Sky this week 30 jan - 5 Feb, 2013

Sky this week

January - February 2013

Fifth Week

30 jan - 5 Feb, 2013

January 31 -2.8 mag ISS pass over Delhi

January 31 GISC and GAN starts phase II

February 02 Europa shadow transit

February 02 -2.6 mag ISS pass over Delhi

February 02 -2.0 mag iridium flare from delhi

February 03 -2.4 mag ISS pass over Delhi

February 03 Last quarter Moon

February 04 Mars and Neptune within 0.5 degrees

February 04 Io shadow transit

February 04 -5.0 mag iridium flare from delhi

ISS PASS details

Date   Mag   Max height Alt Az

31 Jan -2.8   06:21:19   57° NE

02 Feb -2.6   06:16:52   36° SW

03 Feb -2.4   05:27:19   46° SE

ISS passes make this week a special week as now bright (more than -2 mag) passes of ISS start to appear in the delhi skies. It becomes more special as the ISS EarthKam mission has just ended on February 1 and so many SPACE associated schools and units have gathered images taken by camera onboard the ISS. Now its time to look up and see the ISS with the naked eyes. basic info has been given in this writeup, for more details go to http://space-india.org/space_calendar.html

Jovian events  - one can see the transit of shadow of the jovian satellites on the disk of jupiter with a moderate sized telescope.

Iridium flares - we have given the details for the bright iridium flares which can be seen with naked eyes from delhi. The brightness may vary as it depends upon where the observer is located with respect to the satellite. So it can be more or less for an observer.

Sunrise/Sunset and Moonrise/Moonset for the week

Sun

30 Jan 2013 07:10 17:59

31 Jan 2013 07:10 18:00

01 Feb 2013 07:09 18:00

02 Feb 2013 07:09 18:01

03 Feb 2013 07:08 18:02

04 Feb 2013 07:08 18:03

05 Feb 2013 07:07 18:04

Moon

30 Jan 2013 21:06 08:44

31 Jan 2013 22:04 09:20

1 Feb 2013 23:04 09:57

2 Feb 2013 10:37

3 Feb 2013 00:05 11:20

4 Feb 2013 01:08 12:09

5 Feb 2013 02:11 13:03

Constellation of the week

This week again we will be seeing Taurus (the Bull or the Vrishabha in hindi) crossing the meridian at 8:00 pm. Its a V shaped constellation to the folks living in big cities but it stands out in the dark skies with lot more stars.

Taurus is one of the constellations of the zodiac, which means it is crossed by the plane of the ecliptic. Its name is a Latin word meaning "bull",. Taurus is a large and prominent constellation in the northern hemisphere's winter sky. It is one of the oldest constellations, dating back to at least the Early Bronze Age when it marked the location of the Sun during the spring equinox. Taurus came to symbolize the bull in the mythologies of India, Ancient Babylon, Egypt and Greece.

There are a number of features of interest to astronomers. Taurus hosts two of the nearest open clusters to Earth, the Pleiades and the Hyades, both of which are visible to the naked eye. At first magnitude, the red giant Aldebaran is the brightest star in the constellation. In the northwest part of Taurus is the supernova remnant Messier 1, more commonly known as the Crab Nebula. One of the closest regions of active star location, the Taurus-Auriga complex, crosses into the northern part of the constellation. The variable star T Tauri is the prototype of a class of pre-main-sequence stars.

Deep Sky Object of the week

Pleiades cluster (M45)

At 8:00 pm look just above your head, if the skies are clear and no haze is there, you should see a group of stars clustered together. You may be able to see 4-6 stars in a clump depending on how good your eyesight is!! Well this is not a constellation but what we call an open cluster of stars, or a nakshatra called Krittika in hindu astronomy.

In Hindu mythology, the god Murugan(Skanda/Subrahmanya/Kartikeya) was raised by the six sisters known as the Krittikā and thus came to be known as Kārtikeya. According to the Mahābhārata, Murugan was born to Agni and Svāhā, after the latter impersonated six of the seven wives of the Saptarishi and made love to him. The Saptarshi, hearing of this incident and doubting their wives' chastity, divorced them. These wives then became the Krittikā.(Taken from Wikipedia)

For astronomers, pleiades or krittika offers so much to study. In astronomy, the Pleiades, or Seven Sisters (Messier object 45 or M45), is an open star cluster containing middle-aged stars located in the constellation of Taurus. It is among the nearest star clusters to Earth and is the cluster most obvious to the naked eye in the night sky. The name Pleiades comes from Greek mythology.

Its a treat to watch pleiades through any of the optical instruments. Binoculars do justice to the size of the cluster showing all the stars packed tightly, with a telescope you will have to move it a bit to see the whole extent of the cluster.

To get access to info about telescopes and other astronomy equipment just login to www.spacearcade.in

Sky at 8:00 pm on 30th January, 2013

 Written by Sachin bahmba and C B Devgun

Sky this week Jan 23-29, 2013

Sky this week

January 2013

Fourth Week 23-29 jan

January 25 -2.5 mag Iridium Flare from Delhi

January 25 Europa shadow transit (10:03 pm to 12:39 am)

January 27 Io shadow transit (12:10 am to 2:26 am)

January 27 Io goes into eclipse (11:40 pm)

January 27 Full Moon (at 10:08 am)

January 27 -2.0 mag Iridium Flare from Delhi

January 28 -7.0 mag Iridium Flare from Delhi
January 29 ISS earthkam starts

Watch Jovian events (events of jupiter’s satellites - eclipses, occultations, shadow transits, transits) through a moderate sized telescope (minimum 150mm or 6” dia objective) We are providing the events listing for easiest of the events (primarily shadow transits/eclipses) which can be seen by amateurs who have just started to observe. As you gather experience, we will be providing the info for the tough events to observe. For telescopes or optical instruments check out the products at our online store at www.spacearcade.in

Iridium flares have been calculated for east delhi locations and the brightness of flare can vary from place to place. For details keep on checking the SPACE calender at http://space-india.org/space_calendar.html 

ISS eartkam mission starts. for details check out at http://space-india.org/participate-in-space-events.html

Constellation of the week

This week we will be seeing Taurus (the Bull or the Vrishabha in hindi) crossing the meridian just half an hour after 8:00 pm. Its a V shaped constellation to the folks living in big cities but it stands out in the dark skies with lot more stars.

Taurus is one of the constellations of the zodiac, which means it is crossed by the plane of the ecliptic. Its name is a Latin word meaning "bull",. Taurus is a large and prominent constellation in the northern hemisphere's winter sky. It is one of the oldest constellations, dating back to at least the Early Bronze Age when it marked the location of the Sun during the spring equinox. Taurus came to symbolize the bull in the mythologies of India, Ancient Babylon, Egypt and Greece.

There are a number of features of interest to astronomers. Taurus hosts two of the nearest open clusters to Earth, the Pleiades and the Hyades, both of which are visible to the naked eye. At first magnitude, the red giant Aldebaran is the brightest star in the constellation. In the northwest part of Taurus is the supernova remnant Messier 1, more commonly known as the Crab Nebula. One of the closest regions of active star location, the Taurus-Auriga complex, crosses into the northern part of the constellation. The variable star T Tauri is the prototype of a class of pre-main-sequence stars.

Deep Sky Object of the week

Pleiades cluster (M45)

At 8:00 pm look just above your head, if the skies are clear and no haze is there, you should see a group of stars clustered together. You may be able to see 4-6 stars in a clump depending on how good your eyesight is!! Well this is not a constellation but what we call an open cluster of stars, or a nakshatra called Krittika in hindu astronomy.

In Hindu mythology, the god Murugan(Skanda/Subrahmanya/Kartikeya) was raised by the six sisters known as the Krittikā and thus came to be known as Kārtikeya. According to the Mahābhārata, Murugan was born to Agni and Svāhā, after the latter impersonated six of the seven wives of the Saptarishi and made love to him. The Saptarshi, hearing of this incident and doubting their wives' chastity, divorced them. These wives then became the Krittikā.(Takne from Wikipedia)

For astronomers, pliades or krittika offers so much to study. In astronomy, the Pleiades, or Seven Sisters (Messier object 45 or M45), is an open star cluster containing middle-aged stars located in the constellation of Taurus. It is among the nearest star clusters to Earth and is the cluster most obvious to the naked eye in the night sky. The name Pleiades comes from Greek mythology.

Its a treat to watch pleiades through any of the optical instruments. Binoculars do justice to the size of the cluster showing all the stars packed tightly, with a telescope you will have to move it a bit to see the whole extent of the cluster.

To get access to info about telescopes and other astronomy equipment just login to www.spacearcade.in

Delhi data:

Sunrise/Sunset Timings

23 Jan 2013      07:13 17:53

24 Jan 2013      07:13 17:54

25 Jan 2013      07:13    17:55

26 Jan 2013      07:12 17:55

27 Jan 2013      07:12 17:56

28 Jan 2013      07:11   17:57

29 Jan 2013      07:11    17:58

Moonrise/Moonset Timings

23 Jan 2013      14:45    03:58

24 Jan 2013      15:35    04:46

25 Jan 2013      16:27    05:31

26 Jan 2013      17:22    06:14

27 Jan 2013      18:17    06:54

28 Jan 2013      19:13    07:32

29 Jan 2013      20:09    08:08

Delhi Sky at 8:00 pm

Sky This Week 16-22 Jan 2013

Sky this week

January 2013

Third Week 16-22 jan

January 18 Europa transit on Jupiter followed by shadow transit

January 19 Last Quarter Moon at 05:15 IST

January 19 Iridium Flare from Delhi

January 19 Io transit on Jupiter

Constellation of the week

This week we will be seeing Taurus (the Bull or the Vrishabha in hindi) crossing the meridian just half an hour after 8:00 pm. Its a V shaped constellation to the folks living in big cities but it stands out in the dark skies with lot more stars.

Taurus is one of the constellations of the zodiac, which means it is crossed by the plane of the ecliptic. Its name is a Latin word meaning "bull",. Taurus is a large and prominent constellation in the northern hemisphere's winter sky. It is one of the oldest constellations, dating back to at least the Early Bronze Age when it marked the location of the Sun during the spring equinox. Taurus came to symbolize the bull in the mythologies of India, Ancient Babylon, Egypt and Greece.

There are a number of features of interest to astronomers. Taurus hosts two of the nearest open clusters to Earth, the Pleiades and the Hyades, both of which are visible to the naked eye. At first magnitude, the red giant Aldebaran is the brightest star in the constellation. In the northwest part of Taurus is the supernova remnant Messier 1, more commonly known as the Crab Nebula. One of the closest regions of active star location, the Taurus-Auriga complex, crosses into the northern part of the constellation. The variable star T Tauri is the prototype of a class of pre-main-sequence stars.

Deep Sky Object of the week

Pleiades cluster (M45)

At 8:00 pm look just above your head, if the skies are clear and no haze is there, you should see a group of stars clustered together. You may be able to see 4-6 stars in a clump depending on how good your eyesight is!! Well this is not a constellation but what we call an open cluster of stars, or a nakshatra called Krittika in hindu astronomy.

In Hindu mythology, the god Murugan(Skanda/Subrahmanya/Kartikeya) was raised by the six sisters known as the Krittikā and thus came to be known as Kārtikeya. According to the Mahābhārata, Murugan was born to Agni and Svāhā, after the latter impersonated six of the seven wives of the Saptarishi and made love to him. The Saptarshi, hearing of this incident and doubting their wives' chastity, divorced them. These wives then became the Krittikā.(Takne from Wikipedia)

For astronomers, pliades or krittika offers so much to study. In astronomy, the Pleiades, or Seven Sisters (Messier object 45 or M45), is an open star cluster containing middle-aged stars located in the constellation of Taurus. It is among the nearest star clusters to Earth and is the cluster most obvious to the naked eye in the night sky. The name Pleiades comes from Greek mythology.

Its a treat to watch pleiades through any of the optical instruments. Binoculars do justice to the size of the cluster showing all the stars packed tightly, with a telescope you will have to move it a bit to see the whole extent of the cluster.

To get access to info about telescopes and other astronomy equipment just login to www.spacearcade.in

Sunrise/Sunset Moonrise/Moonset data for delhi

Date              Sunrise Sunset

16 Jan 2013      07:15 17:47

17 Jan 2013      07:15 17:48

18 Jan 2013      07:15 17:49

19 Jan 2013      07:14 17:50

20 Jan 2013      07:14 17:50

21 Jan 2013      07:14 17:51

22 Jan 2013      07:14 17:52

Date              Moonrise Moonset

16 Jan 2013      10:05 22:40

17 Jan 2013      10:41 23:36

18 Jan 2013      11:16 -          

19 Jan 2013      11:53 00:30

20 Jan 2013      12:32 01:24

21 Jan 2013      13:13 02:17

22 Jan 2013      13:57 03:08

For more details log on to SPACE’s Astronomy Calender at http://space-india.org/space_calendar.html

Check out the transits and shadow transit of Jovian Moons listed in the daily updates above with your telescopes. Need any help? we are here to help you out!

Sky this week 9-15 Jan 2013

Sky this week

January 2013

Second Week 9-15 jan

January 09 Asteroid 99942 Apophis Near-Earth Flyby

January 09 Eurpoa Occultation followed by Eclipse by Jupiter

January 10 Moon at perigee at 360047 km

January 10 -2.8 mag ISS pass from Delhi

January 11 New Moon

January 12 -2.7 mag ISS pass from Delhi

January 12 -5 mag Iridium flare

January 12 Io Shadow transit on Jupiter

January 13 -7 mag iridium flare

January 14 -7 mag iridium flare

January 15 -6 mag iridium flare

Constellation of the week:

Perseus is a constellation in the northern sky, named after the Greek hero Perseus. It was one of the 48 constellations listed by the 2nd century astronomer Ptolemy, and remains one of the 88 modern constellations defined by the International Astronomical Union. It contains the famous variable star Algol (β Per), and is also the location of the radiant of the annual Perseids meteor shower.It crosses merdian during the first half of January and hence will be seen at its maximum height from the horizon.

Deep Sky object of the week:

Double cluster in perseus: These two open clusters (NGC 869 and NGC 884 respectively) belong to two objects of the night sky for binoculars and small telescopes. Both lie at distances of more than 7,000 ly and are separated by several hundred light-years. The cluster was first recorded during the reign of the Chinese king Tsung-K'ang, who reigned during the Hsia Dynasty (2858-2146 BCE). Both clusters are of approximately 4th magnitude and 0.5 degrees in diameter.. Both clusters are distinct from their star field and are clearly concentrated at their centers. naked eye objects from a dark site and are a treat to watch through a pair of binoculars or a moderate sized telescope.

Sunrise/Sunset Moonrise/Moonset data for delhi

Date              Sunrise Sunset
9 Jan 2013         07:15 17:41
10 Jan 2013      07:15 17:42
11 Jan 2013      07:15 17:43
12 Jan 2013      07:15 17:44
13 Jan 2013      07:15 17:45
14 Jan 2013      07:15 17:46
15 Jan 2013      07:15 17:46

Date              Moonrise Moonset
9 Jan 2013         04:24 15:14            
10 Jan 2013      05:27 16:18            
11 Jan 2013      06:26 17:25            
12 Jan 2013      07:19 18:32 New Moon at 01:14
13 Jan 2013      08:07 19:38            
14 Jan 2013      08:49 20:41            
15 Jan 2013      09:28 21:42     

This week offers so many bright iridium flares, ISS passes from delhi that astronomy lovers will forget about the cold and go out to see these bright passes and flares!! For details about the same check it out at http://space-india.org/space_calendar.html






99942 Apophis (previously known by its provisional designation 2004 MN4) is a near-Earth asteroid that caused a brief period of concern in December 2004 because initial observations indicated a small probability (up to 2.7%) that it would strike the Earth in 2029. Additional observations provided improved predictions that eliminated the possibility of an impact on Earth or the Moon in 2029. However, a possibility remained that during the 2029 close encounter with Earth. Apophis will pass within 0.0966 AU (14,450,000 km; 8,980,000 mi) of the Earth on 9th January, 2013.

GISC and GAN ends on 12th January, send in your observations at www.projectdarkskies.org


Few Jovian events have been listed as a start for amateurs who want to go one step ahead from just observing the Jupiter.