This Month Archives

January Skies (2004)

In January, Comet Machholz (C/2004 Q2) moves through Taurus and eastern Aries, and bypasses Triangulum. It then plunges through Perseus into Cassiopeia. It will appear immediately west of the Pleiades Star Cluster

Read story →    0 comments   

December Skies (2004)

It should be a fine sight in binoculars at 5th magnitude and will brighten to 4th magnitude when it peaks in January. The new and crescent Moons will not compete with the light of the comet during the middle of December, but the waxing Moon will produce an increasing amount of glare in the latter part of the month

Read story →    0 comments   

November Skies (2004)

In early November, look for 5th magnitude Comet C/2003 K4 Linear in Corvus before sunrise. Venus and Jupiter dominate the eastern sky and the comet will be closer to the horizon in the southeast. It passed perihelion

Read story →    0 comments   

October Skies (2004)

This is the last hurrah for Comet C/2001 Q4 Neat as it rapidly ascends away from the plane of the solar system. In October it moves through Ursa Minor, along the handle of the Little Dipper. During the middle of the

Read story →    0 comments   

August Skies (2004)

Following Galileo's planetary discoveries using his refined telescopes, mid-17th century European astronomers, physicists, and mathematicians immersed themselves in a series of new planetary discoveries. They made significant advances in mathematics and physics as they attempted to unravel the behavior of the newfound objects and develop new technology to enhance their studies. The ground breaking accomplishments of the Dutch physicist Christiaan Huygens include the discovery of Saturn's largest moons and an accurate description of the shape of the rings. The

Read story →    0 comments   

July Skies (2004)

Comet C/2001 Q4 Neat is in the head of Ursa Major, the Great Bear, and will move into the cup of the Big Dipper by the middle of July. On July 21st it will be between the two end stars of the cup (yellow-white Alpha and blue-white Beta) which are separated by 5 degrees. Look about 2

Read story →    0 comments   

June Skies (2004)

Comet tails are typically at their maximum when the comet circuits closest to the Sun, and Earth currently has the good fortune to be located in the same quadrant as the perihelion points for both Comet Linear and Comet

Read story →    0 comments   

April Skies (2004)

Comet C/2002 T7 Linear is lost in the sunset for most of early April. It passes perihelion in mid-month and during the rest of April, we hope that it will reappear low in the southern morning sky as a 3rd magnitude well defined comet. It may rise to 2nd magnitude by the end of April and get even brighter in May.

Read story →    0 comments   

February Skies (2004)

Comet 2P/Enke moves through Capricornus and Sagittarius in February and can be seen with a telescope in the morning sky as it continues its retreat from the inner solar system

Read story →    0 comments   

January Skies (2003)

Comet 2P/Enke just passed through perihelion on December 29 and moves through Aquarius and Capricornus in January. It remains within glow of the Sun until February when it reappears in the morning sky on the other

Read story →    0 comments   

December Skies (2003)

Mars spends December in the western part of Pisces, beneath the circlet. It is high in the south at sunset and diminishes to a width of 10 seconds of arc by mid-month, 40% of the maximum achieved during the late

Read story →    0 comments   

November Skies (2003)

Since Earth increases its orbital lead over Mars from 45 days to 70 days this month, Mars dims and its apparent size decreases. Mars diminishes from a width of 15 to 11 arcseconds in November and drops from magnitude -1.1

Read story →    0 comments   

August Skies (2003)

Mars reaches opposition on August 28th when the Sun and Mars are in opposite directions and Mars is normally closer to Earth than any other time of year.

Read story →    0 comments