ITEMS FEATURED IN TGP NOMINAL 8.10 - August SKIES 2022
ROSS HOCKHAM'S August SKY GUIDE:
The planets are finally starting to move into the night sky from being morning objects.
Saturn is rising around 21:30 and reaches opposition this month so will put on a good show.
Jupiter follows around 22:45, meaning it is up most of the night
Mars and Uranus rise together at midnight and are close together as they rise
with Uranus just above the red planet at the start of the month.
You’ll have to wait until 03:45am for the bright Venus to pop up, before the Sun then rises at around 05:30am.
So after a few months of not great morning planets, we are finally starting to get a good view of our celestial neighbours.
Saturn is rising around 21:30 and reaches opposition this month so will put on a good show.
Jupiter follows around 22:45, meaning it is up most of the night
Mars and Uranus rise together at midnight and are close together as they rise
with Uranus just above the red planet at the start of the month.
You’ll have to wait until 03:45am for the bright Venus to pop up, before the Sun then rises at around 05:30am.
So after a few months of not great morning planets, we are finally starting to get a good view of our celestial neighbours.
There has been a bright comet in the skies and they say that it will be well worth a peek this month.
Comet C/2017 K2 Panstarrs starts in the constellation Ophiuchus (The Serpent Bearer ending in Scorpius (The Scorpion).
There have been a few pictures of it in the UK Astronomy Facebook Group and it looks pretty.
It came closest to the Earth on July 14th, at 172 million miles away it was still quite far
but it has been brightening, so you should be able to spot it with binoculars.
We start the month with the Moon out of the way which is a great start to the month
as we can get out and take a peek at some galaxies or nebula that may be washed out by the bright Moon.
Comet C/2017 K2 Panstarrs starts in the constellation Ophiuchus (The Serpent Bearer ending in Scorpius (The Scorpion).
There have been a few pictures of it in the UK Astronomy Facebook Group and it looks pretty.
It came closest to the Earth on July 14th, at 172 million miles away it was still quite far
but it has been brightening, so you should be able to spot it with binoculars.
We start the month with the Moon out of the way which is a great start to the month
as we can get out and take a peek at some galaxies or nebula that may be washed out by the bright Moon.
On the 2nd, Mars and Uranus are close in the sky
Finding Uranus can be difficult as you will need a telescope to see the dim planet
but tonight is a great opportunity to spot it as it will be just above left of the red Mars.
Rising around midnight it should be dark and high enough to see.
probably at it's best around 2am to see, before the Sun washes it out.
Finding Uranus can be difficult as you will need a telescope to see the dim planet
but tonight is a great opportunity to spot it as it will be just above left of the red Mars.
Rising around midnight it should be dark and high enough to see.
probably at it's best around 2am to see, before the Sun washes it out.
If you take a peek at the Moon on the evening of the 4th, see if you can spot the X and V on the Moon.
This is a Clair-Obscur Effect created on a roughly 42% lit waxing Moon
where a few craters created what looks like an X and V from the sunlight glinting off their edges.
This is a Clair-Obscur Effect created on a roughly 42% lit waxing Moon
where a few craters created what looks like an X and V from the sunlight glinting off their edges.
On the 11th, take a look at the nearly full Moon and there is a new feature, that I read about called Reiner Gamma.
Reiner Gamma is a bright swirl in the area called Oceanus Procellarum
which is the big dark Mare on the left part of the Moon.
This object is actually best on or near a full Moon and unlike other features it looks best in the shadowed part.
Next to the Crater Reiner, it was originally thought to be a Lunar Highland
but scientists eventually realized that it cast no shadow on the moon and its still a bit of a mystery how it was created
and now they think it is associated with a localized magnetic field.
Reiner Gamma is a bright swirl in the area called Oceanus Procellarum
which is the big dark Mare on the left part of the Moon.
This object is actually best on or near a full Moon and unlike other features it looks best in the shadowed part.
Next to the Crater Reiner, it was originally thought to be a Lunar Highland
but scientists eventually realized that it cast no shadow on the moon and its still a bit of a mystery how it was created
and now they think it is associated with a localized magnetic field.
On the 12th, a full Moon rises at 21:23, with Saturn just above right of it and Jupiter rising not long after.
Pop out after 23:00 and you will see a cool thin triangle conjunction between the planets and our Moon.
Pop out after 23:00 and you will see a cool thin triangle conjunction between the planets and our Moon.
On the 14th, Saturn reaches opposition tonight (meaning it will be nice and bright for us to view).
It's rings will have visibly brightened as the month went on to their peak tonight.
This is definitely our telescope object of the month and I’ll go into a bit more detail again later for you.
You should also see that the Moon has moved and will now be sitting in between the two planets Saturn and Jupiter.
It's rings will have visibly brightened as the month went on to their peak tonight.
This is definitely our telescope object of the month and I’ll go into a bit more detail again later for you.
You should also see that the Moon has moved and will now be sitting in between the two planets Saturn and Jupiter.
On the 15th, the 87% lit Moon is now closer to Jupiter and will be moving past it.
Sitting to its left on the 16th, so you have a few good nights to pop out and see these 3 objects in our skies.
Sitting to its left on the 16th, so you have a few good nights to pop out and see these 3 objects in our skies.
After Midnight on the 18th (so morning of 19th), the Moon will be near the planet Mars
and the bright blue star cluster M45 The Pleiades.
This will be an awesome early sight in our sky and a great chance to whip out your binoculars
and view all the objects that are up.
This will be spoken more about in our binocular object of the month guide.
and the bright blue star cluster M45 The Pleiades.
This will be an awesome early sight in our sky and a great chance to whip out your binoculars
and view all the objects that are up.
This will be spoken more about in our binocular object of the month guide.
If you missed it yesterday, after midnight on the 20th, the Moon will have moved past M45 the Pleiades Cluster
but you have a second chance at seeing yesterday's show plus another chance at our binocular object of the month.
but you have a second chance at seeing yesterday's show plus another chance at our binocular object of the month.
If you're into "minor planets" 4 Vesta reaches opposition on the night of the 24th.
Although you will only see a white dot of light through a telescope
it’s a cool thing to spot and watch how it moves in relation to the stars over the month.
It rises with Saturn and is to it's left, but in the middle of no mans land
o a bit of star hopping may be needed to find it below the constellation Aquarius (The Water Bearer).
Although you will only see a white dot of light through a telescope
it’s a cool thing to spot and watch how it moves in relation to the stars over the month.
It rises with Saturn and is to it's left, but in the middle of no mans land
o a bit of star hopping may be needed to find it below the constellation Aquarius (The Water Bearer).
If you're up after 5am on the 26th, as Venus rises there will be a thin crescent Moon just to it's left.
A very nice morning view out your window as you sip that coffee to make you smile ready for the day ahead.
A very nice morning view out your window as you sip that coffee to make you smile ready for the day ahead.
On the 28th, see if you can spot the now thin evening Moon as it has moved past the Sun.
It will slowly be getting high and brighter in the evening sky.
It will slowly be getting high and brighter in the evening sky.
NAKED EYE OBJECT Of The Month:
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On the 13th Its time for the famous Perseid Meteor Shower which of course is always our Naked Eye Object Of The Month.
Meteors or shooting stars happen every night but a shower is a special event where the amount you can see increase dramatically, we have these yearly all through the year but some like this month’s Perseids produce more than others.
To understand why, we need to start by looking at comets, and in this case a comet called 109/P Swift-Tuttle named after those that discovered it, Lewis Swift and Horace Parnell Tuttle in 1862,
Yep, if you find something in space you get to name it.
A comet is like a huge snowball orbiting our sun this one has been going round for hundreds probably thousands of years, as it does it heats up as it nears the Sun and this causes a trail of dust and ice,
periodically Earth moves through these immense dust trails or lanes left by comets and sometimes asteroids as we orbit.
As we pass through these tiny pieces of comet dust enter our atmosphere at awesome speed, technically burning up in our atmosphere creating a streak of light across our skies.
Which is really awesome to see especially as the Perseids have been known to create the odd fireball,
where larger pieces literally pop across the sky leaving a smoke trail.
The peak of the shower happens because we entered the dust stream in July and won’t leave it until the end of August
so the shower of meteors slowly builds up each night to its peak them slowly dwindles back to normality.
The Perseids will be peaking on the 12/13th of the month so, if you look up for the W in the sky
which is the constellation Cassiopeia (The Vain Queen) just below her is Perseus (The Hero)
These fixed events like the Perseids are named due to the location in the sky from where the meteors radiate
The beauty of this event is you don’t need any equipment just grab a coffee or hot chocolate
get the kids and go out into your garden or a nice dark field and look up.
However, a just past full Moon will be getting in the way this year.
Perseus rises pretty much from when the sunsets, I’d say around 22:00 onwards to the North East.
If you don’t have a compass handy, put your left arm out towards the setting sun
your right arm straight out the opposite side, bring them both together in front of you and look up
probably slightly to your right you should see a slightly off W in the sky
Cassiopeia the vain queen with Perseus is just below her.
As the night goes on Perseus rises and so you will get a better chance to see the meteors, later in the night some say around 2am will be best, so set an alarm.
Every year they predict 100-120 meteors an hour but..... you are never going to see this amount, I’m sorry to say
because of light pollution and the Moon being in a bad position this year.
but I personally have laid on a field with my wife and counted 67 in around an hour and a half.
But its an unpredictable dust lane left by a comet with dense areas within it so you never know.
Just think you are seeing pieces of a comet burning up in our atmosphere
as our planet passes through it's path and it only takes one slightly larger piece to create a stunning display
that you’ll remember for ever.
BINOCULAR OBJECT Of The Month:
There will be an almost upside down U shape of objects to see this month.
Around 3am, starting from the left towards the rising sun, you will see the huge red giant star Betelgeuse
in the constellation Orion (The Hunter) peeking up from the horizon.
To it's right slightly above is another red star Aldebaran the eye of the constellation Taurus (The Bull).
Above that you will have Mars, the Moon and to their left, the bright M45 the Pleiades Cluster
Further right will be Jupiter and further still will be Saturn.
A fantastic array of different objects to sweep your binoculars over and see if you can spot them all
Plus there are Jupiter’s 4 main moons and Saturn’s bright rings.
Around 3am, starting from the left towards the rising sun, you will see the huge red giant star Betelgeuse
in the constellation Orion (The Hunter) peeking up from the horizon.
To it's right slightly above is another red star Aldebaran the eye of the constellation Taurus (The Bull).
Above that you will have Mars, the Moon and to their left, the bright M45 the Pleiades Cluster
Further right will be Jupiter and further still will be Saturn.
A fantastic array of different objects to sweep your binoculars over and see if you can spot them all
Plus there are Jupiter’s 4 main moons and Saturn’s bright rings.
TELESCOPE OBJECT Of The Month:
Saturn rises and is up pretty much most of the night, so we have a great chance to see it over the month.
This is because it is at opposition, which means directly opposite us from the Sun in our orbit.
It appears brighter especially it's awesome ring system.
If you watch it over the morning you will see it's rings dip from one side to the other as we spin.
They are also slightly tipped towards us giving us a great view of them.
See if you can spot the gaps and even with a small telescope you can see them.
Maybe even see it's Moon Titan to its bottom right. (remember reflectors (mirrored telescopes) flip things round).
This is because it is at opposition, which means directly opposite us from the Sun in our orbit.
It appears brighter especially it's awesome ring system.
If you watch it over the morning you will see it's rings dip from one side to the other as we spin.
They are also slightly tipped towards us giving us a great view of them.
See if you can spot the gaps and even with a small telescope you can see them.
Maybe even see it's Moon Titan to its bottom right. (remember reflectors (mirrored telescopes) flip things round).
ASTROPHOTOGRAPHY OBJECTOf The Month:
This month's Astrophotography object is awesome looking nebula in the head of the constellation Cepheus (The King) called IC1396 or The Elephants Trunk Nebula.
It looks amazing when photographed with cones of gas that really do look like an elephants trunk.
IC1396 is 20 lightyears long and made up of young stars which are within a cloud of glowing ionised gas.
The trunk itself is made of cooler interstellar gas which blocks out light towards Earth
creating this nice long thin silhouette that gives the nebula its name at around 3000 light years away.
It looks amazing when photographed with cones of gas that really do look like an elephants trunk.
IC1396 is 20 lightyears long and made up of young stars which are within a cloud of glowing ionised gas.
The trunk itself is made of cooler interstellar gas which blocks out light towards Earth
creating this nice long thin silhouette that gives the nebula its name at around 3000 light years away.
Ross's Sagitta conundrum:
On last month’s Sky Guide, Ross wasn’t sure if the constellation Sagitta was the arrow or not.
An easy way to remember this is that in the Zodiac, Sagittarius is the Archer and Sagitta is part of the name Sagittarius and apart from a bow, what would you associate with an archer, the shape of the constellation tells you that it’s not a bow.
However, if Sagittarius was an Angler instead of an Archer, Sagitta would definitely be a Rod Rest
Constellations often look nothing like the object they are supposed to represent.
For example, Lyra (The Harp) which looks more like fish.
An easy way to remember this is that in the Zodiac, Sagittarius is the Archer and Sagitta is part of the name Sagittarius and apart from a bow, what would you associate with an archer, the shape of the constellation tells you that it’s not a bow.
However, if Sagittarius was an Angler instead of an Archer, Sagitta would definitely be a Rod Rest
Constellations often look nothing like the object they are supposed to represent.
For example, Lyra (The Harp) which looks more like fish.
It's supposed to resemble the ancient musical handheld harp
that would often be depicted in renaissance art, played by cherubs.
The modern version of the harp called a Lyre is popular in folk music particularly in Ireland.
that would often be depicted in renaissance art, played by cherubs.
The modern version of the harp called a Lyre is popular in folk music particularly in Ireland.
James Webb Space Telescope's First Images:
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President Joe Biden with the help of NASA Administrator Bill Nelson, unveiled a teaser
of what The James Webb Space Telescope can do, during a White House event on July 11th.
In 1986, Bill Nelson became the second sitting member of Congress (and the first member of the House) to travel into space when he was a Payload Specialist on STS-61C on board Space Shuttle Columbia.
The teaser was an image of a galaxy cluster called the Southern MAssive Cluster Survey or SMACS 0723
as it appeared 4.6 billion years ago.
The image is affectionately known as Webb's First Deep Field Image.
Here's how to tell the difference between a Hubble Space Telescope & a James Webb Space Telescope Image.
If you look at stars, on a James Webb Image it will have six points
whereas a Hubble Image will have four, due to the shape of the Primary Mirror Array.
The following day (12th of July) NASA hosted a live stream to reveal a batch of images of James Webb's first targets
The live stream was an emotional and proud moment for TGP NOMINAL
because we have interviewed many of the experts involved with the coverage.
The live stream was an emotional and proud moment for TGP NOMINAL
because we have interviewed many of the experts involved with the coverage.
Dr Michelle Thaller, who hosted the broadcast and was John Berger’s first Solo Interview as Mark Taylor was in transit to cover an event, where he first met the UK Astronomy Team.
Dr Thaller is the assistant director for Science Communication at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center.
Dr Thaller is the assistant director for Science Communication at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center.
Dr Eric Smith who at the time was the James Webb Program Director when we interviewed him.
Dr Amber Straughn who is the Deputy Project Scientist for James Webb
and as an Astrophysicist came on board to answer Astronomy questions from our listeners
school kids & UK Astronomy Facebook Group members.
and as an Astrophysicist came on board to answer Astronomy questions from our listeners
school kids & UK Astronomy Facebook Group members.
Professor Mark Mccaughrean who is Senior Advisor for Science and Exploration at the European Space Agency
and a Science Working Group Interdisciplinary Scientist for the James Webb Program.
Mark is also a TGP NOMINAL Honorary Crew Member and has submitted his Object Of the Month in the past for sky guides.
and a Science Working Group Interdisciplinary Scientist for the James Webb Program.
Mark is also a TGP NOMINAL Honorary Crew Member and has submitted his Object Of the Month in the past for sky guides.
James Webb's First Images:
For more information about the images and the James Webb Space Telescope, visit our Dedicated James Webb Page.
James Webb's Micrometeoroid Impact:
NASA has just announced that Apparently, between May 23rd and 25th
James Webb sustained an impact to the C3 segment which is located to the bottom right hand side of it’s Primary Mirror.
James Webb has 18 hexagonal-shaped mirror segments, each of them being 1.32 meters (4.3 feet) in diameter.
The Micrometeoroid that hit, was smaller than a grain of sand, but in the whole scope of things, minute,
even though it was probably travelling faster than a bullet.
Micrometeoroid strikes are an unavoidable aspect of operating any spacecraft
which routinely sustain many impacts over the course of their missions in space.
James Webb’s mirror was engineered to withstand bombardment from dust-sized particles
flying at extreme velocities in the environment where it stationed
at the 2nd Lagrange Point or L2 as it is more commonly known.
After initial assessments, the team found the telescope is still performing at a level that exceeds all mission requirements despite a marginally detectable effect in the data.
Thorough analysis and measurements are ongoing.
Impacts will continue to occur throughout the entirety of James Webb’s lifetime in space and such events were anticipated when building and testing the mirror on the ground.
James Webb sustained an impact to the C3 segment which is located to the bottom right hand side of it’s Primary Mirror.
James Webb has 18 hexagonal-shaped mirror segments, each of them being 1.32 meters (4.3 feet) in diameter.
The Micrometeoroid that hit, was smaller than a grain of sand, but in the whole scope of things, minute,
even though it was probably travelling faster than a bullet.
Micrometeoroid strikes are an unavoidable aspect of operating any spacecraft
which routinely sustain many impacts over the course of their missions in space.
James Webb’s mirror was engineered to withstand bombardment from dust-sized particles
flying at extreme velocities in the environment where it stationed
at the 2nd Lagrange Point or L2 as it is more commonly known.
After initial assessments, the team found the telescope is still performing at a level that exceeds all mission requirements despite a marginally detectable effect in the data.
Thorough analysis and measurements are ongoing.
Impacts will continue to occur throughout the entirety of James Webb’s lifetime in space and such events were anticipated when building and testing the mirror on the ground.
Ross Hockham's Points Of Light Award:
The Points Of Light awarded to Ross Hockham BCAe by the Prime Minister for his work with UK Astronomy