This image of the LeoTrio of Galaxies was captured by Marcus Bauer. It was a NASA APOD for April 18, 2019. Top to bottom, the image spans one degree of the sky. The Hamburger Galaxy (NGC 3628) is at centre left. M65 is at top centre and M66 is at centre right. Happy Mother’s Day!…
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This image of the moon by Michael Watson of Toronto was taken 9 hours after it was full on February 22, 2016 – replicating how the May, 2020 full moon will appear on Thursday night. Note that the moon’s right-hand edge shows some shadowing – evidence that it is slightly past full. The many bright…
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On Sunday evening, April 26, the young crescent moon will sit beside the bright planet Venus in the western sky after sunset, as shown here at 9 pm local time. The sight will make a lovely photo opportunity. Hello, Moon and Venus Lovers! Here are your Astronomy Skylights for the week of April 26th, 2020…
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This image taken by Ron Brecher of Guelph, Ontario on March 16, 2019 shows the bright, narrow appearance of the Whale Galaxy (or NGC 4631) at top left and the dimmer Hockey Stick or Crowbar Galaxy (or NGC 4656) at bottom right.These galaxies are about 25 and 30 million light years away from us, respectively.…
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This simulated view of Venus shows the shape it will appear when viewed through a backyard telescope this month. Galileo was the first to note that Venus changed in apparent size and shape. Hello, April Stargazers! Here are your Astronomy Skylights for the week of April 12th, 2020 by Chris Vaughan. Feel free to send…
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This colour image of the full moon was taken in the UK by Simon Smith on August 31, 2012. It clearly shows the contrast between the dark lunar maria basalts, the white cratered highlands, and the ray systems extending from many recent impacts. Note the blue tint of titanium-enriched basalt in Mare Tranquilitatis (right of…
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This composite of many successive images by Kris Smith shows the International Space Station flying across the disk of the full moon.Photographing these transits require careful planning and split-second timing. Another one will occur for Toronto on Saturday evening, April 4, 2020. NASA APOD for Nov 14, 2016. Hello, April Stargazers! Here are your Astronomy…
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This lovely widefield image of Auriga (the Charioteer) was taken by Alan Dyer of Calgary on January 23, 2011. It nicely shows the rich clusters and star fields that populate that constellation’s circlet of stars. The Flaming star Nebula is the red patch. Other knots of stars are open clusters. Capella, or Alpha Aurigae, is…
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On Monday, March 23 from 8:13 to 8:19 pm EDT, the International Space Station will fly high over of the GTA in a very bright pass, rising over the west-southwestern horizon, flying past Venus, and then disappearing into Earth’s shadow just above the northeastern horizon. Artificial satellites are visible because they are high enough to…
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The bright and large open star cluster known as the Pleiades or Messier 45 is composed of sibling stars (the daughters of Atlas and Pleione in Greek mythology) that formed of the same gas cloud. Interstellar dust in the foreground scatters the stars’ light with a blue colour. The cluster is very easily seen with…
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