Thursday, January 1, 2009Friday, August 6, 2021

2009 – What’s Up

Week of 28th December

Astronomical twilight ends at 18.09UT at the start of the week and 18.14UT at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be Full (Blue Moon) on New Year’s eve. The next Blue Moon (by the definition of being a 2nd Full Moon in a month) will be in August 2012
The Sun is blank again
Mars continues to brighten and its disc is growing appreciably in apparent size with a large ice cap discernable in a small telescope
There are no evening ISS passes or bright evening Iridium flares this week

Week of the Winter Solstice

The Winter Solstice, the southernmost rising and setting points of the Sun on the eastern and western horizons respectively, giving the shortest day length, occurs on Monday. Though the Sun only begins to ‘move’ north perceptively on Friday
Astronomical twilight ends at 18.04UT at the start of the week and 18.08UT at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be First Quarter on Thursday
The Sun at last has an easily visible sunspot group number 1035
There are no evening ISS passes or bright Iridium flares this week

Week of 14th December

Astronomical twilight ends at 18.02UT at the start of the week and 18.04UT at the end
The Moon is New on Wednesday and should be visible as a slender crescent in the West on Friday
The Sun has one small cycle 24 sunspot number 1034
Mars is becoming ever more prominent bright red in the NE sky rising late evening. It appears to change direction on Wednesday and night by night moves backwards (retrograde) against the background stars. This is due to the Earth undertaking it in its orbit. Thus Mars will move from Cancer into Leo and then back again. It is closest in January, however this coincides with it being furthest from the Sun in its elliptical orbit, so it will not appear as large as in 2003 for example
There are no evening ISS passes this week but there are 2 super bright Iridium flares to watch out for: On Tuesday at 17.58.46 at 51 degrees altitude in NE and Wednesday at 17.52.37, 53 degrees altitude in NE

Week of 7th December

Astronomical twilight ends at 18.02UT at the start of the week and at 18.02UT at the end. In fact its earliest value of 18.01UT is reached mid-week, despite being some 2 weeks before the Solstice
The best meteor shower of the year with predictions of 100-150 per hour, the Geminids, peak in the early hours of 14th December (though tend to be visible from 7th to 16th). Next Sunday night will thus be ideal viewing. Gemini is now well above the horizon in the NE evening sky and the radiant is just above Castor (top of the 2 bright stars at the Northern end of the constellation) The Geminid shower is unusual in that its origin is not cometary and it is a recent shower with the first reports being in 1862, making it nicely contemporary with the Marlborough telescope! The debris streams come instead from an asteroid 3200 Phaethon (this link only being made in 1983) which has a 1.4 year orbit. This gives the meteors a different quality, in that they tend to be slow and are often bright due to the more variable particle sizes. Fingers crossed for clear skies
The Moon is Last Quarter on Wednesday and new at the start of next week, perfect for the Geminids
The Sun is blank again
There are no evening ISS passes or bright iridium flares this week

Week of 30th November

Astronomical twilight ends at 18.03UT at the start of the week and at 18.02UT at the end
The Moon is Full (the first of two this month) on Wednesday (Wolf Moon). The next Full Moon on New Year’s Eve is thus a Blue Moon. The Moon passes next to the Pleiades cluster on Tuesday
After some brief activity, the Sun is blank again
Mars is at last making an appearance in the late evening sky between Cancer and Leo. Rising after 10.30pm in the NE. Jupiter is now low in the SW in the evening
There are no evening ISS passes or bright iridium flares this week

Week of 23rd November

Astronomical twilight ends at 18.07UT at the start of the week and at 18.03UT at the end
The Moon is First Quarter on Tuesday
Cycle 24 may at last be getting underway. The Sun has several active regions. Sunspot number 1033 is in fact a small group
The ISS continues to make passes with the Shuttle Atlantis attached until next Saturday: The best is on Monday at 16.24.27 W to E reaching 88 degrees and then 17.59.36 W to SSE to 31 degrees. Tuesday 16.46.39 W to ESE to 59 degrees and 18.22.18 WSW to S to 16 degrees. Wednesday at 17.08.55 W to SE to 32 degrees . Thursday 17.31.31 WSW to S to 16 degrees. Friday 16.18.07 W to SE to 33 degrees and Saturday 16.40.38 WSW to S to 17 degrees
There is one super bright evening Iridium flare on Thursday at 17.41.00 at 56 degrees altitude in NE

Week of 16th November

Astronomical twilight ends at 18.13UT at the start of the week and at 18.08UT at the end
The Leonids meteor shower may peak on Tuesday as early as 18.00UT. Other models predict up to 500 meteors an hour between 21.30 to 21.45UT. Prediction this year of possible high rates follow the rates seen last year when the same debris stream left behind by comet Tempel-Tuttle in 1466 was hit. This year we are passing even closer to the centre of the debris cloud. The Leonids typically show a couple of sharp high peaks
The Moon is New on Monday and should be visible as a slender crescent mid-week, making ideal meteor viewing conditions
Cycle 24 sunspot number 1029 appears to have survived a rotation and is reappearing, thus bucking the trend of very fleeting spots
The ISS is a frequent visitor this week with several high passes: Monday at 16.58.23 WSW to E to 55 degrees and 18.33.22 W to W to 41 degrees. Tuesday 17.20.40 WSW to E to 85 degrees and 18.55.45 W to W to 21 degrees. Wednesday 17.43.00 W to E to 83 degrees and 19.18.05 W to W to 11 degrees. Thursday at 16.30.14 WSW to E to 84 degrees and 18.05.18 W to ESE to 86 degress. Friday at 16.52.29 W to E reaching 83 degrees and 18.27.33 W to WSW to 44 degrees. Saturday at 17.14.41 W to E reaching 87 degrees and 18.49.51 W to WSW to 21 degrees and Sunday 17.36.51 W to SE reaching 58 degrees and 19.12.32 WSW to WSW reaching 11 degrees
There is one bright evening Iridium flare on Wednesday at 16.25.10 at 74 degrees altitude in ENE

Week of 9th November

Astronomical twilight ends at 18.22UT at the start of the week and at 18.15UT at the end
The Taurids meteor shower (known for slow bright meteors) will continue till mid-week at low hourly rates, with the Moon becoming more favourable
The Moon is Last Quarter on Monday
A small Cycle 24 sunspot number 1030 has come and gone
On 6th a 6m asteroid flew just 14,000 km above the Earth’s surface. It was only detected 15 hours in advance and posed no threat
The ISS returns this week with passes: Tuesday at 17.54.43 S to SE to 16 degrees. Wednesday 18.16.36 SW to S to 30 degrees. Thursday at 17.05.07 S to ESE to 15 degrees and 18.38.42 WSW to SW to 33 degress. Friday at 17.26.40 SW to E to 30 degrees and 19.01.16 W to W to 20 degrees. Saturday at 17.48.54 WSW to E reaching 57 degrees and 19.23.54 W to W to 11 degrees and Sunday 16.36.50 SW to E reaching 30 degrees and the best at 18.11.24 W to ESE reaching 86 degrees
There are no bright evening Iridium flares

Week of 2nd November

Astronomical twilight ends at 18.31UT at the start of the week and at 18.23UT at the end
The Taurids meteor shower (known for slow meteors) peaks on 5th Tuesday, but the Moon will not be favorable as it is just past Full. However it has a broad peak so will be worth watching later in the week. Not more than 10 or so per hour are expected, unlike the prediction for a significant Leonids peak on 17th November
The Moon is Full (Frosty Moon) on Monday and then wanes to Last Quarter at the start of next week Full
Cycle 24 sunspot number 1029 is disappearing over the western limb. The remaining disc is blank
There are no ISS passes this week and no bright evening Iridium flares

Week of 26th October

The clocks go back one hour this Saturday night and BST reverts to GMT (Universal Time UT). Astronomical twilight ends at 18.43UT at the start of the week and at 18.33UT at the end
The Orionids meteor shower has had a long peak this year and continues to give meteors. This debris has been traced to a pass of Halley’s comet some 3000 years ago, so the debris is well spread. The Taurids peak on 5th November but the Moon will not be favorable as it is just past Full
The Moon is waxing and will be First Quarter on Monday and Full at the start of next week
The Sun has a cycle 24 suspot ! number 1029. It will be interesting to see how long it lasts
There are no ISS passes this week and no bright evening Iridium flares

Week of 19th October

Astronomical twilight ends at 19.56 BST at the start of the week and at 19.45 BST at the end
The Moon is waning and will be First Quarter on 26th next Sunday
The Sun is still blank however even a spotless Sun has just released an eartyh directed CME; this will arrive on Monday or Tuesday and will cause high laltitude Aurorae
Venus is the very bright morning ‘star’ with Saturn the other last ‘star’ to disappear in the morning twilight
There are no ISS passes this week and no bright evening Iridium flares

Week of 12th October

Astronomical twilight ends at 20.11 BST at the start of the week and at 19.58 BST at the end
The Moon is waning and will be New next Sunday and visible as a slender crescent early next week
The Sun is still blank
Mars is a good morning object in Gemini and close to the Moon at sunrise on 12th
There are no ISS passes this week and no bright evening Iridium flares

Week of 5th October

Astronomical twilight ends at 20.26 BST at the start of the week and at 20.13 BST at the end
The Moon is waning and will be Last Quarter next Sunday
The Sun is blank again. The extreme low in activity is as forecast causing an all time high in Cosmic rays hitting the Earth’s atmosphere
There are no ISS passes this week and no bright evening Iridium flares

Week of 28th September

Astronomical twilight ends at 20.43 BST at the start of the week and at 20.26 BST at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be Full (Hunter Moon) next Sunday
The Sun at last has 2 spot groups (1026, 1027) from new Cycle 24
There are no ISS passes this week
There is one bright evening Iridium flare on Saturday at 19.39.20, 38 degrees altitude in SSE

Week of 21st September

Astronomical twilight ends at 21.01 BST at the start of the week and at 20.43 BST at the end
The Autumnal Equinox falls on Tuesday 22nd this year as the Sun crosses the Ecliptic (zero degrees Declination and 12 hours Right Ascension) and heads into the Southern sky (negative Declination). The Sun will set due West on Tuesdauy and rise due East on Wednesday, if you want to check local alignments. From Tuesday till March 21st, night is longer than day
The Moon is waxing and will be First Quarter next Saturday
Venus dominates the morning twilight and is very close to the bright star Regulus (alpha Leo)in the East and Jupiter the evening in the South-East
The ISS continues to make a few more evening passes: On Monday at 20.43.39 W to S reaching 30 degrees. Tuesday at 19.32.52 W to ESE to 57 degrees and 21.08.44 WSW to SW reaching 15 degrees. Wednesday 19.57.28 W to SE reaching 30 degrees. Thursday at 20.22.33 WSW to S up to 14 degrees. Friday 19.11.12 W to SE to 29 degrees. Saturday 19.36.17 WSW to S to 14 degrees
There are no bright evening Iridium flares

Week of 14th September

Astronomical twilight ends at 21.23 BST at the start of the week and at 21.10 BST at the end
The Moon is waning to New on Friday and should be visible as a slender crescent for the Equinox
Venus dominates the morning twilight in the East and Jupiter the evening in the South-East. Neptune is just E of Jupiter and Uranus just East again, rising around 8pm. Both need a small telescope to make them out and are hard targets as they are not rising to high altitude
The ISS continues to make very good high passes: On Monday at 21.01.52 W to E reaching 84 degrees. Tuesday at 19.51.18 WSW to E to 79 degrees and 21.26.31 W to W reaching 60 degrees. Wednesday 20.15.55 W to E reaching 83 degrees and 21.51.09 W to W to 24 degrees. Thursday is the best at 20.40.33 W to E up to 89 degrees and at 22.15.51 W t W reaching 11 degrees. Friday 19.29.55 W to E to 83 degrees and 21.05.09 W to SSE to 60 degrees. Saturday 19.54.31 W to E to 88 degrees and 21.29.50 W to WSW to 24 degrees and Sunday 20.19.06 W to SE to 59 degrees and 21.54.56 WSW to WSW to 10 degrees

Week of 7th September

Astronomical twilight ends at 21.39 BST at the start of the week and at 21.23 BST at the end
The Moon is waning to Last Quarter on Saturday
The Sun is still totally blank. A new study by 2 researchers, Livingstone and Penn, the States has shown a decline in solar magnetism from a 3200 Gauss peak in 1996 to 2100 now. Extrapolating this would mean solar magnetism would disappear totally by 2015! There is certainly reason to keep monitoring the Sun
The ISS is back as follows: Monday at 21.20.21 SSW to SSW reaching 12 degrees. Tuesday 21.44.24 SW to SW reaching 17 degrees. Wednesday 20.34.35 SSW to ESE reaching 22 degrees and 22.08.56 WSW to WSW to 15 degrees. Thursday 20.58.39 SW to ESE reaching 43 degrees. Friday 19.48.47 SSW to E to 22 degrees and 21.23.10 WSW to S up to 75 degrees. Saturday 20.12.51 SW to E reaching 45 degrees and 21.47.52 W to W to 37 degrees. The best is on Saturday at 20.37.21 WSW to E reaching 77 degrees and then 22.12.35 W to W reaching 18 degrees
There is one superbright flare on Monday at 21.39.27 at 48 degrees altitude in ENE

Week of 31st August

Astronomical twilight ends at 22.00 BST at the start of the week and at 21.39 BST at the end
The Moon is waxing to Full (Grain Moon) on Friday
The Sun is still totally blank
There are no ISS passes this week, it will return from Monday next week
There are no bright evening Iridium flares this week

Week of 24th August

Astronomical twilight ends at 22.21 BST at the start of the week and at 22.03 BST at the end
The Moon is waxing to First Quarter on Thursday
The Sun is still totally blank. Cycle 24 is now well behind schedule
Jupiter is now at its best in the Southern evening sky. Unfortunatley for observation of cloud detail it does not reach a large altitude and shows significant atmospheric disturbance
There are no ISS passes this week
There is one bright evening Iridium flare on Thursday at 22.27.07 at 35 degrees altitude in NE

Week of 17th August

Astronomical twilight ends at 22.44 BST at the start of the week and at 22.25 BST at the end
The Moon is waning to New on Thursday and should be visible as a slender crescent at the week-end
The Sun is still totally blank
There are no ISS passes this week
There is one bright evening Iridium flare on Wednesday at 22.56.12 at 24 degrees altitude in NE

Week of 10th August

Astronomical twilight ends at 23.08 BST at the start of the week and at 22.47 BST at the end
The Moon is waning to Last Quarter on Thursday
The Sun is still totally blank
The Perseid meteor shower peaks on Wednesday at 15.00 UT. Numbers are already growing to some 20 per hour and may peak at 100ph+ in the early hours of 12th
There are no ISS passes this week
There is one bright Iridium flare on Thursday at 21.57.56 at 50 degrees altitude in ENE

Week of 3rd August

Astronomical twilight ends at 23.34 BST at the start of the week and at 23.12 BST at the end
The Moon is waxing to Full (Corn Moon) on Thursday
The Sun is still totally blank after a continuous 27 days
The Perseid meteor shower peaks next week at 15.00 UT on 12th. Numbers are already growing to some 10 per hour and may peak at 100ph+ in the early hours of 12th
There are no ISS passes this week
There is one super bright Iridium flare on Friday at 22.24.49 at 43 degrees altitude in NE

Week of 27th July

Astronomical twilight ends at 00.05 BST at the start of the week and at 23.38 BST at the end.
The Moon is waxing to First Quarter on Tuesday.
The Sun is basically blank, though an old cycle 23 spot is attempting to form.
There are no ISS passes this week.
There is one bright Iridium flare on Monday at 21.37.36 at 61 degrees altitude in ENE

Week of 20th July

Nights are now lengthening and Astronomical twilight ends again, giving a brief period of darkness. Astronomical twilight ends at 00.57 BST at the start of the week and at 00.10 BST at the end
The Moon is waning to New on Wednesday and will be visible as a slender crescent at the end of the week
Tuesday 21st at 02.56.15 UT marks the 40th anniversary of ‘the first step’ on the Moon. Eagle had landed. This Friday NASA released images from the current Lunar Reconnaisance Orbiter showing the landing sites and bases of the landers of the Apollo missions for the first time, even the footprint track across the surface..we realy did go there !! (sorry conspiracy theorists!) see http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/LRO/multimedia/lroimages/apollosites.html. The Apollo program cost $25.4 billion at the time, which is nearly $150 billion in current dollars. There were six landings, but man has not been to the Moon since December 1972. Michael Collins talking this week said, “I really believe that if the political leaders of the world could see their planet from a distance of 100,000 miles their outlook could be fundamentally changed,” Collins said. “That all-important border would be invisible, that noisy argument silenced. The tiny globe would continue to turn, serenely ignoring its subdivisions, presenting a unified facade that would cry out for unified understanding, for homogeneous treatment. The Earth must become as it appears: blue and white, not capitalist or communist; blue and white, not rich or poor; blue and white, not envious or envied.” One of the key words Collins uses to describe Earth is “fragile” and he said that 40 years later it is still fragile “and growing more so.” “When we flew to the Moon, our population was 3 billion; today it has more than doubled and is headed for 8 billion, the experts say. I do not think this growth is sustainable or healthy. The loss of habitat, the trashing of oceans, the accumulation of waste products – this is no way to treat a planet.”
The Sun is blank again
The ISS may be visible with the Shuttle Endeavour is docked. Final passes are as follows: on Monday at 22:32:19 W to SSE reaching 28 degrees. Tuesday 21:21:15 W to ESE up to 52 degrees and 22:57:17 WSW to SSW to 13 degrees. Wednesday 21:45:38 W to SSE reaching 27 degrees. Thursday 22:10:37 WSW to S and Saturday 20:23:52 WSW to S up to 13 degrees.
There is one bright Iridium flare on Thursday at 23.26.21 at 20 degrees altitude in NNE

Week of 13th July

The Moon is waning Last Quarter on Wednesday
Thursday at 13.32UT marks the 40th anniversary of the Apollo 11 launch
The Sun’s first major sunspot in 2 years has disappeared over the western limb
The Sarychev volcanic erruption in Russia continues to produce unusual lavender sunsets at all latitudes
The ISS may be visible with accompanying satellites. This week-end the Russiam Progress 33 ship will practice docking manoevers and on Monday the Shuttle Endeavour is docking. Passes are as follows: on Monday at 22:52:08 W to E reaching 83 degrees. Tuesday 21:41:20 WSW to E up to 84 degrees and 23:16:34 W to ESE to 86 degrees. Wednesday 22:05:45 W to E reaching 83 degrees and 23:40:59 W to SE to 56 degrees. Thursday 22:30:09 W to ESE, to 85 degrees. Friday 21:54:32 W to SE reaching 54 degrees. Saturday 21:43:41 W to ESE up to 84 degrees and 23:19:01 W to S up to 28 degrees and Sunday 22:08:02 W to ESE to 53 degrees and 23.44.03 WSW to SW up to 13 degrees
There is one bright Iridium flare on Wednesday at 22.31.23 at 44 degrees altitude in NE

Week of 6th July

The Moon is Full on Monday (Thunder Moon) and will then wane to Last Quarter at the start of next week
The Sun now has at last a highly active sunspot 1024 which is from the new Cycle 24
The Sarychev volcanic erruption in Russia continues to produce unusual lavender sunsets
The ISS is back this week and makes multiple passes each evening: on Monday at 23:11:46 SSW to E reaching 25 degrees, 00:46:17 WSW to E to 80 degrees. On Tuesday 22:02:32 SSE to ESE up to 12 degrees and 23:35:42 SW to E, to 49 degrees. Wednesday 22:25:27 SSW to E reaching 26 degrees and 00:00:00 WSW to E to 81 degrees. Thursday 22:49:22 SW to E, to 50 degrees. Friday 21:39:03 SSWto E reaching 26 degrees and 23:13:38 WSW to E up to 82 degrees. Saturday 22:02:56 WSW to E up to 52 degrees and 23:38:01 W to E up to 83 degrees and Sunday 22:27:09 WSW to E to 83 degrees
There are two bright Iridium flares on Monday at 21.32.10 at 63 degrees altitude in NE and Thursday at 22.58.07, 35 degrees altitude in NE

Week of 29th June

The Moon is First Quarter on Monday and Full at the start of next week
The Sun remains blank
Due to the Sarychev volcanic erruption in Russia, plumes of Sulphur Dioxide in the stratosphere may cause deeply coloured sunsets
There are no ISS passes this week, but there is one bright Iridium flare on Tuesday at 23.32.44BST at 19 degrees altitude in NNE

Week of 22nd June

The Moon is New on Monday and will be visible as a slender crescent mid-week. It then waxes to First Quarter on 29th
The Summer sky which doesnt leave twilight allows easy spotting of the Summer asterisms. The Summer Traingle of Deneb, Vega (brightest top right corner) and Altair is high in the Eastern sky and the ‘hammer-head shark’ shape of Scorpius low in the South with bright red Antares twinkling due South (Antares is notable as opne of the largest stars we can see at 2700 times the Diameter of thwe Sun)Arcturus dominates the high SW sky bright orange and following the arc of the saucepan (Plough) to Arcturus and on leads to bright white Spica
The Sun is still blank
There are no ISS passes this week, though as the station nears completion it is now so bright that high passes are visible in daylight
There are no bright evening Iridium flares

Week of 15th June

The Moon is Last Quarter on Monday and will wane till New at the start of next week
The Summer Solstice occurs at next Sunday morning, when the Sun rises at its furthest North position on the Eastern horizon. The day length is at its longest and it will be a couple of days before the Sun’s rising and setting positions change noticeably and days shorten
The Sun is blank again
There are no ISS passes this week and no bright evening Iridium flares

Week of 8th June

The Moon is waning and will be Last Quarter at the start of next week
The Sun is blank again
There are no ISS passes this week and just one bright evening Iridium flare on Thursday at 21.41.38 at 59 degrees altitude in NE

Week of 1st June

The Moon is waxing and will be Full (Rose Moon) on Sunday
The Sun has a small Cycle 24 spot at high altitude in NW quadrant of the disc
This is the season for Noctilucent clouds. Irridescent clouds in the stratosphere at very high altitude visible after sunset. They occur each year in a fixed period about a month before Solstice till a couple of months after. Look West a couple of hours after sunset
There are no ISS passes this week and no bright evening Iridium flares

Week of 25th May

Astronomical twilight continues all night
The Moon is waxing and will be First Quarter at the start of next week
The Sun has had a small spot 1018 which has now disappeared. Current models still expect Cycle 24 to be well under way by the end of the year and to peak in 2013
The ISS makes one last pass on Tuesday at 21.21.29 W to SSE reaching 19 degrees
There is one bright evening Iridium flares as follows: Monday at 22.44.13 36 degrees altitude in NE

Week of 18th May

Astronomical twilight ends at 00.13 BST but by the end of the week will not return till 20th July
The Moon is waning and will be New on Sunday
The Sun at last has a small sunspot group number 1017 which is from the new cycle 24..perhaps we are off ?
The ISS makes passes all this week the best on Tuesday, as follows: Monday at 22.41.07 W to ESE. Tuesday at 21.31.39 W to E and 23.06.58 W to SSE. Wednesday 21.57.28 W to ESE and 23.32.59 W to SW. Thursday 22.23.17 W to SE. Friday 21.13.44 W to ESE and 22.49.17 W to S. Saturday 21.39.30 W to SE and Sunday 22.05.31 W to SSE
There is one bright evening Iridium flare as follows: Monday at 21.53.40 17 degrees altitude in WNW

Week of 11th May

Astronomical twilight ends at 23.38 BST at the start of the week and at 00.13 BST at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be Last Quarter on Sunday
The Sun remains blank, even still the NOAA are predicting the next (very weak maximum) will occur in May 2013 after one small spot. But when will Cycle 24 start ?
The ISS returns this week with some of the best nightly passes for a long time, reaching very high altitudes as follows: Monday at 21.17.15 SSE to ESE reaching 16 degrees and 22.50.23 SW to E reaching 47 degrees. Tuesday at 21.41.35 SSW to E reaching 25 degrees and 23.16.11 WSW to E reaching 7 degrees. Wednesday 22.06.59 WSW to E reaching 49 degrees and 23.42.06 W to E reaching 89 degrees. Thursday 22.32.45 WSW to E reaching 79 degrees. Friday 21.23.29 WSW to E reaching 52 degrees. Saturday 21.49.15 W to E reaching 81 degrees and 23.24.32 W to ESE reaching 77 degrees and Sunday 22.15.05 W to E reaching 88 degrees and 23.50.23 W to SW reaching 42 degrees
There is one bright evening Iridium flares on Thusday at 22.59.05, 22 degrees altitude in W

Week of 4th May

Astronomical twilight ends at 23.10 BST at the start of the week and at 23.33 BST at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be Full (Flower Moon) on Saturday
The Sun is again blank after one small spot, but not of the new cycle, came and went
The ISS returns at the start of next week, though the first is next Sunday at 22.24.49, SSW to S
There are two bright evening Iridium flares this week on Monday at 22.42.06, 33 degrees altitude in N and Friday at 22.27.23, 39 degrees altitude in NE

Week of 27th April

Astronomical twilight ends at 22.47 BST at the start of the week and at 23.00 BST at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be First Quarter on Friday
Mercury is well placed for viewing just below the Pleiades, low in the West after sunset
The Sun is still blank
There are no ISS passes this week
There are several bright evening Iridium flares this week on Tuesday at 21.41.36, 18 degrees altitude in N and 22.59.14, 23 degrees altitude in NE and Wednesday at 21.35.20, 20 degrees altitude in N

Week of 20th April

Astronomical twilight ends at 22.26 BST at the start of the week and at 22.44 BST at the end
The Moon is waning and will be New on Sunday. It should be visible as a slender crescent at the start of next week
The Lyrid meteor shower peaks on Wednesday. Up to 10 meteors per hour may be seen from 23.00 BST on Tuesday and the Moon rises late so skies will be dark
The Sun is still blank
There is one bright evening Iridium flare this week on Tuesday at 23.41.54, 10 degrees altitude in West

Week of 13th April

Astronomical twilight ends at 21.08 BST at the start of the week and at 22.24 BST at the end
The Moon is waning and will be Last Quarter on Friday
The Sun is still blank
There are no ISS passes or bright evening Iridium flares this week

Week of 6th April

Astronomical twilight ends at 21.55 BST at the start of the week and at 22.05 BST at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be Full (Pascal Moon; first Full Moon after the Vernal Equinox, which determines Easter Sunday) on Thursday
The Sun is still blank
There are no ISS passes or bright evening Iridium flares this week What’s Up – Week of 6th April

Week of 30th March

All times will now be given in British Summer Time (BST or UT+1). Astronomical twilight ends at 21.35 BST at the start of the week and at 21.48 BST at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be First Quarter on Thursday
On Friday CEB will be part of the International Year of Astronomy 24 hour broadcast from Observatories around the World and should be live from the William Herschel Telecope on La Palma see http://www.100hoursofastronomy.org/program/75-live-24-hour-research-observatory-webcast
The Sun is still blank
Venus is now a morning object low in the East at sunrise
The ISS (now brighter and larger due to the newly extended extra solar panels) makes its last decent evening pass on Tuesday at 21.04.33 W to ESE reaching 22 degrees
There are no evening Iridium flares

Week of 23rd March

The Moon is waning and will be New on Thursday, visible as a slender crescnet next week-end
The Sun is still blank..for how much longer?
Venus is now low in the West at sunset but is worth viewing. Even in Binos its crescent phase should be obvious
The ISS (now brighter and larger due to the newly unfurled extra solar panels) makes evening passes as follows: On Monday at 18.39.11 WSW to E and 20.14.35W to ESE. Tuesday at 19.06.10 W to E and 20.41.34 W to WSW. Wednesday at 19.33.06 W to ESE and 21.08.35 W to W. Thursday 19.59.58 W to SE. Friday 18.51.22 W to ESE and 20.26.53 W to WSW. Saturday 19.18.07 W to SE and 20.54.25 WSW to SW and Sunday 20.44.57 W to SSE
There are no bright evening Iridium flares

Week of 16th March

From Thursday (Vernal Equinox) when the Sun rises and sets due East and West respectively, the Sun will rise and set progressively further North and the day length will exceed that of the night, marking the start of the Astronomical year and the Northern hemisphere summer season
The Moon is waning and will be Last Quarter on Wednesday
The Sun is blank again
The ISS returns to the evening skies as follows: Monday at 20.15.39 SW to SSW. Tuesday 19.08.16 SSW to ESE and 20.42.30 WSW to WSW. Wednesday at 19.34.32 SW to ESE and 21.09.36 W to W. Thursday 18.27.00 SSW to E and 20.01.25 WSW to ESE. Friday 18.53.22 SW to E and 20.28.29 W to W. The best is on Saturday 19.20.15 WSW to E and 20.55.36 W to W. Sunday at 19.47.18 W to E and then 21.22.42 W to W
There are no bright evening Iridium flares

Week of 9th March

The Moon is waxing and will be Full (Sap Moon) on Wednesday
On Monday the Moon will only be a degree from alpha Leo (Regulus)
The Sun has a tiny spot 1014, but it is not from the awaited new cycle
Comet Lulin is receding fast from the inner solar system and dimming rapidly now well beyond naked eye visibility in Cancer
Visible ISS passes kick off again next week-end on Sunday with a low pass at 19.49.19. there are no bright evening Iridium flares

Week of 2nd March

The Moon is waxing and will be First Quarter on Wednesday
The Sun still remains blank. Solar astrophysicsits are still confident of an end to the mimimum but are expecting a rise in sunspots by the end of the month, otherwise they will have to change their predicitons
Comet Lulin is still viisble by eye in dark sites. Locate yellow Saturn and then follow a line to Regulus and beyond. The comet is moving noticeably night by night from Leo into Cancer
There are no evening ISS passes or bright Iridium flares

Week of 23rd February

The Moon is New on Wednesday and should be visible as a slender crescent at sunset by the end of the week
The Sun remains blank
Comet Lulin is visible by eye from dark sites just less than magnitude 6. Best viewed before dawn to the East of Saturn on a line joining Regulus in Leo with Spica in Virgo
There are no evening ISS passes or bright evening Iridium flares

Week of 16th February

The Moon is Last Quarter on Monday and will then wane to New on 25th
The Sun remains blank
Venus reaches its greatest brilliance on Thursday
There are no visible ISS passes. There is one superbright Iridium flare to watch out for at 18.00.18 on Wednesday, 64 degrees altitude in NNE

Week of 9th February

The Moon is Full (Snow Moon!) on Monday and will then wane to Last Quarter at the start of next week
The Sun remains blank
Comet Lulin (C/2007 N3 Lulin discovered in 2007) is approaching the inner Solar System and will pass only 0.41 AU from the Earth on 24th February. Currently at magnitude 6, it will pass just SW of Saturn on 23rd February and then within a degree of Regulus (alpha Leo) on 27th. Currentky moving at 2 degrees a day it is a good binocular object, though currenetly effected by the Moon
There are no ISS passes visible this week and no bright evening Iridium flares

Week of 2nd February

The Moon is waxing from First Quarter on Monday to Full at the start of next week
The Sun remains blank
Venus remains dominent in the West after sunset, but, though dim in comparison, yellow Saturn returns to the evenuing skies rising in the East in Leo, near the bright star Regulus (at the base of he ‘backwards question mark’)
The ISS makes its last passes: On Monday at 17.50.07 W to SE. Tuesday 18.18.31 WSW to S and the last on Thursday at 17.39.01 WSW to S

Week of 26th January

The Moon is New on Monday and should be visible as a slender crescent on Wednesday. It will then wax to First Quarter at the start of next week
The Sun is blank again
Venus continues to brighten in the SW evening sky
The ISS makes very bright passes this week (though in twilight skies): On Monday at 17.45.01 W to E and 19.20.27 W to W. Tuesday 18.13.04 W to E and 19.48.30 W to W. Wednesday 17.05.36 W to E and 18.41.05 W to SE. Thursday 17.33.35 W to E and 19.09.04 W to SW. Friday 18.01.35 W to ESE and 19.37.19 W to WSW. Saturday 18.29.33 W to SE and Sunday 17.21.59 W to ESE and 18.57.54 W to S

Week of 19th January

The Moon is waning and will be New at the start of next week
The Sun is blank again
The ISS makes two passes a day this week in the early evening, though only second passes will be properly dark, as follows: On Monday at 17.42.17 SSE to SE and 19.14.43 SW to SW. Tuesday 18.08.02 SSW to SE and 19.42.38 WSW to WSW. Wednesday 17.02.16 SSE to ESE and 18.35.29 SW to S. Thursday at 17.28.39 SSW to E and 19.03.22 WSW to WSW. Friday at 17.56.08 WSW to E and 19.31.25 W to W. Saturday at 16.49.09 SW to E and the best at 18.24.01 WSW to E and Sunday at 17.16.41 WSW to E and 18.52.00 W to W
There are no bright evening Iridium flares this week

Week of 12th January

The Moon is waning and will be Last Quarter next Sunday
The Sun has a new Cycle 24 sunspot! Number 2010, but it is very small, not convincing evidence of a rise in activity from the current deep low
Venus continues to brighten and will reach Greatest Elongation (biggest angle for the Sun as seen from here) On Wednesday. It will stay in the sky for 4 hours after sunset
The ISS will return to our skies next week

Week of 5th January

The Moon is waxing and will be First Quarter on Monday and Full next Sunday (Wolf Moon). The Moon is at Perigee, closest to Earth in its orbit and wil appear the largest Full Moon of the year
The Moon will pass in front of the Pleiades Open Cluster (M45) on Wednesday. Alcyone will undergo a grazing occultation at 5.45pm
The Sun remains blank
There are no ISS passes or bright Iridium flares this week

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