iTEMS fEATURED iN tgp nominal xTRA - sEPTEMBER sKIES 2021
ROSS HOCKHAM'S sEPTEMBER SKY GUIDE:
During the Sky Guide, Ross spoke about the Perseid Meteor Shower that took place last month.
Over the years Ross has attempted to capture meteors with varying degrees of success.
Above are three images thar Ross took using different methods.
The first image was taken on a smartphone in Meteor Mode, the second was Ross's first attempt with a DSLR Camera,
and the third image was taken with a Solid State Camera attached to a telescope.
Over the years Ross has attempted to capture meteors with varying degrees of success.
Above are three images thar Ross took using different methods.
The first image was taken on a smartphone in Meteor Mode, the second was Ross's first attempt with a DSLR Camera,
and the third image was taken with a Solid State Camera attached to a telescope.
If you missed the Jupiter moon transits, last month,
don’t worry, because to start the month off, there is another early this morning.
Callisto, Jupiter’s dead moon and one of the most heavily cratered objects in our solar system,
transits the planet around 02:33am, setting before the transit ends.
On the 2nd, a star disappears behind a 24% lit moon this morning around 01:12am,
reappearing around 02:04am depending on your location, so you can watch the moon pass in front of a star.
If you missed yesterday’s occult there is another on the morning of the 3rd at around 03:41am, reappearing at 04:38am.
So, a second chance to see this cool phenomenon.
On the morning of the 4th, a thin crescent moon will not far from the great binocular object,
M44, The Beehive Cluster or Presepe in the constellation Cancer (The Crab).
It is full of all different coloured and aged stars.
As Jupiter is only just passed its opposition last month we are still getting some good views and transits.
So on the 5th, Europa the frozen moon full of ridges and cracks in its ice will transit the planet around 23:12,
followed by its shadow just after midnight.
Stay up a bit later and you’ll see Ganymede the largest moon in our solar system,
start its journey across the planet at 02:03am with its shadow following at 03:47am.
It's also the only moon with its own magnetic field that can cause aurora like ours on earth.
The 6th is a great chance to spot a very thin 1% crescent moon about an hour before sunrise.
Be Careful When Looking Near The Sun!
It will be to the left of the bright blue star Regulus, in the constellation Leo (The Lion).
Regulus is also known as the harbinger of Spring, or the King's star.
On the 7th, there’s also another opportunity to spot the thin crescent,
but this time in the more friendly hours of the afternoon rather than yesterday’s early morning,
as it has now passed to the other side of our Sun.
Setting about half an hour after it.
On the evening of the 9th, the Moon will not be far from the planet Venus, the goddess of beauty.
Did you know she spins the opposite way to all the other planets and a day there is longer than a year?
Have a think about that as you look up at this awesome planet this evening.
You may spot a bright star called Spica, just below left of the Moon creating a triangle between them and Venus.
Fancy an asteroid hunt?
2 Pallas (A802 FA) reaches opposition on the 11th, in the constellation Pisces (The Fishes).
Apparently it can be spotted even with just binoculars,
but you will need an app to star hop to find which white dot is the asteroid.
2 Pallas is one of the largest asteroids, being around the same size as the UK.
On the13th, point your scopes towards the moon and see if you can spot the Lunar X and V across itsTerminator
(that’s the shadow part where the Sun glints off the top of mountains and craters creating illusions like the x and v).
On the 14th, Mercury reaches its Greatest Eastern Elongation,
meaning this evening is a great time to go out and try to spot it.
But it will be setting 20 minutes after the Sun, so you’ll have to be quick and have a low horizon.
Mercury is quite a small planet in fact it only just bigger than our own Moon.
Neptune the god of the sea also reaches opposition tonight, best seen after 21:00,
the later the darker the skies will be and the easier to find it.
Neptune is positioned in between Aquarius and Pisces so a bit of star hopping will be needed to find it.
2 Pallas is above right of it, if you fancied looking.
On the 15th, The Moon, Saturn and Jupiter will make a nice curved line in the evening sky.
On the 17th, the moon will be sat in between the planets Jupiter and Saturn this evening.
Saturn being to its right and Jupiter to its left.
There will also be another transit but this time of Callisto’s shadow.
Starting at 23:43 and crossing the planet.
The Full Moon on the 20th is known as the harvest moon, as it is the closest one to our Autumn Equinox.
It gave farmers the cue to start harvesting their crops.
The Full Moon on the 20th is known as the harvest moon, as it is the closest one to our Autumn Equinox.
It gave farmers the cue to start harvesting their crops.
The 22nd starts the season of Autumn, as the Sun crosses the celestial equator.
Good news for us Astronomers, as the dark skies are coming!
The 27th brings something for the keen eyed astronomer.
if you can find Jupiter in the daylight around 15:49, you may see a shadow transit of the moon Ganymede.
A go-to scope will probably help a lot here finding the planet but it is possible to see it during the day.
The 27th brings something for the keen eyed astronomer.
if you can find Jupiter in the daylight around 15:49, you may see a shadow transit of the moon Ganymede.
A go-to scope will probably help a lot here finding the planet but it is possible to see it during the day.
This month's Naked Eye Object is the Constellation Cygnus – a swan flying through the Milky way.
Pop out after it gets dark and look straight up.
If clear enough you may make out a slight milky band, our galaxy (well one of its arms, anyway).
You will probably notice a big bright blue star, that’s Vega.
To its left is the star Deneb the tail of the swan, move right and you should spot a yellow star called Sadr.
This is the body of Cygnus, above and below are 6 stars, representing its spread wings across the night sky.
Two more stars to the right and you have travelled down the swan’s neck with Albireo at its head,
This is a famous double star that looks awesome through a telescope.
So go out look up and imagine a great swan gliding through the Milkyway.
Our Binocular Object this month is an asterism called Kemble's Cascade.
It can be found in the constellation Camelopardalis (The Giraffe)
Camelopardalis is a modern and not a really well know constellation, but there are a couple of cool objects for you to spot with your binoculars in the area.
The constellation is pretty much three stars in a triangle, an extra one on the bottom line,
and a lone star added to represent the giraffes long neck.
It can be found to the left of Perseus and below left of Cassiopeia the sideways W.
Have a peek around the bottom line of the constellation, where the middle star lies or look on you app for NGC 1502.
This is Kemble's Cascade, a cascade of stars which looks great in wider field of views, flowing down from the constellation.
While there, look around see if you can spot a kite shape of stars, which is Kemble's Kite.
It can be found in the constellation Camelopardalis (The Giraffe)
Camelopardalis is a modern and not a really well know constellation, but there are a couple of cool objects for you to spot with your binoculars in the area.
The constellation is pretty much three stars in a triangle, an extra one on the bottom line,
and a lone star added to represent the giraffes long neck.
It can be found to the left of Perseus and below left of Cassiopeia the sideways W.
Have a peek around the bottom line of the constellation, where the middle star lies or look on you app for NGC 1502.
This is Kemble's Cascade, a cascade of stars which looks great in wider field of views, flowing down from the constellation.
While there, look around see if you can spot a kite shape of stars, which is Kemble's Kite.
Now, almost all of us have heard of the Andromeda Galaxy (M31) but just below this is the Triangulum constellation,
yeah you guessed it 3 stars representing a triangle.
Between the Triangulum constellation and Andromeda's star Mirach is our Telescope Object Of The Month,
and a great little galaxy to spot, the Triangulum Galaxy (M33).
It is a Spiral Galaxy, 2.73 million light-years from Earth and the third largest member of the local group of galaxies, including Andromeda, so pop out and see one of our neighbours.
Now, almost all of us have heard of the Andromeda Galaxy (M31) but just below this is the Triangulum constellation,
yeah you guessed it 3 stars representing a triangle.
Between the Triangulum constellation and Andromeda's star Mirach is our Telescope Object Of The Month,
and a great little galaxy to spot, the Triangulum Galaxy (M33).
It is a Spiral Galaxy, 2.73 million light-years from Earth and the third largest member of the local group of galaxies, including Andromeda, so pop out and see one of our neighbours.