″, larger than the apparent diameter of Jupiter. Created using Cartes du Ciel (Sky Charts).
Planets at sunset and sunrise of a single night starting with sunset on the right on July 20, 2016. The night ends on the left with sunrise on July 21. If you are using Firefox right-click on the image and select View Image to enlarge the image. That goes for all the large images.
07/13/2016 – Ephemeris – The evening planets continue to march westward
Ephemeris for Wednesday, July 13th. Today the Sun will be up for 15 hours and 16 minutes, setting at 9:26, and it will rise tomorrow at 6:11. The Moon, 2 days past first quarter, will set at 2:23 tomorrow morning.
Let’s check out the bright naked eye planets tonight. Jupiter is in the west in the evening. It will set at 11:59 p.m. It’s below-left of the stars of Leo this year. Binoculars can make out some of Jupiter’s moons, but a telescope is required to see all four bright moons and Jupiter’s cloud features. Mars starts the evening in the southern sky. It’s above and right of its dimmer look-a-like star Antares, whose name means Rival of Mars. Mars will be due south at 9:30 p.m. and will set at 2:09 a.m. The Earth is pulling ahead of Mars so it’s now 58 million miles away and tiny in telescopes. Saturn is low in the south-southeast. It’s left of Mars. Saturn will pass due south at 10:50 p.m. and will set at 3:27 a.m. It’s a wonderful telescopic sight.
Times are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan. They may be different for your location.
Addendum
Evening planets and the Moon at 10:30 p.m. July 13, 2016. Created using Stellarium.
Jupiter and moons at 10:30 p.m. on July 13, 2016. Jupiter’s apparent diameter will be 33.2″. Created using Cartes du Ciel.
The Moon as seen in a pair of binoculars or small telescope with some prominent craters labeled at 10:30 p.m. on July 13, 2016. Created using Virtual Moon.Atlas.
Mars as seen in a large telescope. Note the decidedly gibbous phase at 10:30 p.m. on July 13, 2016. Mars’ apparent diameter will be 14.8″. Created using Cartes du Ciel.
Saturn and its larger moonsat 10:30 p.m. on July 13, 2016. Saturn’s apparent diameter wil be 18.0″ and the rings 41.9″ Created using Cartes du Ciel.
All the planets and the Moon from sunset July 13, 2016 to sunrise on the 14th. Created using my Looking up program.
Extra
I noticed Venus and Mercury near each other but very low in the sky, so I investigated. They are too low to be easily seen.
Venus and Mercury at 9:45 p.m., about 20 minutes after sunset tonight. Venus is 2.5 degrees above a flat horizon, and Mercury is 2 degrees.
Saturday night, same time, Venus will be 3 degrees up with Mercury above it in conjunction. Created using Stellarium. Give it a go. Good luck!
Note: The images and captions were uploaded via my phone after a storm too out the WiFi in the condo we’re staying in on vacation.
07/06/2016 – Ephemeris – The three bright evening planets are heading westward
Jul 6. This is Bob Moler with Ephemeris for Wednesday, July 6th. Today the Sun will be up for 15 hours and 25 minutes, setting at 9:30, and it will rise tomorrow at 6:05. The Moon, 2 days past new, will set at 10:56 this evening.
Let’s see what the bright naked eye planets are up to. Jupiter is in the west in the evening. It will set at 12:24 a.m. It’s below the stars of Leo this year. Binoculars can make out some of Jupiter’s moons, but a telescope is required to see all four bright moons and Jupiter’s cloud features. Mars starts the evening in the southern sky. It’s above and right of its dimmer look-a-like star Antares, whose name means Rival of Mars. Mars will move due south at 10:01 p.m. and will set at 2:34 a.m. The Earth is pulling ahead of Mars so it’s now 55 million miles away and very small in telescopes. Saturn is low in the south-southeast. It’s left of Mars. Saturn will pass due south at 11:19 p.m. and will set at 3:56 a.m. It’s a wonderful telescopic sight.
Times are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan. They may be different for your location.
Addendum
The evening planets and constellations at 10:30 p.m., July 6, 2016. Created using Stellarium.
Jupiter and its Galilean moons at 10:30 p.m. July 6, 2016. Jupiter’s apparent diameter will be 33.8″. Created using Cartes du Ciel (Sky Charts).
Mars as it might be seen in a large telescope with high power at 10:30 p.m. July 6, 2016. Mars apparent diameter is 15.7″. The central meridian will be 162.44 degrees. Created using Cartes du Ciel (Sky Charts).
Saturn and its moons at 10:30 p.m. July 6, 2016. The apparent diameter of the planet will be 18.1″, larger than Mars’ disk. The rings span 42.2″, larger than the apparent diameter of Jupiter. Created using Cartes du Ciel (Sky Charts).
Planets at sunset and sunrise of a single night starting with sunset on the right on July 6, 2016. The night ends on the left with sunrise on July 7. If you are using Firefox right-click on the image and select View Image to enlarge the image. That goes for all the large images.
06/29/2016 – Ephemeris – Three planets of the evening
Ephemeris for Wednesday, June 29th. Today the Sun will be up for 15 hours and 32 minutes, setting at 9:32, and it will rise tomorrow at 6:00. The Moon, 2 days past last quarter, will rise at 3:08 tomorrow morning.
Let’s see what the bright naked eye planets are up to. Jupiter is in the west in the evening. It will set at 12:50 a.m. It’s below the stars of Leo this year. Binoculars can make out some of Jupiter’s moons, but a telescope is required to see all four bright moons and Jupiter’s cloud features. The moon Io on the western edge of Jupiter will disappear behind the planet at 11:09 p.m. (3:09 UT, the 30th) tonight. Mars starts the evening in the southern sky. It’s above and right of its dimmer look-a-like star Antares, whose name means Rival of Mars. Mars will move due south at 10:28 p.m. and will set at 3:01 a.m. Saturn is low in the south-southeast. It’s left of Mars. Saturn will pass due south at 11:48 p.m. and will set at 4:25 a.m. It’s a wonderful telescopic sight.
Times are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan. They may be different for your location.
Addendum
The evening planets and constellations at 10:30 p.m., June 29, 2016. Created using Stellarium.
Jupiter and its Galilean moons at 10:30 p.m. June 22, 2016. Jupiter’s apparent diameter will be 34.4″. Io is about to be occulted by Jupiter at 11:09 p.m. a.m. (3:09 UT, June 30th). Created using Cartes du Ciel (Sky Charts).
Mars as it might be seen in a large telescope with high power at 10:30 p.m. June 29, 2016. Mars apparent diameter is 16.5″. The central meridian will be 226.63 degrees. Created using Cartes du Ciel (Sky Charts).
Saturn and its moons at 10:30 p.m. June 29, 2016. The apparent diameter of the planet will be 18.2″, larger than Mars’ disk. The rings span 42.5″, larger than the apparent diameter of Jupiter. Created using Cartes du Ciel (Sky Charts).
Planets at sunset and sunrise of a single night starting with sunset on the right on June 29, 2016. The night ends on the left with sunrise on June 30. If you are using Firefox right-click on the image and select View Image to enlarge the image. That goes for all the large images.
06/22/2016 – Ephemeris – The evening planet parade
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 full, will rise at 11:03 this evening.
Let’s see what the bright naked eye planets are up to. Jupiter is in the southwest in the early evening, moving to the west-southwest. It will set at 1:15 a.m. It’s below the stars of Leo this year. Binoculars can make out some of Jupiter’s moons, but a telescope is required to see all four bright moons and Jupiter’s cloud features. Mars starts the evening in the southeast. It’s above and right of its look-a-like star Antares, whose name means Rival of Mars. Mars will move due south at 10:53 p.m. and will set at 3:30 a.m. Saturn is low in the east-southeast. It’s below and to the left of Mars. Saturn will pass due south at 12:18 a.m. and will set at 4:54 a.m. It’s a wonderful telescopic sight.
Times are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan. They may be different for your location.
Addendum
The evening planets and constellations at 11 p.m., June 22, 2016. Created using Stellarium.
Jupiter and its Galilean moons at 11 p.m. June 22, 2016. Jupiter’s apparent diameter will be 35.0″. Io is eclipsed in Jupiter’s shadow until 12:40 a.m. (4:40 UT) where it will reappear a small distance away from the planet on Ganymede’s side. Created using Cartes du Ciel (Sky Charts).
Mars as it might be seen in a large telescope with high power at 11 p.m. June 22, 2016. Mars apparent diameter is 17.2″. The central meridian will be 297.51 degrees. The large feature visible is Syrtis Major. Created using Cartes du Ciel (Sky Charts).
Saturn and its moons at 11 p.m. June 22, 2016. The apparent diameter of the planet will be 18.3″. The rings span 42.7″, larger than the apparent diameter of Jupiter. Created using Cartes du Ciel (Sky Charts).
Planets at sunset and sunrise of a single night starting with sunset on the right on June 22, 2016. The night ends on the left with sunrise on June 23. If you are using Firefox right-click on the image and select View Image to enlarge the image. That goes for all the large images.
Bob Moler's Ephemeris Blog 