I gazed at the full moon, hanging low and bright oe’r the trees last night, warm and inviting on that September night. The late summer sky is no less beautiful now than when it was at the beginning. The moon, with the southern stars of summer, Antares in Scorpio and Sagittarius to the east, are[…]
A view towards the SSE at astronomical twilight (8:15 PM EDT), Sunday, August 27. The waxing gibbous moon is low above the southern horizon and Saturn is rising further to the east. The ecliptic is presented in this view to illustrate where the plane of the solar system is. Note that all solar system objects[…]
Tonight, we will be witness to the occultation of the red supergiant star Antares by the First Quarter moon. A previous occultation of the red supergiant star by the full moon was observed by Dr. Jim Daly back on June 6, 2009. Why are occultations important? The accurate timing of lunar occultations is performed[…]
The Full Moon in August is named after North America’s largest fish, the lake sturgeon. Other names for this Full Moon include Grain Moon, Green Corn Moon, Fruit Moon, and Barley Moon. Blue Moon The “first” full moon for this month occurred on Tuesday, August 1st. The August 30 (Wednesday) full moon will be the second, hence,[…]
By James Daly, Ph.D At 1:47 AM, EST on November 16, 2022, humanity took the first step on the long road back to the moon and on to Mars with the launch of Artemis 1. With that launch, the mighty SLS (Space Launch System) boosted the unmanned Orion spacecraft into earth orbit and on to[…]
We often speak of a “Super Moon” within the context of the Full Moon phase, rather than its opposite, the ‘New’ moon. The New moon is the beginning of the lunar cycle when the moon is aligned with the earth and the sun with the moon towards the sun. It is the only phase of[…]
July 2022 Full Buck Supermoon low in the southeast following its rising at 21:00 UT (9:00 PM, EDT) on July 13. Note: the brilliant ruby Antares is near the meridian with the “Tea Pot” of Sagittarius to the east. Image via Stellarium. The full moon for this month occurs on Wednesday, July 13. According to[…]
This Year’s Winter Solstice Occurs on Tuesday, December 21, 2021 at 10:59 am EST The sun is at its lowest point on the sky at mid-day during the third week in December in the northern hemisphere and represents the ‘beginning of winter’. The two Equinoxes (Vernal or ‘Spring’, 3rd week in March and Autumnal, 3rd[…]
The Full Moon in August is named after North America’s largest fish, the lake sturgeon. Other names for this Full Moon include Grain Moon, Green Corn Moon, Fruit Moon, and Barley Moon. Tonight’s full moon marks this year’s first Real ‘Blue Moon’ (a term suggesting the occurrence of something rare). Normally, there are only three[…]
Tonight’s southern vista features the waxing gibbous moon 2 days before full, 4 degrees north of the heart of the Scorpion, the red supergiant star Antares. For complete ephemerides of the moon, including phase, please visit Time and Date. The current phase of the moon is always displayed on any of our articles or pages[…]
The full moon for April, 2021 occurs tonight, April 26. The full moon is a unique and interesting lunar phase for a variety of reasons. It always rises as the sun sets and is the only phase during which we can witness a lunar eclipse, the immersion of the moon into the earth’s shadow. As[…]
Join Dr. Jim Daly of Astronomy for Change as he showcases and describes a rare triple conjunction of Mercury, Jupiter and Saturn in the early morning hours before sunrise, a planetary alignment visible through Sunday, March 14. Those who are early risers will be witness to this rare planetary alignment. Especially rare and quite spectacular[…]
