Skywatchers' Journal

[Jay-qu]

Plenty of smoke to look at.. looks like its clearing up today though :D

[Turtle]

Plenty of smoke to look at.. looks like its clearing up today though :shrug:

 

Have you had a chance to look for McNaught Jay? Alas I had to be satisfied with the photos of others as I had either bad weather , a bad attitude, or was asleep when it was visible in the Northern hemisphere. :cup:

[wine]

Zooooom. Thank you.

 

What causes the giant ring around the moon sometimes?

Does it have to do with the cold?

(looks like an inverted eye)

[InfiniteNow]

What causes the giant ring around the moon sometimes?

Google the term "moondog." It's not a hippie username (well, not specifically anyway ), but the equivalent to a sundog.

 

 

A Ring Around the Moon

Here's how it works: Moon halos are caused by tiny ice crystals that have gathered twenty thousand feet above the ground, as thin, wispy clouds. These clouds are so thin, you might not notice them at night, if it weren't for their effect on the moonlight. Incoming light rays from the moon are bent--or "diffracted"--by these ice crystals at an angle of twenty-two degrees. This means that in addition to the direct moonlight, you will also see diffracted moonlight in a circle twenty-two degrees away from the moon. This is about the distance of your fist, held at arm's length. Like a rainbow, this halo can even be slightly colored; red on the inside, and blue on the outside.

 

 

APOD: 2003 April 21 - A Halo Around the Moon

[Jay-qu]

full moon, I can feel the wiskers coming back.. :)

[Turtle]

Here's something to look for in the night sky >>> noctilucent clouds. This report has them frequently sighted in lower lattitudes.

The Denver Post - "Night-shining" clouds bring mystery

Scientists don't know enough yet to definitively call noctilucent clouds harbingers of climate change, Russell said.

 

"But right now, we don't have another explanation," he admitted. "We don't have enough information about them. Hopefully, in this mission, we'll be able to get it."

 

Gobblydee speak for "but right now it's in vogue & that's where the money is." :) :doh:

 

Keep looking skyward in any case, otherwise you won't know when it's falling. :cup: :D;)

[Jay-qu]

speaking of sky watching.. I have an extended astronomy prac (5 weeks in length) where we have to observe the Cephied Variable I-Carinae - apparent mag averages ~4. We are supposed to determine its period (around a month) :)

[justforfun]

anybody have info on DENIS-P J104814.7-395606.1 ? It's a new brown dwarf supposed to be 'near' our solar system. I'm very curious about its movement and location, but don't understand the scientific jargon. [email protected]

[Turtle]

Here's something to look for in the night sky >>> noctilucent clouds. This report has them frequently sighted in lower lattitudes.

The Denver Post - "Night-shining" clouds bring mystery

 

Gobblydee speak for "but right now it's in vogue & that's where the money is." :eek: :doh:

 

Keep looking skyward in any case, otherwise you won't know when it's falling. :cup: :hihi:

 

Another link on noctilucent clouds >>> Strange Clouds

[Turtle]

Cool and/or rainy weather has restricted my skywatching for the better part of the Winter. :rolleyes: :rotfl: My roomy Ace has a 5" Meade reflector that has been in the box here for a year now; it's coming out soon. :eek:

 

My fireball video was down a while; it's back up and here now>>>YouTube - Fireball http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M2tthlPXmno

An Orionid on October 22, 2006 about 5:00 am looking South

Keep looking skyward. :)

[Guest chendoh]

Lyrid meteor shower peaks morning of April 22nd (Sunday)

Viewing prospects, good, As the waxing 1st quarter Moon sets before the best shower activity.

 

Find Vega to locate Lyra. (The Harp)

 

Around midnight, face eastward, and look about halfway up.

After 2am, look overhead, and slightly westward.

 

Highest hourly rates occur a few hours before dawn, local time.

Lyrids average 20 per hour, but outbursts can go as high as 60.

Origin; Comet Thatcher (C/1861 G1).

 

:daydreaming:Here’s hoping you have clear skies!:eek2:

[Queso]

What are all the planets I can see right now?

 

I see Venus...

 

is that Mars?

[Turtle]

What are all the planets I can see right now?

 

I see Venus...

 

is that Mars?

 

If it was near the Moon, it's Saturn. Venus is set now and Saturn is the only planet currently in the sky.

 

I have the scope out & assembled & will be having a look see ASAP. Try as I might, I have had only failure trying to take a photograph through it. (5' Meade reflector with AutoStar).

[Queso]

and the Moon's a big hunka some hella good cheese.

Speaking of Luna,

 

How come when I look at the moon I can see two elliptical oval orbits of light that cross into each other and have slight rainbow characteristics...???

 

I can't recall if I ever saw this in California or not. Is it a Florida thing? Near the equator thing? or what? I only see it sometimes. I'm guessing because of weather conditions that are beyond my reach. The clouds keep taking it away.

 

(see picture below. I'd like someone to explain this strange phenomenon eventually :hihi: )

[Queso]

O wow Saturn is so bright! Thought it was Venus this whole time. :smackheadwithpalmemoticon:

Thank you.

So when does Venus usually set?

 

*Begins to feel the rhythms of the solar system*

 

Also, excuse my poor moon.

Should have done it analog for sure....

 

Take note that within the rainbows it's filled in with moon glow.

 

I know it sounds ridiculous, and it is! it looks like breasts on the moon. What causes....it?

 

(I'm going to laugh if I'm the only one here that sees it)

[freeztar]

NASA Satellite Launches Spaceward to Study Earth's Highest Clouds - Yahoo! News

[Turtle]

NASA Satellite Launches Spaceward to Study Earth's Highest Clouds - Yahoo! News

 

Nice catch Freezy! Here's a couple more pages of interest for Noctilucent Cloud enthusiasts. (also called Polar Mesopheric Clouds)

 

Home page for the AIM satellite just launched. >> AIM Mission

After a flawless countdown and flight, NASA's AIM spacecraft is ready to begin a two-year mission to study Earth's highest clouds. The 430-pound satellite's ride into orbit was provided by a Pegasus XL rocket....

 

Photo archive of noctilucent clouds. >>> Noctilucent Cloud Gallery -- Summer 2006: Page 1

 

NASA page on the mission >>> NASA - AIM Mission

...With AIM, Hampton University in Virginia becomes the first Historically Black College and University to lead a NASA satellite mission. Dr. James M. Russell, III, professor and co-director of Hampton University's Center for Atmospheric Sciences, is AIMs principal investigator....