Tag: New Moon

The Evening Moon Exhibits Earthshine, Poses With Planets, and Turns its Eastern Cheek – plus An Eye on Orion!

This terrific image of the Orion’s sword was taken on January 7, 2019 by Rick Foster of Markham, Ontario. Even binoculars will reveal that the central patch of light is the splendid Orion Nebula, also known as Messier 42. The grouping of bright stars at bottom right are “the Lost Jewel of Orion’s Sword”, particularly…
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A Spotty Sun, Comet E3 Enters Evening, Pre-dawn Lunar Libration, Mercury in Morning, Venus Smooches Saturn at Sunset, and a Taurus Tour!

This amazing composite image by Detlef Hartmann shows the continued expansion of the Crab Nebula Supernova Remnant (aka Messier 1) in Taurus over 10 years (Sept 29, 2008 through Sept 22, 2017). It spans about 0.1 degrees of the sky. In the heart of the nebula sits a rapidly rotating neutron star that emits radio…
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Max Mercury and Plenty of Planets, an Absent Moon Allows More Meteors and a Perseus Perusal, and Splaining the Solstice!

When the very bright “dog star” star Sirius (aka Alpha Canis Majoris) climbs high enough to clear the treetops around 10 pm local time on Christmas, its intense light and flashes of festive colour are bound to catch your eye, and just might fill you with Holiday spirit! Happy Hanukkah and Winter Solstice, Stargazers! Here…
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A Morning Moon Lets Us Admire Leftover Meteors and Andromeda’s Jewels, and Peruse Evening Planets!

This image by Kent Wood was NASA’s Astronomy Picture of the Day for October 27, 2017. It shows the bright star Mirach aka Beta Andromedae and the distant background elliptical galaxy NGC 404 positioned just to its north-northwest (upper left of centre). The galaxy, which is nick-named Mirach’s Ghost, can be seen in 6″ or…
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Monday’s New Moon Brings Diwali and a Partial Eclipse, Arcturus Ghosts the Sun, and Jupiter’s Moons Say Boo!

The circumstances for Tuesday’s partial solar eclipse, which will occur during the new moon syzygy. The eclipse will only be visible with protective solar filters across parts of Europe, Africa, and Asia. This scene shows the position of the moon’s shadow on Earth at 11:01 GMT on October 25, 2022. (Starry Night) Hello, Late-October Stargazers!…
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The Moon Returns After New, An Extra-close Jupiter Sports Spots, and Mars Cruises by a Cluster!

Getting ready for Monday’s close Jupiter opposition, Chris Curwin of Astronomy by the Bay in Saint John, NB recently captured the gas giant planets in evening with his Hauwei smartphone. Chris is very active in astronomy outreach in Southern New Brunswick. Find out about his events at http://sjastronomy.ca/ or watch his streams on YouTube at…
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Peering at Planets from Dusk to Dawn, and Eyeing Aquila on Moonless Nights!

This image of the Wild Duck Cluster, also known as Messier 11 and NGC 6705 in Scutum covers a patch of sky equal to the diameter of the full moon. The magnitude 6.3 open star cluster is visible with unaided eyes and through binoculars and telescopes, despite its 6200 light-year distance. It was taken using…
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The Missing Moon Brings More Meteors and Comet Views, Mars Nears Uranus, and Summer Triangle Treats the Animals!

The Dumbbell Nebula, imaged by Steve McKinney, is a large planetary nebula in Vulpecula (the Fox). It’s visible (without colour) in a backyard telescope. Planetary nebulae are the corpses of stars with mass similar to our sun. This one resembles and apple core! This image covers a patch of sky about as wide as a…
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Appreciating Planets and Catching a Comet, Noctilucent Clouds, and Ogling Ophiuchus on Moonless Eves!

An image of globular the star cluster Messier 10, also known as NGC 6254, by Höcherl. The cluster spans about 40% of the full moon’s diameter. At magnitude 6.4, it can be seen with unaided eyes at a dark location, and in binoculars and through any size of telescope. It is estimated to be 14,300…
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Meteor Storm After Midnight Maybe, the Moon Masks A Leo Star, and Planets Parade in Predawn!

The scene viewed from Mexico City on Sunday, June 5 at 10:37 pm CDT, just before the moon begins to move in front of the bright star Al Jabhah, aka Eta Leonis. Timings vary by latitude and the hour varies with time zone. (From Stellarium) Hello, Stars and Planets Fans! Here are your Astronomy Skylights…
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