Author: downing.301

Student Involvement Fair

Student Involvement Fair

The Student Involvement Fair will be Sunday August 25th from 4:00pm to 7:00pm. AstroSociety will be located at table number 548 in the Academic/College section of the fair. Feel free to stop by or send others our way!

Astro Kickoff Event

Astro Kickoff Event AstroSociety, together with UMAAC, CETA, and Zenith will be hosting the annual Astro Kickoff event. This will be held in the Physics Research Building Atrium on Monday August 19th at 2:00 PM. There will be lots of snacks and plenty of time to get to know others in the astronomy department. We look forward to seeing you there!
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What’s Up? – Ohio Skylights July 2024

Written by Alyssa Whalen

Constellations, Planets, and Astronomical Events Visible in July 2024

Happy Summertime! With the warm weather finally here, it is the perfect time of year to go out and observe! The sun rises around 6:15 am, and sets around 9:00 pm, but we are beginning to lose daylight since we have passed the summer solstice. Nights are growing longer by about one minute every day, and this rate will increase as we approach the Autumnal Equinox in September.

July’s new moon occurs early in the month on July 5th. The new moon is the best time to stargaze, since the moon’s brightness is not present to overpower the fainter objects in the sky. The full moon, while beautiful, makes stargazing difficult, especially in areas with higher light pollution. July’s full moon, known as the Buck moon, occurs on July 21st. The nickname originates from Native American tribes, who named this month’s moon for the male deer who grow out their antlers this time of year.

The Delta Aquarids meteor shower peaks this month! This shower runs annually from July 12 to August 23rd, and it peaks late in the month on the night of July 28th. It is expected to produce around 20 meteors per hour radiating from the constellation Aquarius; however, meteors can appear anywhere in the sky. The half-moon will sadly mask some of the faint meteors, but the bright ones will still put on a show if you are patient enough. Aquarius rises in the East around midnight, so the best viewing will be in the early morning of July 29th.

Another meteor shower is visible this month: the Perseids! This shower doesn’t peak until mid-August but it runs annually from July 17th to August 24th. Meteors will appear in the constellation Perseus, and while it won’t be at its peak rate of 60 meteors per hour until August, it will still provide a good show as it ramps up. Perseus rises around 1 am, so, like the Delta Aquarids, the best time to view them will be before sunrise (between 1 am and 5 am). With the two of these showers occurring back to back, mornings in late July will be filled with meteors!

Both Aquarius and Perseus will rise over the eastern horizon after midnight. They can be found using Cassiopeia. Cassiopeia is a distinct constellation of zig-zagging bright stars. Cassiopeia is circumpolar – it never sets below the horizon; instead, it rotates around Polaris as the Earth turns. Therefore, the constellation is always visible, similar to the Big Dipper, which makes it a useful guide constellation. Farther Eastward than Cassiopeia, appearing below is the constellation Perseus. To the south of Perseus is the ring of zodiac constellations, including Aries and Pisces. The object of interest for the Delta Aquarids meteor shower is Aquarius. These constellations might be difficult to see in areas with high light pollution, but the bright meteors will still shine through!

Mercury makes a rare appearance this month! On July 22nd, Mercury will be at its greatest eastern elongation. From our perspective on Earth, Mercury will be at its furthest distance (~27 degrees) from the sun. At this distance, it is still difficult to see, but look to the west right after sunset for a chance to view the Sun’s closest planet. Saturn continues to rise earlier; it is now observable around 11:40 pm. Mars and Jupiter rise slightly later at 2:30 am and 3:15 am respectively. Venus is too close to the sun to observe until much later in the month/beginning of next month. Uranus rises between Mars and Jupiter at 2:20 am in the constellation Taurus near the Pleiades, and Neptune rises after Saturn at midnight.

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What’s Up? – Ohio Skylights June 2024

Constellations, Planets, and Astronomical Events Visible in June 2024

Written by Alyssa Whalen

Happy Summer! The summer solstice occurs this month on June 20th, marking the astronomical start of the summer season. The solstice is commonly known as the longest day of the year, because it is when the sun is up for the largest fraction of the day. On the solstice, the sun will rise at nearly 6 am, and set just after 9 pm, granting Ohio just over 15 hours of sunlight. The solstice occurs because the northern hemisphere is tilted towards the sun, making it appear higher in our sky and therefore stay above the horizon longer. The hours of daylight vary by latitude; at more northern locations the sun will stay up even longer!

seasons diagram

The full moon this month occurs on June 22nd, just after the solstice. June’s full moon is nicknamed the Strawberry Moon, as it rises during the time that strawberries ripen and are ready to be picked. The new moon occurs on June 6th, so the best time to observe fainter objects and constellations is near the beginning of the month when the moon is not lighting up the sky.

After a long hiatus behind the sun, a few planets are finally beginning to emerge again! Saturn, Mars, and Jupiter are visible in the morning before the sun rises and brightens the sky. Saturn rises first, around 1:30 am, then Mars at 3:20 am, and finally Jupiter at 4:50 am. The planets will form a line above the eastern horizon as they rise. The sun is not far behind Jupiter, and once it rises, its light will drown out the planets’. Mercury, Venus and Uranus are still too close to the sun to observe. Neptune is too faint to view without aid from a telescope or binoculars, but it will rise shortly after Saturn at 2 am in the constellation Pisces.

planets

Now that summer is here, the summer constellations are rising in the East after sunset. At 10 pm, the Summer Triangle is visible. This asterism is made up of three constellations, and it is extremely useful for finding other objects in the sky. The triangle’s vertices are Vega in the constellation Lyra, Deneb in the constellation Cygnus, and Altair in the constellation Aquila. These bright stars are easy to spot, and they can help to identify their respective constellations.

summer triangle

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What’s Up? – Ohio Skylights May 2024

Written by Alyssa Whalen

Happy May! Ohio’s weather is finally becoming more consistent after the whirlwind of a spring. The sun is rising bright and early around 6:15 am, and setting at 8:40 pm, averaging nearly 14 and a half hours of daylight this month. The days continue to grow longer until next month, but there are still plenty of warm weather nights to go out and observe!

The new moon occurs early on May 8th, which is just in time to enjoy the Eta Aquarids meteor shower. May’s full moon, called the Flower Moon due to the abundance of flowers that bloom in this season, occurs the night of May 23rd. The moon will be bright and easily observable in detail with binoculars or a telescope, but its brightness will make observing the sky’s fainter objects more difficult.

The Eta Aquarids meteor shower reaches its peak this month. The shower runs from April 19th to May 28th, but it peaks the morning of May 6th. This is one of the more popular meteor showers of the year, although it is much more active in Earth’s southern hemisphere. In the northern hemisphere, the shower will peak at around 30 meteors per hour with the radiant point being in the constellation Aquarius on the eastern horizon. This time of year, Aquarius does not rise until around 4 am, so the best time and place to view it will be between 4:30 am and sunrise on the southeastern horizon.

Mercury reaches its greatest western elongation on May 9th. This means from our point of view on Earth, Mercury will be the farthest west from the Sun that it gets in its orbit. Therefore, Mercury will be visible low in the eastern morning sky just before sunrise, although it will still be difficult to observe due to its proximity to the sun.

Sadly, this is a poor month to observe our solar system’s planets. Besides Mercury, they are too close to the sun to observe. Saturn and Mars are also visible if you are willing to get up and observe in the early morning. Saturn rises in the east near 3:50 am, and Mars rises slightly later at 4:30 am; though the planets will not be easily visible until later in the year.

It’s time to start saying goodbye to our favorite winter constellations. Orion and Taurus are on the western horizon around 10 pm, and they will set very quickly after sundown. Without the famous hunter to guide us, we have to turn northward to the tried-and-true pointer stars in Ursa Major. The Big Dipper, made up of a section of stars within Ursa Major, is the most popular navigational tool in the northern hemisphere’s sky. At Ohio’s latitude, it will never set below the horizon at any point throughout the year, so it is usable year-round. In May, The Big Dipper will be found above Polaris after sundown, and it will revolve counterclockwise around the North Star as the night goes on. Once you have found the Big and Little Dippers, Draco the Dragon weaves between the two ladles toward the northeastern horizon.

Pictured Below: The northern night sky at sundown on May 15th

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