Cosmically Active ~ The Sky this Week: August 30–September 8, 2013

[ayana]

The Sky this Week: August 30–September 8, 2013

Your daily digest of celestial events coming soon to a sky near you.

By Richard Talcott — Published: August 30, 2013

On August 31, Jupiter stands out from the time it rises (around 2 a.m. local daylight time) until twilight is well underway. // Don Parker Friday, August 30 The Moon reaches apogee, the farthest point in its orbit around Earth, at 7:46 p.m. EDT. It then lies 251,581 miles (404,881 kilometers) from Earth’s center. Saturday, August 31 Shining at magnitude –2.0, Jupiter stands out from the time it rises (around 2 a.m. local daylight time) until twilight is well underway. If you need any help identifying it, the Moon provides it this morning. The 23-percent-lit waning crescent appears 4° to the planet’s right as the two climb in the eastern sky. This week, Jupiter lies about 30° above the horizon (one-third of the way to the zenith) as morning twilight commences. A telescope reveals Jupiter’s 35"-diameter disk and at least two parallel dark belts in its atmosphere.

The Aurigid meteor shower peaks September 1. // Astronomy: Roen Kelly Sunday, September 1 The Aurigid meteor shower peaks this morning. Although this minor shower typically produces only 6 meteors per hour under optimal conditions, it occasionally performs much better. Rates six times higher than normal occurred in 1935, 1986, and 1994, and viewers recorded up to 130 meteors per hour in 2007. No one knows when the shower will burst out again, but the waning crescent Moon provides minimal interference this morning, so it’s a good time to check the shower out. Monday, September 2 The constellations Ursa Major the Great Bear and Cassiopeia the Queen lie on opposite sides of the North Celestial Pole, so the appear to pivot around the North Star (Polaris) throughout the course of the night and the year. In late August and early September, these two constellations appear equally high as darkness falls. You can find Ursa Major and its prominent asterism, the Big Dipper, about 30° above the northwestern horizon. Cassiopeia’s familiar W shape, which currently lies on its side, appears the same height above the northeastern horizon. As the night progresses, Cassiopeia climbs above Polaris while the Big Dipper swings below. Tuesday, September 3 Although Neptune reached opposition and peak visibility a week ago (on August 26), it remains a worthy target for several weeks. In early September, it rises near sunset and appears highest in the south shortly after midnight local daylight time. But you can start searching for it by 10 p.m., when it lies one-third of the way from the southeastern horizon to the zenith. Neptune glows at magnitude 7.8, bright enough to spot through binoculars if you know where to look. The trick is to find the 5th-magnitude star Sigma (σ) Aquarii, which lies roughly at the center of Aquarius the Water-bearer. Neptune currently appears 2° west of this star. For more information about viewing Neptune and its sister planet, Uranus, see “Prime time for Neptune and Uranus” in the August Astronomy. Wednesday, September 4 If you look overhead as darkness falls anytime this week, your eyes will fall on the brilliant star Vega in the constellation Lyra the Harp. At magnitude 0.0, Vega is the brightest member of the prominent Summer Triangle asterism. The Triangle’s second-brightest star, magnitude 0.8 Altair in Aquila the Eagle, lies some 35° southeast of Vega. The asterism’s dimmest member, magnitude 1.3 Deneb in Cygnus the Swan, stands about 25° east-northeast of Vega. Deneb trails Vega across the sky by about 2 hours, and passes through the zenith at approximately 11 p.m. local daylight time.

Brilliant Venus lies low in the west-southwest shortly after sunset all week. // Damian Peach Thursday, September 5 Brilliant Venus lies low in the west-southwest shortly after sunset all week. Shining at magnitude –4.0, the planet appears conspicuous as darkness falls to anyone with a clear sky and an unobstructed horizon. It stands approximately 10° above the horizon 30 minutes after the Sun sets. This evening, it passes 2° north (to the upper right) of Spica in the constellation Virgo the Maiden. You may need binoculars to pick up the 1st-magnitude star, which glows 100 times fainter than the planet. If you turn a telescope on Venus, you’ll see a disk that spans 15" and appears slightly less than three-quarters lit. New Moon occurs at 7:36 a.m. EDT. At its new phase, the Moon crosses the sky with the Sun and so remains hidden in our star’s glare. Friday, September 6 As darkness falls in early September, Saturn lies about 15° above the west-southwestern horizon. The ringed planet shines at magnitude 0.7 among the background stars of eastern Virgo, some 15° to the upper left of Venus. Although a naked-eye view of the planet is nice, seeing it through a telescope is breathtaking. Even a small instrument shows the distant world’s 16"-diameter disk and the spectacular rings, which span 36" and tilt 18° to our line of sight.

The waxing crescent Moon lies near Venus and Spica in the twilight sky September 8. // Astronomy: Roen Kelly Saturday, September 7 The Moon’s absence from the morning sky these next two weeks provides observers with an excellent opportunity to view the zodiacal light. From the Northern Hemisphere, the time around the autumnal equinox is the best for viewing the elusive glow before sunrise. It appears slightly fainter than the Milky Way, so you’ll need a clear moonless sky and an observing site located far from the city. Look for a cone-shaped glow that points nearly straight up from the eastern horizon shortly before morning twilight begins (around 5 a.m. local daylight time at mid-northern latitudes). The Moon remains out of the morning sky until September 18, when the waxing gibbous returns and overwhelms the much fainter zodiacal light.   Sunday, September 8 The waxing crescent Moon lies near Venus and Spica in this evening’s twilight sky. The Moon passes 0.4° south of the planet at 5 p.m. EDT. By the time darkness starts to fall in North America, the two appear between 1° and 2° apart, with Spica 3.6° west of Venus. By 4 a.m. local daylight time, Mars appears low in the east-northeast. Be sure to look for the Red Planet today or tomorrow, when it lies against the backdrop of the beautiful Beehive star cluster (M44) in Cancer the Crab. Binoculars or a wide-field telescope will deliver the best views of this impressive alignment. At magnitude 1.6, Mars shines nearly 100 times brighter than the cluster’s brightest stars. RELATED COSMOLOGY CONSCIOUSNESS: September 1-7, 2013 https://lightgrid.ning.com/group/hilarion-s-weekly-message-received...   Showers of high vibrational cosmic energies ~ ~ ~ https://lightgrid.ning.com/group/cosmologyconsciousness/forum/topic... http://www.astronomy.com/en/News-Observing/Sky%20this%20Week/2013/0...

[Myriel RAouine]

THANK YOU, AyAnna!