Tuesday, August 13, 2024

Moon Crosses the Scorpion's Heart (evening)

On Tuesday, August 13 the waxing, gibbous moon will rise in mid-afternoon. As the sky darkens after sunset, Antares, the bright, reddish, supergiant star in the heart of Scorpius, will appear to just to the moon's upper left (celestial east), close enough for the duo to share the view in binoculars. Due to the moon?s continuous eastward orbital motion across the stars, it will pass closely below Antares for those viewing in westerly time zones. Observers in the South Pacific Ocean region, including the Galapagos Islands, can watch the moon occult Antares after midnight.

(Data courtesy of Starry Night)
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* Origin: CJ's Place, Orange City FL > cjsplace.thruhere.net (954:895/61)

Wednesday, August 14, 2024

Mars Meets Jupiter (pre-dawn)

On the mornings surrounding Wednesday, August 14, the orbital motion of the
red planet Mars will carry it very closely past brilliant, white Jupiter. The pair of planets will clear the eastern rooftops after about 2 a.m. local time and then remain visible in the southeast until sunrise. Mars will approach Jupiter from the upper right (or celestial west) before Wednesday and then widen its gap to Jupiter's lower left from Thursday onward. The two planets will share the view in binoculars from August 3 to 25, and will be cozy enough for telescope viewing as a pair from Sunday through Saturday.

(Data courtesy of Starry Night)
--- SBBSecho 3.20-Linux
* Origin: CJ's Place, Orange City FL > cjsplace.thruhere.net (954:895/61)