Astronomical twilight does not end until 21st July
The Earth reaches aphelion on Saturday, the furthest point from the Sun in its annual orbit. It will be at a distance of 1.02 AU. Summer in the Northern hemisphere has nothing to do with the Earth – Sun distance, it is due to the tilt of the Earth’s axis being towards the Sun at this time of year
Venus is now a morning object, rising at around 03:30 BST and shining at about mag -4 in the East
The Moon is waxing and will be Full on Sunday
The Sun has one active region, AR 2766, in the southern hemisphere approaching the off going limb. This is the tenth Solar Cycle 25 sunspot this year, which indicates that the new cycle is gaining strength
There are no ISS evening passes visible this week
Week of 22nd June
Astronomical twilight does not end until 21st July
Jupiter and Saturn are now late evening risers. On Thursday there is a shadow transit of Jupiter’s largest moon, Ganymede. The transit commences at 23:35 BST and continues until 02:50 BST. Look about 8° above the southeastern horizon with binoculars to find Jupiter and observe this event
The Moon is waxing and will be First Quarter on Sunday
The Sun is quiet again and has no active regions
There are no ISS evening passes visible this week
Week of 15th June
Astronomical twilight does not end until 21st July
A lunar occultation of Venus occurs on Friday morning. Venus will be hidden from view at around 08:37 BST as the Moon passes between it and the Earth. It will re-emerge just over an hour later at about 09:42 BST. As this all happens in daylight with a thin waning crescent Moon, it will be quite tricky to spot the reappearance of Venus, but the start of the occultation should be easier to observe
The Summer Solstice is on Saturday. At 22:27 BST the Sun will be at its highest declination of around +23.5°, making 20th June the longest day this year in the Northern Hemisphere. This marks the astronomical start of summer. This day also sees the Sun setting at its most northerly point on the horizon, about 41° north of due West. The Sun used to be in the constellation of Cancer on the Summer Solstice, creating the Tropic of Cancer, the most northerly line of latitude on Earth which sees the Sun directly overhead. However, nowadays, due to precession (the wobble of the Earth on its axis over a 26,000 year period) the Sun is actually in Taurus
There is an annular solar eclipse on Sunday morning between 04:47 and 10:34 BST, but it will not be visible from the UK. Only observers in Africa and Asia will be direct witness to this spectacular heavenly event
The Moon is waning and will be New on Sunday
The Sun has one active region, AR2765, at a high southerly latitude
There are no ISS evening passes visible this week
Week of 8th June
Astronomical twilight does not end until 21st July
Keep an eye out for noctilucent clouds towards the northern horizon in the hour after sunset and before sunrise
Jupiter, Saturn and Mars are currently rising at around midnight to 1 am. They will become evening objects in about a month
The Moon is waning and will be Last Quarter on Saturday
The Sun has one active region, AR2765, at a high southerly latitude
There are no ISS evening passes visible this week
Week of 1st June
Astronomical twilight does not end until 21st July
Mercury reaches greatest eastern elongation on Thursday. Look to the northwest in the hour after sunset to spot Mercury at around 10° altitude
Reports suggest that Comet C/2020 F8 (SWAN) has dimmed significantly and is possibly disintegrating. Another comet that has failed to live up to the stories
Noctilucent cloud season has started. Look to the North in the hour after sunset to spot these opalescent clouds. They reside in the mesosphere some 80 km above the ground and are formed by water vapour crystallising around particles in the high atmosphere. They reflect the sunlight still able to reach those altitudes as the Sun has not sunk far below the horizon
The Moon is waxing and will be Full on Friday
The Sun has no active regions, with the current spotless stretch at 29 days
The ISS makes just one evening pass this week:
Monday: 22:12, WSW to SSW, max 13°
Astronomical twilight does not end until 21st July as the Sun does not sink lower than 18° below the horizon
Mercury reaches its highest point in the evening sky on Sunday. Look to the northwest in the hour after sunset to see Mercury climb ever higher this week
Comet C/2020 F8 (SWAN) reaches perihelion on Friday. Look to 18° altitude above the northwestern horizon at around 10pm BST. It is about mag +6, on the border of naked eye visibility, but given its low altitude and the lack of darkness, binoculars will be required
On Wednesday evening at 9.32pm BST you should be able to watch the NASA/SpaceX Demo-2 live launch online. The first launch from US soil to the ISS since 2011
Binocular Deep Sky Target of the Week: M13, The Great Hercules Cluster. This globular cluster is the brightest in the Northern Hemisphere sky and is easily visible in binoculars at mag +5.8. Look on the western side of the Keystone asterism in the constellation of Hercules. It lies about 25,000 light years away and contains some 300,000 stars
The Moon is waxing and will be First Quarter on Saturday
The Sun has no active regions, with the current spotless stretch at 22 days
The ISS makes the following evening passes this week:
Monday: 22:55, W to ESE, max 62°
Tuesday: 22:07, W to ESE, max 76° and 23:44, W to SSW, max 25°
Wednesday: 22:57, W to SSE, max 35°
Thursday: 22:09, W to SE, max 47° and 23:46, WSW to SW, max 13°
Friday: 22:58, W to S, max 18°
Saturday: 22:10, W to SSE, max 26°
Week of 18th May
Astronomical twilight ends at 00:16 BST at the start of the week. From Saturday, Astronomical Twilight does not end until 21st July as the Sun never sinks lower than 18° below the horizon
Mercury starts to climb into the western evening sky. On Thursday and Friday it is in conjunction with Venus, separated by less than 2° (Be careful of the setting Sun if you attempt to spot Mercury with binoculars)
Comet C/2020 F8 (SWAN) is now low in the northern horizon and is at around mag +6
The Moon is waning and will be New on Friday
The Sun has no active regions, with the current spotless stretch at 14 days
The ISS makes multiple bright evening passes this week as follows:
Monday: 22:03, SW to E, max 42° and 23:40, W to E, max 87°
Tuesday: 22:52, WSW to E, max 84°
Wednesday: 00:29, W to ESE, max 87°, 22:04, WSW to E, max 71° and 23:41, W to E, max 86°
Thursday: 22:53, W to E, max 84°
Friday: 00:30, W to S, max 61°, 22:05, W to E, max 88° and 23:42, W to ESE, max 76°
Saturday: 22:54, W to E, max 88°
Sunday: 00:31, W to SW, max 31°, 22:06, W to E, max 86° and 23:43, W to SSE, max 47°
Week of 11th May
Astronomical twilight ends at 23:39 BST at the start of the week and 00:09 BST at the end
Venus is appearing to change rapidly as it moves towards inferior conjunction; it starts the week as a 15% crescent and finishes at 10%. It is increasing in apparent size and will appear about 50 arcseconds by the end of the week. For comparison, at the end of 2019 it appeared only about 12 arcseconds in size
Comet C/2017 T2 (PANSTARRS) is expected to be at its brightest on Wednesday as it moves through Camelopardalis towards Ursa Major. It is a binocular target at around mag +8
Comet C/2020 F8 (SWAN) will become visible low to the northeastern horizon in our morning sky from the middle of the week. It has been exciting observers in the Southern Hemisphere as it is on the border of naked eye visibility at mag +6 and has a very elongated tail. It will be fascinating to watch how this comet develops over the coming weeks
The Moon is waning and will be Last Quarter on Thursday
The Sun has no active regions, with the current spotless stretch at 8 days
The ISS returns to our evening sky this week with passes as follows:
Friday: 22:50, SW to E, max 31°
Saturday: 22:03, SSW to E, max 23° and 23:38, WSW to E, max 72°
Sunday: 22:51, WSW to E, max 57°
Week of 4th May
Astronomical twilight ends at 23:12 BST at the start of the week and 23:35 BST at the end
While Comet C/2019 Y4 (ATLAS) may have disappointed by breaking up, comets C/2017 T2 (PANSTARRS) and C/2020 F8 (SWAN) may give observers something to enjoy. PANSTARRS reaches perihelion on Tuesday and is well placed in Camelopardalis; however, at mag +8, binoculars or a telescope will be needed. Comet SWAN is not visible in the Northern Hemisphere yet, but should appear in our skies towards the end of May
Venus will appear in its crescent phase this week, shining brightly at mag -4.5 in the western evening sky
The Eta Aquarid meteor shower peaks on Wednesday, though the Full Moon will drown out the majority of meteors. The shower is a result of the Earth passing through the stream of debris deposited by Halley’s Comet
The Moon will be Full on Thursday. This will be the ‘Flower Moon’, the fourth and last supermoon of the year
The Sun has no active regions, with the current spotless stretch at 2 days
Astronomical twilight ends at 22:48 BST at the start of the week and 23:08 BST at the end
Venus continues its orbit around the Sun, now moving closer to Earth, reaching its 25% illuminated phase on Friday. It appears larger and brighter in the evening sky, shining at mag -4.5. It will be at inferior conjunction on 3rd June, when it passes between Earth and the Sun. Unfortunately, the three will not be in syzygy this time; the next transit of Venus is not until 2117
The Moon will be First Quarter on Thursday, at this phase for the second time this month
There is one small sunspot on the Sun, AR 2760; it is close to the equator and part of Solar Cycle 24
There are no visible evening ISS passes this week
Week of 20th April
Astronomical twilight ends at 22:27 BST at the start of the week and 22:45 BST at the end
The peak of the Lyrid meteor shower is on the 22nd April, with meteors possible all week. It generates only around 17 to 18 meteors per hour, so is not as spectacular as the Geminids or Perseids with their maximum ZHRs of 80 to 100 meteors, but given the lack of moonlight, those that appear should be easy to spot. As the name suggests, the radiant is in the constellation of Lyra. The shower occurs as the Earth passes through debris left behind by comet C/1861 G1 (Thatcher)
The Moon will be New on Thursday
There are currently no active regions on the Sun, with the spotless stretch now at 14 days
There are no visible evening ISS passes this week
Week of 13th April
Astronomical twilight ends at 22:09 BST at the start of the week and 22:25 BST at the end
Unfortunately it appears that Comet C/2019 Y4 (ATLAS) is not going to give us the display that was anticipated. Reports are of it dimming and of the nucleus disintegrating. It will be interesting to follow its progress over the coming days
On Wednesday and Thursday mornings, the waning Crescent Moon will pass by the line of the superior naked-eye planets: Mars, Jupiter and Saturn. Look in the southeastern pre-dawn sky
Monday April 13th is the 50th anniversary of those famous words: “Houston, we’ve had a problem…” when an oxygen tank blew two days in to the Apollo 13 mission, threating the lives of the astronauts aboard the spacecraft. Quick thinking, bravery and determination turned the threat of defeat into victory and the crew safely returned to Earth on April 17th
The Moon is waning and will be Last Quarter on Tuesday
There are currently no active regions on the Sun, with the spotless stretch now at 7 days
There are no visible evening ISS passes this week
Week of 6th April
Astronomical twilight ends at 21:51 BST at the start of the week and 22:06 BST at the end
As Orion appears ever closer to the western horizon, it is interesting to note that Betelgeuse is well on its way back to ‘normal’ brightness. Reports now suggest it is at magnitude +0.9. Have a look for yourself before it is too late and see how much brighter it now appears
Mars, Jupiter and Saturn are a treat for the early risers as they appear in a line across the southeastern pre-dawn sky within 15° of eachother
The Moon is waxing and will be Full on Wednesday
There is one active region on the Sun, AR 2759. It is at a high northerly latitude and has reversed magnetic polarity, identifying it as a member of new Solar Cycle 25
Astronomical twilight ends at 21:35 BST at the start of the week and 21:49 BST at the end
On Saturday evening, Venus will appear close to the Pleiades in Taurus, passing within about 15 arcminutes of the open cluster. Venus will be at mag -4.4 while the Pleiades will be at mag +1.3
For the early risers, the three naked eye superior planets, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn, make a spectacular sight as they all appear in the sky within 7° of eachother. Look towards the southeast horizon at around 5am. On Tuesday and Wednesday mornings, Mars and Saturn will be within 1° of eachother, around this time appearing in conjunction when they share the same right ascension
The Moon is waxing and will be First Quarter on Wednesday
There are no active regions on the Sun, with the current spotless stretch at 19 days
There are multiple evening ISS passes this week:
Monday: 21:32, W to S, max 46°
Tuesday: 20:44, W to ESE, max 61° and 22:21, W to WSW, max 15°
Wednesday: 21:34, W to SSW, max 25°
Thursday: 20:46, W to SSE, max 34°
Friday: 21:37, WSW to SSW, max 12°
Saturday: 20:49, W to S, max 18°
Week of 23rd March
Astronomical twilight ends at 20:21 UT at the start of the week and 21:33 BST at the end
British Summer Time starts on Sunday 29th March, clocks go forward one hour at 1am
Venus is at Greatest Eastern Elongation on Tuesday, when it is at maximum separation from the Sun. It reaches a peak altitude of 41° above the horizon on Friday evening, shining at mag -4.4. Observation of Venus through binoculars or a telescope at this time will show it in dichotomy phase, the equivalent of a Quarter Moon phase
Mercury is at Greatest Western Elongation on Monday, appearing before sunrise in the southeastern morning sky. Unfortunately it will be difficult to spot at only 6° above the horizon. Take care of the rising Sun if you do try to spot it. Mercury will be at aphelion on Friday, the furthest point from the Sun in its orbit
A new comet, C/2019 Y4 (Atlas), was discovered in December last year and is brightening as it approaches the Sun. It is currently at magnitude +8.3, so binoculars are needed to see it. Look above the head of the Bear in Ursa Major. It will reach perihelion on 31st May, so will hopefully become increasingly bright through the spring. For full details about this comet, visit theskylive.com and search for ATLAS
The New Moon is on Tuesday
There are no active regions on the Sun, with the current spotless stretch at 11 days
There are multiple evening ISS passes this week:
Monday: 19:36, WSW to E, max 55° and 21:13, W, max 27°
Tuesday: 20:25, W to ENE, max 88°
Wednesday: 19:38, WSW to E, max 84° and 21:15, W, max 30°
Thursday: 20:27, W to E, max 86°
Friday: 19:40, W to E, max 84° and 21:17, W, max 29°
Saturday: 20:29, W to SE, max 76°
Sunday: 20:42, W to E, max 87° and 22:19, W to WSW, max 24°
Week of 16th March
Astronomical twilight ends at 20:07 UT at the start of the week and 20:19 UT at the end
The Vernal Equinox is on Friday and marks the first day of spring here in the Northern Hemisphere. It is the point when the Sun, travelling along the ecliptic, crosses the celestial equator, heading North and has a Right Ascension of 00 hours and a Declination of 0°. It is also known as the First Point of Aries; however, due to Earth’s precession, the Sun is no longer in Aries at this time, but is in Pisces – apologies to all those who swear by their daily horoscope!
The Moon is waning and will be Last Quarter on Monday
There are no active regions on the Sun, with the current spotless stretch at 5 days
There are multiple evening ISS passes this week:
Thursday: 19:33, S to SSE, max 15°
Friday: 20:21, SW to SSW, max 30°
Saturday: 19:33, SSW to ESE, max 30° and 21:10, WSW, max 19°
Sunday: 20:22, WSW to SSE, max 69°
Week of 9th March
Astronomical twilight ends at 19:53 UT at the start of the week and 20:05 UT at the end
Venus continues to appear high in the southwest evening sky at magnitude -4. It will be about 2° from Uranus (mag +6, binoculars required) at the start of the week
The Moon is waxing and will be Full on Monday
Breaking a string of 34 spotless days, a new sunspot is emerging in the Sun’s southern hemisphere. The high latitude and magnetic polarity of this sunspot identify it as a likely member of new Solar Cycle 25
There are no visible evening ISS passes this week
Week of 2nd March
Astronomical twilight ends at 19:41 UT at the start of the week and 19:52 UT at the end
Comet C/2017 T2 (PANSTARRS) is currently visible through a telescope at magnitude +9 in Cassiopeia
Venus is high in the southwest evening sky
The Moon is waxing and will be at First Quarter on Monday
The Sun has no visible active regions, current spotless stretch is 28 days
Astronomical twilight ends at 19:29 UT at the start of the week and 19:39 UT at the end
Venus is ever higher in the southwest evening sky
The waxing Crescent Moon will pass by Venus in the evening, appearing closest on Thursday when they will be about 6° apart. Look towards the southwest horizon to spot this appulse
Reports suggest that Betelgeuse has stopped dimming and could be increasing in magnitude again. Get out, have a look and see what you think
Star Count 2020 is running from the 21st to 28th February. It is a ‘Citizen Science’ project to assess light pollution levels across the country. Count the number of stars you can see by naked eye within the ‘four corners’ of Orion and report your observation online. Search ‘Star Count 2020’ for full details
The Moon is waxing and will be at First Quarter next week
The Sun has no visible active regions, current spotless stretch is 21 days
There are no visible evening ISS passes this week
Week of 17th February
Astronomical twilight ends at 19:17 UT at the start of the week and 19:27 UT at the end
Venus continues to dominate the southwest evening sky
For the early risers, the waning Crescent Moon will appear close to Mars on Tuesday, Jupiter on Wednesday and Saturn on Thursday. Look in the southeast at around 6 am
The Moon will be New on Sunday
The Sun has no visible active regions, current spotless stretch is 14 days
There are no visible evening ISS passes this week
Week of 10th February
Astronomical twilight ends at 19:05 UT at the start of the week and 19:15 UT at the end
The Moon reaches perigee (closest point to Earth) on Monday; it is waning and will be Last Quarter on Saturday
Venus, the ‘Evening Star’, is bright (mag -4) and clear to spot in the southwest evening sky
Mercury (mag -0.5) will be at Greatest Eastern Elongation on Monday, placing it perfectly for a rare sighting. It will be at its highest point in the sky on Friday, when it reaches a peak altitude of 15° above the horizon. Look in the southwest just after sunset (take care as Mercury is still within 20° of the Sun)
Neptune is also in the southwestern evening sky, though at magnitude +8 will require binoculars to be seen. It is in close conjunction (about 2 arcminutes) with the star Phi Aquarii and comes to about 5° of Mercury
Keep observing Betelgeuse, which is at its dimmest since records began, currently at about magnitude +1.7. February 21st is a key date as this is when the star’s variable periods are predicted to turn and it should start to brighten again
The Sun is currently spotless
There are no visible ISS passes this week
Week of 3rd February
Astronomical twilight ends at 18:54 UT at the start of the week and 19:04 UT at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be Full on Sunday
Venus is climbing ever higher in the southwest evening sky
Mercury is starting to become visible in the evening sky, look low on the southwestern horizon just after sunset (take care as Mercury is still within 20° of the Sun)
The Sun has one current active region (AR 2757), which is departing around the western limb
The ISS makes visible evening passes this week as follows:
Monday: 18:31, W to E, max 87° & 19:08, W to S, max 34°
Tuesday: 18:21, W to SE, max 46° & 19:59, WSW to SW, max 12°
Wednesday: 17:33, W to ESE, max 60° & 19:10, W to S, max 17°
Thursday: 18:22, W to SSE, max 24°
Saturday: 18:25, WSW to SSW, max 12°
Astronomical twilight ends at 18:44 UT at the start of the week and 18:53 UT at the end
There is an unusual conjunction of Neptune (mag +8) and Venus (mag -4) on Monday evening. Look low in the southwest sky between 17:00 and 19:30 UT to see the two planets just 4 arcminutes apart. You will need to use a pair of binoculars or a telescope to observe the conjunction. On Tuesday evening, the Crescent Moon comes within 4 degrees of the pair, making an interesting combination to look out for
The Moon is waxing and will be First Quarter on Sunday
Look to the southwest just after sunset to see Venus dominate the twilight sky at mag -4.0
The Sun has one Cycle 24 active region near the equator (AR 2757). A region of interest belonging to Cycle 25 is developing high in latitude around the southeast limb
There are multiple visible evening ISS passes this week as follows:
Monday: 18:14, WSW to E, max 72°
Tuesday: 17:26, WSW to E, max 57° & 19:03, W to WNW, max 70°
Wednesday: 18:16, W to E, max 87° & 19:52, W, max 20°
Thursday: 17:28, WSW to E, max 85° & 19:05, W, max 73°
Friday: 18:17, W to E, max 86° & 19:54, W, max 20°
Saturday: 17:30, W to E, max 84° & 19:07, W to SSW, max 60°
Sunday: 18:19, W to ESE, max 75° & 19:56, W to WSW, max 18°
Week of 20th January
Astronomical twilight ends at 18:34 UT at the start of the week and 18:42 UT at the end
Betelgeuse continues to appear dimmer than its normal magnitude of +0.5. Compare with Rigel (+0.3) and Bellatrix (+1.6). The lower brightness is only in the visible wavelengths, in infrared it continues to shine as brightly as ever
The Moon is waning and will be New on Friday
Venus continues to dominate the western evening twilight sky at mag -4.0
The Sun has no spots, with a current spotless stretch of 7 days
There are multiple early evening ISS passes this week as follows:
Wednesday: 18:59, SW to S, max 25°
Thursday: 18:11, SSW to ESE, max 23°
Friday: 17:24, S to E, max 16° & 18:59, WSW to SSW, max 47°
Saturday: 18:11, SW to E, max 42°
Sunday: 17:23, SSW to E, max 31° & 18:59, WSW, max 70°
Week of 13th January
Astronomical twilight ends at 18:25 UT at the start of the week and 18:32 UT at the end
Betelgeuse, the red giant star at Orion’s left shoulder, has dimmed significantly since the autumn. Normally it shines at magnitude +0.4, but it is currently at mag +1.4, about two and a half times dimmer. Compare its brightness with the star at Orion’s right heel, Rigel, which is mag +0.3 and the difference is very clear. Many theories about what is causing the change abound, but the most widely accepted is that Betelgeuse, as a variable star, is experiencing a period of swelling, which leads to its luminosity being spread across a larger surface area, therefore appearing dimmer to us
The Moon is waning and will be Last Quarter on Friday
Venus continues to dominate the evening twilight sky at mag -4.0
The Sun is currently spotless again after a recent period of increased activity
There are no evening ISS passes this week
Week of 6th January 2020
Astronomical twilight ends at 18:17 UT at the start of the week and 18:23 UT at the end
Watch The Sky at Night at 10pm on BBC4 next Sunday (12th) to see CEB and observing on the College playing fields feature
There is a penumbral Lunar eclipse on Friday 10th as the Full Moon passes through the faint outer edge of the Earth’s shadow (the penumbra). Maximum eclipse occurs at 19:11. It will not be very obvious to the naked eye, but comparative photos will show the difference
The Moon is waxing and will be Full on Friday
Venus continues to dominate the evening twilight sky
The Sun has one, reversed polarity, Cycle 25, active region (AR2755)
Astronomical twilight ends at 18:10 UT at the start of the week and 18:14 UT at the end
The Quadrantids meteor shower peaks on Saturday morning, with best viewing once the Moon has set in the early hours. Meteors are already appearing and will be building in number during the week, though only reach good numbers in the hours leading up to the sharp peak. The shower is potentially one of the best in the year with fast meteors being seen at rates of one a minute or more. The radiant is at high declination, above the end of the ‘saucepan’s’ handle. It now lies in the constellation Bootes (originally it was in the, now declassified, constellation of Quadrans Muralis, Mural Quadrant). The parent body was identified in 2003 as asteroid 2003EH1
The Earth reaches its closest point to the Sun (Perihelion) just before 8am next Sunday
The Moon is waxing and will be First Quarter on Friday
Venus continues to dominate the evening twilight sky with the waxing Moon
The Sun is blank again after 2 sunspots from the new Cycle 25 briefly appeared on Christmas Eve
There are no ISS passes this week
Week of 23rd December
Astronomical twilight ends at 18:05 UT at the start of the week and 18:10 UT at the end.
The Moon is waning and will be New on Thursday
Venus continues bright in the evening twilight sky and is nearly (-4 magnitude). Look towards the southwest horizon between 16:00 and 17:30 UT
The Sun is still blank – current stretch 39 days
There are no ISS passes this week
Week of 16th December
Astronomical twilight ends at 18:02 UT on Monday 16th and 18:05 UT on Sunday 22nd
The Winter Solstice occurs on Sunday 22nd when the Sun’s path reaches its lowest point in the sky. The noon Sun will reach a maximum altitude of 15 degrees. Sunrise and sunset occur at their most southerly extremes and it is the shortest day of the year, with the Sun above the horizon for only 7 hours 51 minutes.
Venus continues to appear bright in the evening sky. Look towards the southwest horizon between 16:00 and 17:30 UT
The Moon is Last Quarter on Thursday 19th
The Sun is still blank – current stretch 32 days
The ISS makes one visible pass this week:
Saturday – 06:55:34, S to ESE, max 14 degrees
Week of 9th December
Astronomical twilight ends at 18:01 UT on Monday 9th and 18:02 UT on Sunday 15th
Venus is bright in the evening sky at mag -4.0 and passes by Saturn (mag +0.6) through the week, with closest conjunction on Wednesday 11th when it comes to within 2 degrees. Look in the southwest at around 16:00 to 17:00 UT
Geminid meteor shower is active from 4th to 17th December, with its peak at 01:00 UT on Saturday 14th. Meteors appear to originate from the constellation Gemini, but are best observed by looking away from the radiant. They are caused by the Earth hitting a stream of debris left by asteroid 3200 Phaethon. Peak hourly rate can be as high as 120 meteors, but the bright Moon present this year will reduce visibility to only the brightest
The Moon is Full on Thursday 12th
The Sun is still blank and has been for the past 24 days, giving 261 spotless days so far this year
The ISS makes several visible passes this week:
Monday – 16:35:41, W to ESE, max 57 degrees and 18:13:02, W to S, max 16 degrees
Tuesday – 17:24:13, W to SSE, max 23 degrees
Wednesday – 16:35:33, W to SE, max 33 degrees
Thursday – 17:25:03, WSW to SSW, max 12 degrees
Friday – 16:35:44, W to S, max 17 degrees
Week of 2nd December
Look out for bright Venus (mag -3.9) along with Jupiter (-1.8) and Saturn (+0.6) in the southwest at dusk around 4pm, while Mars and Mercury will be visible in the southeast just before dawn at around 6am
Astronomical twilight ends at 18:03 UT on Monday 2nd and 18:02 UT on Sunday 8th
The Moon is at First Quarter on Wednesday 4th
The Sun is still blank
The ISS makes multiple passes this week as follows:
Monday – 17:24:40, W to E, max 85 degrees
Tuesday – 16:36:12, W to E, max 88 degrees and 18:12:58, W to S, max 83 degrees
Wednesday – 17:24:27, W to E, max 88 degrees
Thursday – 16:35:57, W to E, max 84 degrees and 18:12:42, W to S, max 55 degrees
Friday – 17:24:10, W to ESE, max 71 degrees
Saturday – 16:35:38, W to ESE, max 84 degrees and 18:12:30, W to S, max 31 degrees
Sunday – 17:23:52, W to SE, max 43 degrees
Week of 25th November
Astronomical twilight ends at 18.06 UT at the start of the week and 18.03 UT at the end
The Moon is New on Tuesday and waxing to a crescent by the end of the week
The Sun is still blank – 2019 has seen 252 spotless days so far
There are multiple ISS passes this week as follows: On Monday at 18.13.53 from SW to SSE reaching 38 degrees, Tuesday at 17.28.43 from SSW to ESE to 28 degrees, Wednesday at 18:13:26 from WSW to SSE to 66 degrees, Thursday at 17:25:06 from SW to E to 51 degrees, Friday at 16:36:51 from SW to E to 37 degrees and at 18:13:11 from W to E to 89 degrees, Saturday at 17:24:43 from WSW to E to 79 degrees and on Sunday at 16.36.18 from WSW to E to 64 degrees and at 18.12.59 from W to N to 84 degrees
Week of 18th November
Astronomical twilight ends at 18.11 UT at the start of the week and 18.05 UT at the end
The Moon is Last Quarter on Monday and then wanes to New at the start of next week
The Sun is again blank
The ISS returns this week with passes as follows: On Friday at 19.02.41 from SSW to SSW reaching 11 degrees. Saturday 18.14.47 from SSW to SSE to 19 degrees and Sunday 17.27.14 from S to ESE and 19.02.04 from SW to SW to 24 degrees
Week of 11th November
Astronomical twilight ends at 18.19 UT at the start of the week and 18.11 UT at the end
The Moon is Full (Frost Moon) on Monday
The planet Mercury reaches Inferior Conjunction at 3pm on Monday. The resultant transit, last seen in 2016, won’t happen again till November 2032. 1st contact should be soon after 12.31pm at about ‘8.45’ on the solar disc (ie Eastern limb) The Sun will be high in the Southern sky (Azi 192.5 degrees and Alt 20.25 degrees) The planet will then cross the disc, nearly centrally, and will be viewed until sunset (just after 4pm), though will be below 10 degrees by 2.50pm. The black dot is tiny and is not visible except through a small telescope. WARNING !!It is totally unsafe to view the Transit unless professional Solar filters are in use !!(projection will not show a large enough image)
The Sun is blank
The ISS makes no evening passes this week
Week of 4th November
Astronomical twilight ends at 18.30 UT at the start of the week and 18.20 UT at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be Full (Frost Moon) at the start of next week
Next Monday (11th) see the next Transit of the planet Mercury. Last seen in 2016, this won’t happen again till November 2032. 1st contact should be soon after 12.31pm at about ‘8.45’ on the solar disc (ie Eastern limb) The Sun will be high in the Southern sky (Azi 192.5 degrees and Alt 20.25 degrees) The planet will then cross the disc, nearly centrally, and will be viewed until sunset (just after 4pm), though will be below 10 degrees by 2.50pm. The black dot is tiny and is not visible except through a small telescope. WARNING !!It is totally unsafe to view the Transit unless professional Solar filters are in use !!(projection will not show a large enough image). Mercury will be at Inferior Conjunction at 15 UT
The Sun is basically blank with an old cycle spot 2751
The ISS makes no evening passes this week
Week of 28th October
British Summer Time (BST) has ended we are now on Universal Time (UT) till the Spring
Astronomical twilight ends at 18.40 UT at the start of the week and 18.30 UT at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be First Quarter at the start of next week
The Sun is blank again. Now we are at deep Solar minimum the Cosmic Ray count is at an all time high (highest for nearly 50 years)
The ISS makes no evening passes this week
Week of 21st October
British Summer Time (BST) ends next-week end in the early hours of Sunday morning. The clocks go back 1 hour to Universal Time (UT). We will enjoy lighter mornings for a while
Astronomical twilight ends at 19.53 BST at the start of the week and 18.40 UT at the end
The Moon is waning and will be New at the start of next week
The Orionids meteor shower peaks at the start of the week. The waning Moon will interfere with the best early morning meteors. Pre dawn on Tuesday should be the peak of these fast meteors
The debris is left over from passes of Halley’s comet
The Sun is blank again
The ISS makes no evening passes this week
Week of 14th October
Astronomical twilight ends at 20.07 BST at the start of the week and 19.53 BST at the end
The Moon is waning and will be Last Quarter on Monday
The Sun is blank again
The ISS makes no evening passes this week
Week of 7th October
Astronomical twilight ends at 20.23 BST at the start of the week and 20.07 BST at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be Full (Hunters Moon) on Sunday
The Sun is blank again, having had a small old cycle 24 spot last week. There are already reversed polarity active regions being detected so we can expect a cycle 25 spot soon
The ISS makes its last 2 passes for sometime: Monday 20.32.04 W to SSE to 27 degrees and Wednesday 20.32.22 WSW to S to 14 degrees
Week of 30th September
Astronomical twilight ends at 20.39 BST at the start of the week and 20.23 BST at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be First Quarter on Saturday
Saturn is in Conjunction with the Moon, less than 1 degree to north at 9pm on Saturday
The Sun is totally blank again, so far 26 days on end
The ISS makes further good evening passes as follows: Monday 21.21.21 from W to ESE reaching 87 degrees and 22.58.11 W to W to 13 degrees. Tuesday 20.32.49 W to E to 85 degrees and 22.09.35 W to WSW to 36 degrees. Wednesday 21.21.01 W to SE to 62 degrees. Thursday 20.32.27 W to ESE to 77 degrees and 22.09.25 W to WSW to 23 degrees. Friday 21.21.42 W to SSE to 36 degrees. Saturday 29.32.05 W to SE to 49 degrees and 22.09.49 WSW to SW to 13 degrees and Sunday 21.21.38 W to S to 19 degrees
Week of 16th September
Astronomical twilight ends at 21.15 BST at the start of the week and 20.57 BST at the end
The Moon is waning and will be Last Quarter on Sunday
The Sun is totally blank again
The ISS returns this week making evening passes as follows: Thursday at 22.11.44 from SSW to SSW reaching 13 degrees. Friday 21.23.54 from S to SE to 18 degrees an 22.59.12 WSW to WSW to 10 degrees. Saturday 22.20.50 SW to SSW to 34 degrees and Sunday 21.22.35 SW to ESE to 33 degrees and 22.58.49 W to W to 17 degrees
Week of 9th September
Astronomical twilight ends at 21.35 BST at the start of the week and 21.18 BST at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be Full (Harvest Moon) on Saturday
The Sun is totally blank again
The ISS makes no evening passes this week
Week of 2nd September
Astronomical twilight ends at 2059 BST at the start of the week and 2035 BST at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be First Quarter on Friday
>The Sun is totally blank again
The ISS makes no evening passes this week
Week of 26th August
Astronomical twilight ends at 2017 BST at the start of the week and 1958 BST at the end
The Moon is waning and will be New on Friday
The Sun is totally blank again
The ISS makes no evening passes this week
Week of 12th August
Astronomical twilight ends at 2303 BST at the start of the week and 2242 BST at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be Full on Thursday
The Perseids meteor shower (aka Tears of St Lawrence, first seen in 36AD) peaks in the early hours of 13th August but, due to the nearly Full Moon, only the brightest will be seen, reducing the normally high hourly rate. Luckily, perhaps due to the large size of the parent Comet (Swift-Tuttle) nucleus, the shower is often full of bright fireballs (more than any other shower). It is worth watching out on Monday and Tuesday (look NE after 10.30pm, when the sky is dark enough and the Radiant in Perseus is high) when the Moon is less evident
The Sun is totally blank again
The ISS makes no evening passes this week
Week of 5th August
Astronomical twilight ends at 2328 BST at the start of the week and 2303 BST at the end
The Moon will wax and will be First Quarter on Wednesday
The Perseids meteor shower (aka Tears of St Lawrence, first seen in 36AD) peaks in the early hours of 13th August but, due to the nearly Full Moon, only the brightest will be seen, reducing the normally high hourly rate. Luckily, perhaps due to the large size of the parent Comet (Swift-Tuttle) nucleus, the shower is often full of bright fireballs (more than any other shower). It is worth watching out all this week (look NE after 10.30pm, when the sky is dark enough and the Radiant in Perseus is high) when the Moon is less evident
The Sun is totally blank again
The ISS makes no evening passes this week
Week of 29th July
Astronomical twilight ends at 0002 BST at the start of the week and 2350 BST at the end
The Moon is waning and will be New on Thursday
The Sun is totally blank again
The ISS makes its last passes for a while: On Monday at 23.39.58 from W to SSE reaching 41 degrees. Tuesday 22.50.35 W to ESE to 56 degrees. Wednesday 23.38.13 W to S to 23 degrees. Thursday 22.48.41 W to SE to 32 degrees. Friday 23.37.15 WSW to SSW to 12 degrees and Saturday 22.47.03 W to S to 18 degrees
Week of 22nd July
Astronomical darkness returns on Sunday 21st July from 0048 BST. At the end of the week it will be dark at 0002 BST
The Moon is waning and will be Last Quarter on Thursday
The Sun is totally blank again
There ISS makes super late evening ISS passes: Monday at 22.58.23 from WSW to E reaching 69 degrees. Tuesday 23.45.43 W to E to 84 degrees. Wednesday 22.56.21 W to E to 89 degrees. Thursday 23.43.43 W to E through the Zenith at 90 degrees. Friday 22.54.20 W to E to 84 degrees. Saturday 23.41.39 W to ESE to 68 degrees and Sunday 22.52.16 W to ESE to 83 degrees
Week of 15th July
Astronomical darkness returns on Sunday 21st July from 0048 BST,li>The Moon is waxing and will be Full (Thunder Moon) on Tuesday. The Moon will rise partially eclipsed by the Earth’s shadow at 21.40 BST following Saturn in SE. It will be darkest at 22.30 BST and will return to full brightness at midnight
The Sun is totally blank again
There ISS returns with late evening ISS passes: Monday at 23.57.57 from ESE to E reaching 16 degrees altitude. Tuesday 23.06.33 SSE to ESE to 12 degrees. Wednesday 23.51.38 SW to E to 33 degrees. Thursday 23.02.42 SSW to E to 23 degrees. Friday 23.49.07 WSW to E to 57 degrees. Saturday 22.59.52 SW to E to 42 degrees and Sunday 23.46.49 WSW to E to 83 degrees
Week of 8th July
Astronomical darkness does not return till 21st July
The Moon is waxing and will be First on Tuesday
The Sun has a small emerging spot. The reversed magnetic polarity sigals it out as belonging to the new Cycle 25
There ISS returns with late evening ISS passes from 15th
Week of 1st July
Astronomical darkness does not return till 21st July
The Moon is waning and will be New on Tuesday, when there is a Total Solar Eclipse (visible from Chile and Argentina)
Saturn reaches Opposition next week, but is low in the sky
The Sun remains blank
There are no evening ISS passes this week
Week of June 24th
Astronomical darkness does not return till 21st July
We are now in the second quarter of the Astronomical Year and the Sun has just moved into Gemini
The Moon is waning and will be Last Quarter on Tuesday
The Sun has been totally blank for 34 days and is now in deep miminum
Noctilucent Clouds (NLC): These iridescent electric blue tendrils are particularly seen close to the Solstice and are now thought to be formed by ice crystal collecting on ionisation trails left by meteoroids at high altitude (80km). NLCs are being seen at lower latitudes (even being seen in Rome). It is worth looking out 30 to 60 minutes after sunset in the North, if the sky is clear
There are no ISS passes this week
Week of June 17th
Astronomical darkness does not return till 21st July
The Summer Solstice falls on Friday, when the Sun culminates at its highest altitude at Noon (62.5 degrees). The Sun rises and sets at its furthest north points on the horizons, giving the longest hours of daylight
The Moon is Full (Solstice moon) on Monday
The Sun is totally blank again
2019 is turning out to be excellent for Noctilucent Clouds (NLC). These iridescent electric blue whisps are particularly seen over the Solstices and are now thought to be formed by meteor trails at high altitude. NLCs are being seen at lower latitudes. It is worth looking out 30 to 60 minutes after sunset in the west on a clear night
There are no ISS passes this week
Week of May 27th
Astronomical darkness returns on 21st July
The Moon is waning and will be New at the start of next week
The Sun is totally blank again
The ISS makes its last passes for a while: Monday at 23.22.16 from W to ESE reaching 85 degrees. Wednesday at 23.20.00 from W to ESE. Friday 23.17.45 from W to SE and Sunday at 23.15.44 from W to S to 19 degrees
Week of May 20th
Astronomical twilight ends at 00.25 BST at the start of the week. From Wednesday, Nautical twilight does not end till 21st July, as the Sun is never far enough below the Northern horizon
The Moon is waning and will be Last Quarter on Sunday. The Moon and Jupiter will be in close Conjunction on 20th. Jupiter is approaching Opposition on 10th June
The Sun is basically blank again as 2741 disappears over the Western limb
The ISS makes good late passes: Monday at 22.46.35 from SSW to E reaching 30 degrees altitude. Tuesday at 22.31.39 from WSW to E to 68 degrees. Wednesday 22.40.50 SW to E to 51 degrees. Thursday 23.26.17 from W to E to 89 degrees and Saturday 23.20.54 from W to E to 84 degrees
Week of May 13th
Astronomical twilight ends at 23.45 BST at the start of the week and 00.25 BST at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be Full (Flower Moon) on Saturday. The Moon approaches Jupiter from the West during the week and they will be in close Conjunction on 20th
The Sun is still slightly active again with spot 2741 and decaying 2740
The ISS returns later this week with late evening passes: Friday at 23.42.42 from SSW to SSE reaching 10 degrees altitude. Saturday at 22.52.30 from S to E to 17 degrees and Sunday at 23.36.44 from SW to E reaching 42 degrees
Week of May 6th
Astronomical twilight ends at 23.16 BST at the start of the week and 23.45 BST at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be NeFirst Quarter on Saturday
The Sun is active again with spot 2740 (returning active spot 2738) on its Eastern limb
There are no ISS passes this week
Week of April 29th
Astronomical twilight ends at 22.52 BST at the start of the week and 23.12 BST at the end
The Moon is waning and will be New on Saturday
The Sun is blank again
There are no ISS passes this week
Week of April 22nd
Astronomical twilight ends at 21.31 BST at the start of the week and 22.49 BST at the end
The Moon is waning and will be Last Quarter on Friday
The Sun is blank again
There are no ISS passes this week
Week of April 15th
Astronomical twilight ends at 21.12 BST at the start of the week and 22.31 BST at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be Full (Paschal Moon) on Friday, so that Easter Sunday can follow on 21st
The Sun is active again with an Earth facing sunspot 2738. This single huge spot (3 x Earth size) is beginning to break apart. This may herald more activity
As Mars disappears in the west, Jupiter will soon be an evening object in the East; currenly rising at 00.30 BST
There are no ISS passes this week
Week of April 8th
Astronomical twilight ends at 21.54 BST at the start of the week and 22.12 BST at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be First Quarter on Friday
The Sun is blank but a new spot group is emerging on the Eastern limb
The ISS has made its last passes fro a few weeks
Week of April 1st
Astronomical twilight ends at 21.36 BST at the start of the week and 21.52 BST at the end
The Moon is waning and will be New on Friday
The Sun is completely blank
The ISS makes final passes this week: Monday at 21.47.05 from W to ESE reaching 81 degrees altitude and 23.23.50 from W to WSW to 20 degrees. Tuesday 22.33.00 from W to S reaching 40 degrees. Wednesday at 21.42.14 fro W to SE to 55 degrees and 23.19.32 WSW to WSW to 14 degrees. Friday 22.28.22 W to S to 23 degrees. Saturday 21.37.25 W to SE to 33 degrees and Sunday 22.24.21 WSW to SSW to 12 degrees
Week of March 25th
Astronomical twilight ends at 20.23 UT at the start of the week and 21.36 BST at the end
The clocks go forward by one hour next Saturday night to British Summer Time or UT+1
The Moon is waning and will be Last Quarter on Thursday
The Sun is becomming quiet again after spot 2736 disappears
The ISS makes good passes this week: Monday at 19.15.50 from SW to E reaching 35 degrees altitude and 20.52.00 W to W to 45 degrees. Tuesday 20.01.21 WSW to E to 76 degrees and 21.37.57 W to W to 16 degrees. Wednesday 19.10.44 WSW to E to 59 degrees and 20.47.15 W to WSW to 69 degrees. Thursday 19.56.32 W to E to 87 degrees and 21.33.09 W to W to 21 degrees. Friday 19.05.50 WSW to E to 84 degrees and 20.42.27 W to WSW to 86 degrees. Saturday 19.51.44 W to E to 85 degrees and 21.28.21 W to W to 22 degrees and Sunday at 22.37.36 from W to S reaching 65 degrees
Week of March 18th
Astronomical twilight ends at 20.09 UT at the start of the week and 20.21 UT at the end
The Vernal Equinox falls this year on Thursday 21st. This is the start of the Astronomical Year. The Sun rises due East and sets due West and we have equal day and night. From now the Northern Summer season begins. The Sun is at 0h RA and 0 degrees Declination, known as the First Point of Aries, due to precession of the Earth’s axis, the Sun is now in front of the constellation of Pisces. At noon on 21st the Sun will be directly over the Tropic of Cancer, where, at noon, there will be no shadow. At any other latitude on Earth the shadow length at noon gives an estimate for the curvature and hence the circumference of the Earth. This year an International experimental repeat of Eratosthenes’ original expriment will be carried out and the College has been invited to take part
The Moon is waxing and will be Full (Spring Moon) on Thursday
The Sun is completely blank again though there is Geomagnetic activity (often seen near the Equinoxes)
The ISS returns on Friday with low passes: Friday 20.11.48 from SSW to S reaching 23 degrees. Saturday 19.21.21 SSW to ESE to 20 degrees and 20.56.44 WSW to WSW to 22 degrees and Sunday at 20.05.48 SW to SE to 49 degrees and 21.42.11 W to W to 10 degrees
There are no bright evening Iridium flares this week
Week of March 11th
Astronomical twilight ends at 19.56 UT at the start of the week and 20.07 UT at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be First Quarter on Thursday
The Sun actually had activity last week with spot 2734. This is now fading, though a couple of CMEs were released and may cause minor storms on Monday
The ISS makes no evening passes this week
There are no bright evening Iridium flares this week
Week of March 4th
Astronomical twilight ends at 19.43 UT at the start of the week and 19.56 UT at the end
The Moon is waning and will be New on Wednesday
The Sun remains completely blank
The ISS makes no evening passes this week
There are no bright evening Iridium flares this week
Week of February 25th
Astronomical twilight ends at 19.31 UT at the start of the week and 19.41 UT at the end
The Moon is waning and will be Last Quarter on Tuesday
The Sun remains blank
The ISS makes no evening passes this week
There are no bright evening Iridium flares this week
Week of February 18th
Astronomical twilight ends at 19.19 UT at the start of the week and 19.29 UT at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be Full (Snow Moon) on Tuesday
The Sun remains blank
The ISS makes no evening passes this week
There is one super bright evening Iridium flare on Wednesday at 18.26.45 at 57 degrees in NNE
Week of February 11th
Astronomical twilight ends at 18.56 UT at the start of the week and 19.06 UT at the end
The Moon is waxing from Monday and will be First Quarter on 12th
Take part in the annual star count to build a light pollution map of the UK; see https://www.cpre.org.uk/what-we-do/countryside/dark-skies/star-count-2019
The Sun is blank
The ISS makes its last pass this week: Monday 18.35.00 W to SE reaching 62 degrees altitude and 20.12.01 W to WSW to 12 degrees. Tuesday 17.43.35 W to ESE to 79 degrees and 19.20.19 W to SSW to 27 degrees. Wednesday 18.28.47 W to SE to 39 degrees. Thursday 17.37.18 W to ESE to 54 degrees and 19.14.34 WSW to S to 15 degrees. Friday 18.22.41 W to SSE and Sunday 18.17.12 WSW to SSW to 12 degrees
There is one super bright evening Iridium flare on Wednesday at 17.37.03 at 68 degrees in SSE
Week of January 28th
Astronomical twilight ends at 18.44 UT at the start of the week and 18.55 UT at the end
The Moon is waning and will be New at the start of next week
The Sun has pne active sunspot 2733<br.
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The ISS makes very good passes almost every night this week: On Monday at 18.08.36 from WSW to E reaching 55 degrees altitude and 19.45.01 W to W to 21 degrees. Tuesday at 18.53.37 W to ENE to 89 degrees. Wednesday 18.02.15 WSW to E to 80 degrees and 19.38.48 W to W to 27 degrees. Thursday 18.47.23 W to E to 84 degrees. Friday 17.55.57 W to E to 86 degrees and 19.32.31 W to W to 34 degrees. Saturday 18.41.05 W to ESE to 85 degrees and 20.17.44 W to W to 12 degrees and Sunday 17.49.38 W to E to 86 degrees and 19.26.12 W to WSW to 39 degrees
There is one bright evening Iridium flare on Tuesday at 18.14.44 at 55 degrees in NE
Week of January 21st
Astronomical twilight ends at 18.35 UT at the start of the week and 18.44 UT at the end
The Moon is Full on Monday and a ‘supermoon’ as the press like to call it. In the early hours the Moon will pass through the Earth’s shadow and a Total Eclipse will be visible. The Moon is at perigee, so will be brighter and larger than usual. Sadly the sky is likely to be cloudy. The Moon will then wane to Last Quarter at the start of next week
The Sun is totally blank
The ISS returns to make evening passes this week: Wednesday at 19.12.47 from SSW to SSW reaching 16 degrees altitude. Tuesday 18.22.03 S to SE to 19 degrees and 19.57.19 WSW to WSW to 11 degrees. Wednesday 17.31.51 SSE to ESE to 12 degrees and 19.06.04 SW to SSW to 34 degrees. Thursday 18.14.57 SW to ESE to 33 degrees and 19.50.59 W to W to 16 degrees. Friday 17.24.02 SSW to E to 23 degrees and 18.59.36 WSW to SW to 64 degrees. Saturday 18.08.16 WSW to E to 55 degrees and 19.44.40 W to W to 22 degrees and the best on Sunday at 18.53.13 W to ENE to 89 degrees
There are no bright evening Iridium flares
Week of January 14th
Astronomical twilight ends at 18.26 UT at the start of the week and 18.34 UT at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be Full (Ice Moon) at the start of next week
The Sun is totally blank
Venus and Jupiter make a fine pair in the early morning pre dawn sky (Venus at nearly -4.5 magnitude) and much brighter than Jupiter which is nearer the horizon
The ISS makes no evening passes this week
There are no bright evening Iridium flares
Week of January 7th
Astronomical twilight ends at 18.18 UT at the start of the week and 18.25 UT at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be First Quarter at the start of next week
Astronomical twilight ends at 18.10 UT at the start of the week and 18.14 UT at the end
The Moon is waning and will be New on Sunday
The Sun is blank
The ISS makes no evening passes this week
There are no bright evening Iridium flares
Week of December 24th
Astronomical twilight ends at 18.06 UT at the start of the week and 18.10 UT at the end
The Moon is waning and will be Last Quarter on Saturday
The Sun is blank. 2018 has been 60% and we are in deep miminum awaiting the start of the new cycle
The ISS makes no evening passes this week
There is one bright evening Iridium flare on Monday at 17.22.26 at 61 degrees altitude in NE
Week of December 17th
Astronomical twilight ends at 18.03 UT at the start of the week and 18.06 UT at the end
Friday sees the Winter Solstice. The Sun rises and sets at its southerly extremes on the horizons. At midday it is only 27.5 degrees above the horizon at midday. The days will then start to lengthen
The Moon is waxing and will be Full (Yule Moon) on Saturday
Comet 46P is now visible by eye (just) as a grey smudge between the Hyades and Pleiades. Its coma is the size of the Full Moon but with only an integrated brightness of +4
The Sun is again blank
The ISS makes no evening passes this week
There are no bright evening Iridium flares this week
Week of December 10th
Astronomical twilight ends at 18.01 UT at the start of the week and 18.03 UT at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be First Quarter on Saturday
The Sun is again blank after spot 2729 departs
Comet Wirtanen (46P) is now an easy target in binoculars (grey fuzzy smudge) and at the start of the week is close to magnitude 4.7 Menkar (lambda Cetus) before it heads into Taurus. This short period comet (5.4 years) which only gets as far out as Jupiter is returning to make a very close pass to Earth. The closest for a long while. It was the original target for the Rosetta and Philae lander mission. On December 16th, at its closest, it will be only just over 7 million miles from Earth or 20 Lunar Distances. It should then be easy to locate at this stage between the Hyades and Pleiades in Taurus. Over Christmas and into January it will fade and head towards a vanishing point in Ursa Major. The comet was discovered in 1948 and, due to its frequent solar passes is realtively small at just over one km in diameter
China has launced a mission to land the first rover on the far-side of the Moon. It is heading for the South Pole-Aitken basin
The ISS makes its last passes for a while this week: Monday at 18.04.08 from W to SSE reaching 26 degrees altitude. Tuesday 17.11.47 W to SE to 38 degrees. Wednesday 17.56.46 WSW to S to 15 degrees. Thursday 17.04.03 W to SSE to 22 degrees and Sunday 16.56.51 WSW to SSW to 12 degrees
There are no bright evening Iridium flares this week
Week of December 3rd
Astronomical twilight ends at 18.02 UT at the start of the week and 18.01 UT at the end
The Moon is waning and will be New on Friday<br.
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The Sun is again blank
We are getting ready for Comet Wirtanen (46P). This short period comet (5.4 years) which only gets as far out as Jupiter is returning to make a very close pass to Earth. The closest for a long while. It was the original target for the Rosetta and Philae lander mission. On December 16th, at its closest, it will be only just over 7 million miles from Earth or 20 Lunar Distances. It should reach naked eye visiblity, but will be best in binoculars. It should be easy to locate at this stage between the Hyades and Pleiades in Taurus. Over Christams and into January it will fade and head towards a vanishing point in Ursa Major. The comet was discovered in 1948 and, due to its frequesnt solar passes is realtively small at just over one km in diameter
The ISS makes good passes this week: Monday at 17.43.08 W to E reaching 87 degrees and 19.19.39 W to W to 14 degrees. Tuesday 16.50.58 WSW to E to 83 degrees and 18.27.29 W to W to 52 degrees. Wednesday at 17.35.17 W to E reaching 85 degrees and 19.11.48 W to W to 16 degrees. Thursday 16.43.05 W to E to 85 degrees and 18.18.35 W to SW to 63 degrees. Friday at 17.27.22 W to ESE to 83 degrees and 19.03.59 W to WSW to 19 degrees. Saturday 16.35.09 W to E to 86 degrees and 18.11.40 W to S to 43 degrees and Sunday 17.19.24 W to ESE to 60 degrees and 18.56.25 W to SW to 17 degrees
There are no bright evening Iridium flares this week
Week of November 26th
Astronomical twilight ends at 18.06 UT at the start of the week and 18.02 UT at the end
The Moon is waning and will be Last Quarter on Friday
Sun is again basically blank
The ISS makes low passes this week but better passes next week: Monday at 17.24.45 from SSE to ESE reaching 12 degrees and 18.58.53 SW to SW to 17 degrees. Tuesday 18.07.00 SW to SSE to 32 degrees. Wednesday 17.15.20 SSW to ESE to 22 degrees. Thursday 17.58.43 WSW to SE to 53 degrees. Friday at 17.06.44 SW to E to 37 degrees and 18.42.50 W to W to 35 degrees. Saturday 19.27.07 WSW to E to 77 degrees and 19.27.20 W to W to 12 degrees and Sunday 16.58.27 WSW to E to 60 degrees and 18.34.51 W to W to 42 degrees
There are no bright evening Iridium flares this week
Week of November 19th
Astronomical twilight ends at 18.11 UT at the start of the week and 18.06 UT at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be Full on Friday (Frost Moon)
Sun is again basically blank
The ISS makes no evening passes this week
There are no bright evening Iridium flares this week
Week of October 29th
Astronomical twilight ends at 18.38 UT at the start of the week and 18.32 UT at the end. Note that BST ended on 28th October and we have returned to UT (GMT)
The Moon is Last Quarter on Wednesday
The Sun is again blank
The ISS makes no evening passes this week
There are no bright evening Iridium flares this week
Week of October 15th
Astronomical twilight ends at 20.05 BST at the start of the week and 19.53 BST at the end. Note that BST ends on 28th October and we return to UT (GMT)
The Moon is First Quarter on Tuesday and will wax to Full (Hunters’ Moon) on 24th
The Orionids meteor shower (debris from Halley’s comet) peak on 21st, but does not tend to produce many meteors and this year will be effected by moonlight
The Sun is again still basically blank
The ISS makes no evening passes this week
There is one bright evening Iridium flares this week on Thursday at 18.23.58 at 12 degrees altitude in W
Week of October 8th
Astronomical twilight ends at 20.20 BST at the start of the week and 20.05 BST at the end
The Moon is New on Tuesday
The Sun is again blank
The ISS makes it last evening passes for this session: On Monday at 20.01.59 fro W to SSE reaching 28 degrees altitude. Tuesday 19.09.55 from W to SE to 41 degrees and 20.48.38 SW to SW to 10 degrees. Wednesday 19.55.05 from W to S to 16 degrees. Thursday 19.02.43 W to SSE to 24 degrees and finally Saturday 18.55.57 WSW to S to 14 degrees
There are two bright evening Iridium flares this week: Monday at 19.27.56 at 56 degrees altitude in SSE and Thursday at 19.14.57 at 54 degrees in SSE
Week of October 1st
Astronomical twilight ends at 20.36 BST at the start of the week and 20.22 BST at the end
The Moon is Last Quarter on Tuesday
The Sun has one stable sunspot
The ISS returns making some of its best passes this week: On Monday at 19.39.8 from W to E reaching 89 degrees and 21.15.40 from W to W to 36 degrees. Tuesday 20.23.46an overhead pass through the Zenith from W to E to 90 degrees and 22.00.21 W to W to 11 degrees. Wednesday 19.31.51 W to E to 81 degrees and 21.08.23 W to W to 34 degrees. Thursday 20.16.27 W to SE to 71 degrees. Friday 19.24.32 W to ESE to 86 degrees and 21.01.08 W to WSW to 28 degrees. Saturday 20.09.07 W to SSE to 47 degrees and Sunday 19.17.09 W to SSE to 64 degrees and 20.54.06 W to SW to 19 degrees
There are no bright evening Iridium flares this week
Week of September 24th
Astronomical twilight ends at 20.54 BST at the start of the week and 20.41 BST at the end
The Moon is Full on Tuesday (Harvest or Equinox Moon) is will then wane to Last Quarter on 2nd October
The Sun is blank
The ISS returns making good passes this week: On Monday at 20.52.57 from SW to S reaching 39 degrees. Tuesday at 20.01.24 from SSW to ESE reaching 29 degrees and 21.37.16 from WSW to WSW to 23 degrees. Wednesday at 20.45.24 from WSW to SE to 66 degrees. Thursday at 19.53.36 from SW to E reaching 49 degrees and 21.29.55 from W to W to 31 degrees. The best pass is on Friday at 20.37.59 from W to E reaching 87 degrees and 22.14.31 from W to W to 10 degrees. Saturday at 19.46.02 from WSW to E to 73 degrees and 23.33.32 from W to W to 35 degrees and Sunday at 20.30.33 from W to E to 84 degrees and 22.07.05 from W to W to 11 degrees
There are no bright evening Iridium flares this week
Week of September 17th
Astronomical twilight ends at 21.12 BST at the start of the week and 20.56 BST at the end
The Autumnal Equinox falls this year next Sunday (23rd) when the Sun will rise due East and sets due West. This is the moment that the Sun (at RA 12h and declination 0 degrees) crosses the Celestial Equator from North to South and our nights become longer than our days. Though referred to as the First Point of Libra, due to precession over the last 2 millennia, the Sun will actually be in Virgo<br.
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The Moon is waxing and will be Full at the start of next week
The Sun is blank
The ISS returns next week-end: Saturday at 21.00.30 from SSW to SSW reaching 15 degrees altitude. Sunday at 20.09.15 from S to SE reaching 17 degrees and 21.44.13 from WSW to WSW to 13 degrees
There are no bright evening Iridium flares this week
Week of September 10th
Astronomical twilight ends at 21.31 BST at the start of the week and 21.12 BST at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be First Quarter next Sunday
Comet 21P/Giacobini-Zinner makes its closest approach for 72 years (0.39 AU or 58 million miles) to Earth on 10th September. It is now shining nearly at magnitude 7, just beyond naked-eye capability but possible in binoculars. It will cross in front of the Open star cluster M35 in Gemini on 15th September. 21P is the ‘parent’ comet of the Draconids meteor shower, which peaks annualy on 8th October. It may be worth watching closely in case it is richer than normal
The Sun has one typical solar-minimum sunspot
The ISS makes no evening passes this week
There are no bright evening Iridium flares this week
Week of September 3rd
Astronomical twilight ends at 21.52 BST at the start of the week and 21.34 BST at the end
The Moon is waning and will be New next Sunday
Comet 21P/Giacobini-Zinner is heading for a close approach (0.39 AU) to Earth on 10th September. It is predicted to only now reach magnitude 11 next week-end when it will be just below the bottom stars of Auriga (see www.cometwatch.co.uk for details). It will only be low on the ENE horizon till after midnight
The Sun is blank again
The ISS makes no evening passes this week
There is one bright evening Iridium flare this week on Saturday at 22.43.15 at 10 degrees altitude in NNE
Week of August 20th
Astronomical twilight ends at 22.35 BST at the start of the week and 22.13 BST at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be Full on Sunday
Comet 21P/Giacobini-Zinner is heading for a close approach (0.39 AU) to Earth on 10th September. It should be visible at magnitude 7 in binoculars (more details next week)
The Sun has one small quiet sunspot
The ISS makes no passes this week
There are no bright evening Iridium flares this week
Week of August 13th
Astronomical twilight ends at 22.58 BST at the start of the week and 22.35 BST at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be First Quarter on Saturday
The Sun remains blank
The ISS makes no passes this week
There is one bright evening Iridium flares this week on Saturday at 23.06.51 at 18 degrees altitude in NNE
Week of August 6th
Astronomical twilight ends at 23.23 BST at the start of the week and 23.02 BST at the end
The Moon is waning and will be New on Saturday
The annual Perseid meteor shower (Tears of St Lawrence and debris from Comet Swift-Tuttle) peaks at 2am on morning of 13th August. Before dawn on 12th and 13th may be best. There is no Moon, so conditions this year are very favourable and some extimate up to 150 meteors and hour. Already bright Perseids are being seen and rates up to 10 per hor recorded. It is worth watching out all week after 10pm or so. The Radiant rises late in the North East but any patch of dark sky is worth watching, eg Uras Major and Minor and the Summer Triangle
The Sun remains blank at the end of Cycle 24
Mars is past its very brightest but follows dim yellow Saturn and bright Jupiter from E to W along the Ecliptic
The ISS one last pass this week on Tuesday at 21.39.03 from WSW to SSW, reaching 12 degrees
There are no bright evening Iridium flares this week
Week of July 23rd
Astronomical twilight at last comes to an end and true darkness returns, all be it briefly. At the start of the week it gets dark at 00.29 BST and 23.52 BST at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be Full (Thunder Moon) on Friday, when it passes into the Earth’s shadow. The eclipse is Total and very long, lasting for over 6 hours (given the Moon is at apogee, it will be the longest in the 21st Century). The Moon rises already in the umbra and should be a deep red colour at 21.05 in SE. Totality starts to end at 21.45 with the Moon at only 5.5 degrees altitude. The Moon is fully in the penumbra at 23.00 at 13 degrees altitude. Full brightness will have returned by 00.45
The Sun has one inactive spot
Four planets are visible during the evening. Venus dominates the West and sets around 10pm. Jupiter is highest in the South, followed by Saturn. Mars rises just after 22.00 and is only 5 degrees from the Moon, slightly to the South at 11pm
The ISS makes excellent long and high passes this week: The best is on Monday at 23.21.31 from W to E passing through the Zenith at 90 degrees. Tuesday at 22.29.24 from WSW to E reaching 77 degrees. Wednesday at 23.13.44 from W to E reaching 84 degrees. Thursday at 22.21.33 from W to E reaching 87 degrees and 23.58.04 W to SE to 74 degrees. Friday at 23.05.53 from W to E reaching 88 degrees. Saturday at 22.13.41 from W to E reaching 85 degrees and 23.50.12 from W to SSW to 50 degrees and Sunday 22.57.59 from W to ESE reaching 68 degrees
There is one bright evening Iridium flare this week on Thursday at 23.22.44 at 22 degrees altitude in NNE
Week of July 16th
The Moon is wanxng and will be First Quarter on Friday. The Crescent Moon and Venus are close at the start of the week
The Sun remains blank
Four planets are visible during the evening. Venus dominates the West and sets around 10pm. Jupiter is highest in the South, followed by Saturn. Mars rises at 11pm. By midnight, Saturn is due South
The ISS returns this week: Tuesday at 23.50.13 from E to E reaching 16 degrees altitude. Wednesday 22.58.12 from ESE to E to 13 degrees. Thursday 22.03.12 from SSE to ESE to 12 degrees and 23.37.15 from SW to E to 46 degrees. Friday 22.45.26 from SW to E to 32 degrees. Saturday 21.53.51 from SSW to E to 22 degrees and 23.29.17 from WSW to E to 70 degrees and Sunday 22.37.15 SW to E to 52 degrees
There are no bright evening Iridium flares this week
Week of July 9th
The Moon is waning and will be New on Friday
The Sun is blank
Four planets are visible during the evening. Venus dominates the West and sets around 10pm. Jupiter is highest in the South, followed by Saturn. Mars rises at 11pm. By midnight, Saturn is due South
There have been good Noctilucent Cloud displays around UK. Look West, 30 to 60 minutes after sunset. Tendrils of electric blue high altitude clouds are NLCs
The ISS returns with evening passes next week
There are no bright evening Iridium flares this week
Week of July 2nd
The Moon is waning and will be Last Quarter on Friday
The Sun is blank
The Noctilucent Cloud season has begun. Look west, 30 to 60 minutes after sunset. Tendrils of electric blue high altitude clouds are NLCs<br.
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There are no ISS evening passes this week
There are three bright evening Iridium flares this week: Monday at 22.51.10 at 23 degrees altitude in WNW. Tuesday at 22.02.02 at 43 degrees in W and Thursday at 22.51.42 at 18 degrees in WNW
Week of June 25th
The Moon is waxing and will be Full (Strawberry Moon) on Thursday
Venus in West, Jupiter in South West and Saturn in South East are all now visible an hour or so after sunset, with Mars appearing in the East a couple of hours after Venus sets. At the start of the week the waxing Moon, Jupiter and the bright star Spica for a horizontal line in South<br.
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The Sun has 2 sunspot groups and 2715 has the potential to be active
There are no ISS evening passes this week
There are two bright evening Iridium flares this week: Wednesday at 22.23.56 at 47 degrees altitude in NE and Friday at 23.44.41 at 13 degrees in NNE
Week of June 18th
The Sun rises and sets at its northern most extremes on the horizon on Thursday and its highest declination at 11.07am. At midday the Sun reaches its maximum altitude in the year (Co-latitude + Declination) of 62.5 degrees
The Moon is waxing and will be First Quarter on Wednesday
Saturn is now rising at 22.20 BST but remains close to the horizon, culminating at 1.30 am at 16 degrees altitude. Bright red Supergiant Antares and the 3 stars in Scorpio’s tail are also now visible low in the South
Mars rises at half-past midnight and is approaching Opposition (closest, largest and brightest) on .27th July and is already outshining Sirius. Though Oppositions occur every 2 years, this year Mars is near Perihelion in its orbit, so even closer
The Sun continues to be almost blank
There are no ISS evening passes this week
There are three bright evening Iridium flares this week: Monday at 21.29.41 at 23 degrees altitude in NNW. Thursday at 22.49.40 at 38 degrees in NE and Saturday 22.53.04 at 37 degrees in W
Week of June 11th
The Moon is waning and will be New on Wednesday
The young crescent Moon and Venus will be close and make a super picture at the end of the week, around 9pm low in the West
Mars is approaching Opposition (closest, largest and brightest) on 27th July and is already outshining Sirius. Though Oppositions occur every 2 years, this year Mars is near Perihelion in its orbit, so even closer
The Sun conitnues to be blank
There are no ISS evening passes this week
There are eight bright evening Iridium flares this week (a great chance to catch one if you havent before) On Tuesday at 22.42.20 at 20 degrees altitude in WNW and 23.23.45 at 22 degrees in NNE. Wednesday 22.19.50 at 12 degrees in NNW and 22.43.20 at 19 degrees in WNE. Thursday ay 23.31.40 at 45 degrees in WSW. Friday at 22.49.56 at 14 degrees in WNW. Saturday at 22.3.27 at 12 degrees in WNW and Sunday at 23.09.35 at 30 degrees in NNE
Week of June 4th
The Moon is waning and will be Last Quarter on Wednesday
The Sun is blank again
The ISS makes one last evening pass on Tuesday at 22.41.00 from WSW to SSW reaching 12 degrees
There are two bright evening Iridium flares this week, on Thursday at 21.51.34 at 27 degrees altitude in W and Saturday at 22.48.41 at 25 degrees in W
Week of 28th May
The Moon is waxing and will be Full (Flower Moon)on Tuesday
The Sun has one fast growing spot which may become active over the next few days
The ISS makes a number of good passes this week: On Monday at 23.11.46 from W to ESE reaching 83 degrees. Tuesday 22.19.34 W to E to 87 degrees and 23.56.06 W to S to 43 degrees. Wednesday 23.03.51 W to ESE to 60 degrees. Thursday 22.11.38 W to ESE to 78 degrees and 23.48.19 W to SSW to 26 degrees. Friday 22.55.56 W to SSE to 37 degrees. Saturday 22.03.38 W to ESE to 53 degrees and 23.40.55 WSW to SW to 15 degrees and Sunday 22.48.09 W to S to 22 degrees
There is one bright evening Iridium flare on Thursday at 23.15.16 at 33 degrees altitude in W
Week of 21st May
Astronomical twilight ends at 00.36 BST at the start of the week, then from Tuesday, does not return till 21st July and the nights have no Astronomical darkness
The Moon is waxing and will be First Quarter on Tuesday
Venus appears in the twilight sky from 9pm and for 2 hours dominates the Western sky till it sets at 11pm. The waxing Moon increses its separation from the planet during the week
The Sun is again blank and there have now been over 50% of days this year with no sunspots
The ISS makes good passes in the evening this week: On Monday at 22.51.32 from SW to E reaching 89 degrees. Tuesday 21.59.45 SSW to E to 26 degrees and 23.35.27 WSW to E to 78 degrees. Wednesday 22.43.17 WSW to E to 60 degrees. Thursday 21.51.14 SW to E to 43 degrees and 23.27.27 W to E to 87 degrees. Friday 22.35.12 WSW to E to 83 degrees. Saturday 23.19.26 W to E to 85 degrees and Sunday 22.27.08 to E to 85 degrees
There are two bright evening Iridium flares:Monday at 22.17.05 at 11 degrees altitude in NNW and Wednesday at 23.45.09 at 41 degrees altitude in WSW
Week of 14th May
Astronomical twilight ends at 23.50 BST at the start of the week and 00.27 BST at the end
The Moon is waning and will be New on Tuesday
The Sun has one stable spot 2709
The ISS returns from Sunday 20th: 222.08.34 from S to ESE reaching 15 degrees and 23.43.14 from WSW to E reaching 54 degrees
There is one bright evening Iridium flare on Thursday 22.58.02 at 22 degrees altitude in
Week of 7th May
Astronomical twilight ends at 23.17 BST at the start of the week and 23.46 BST at the end
The Moon is waning and will be First Quarter on Tuesday
The annual Eta Aquarid meteor shower (debris from Halley’s Comet) peaks in the early hours of 7th. With clear skies up to 20 shooting stars per hours may be visible in the hour before dawn, but they are not usually easily viewed from UK
The Sun has one short lived spot 2708, now decaying
There are no ISS passes this week
There are no bright evening Iridium flares this week
Week of 30th April
Astronomical twilight ends at 22.45 BST at the start of the week and 23.05 BST at the end
The Moon will be Full (Flower Moon) on Monday
Tuesday is the start of summer with May 1st festivals all over UK. It is the feast of Beltane in the celtic tradition and a time of ‘union’. It is one of the ancient cross-quarter days, half-way between the Equinox and the Solstice
The Moon and Jupiter are in conjunction (in Libra) and are well placed to view rising in the East after sunset (around 20.45). Perhaps of interest is the possibility that an April conjunction of the Moon and Jupiter (though in Aries) is a contender for the ‘star’ of Bethlehem origin
Jupiter itself reaches Opposition on 9th May (Culminating at midnight), reaching its closest point to Earth and hence potentially the best conditions for observation
The Sun is blank again
There are no ISS passes this week
Week of 23rd April
Astronomical twilight ends at 22.34 BST at the start of the week and 22.45 BST at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be Full at the start of next week
The Sun is very innactive, though it now has 2 small spot groups
There are no ISS passes this week
There are four bright late evening Iridium flares this week: On Monday at 23.35.00 at 12 degrees altitude in W. Tuesday at 23.29.04 at 12 degrees in W. Wednesday at 23.32.22 at 11 degrees in W. Saturday at 22.09.11 at 11 degrees in N
Week of 16th April
Astronomical twilight ends at 22.15 BST at the start of the week and 22.32 BST at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be First Quarter next Sunday
The Sun is blank again
There are no ISS passes this week
There are two bright Iridium flares this week: On Wednesday at 23.41.21 at 16 derees altitude in W and Friday at 23.33.27 at 15 degrees in W
Week of 9th April
Astronomical twilight ends at 21.57 BST at the start of the week and 22.15 BST at the end
The Moon is waning and will be New on Sunday
The Sun is blank again
The ISS makes one last evening pass this week on Wednesday at 20.59.29 from WSW to SSW reaching 13 degrees altitude
There are three bright Iridium flares this week, unusually 2 of them very close together, within 2 minutes: Thursday at 20.58.48 at 30 degrees altitude in N and Saturday at 23.50.14 at 17 degrees in WSW and 23.51.50 at 17 degrees in WSW
Week of 2nd April
Astronomical twilight ends at 21.41 BST at the start of the week and 21.55 BST at the end
The Moon is waning and will be Last Quarter on Sunday
The Sun has one active region 2703
The first Chinese space station Tiangong-1 will make an uncontrolled re-entry into Earth’s atmosphere in the early hours of 2nd April, the debris will not be visible from MCBO
The ISS continues to make good passes this week: Monday 21.30.53 from W to ESE reaching 83 degrees altitude. Tuesday 20.38.35 from W to E to 87 degrees and 22.15.07 W to WSW to 32 degrees. Wednesday 21.22.46 W to SE to 60 degrees. Thursday 20.30.26 W to ESE to 78 degrees and 22.07.08 W to SW to 25 degrees. Friday 21.14.39 W to ESE to 38 degrees. Saturday 20.22.16 W to ESE to 54 degrees and 21.59.30 WSW to SW to 15 degrees and Sunday 21.06.40 W to SSE to 22 degrees
There are no bright Iridium flares this week
Week of 26th March
Astronomical twilight ends at 21.24 BST at the start of the week and 21.39 BST at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be Full (Paschal Moon) on Saturday, thus enabling Easter Day to fall on 1st April
Just after sunset around 7.30pm Venus is visible low in West
The Sun is still blank
The ISS makes good passes this week: Monday 21.11.04 SW to SSE to 38 degrees. Tuesday 20.20.13 SSW to E to 26 degrees and 21.54.55 WSW to WSW to 39 degrees. Wednesday 21.02.42 WSW to E to 61 degrees and 22.39.06 W to W to 16 degrees. Thursday 21.10.34 SW tp E to 43 degrees and 21.46.47 W to WNW to 78 degrees. Friday 20.54.28 WSW to E to 83 degrees and 22.30.58 W to W to 24 degrees. Saturday 21.38.37 W to E to 85 degrees and Sunday 20.46.16 W to E to 85 degrees and 22.22.46 W to W to 31 degrees
There are no bright Iridium flares this week
Week of 19th March
Astronomical twilight ends at 20.11 UT at the start of the week and 20.26 UT at the end
The Vernal Equinox this year falls on Tuesday 20th, wehn the Sun will rise due East and set due West. Days will start to be longer than night and it should be the start of Spring!
The Moon is waxing and will be First Quarter on Saturday
Just after sunset around 7pm, Mercury and Venus are now visible close together in the west and at the start of the week Mercury is apparently furthest from the Sun
The Sun is blank again
The ISS will make passes again from next week-end: Saturady at 20.19.30 from SSW to SSW reaching 12 degrees and Sunday 19.28.07 S to Se to 15 degrees and 21.02.49 WSW to SW to 14 degrees
There is one bright Iridium flare this week on Monday at 19.55.12 at 30 degrees in N
Week of 12th March
Astronomical twilight ends at 19.58 UT at the start of the week and 20.10 UT at the end
The Moon is waning and will be New on Saturday
The Sun is blank
There are no ISS passes this week
There is one bright Iridium flare this week on Wednesday at 20.26.51 at 18 degrees altitude in N
Week of 5th March
Astronomical twilight ends at 19.45 UT at the start of the week and 19.56 UT at the end
The Moon is waning and will be Last Quarter on Friday
The Sun is blank again
There are no ISS passes this week
There are no bright Iridium flares this week
Week of 26th February
Astronomical twilight ends at 19.33 UT at the start of the week and 19.43 UT at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be Full on Friday (Lenten Moon)
The Sun is blank again
There are no ISS passes this week
There is one bright Iridium flare this week on Monday at 17.60.34 at 45 degrees altitude in SSW
Week of 12th February
Astronomical twilight ends at 19.08 UT at the start of the week and 19.17 UT at the end
The Moon is waning and will be New on Thursday
The Sun has a growing sunspot group 2699 which may lead to increased activity
Elon Musk’s red Tesla is now more than 1 million km from Earth and shining at 17th magnitude
The ISS makes its last pass for a few weeks on Tuesday at 18.17.51 WSW to SSW reaching 13 degrees
There are two bright Iridium flares this week on Monday at 18.47.58 at 46 dgrees in SSE and Friday at 17.29.14 at 16 degrees altitude in W
Week of 5th February
Astronomical twilight ends at 18.58 UT at the start of the week and 19.08 UT at the end
The Sun is currently blank
The ISS makes good evening passes this week: Monday at 18.48.19 from W to ESE reaching 84 degrees altitude and 20.24.56 W to W to 10 degrees. Tuesday at 17.56.06 W to E to 86 degrees and 19.32.38 W to WSW to 36 degrees. Wednesday 18.40.23 W to SE to 61 degrees and 20.17.23 W to WSW to 12 degrees. Thursday 17.48.08 W to ESE to 79 degrees and 19.24.49 W to SSW to 26 degrees. Friday 18.32.26 W to SE to 38 degrees. Saturday 19.17.21 WSW to S to 15 degrees and Sunday 18.24.37 W to SSE to 23 degrees
There is one bright Iridium flare this week on Thursday at 19.03.06 at 45 degrees altitude in SSE
Week of 29th January
Astronomical twilight ends at 18.47 UT at the start of the week and 18.58 UT at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be Full on Wednesday. This month’s moon is being called the Super-Blue-Blood moon! This is because it is near perigee and thus closer in its orbit, so will appear a little brighter and bigger than usual and also on Wednsday it is the second Full Moon in the month and these have become known as Blue moon (hence the expression, though they are not that rare) and to top it all the Moon passes into the Earth’s shadow at 13.00 UT (so not visible at all in the UK) for a Total Lunar Eclipse, where the deepest shadow is blood red
The Sun is currently blank
The ISS returns making good evening passes this week: Monday at 18.27.59 from SW to ESE reaching 37 degrees altitude and 20.04.04 W to W to 13 degrees. Tuesday at 17.36.04 SSW to E to 25 degrees and 19.11.44 WSW to WSW. Wednesday 18.19.27 WSW to E to 59 degrees and 19.55.50 W to W to 18 degrees. Thursday 17.27.16 SW to E to 42 degrees and 19.03.27 W to W to 80 degrees. Friday 18.11.04 WSW to E to 82 degrees and 19.47.34 W to W to 23 degrees. Saturday 18.55.09 W to ENE to 85 degrees and Sunday 18.02.44 W to E to 85 degrees and 19.39.13 W to W to 31 degrees
There are three bright Iridium flares this week: Monday at 17.03.07 at 15 degrees in SW. Tuesday at 17.20.21 at 20 degrees in W and Thursday at 24 degrees in W
Week of 22nd January
Astronomical twilight ends at 18.37 UT at the start of the week and 18.46 UT at the end
The Moon is waning and will be First Quarter on Wednesday
The Sun has one small inactive spot
The ISS returns with evening passes from Friday: Friday at 19.28.33 from SW to SSW reaching 14 degrees. Saturday 18.36.45 SSW to SSE to 22 degrees and Sunday 17.45.20 S to ESE to 14 degrees and 19.19.56 SW to SW to 29 degrees
There are three bright Iridium flares this week: Monday at 17.17.03 at 23 degrees altitude in SSW. Wednesday at 17.10.25 at 22 degrees in SSW and Friday at 18.20,09 at 10 degrees in WNW
Week of 15th January
Astronomical twilight ends at 18.28 UT at the start of the week and 18.37 UT at the end
The Moon is waning and will be New on Wednesday
The Sun has one small inactive spot
The ISS makes no evening passes this week<br.
</br.
There are no bright Iridium flares this week
Week of 8th January
Astronomical twilight ends at 18.19 UT at the start of the week and 18.26 UT at the end
The Moon is waning and will be Last Quarter on Monday
Astronomical twilight ends at 18.03 UT at the start of the week and 18.07 UT at the end
The Winter Solstice falls on Thursday, when the Sun rises and sets at its extreme southerly point on the horizons and only reaches 15.5 degrees altitude at midday
The Moon will wax from Monday and will be First Quarter on Boxing Day
The Sun is blank again
The ISS makes its last pass on Tuesday at 16.38.32 from WSW to SSW reaching 13 degrees altitude
There are two bright Iridium flares this week: Tuesday 17.00.41 at 18 degrees altitude in SSW and 18.17.29 at 33 degrees
Week of 11th December
Astronomical twilight ends at 18.02 UT at the start of the week and 18.03 UT at the end
The Moon is waning and will be New at the start of next week
The Geminid meteor shower (debris from asteroid 3200 Phaethon) will peak early Thursday morng at around 2am. Wednesday night should be a good time to view the build up, especially with no Moon till much later. Peak rates of up to 120 per hour are predicted
The Sun is blank again
The ISS makes its last passes this week: Monday 17.09.33 W to ESE reaching 83 degrees and 18.46.10 W to SW to 27 degrees. Tuesday 17.53.49 W to SE to 43 degrees. Wednesday 17.01.29 W to ESE to 60 degrees and 18.38.32 W to SSW to 17 degrees. Thursday 17.45.54 W to SSE to 17 degrees. Friday 16.53.26 W to SE to 38 degrees. Saturday 17.38.20 WSW to S to 15 degrees and Sunday 16.45.31 W to SSE to 22 degrees
There are two bright Iridium flares this week: Tuesday 17.00.41 at 18 degrees altitude in SSW and 18.17.29 at 33 degrees
Week of 4th December
Astronomical twilight ends at 18.02 UT at the start of the week and 18.02 UT at the end
The Moon is waning and will be Last Quarter on Sunday. The ‘Cold Moon’ on 3rd was thew brightest of 2017 with it being at Perigee, 8% increase in diameter and 16% in brightness
The Sun is blank again
The ISS makes good passes this week: Monday at 16.49.27 from SW to E reaching 38 degrees altitude and 18.25.34 W to W to 57 degrees. Tuesday 17.33.23 WSW to E to 78 degrees and 19.09.53 W to W to 17 degrees. Wednesday 16.41.15 WSW to E to 61 degrees and 18.17.40 W to WNW to 70 degrees. Thursday 17.25.25 W to E to 86 degrees and 19.01.57 W to W to 21 degrees. Friday 16.33.11 WSW to E to 84 degrees and the best at 18.09.42 W to SSE to 87 degrees. Saturday 17.17.27 W to E to 85 degrees and 18.53.58 W to W to 25 degrees and Sunday 18.01.41 W to SE to 66 degrees
There are three bright Iridium flares this week: Monday at 17.21.07 at 28 degrees altitude in S. Thursday at 17.12.16 at 24 degrees in SSW and Friday 18.32.23 at 33 degrees in SSE
Week of 27th November
Astronomical twilight ends at 18.05 UT at the start of the week and 18.03 UT at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be Full (Cold Moon) on Sunday
The Sun almost blank with one young spot 2689 which is growing in activity
The ISS returns on Tuesday making late aftrnoon passes this week: 18.49.57 from SSW to SSW reaching 14 degrees altitude. Wednesday 17.58.13 from SSW to SSE to 19 degrees. Thursday 17.07.01 SSE to ESE to 13 degrees and 18.41.14 from SW to SW to 27 degrees. Friday 17.49.08 SW to SE to 33 degrees and 19.25.07 W to W to 12 degrees. Saturday 16.57.16 SSW to E to 22 degrees and 18.32.45 WSW to WSW to 43 degrees and Sunday 17.40.27 WSW to E to 54 degrees and 19.16.48 W to W to 15 degrees
There are no bright Iridium flares this week
Week of 20th November
Astronomical twilight ends at 18.10 UT at the start of the week and 18.05 UT at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be First Quarter on Sunday
The Sun almost blank with 2 small innactive spots
The ISS makes no evening passes this weekbut returns on 28th
There is one bright Iridium flare this week: Wednesday at 18.05.44 at 37 degrees altitude in SSE
Week of 13th November
Astronomical twilight ends at 18.17 UT at the start of the week and 18.11 UT at the end
The Moon is waning and will be New on Saturday
The waning Moon is now a fine sight in the pre-dawn sky with Mars below it and, at the start of the week Jupiter and Venus in a close (less than degree) Conjunction
The Sun is blank again
The ISS makes no evening passes this week
There is one super-bright Iridium flare this week: On Monday at 18.41.39 at 39 degrees altitude in SE
Week of 6th November
Astronomical twilight ends at 18.26 UT at the start of the week and 18.18 UT at the end<br.
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The Moon is waning and will be Last Quarter on Friday
The Sun is blank again
The ISS makes no evening passes this week
There are no bright Iridium flares this week
Week of 30th October
Astronomical twilight ends at 18.36 UT at the start of the week and 18.26 UT at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be Full (Hunters Moon) on Saturday
Tuesday is the ancient Feast of the Pleiades or in Celtic tradition, Samhain (the Cross Quarter day, half-way between the Autumnal Equinox and the Winter Soltice)..now Haloween
The Sun has two fading spots, neither is active
The ISS makes no evening passes this week
There are no bright Iridium flares this week but there is one extremely bright Iridium flare next Monday at 17.48.10 at 59 degrees altitude in NNE
Week of 23rd October
Astronomical twilight ends at 19.48 BST at the start of the week and 18.40 UT at the end as we return to Universal Time (GMT) early Sunday morning
The Moon is waxing and will be First Quarter on Friday
The Orionids (debris from Halley’s comet) are active at the start of the week and best seen when Orion is high in the early morning
The Sun has one spot 2685 which unusually is on its 3rd return, it was originally the highly active region 2673
The ISS makes no evening passes week
There are two bright evening Iridium flare this week on Monday at 18.53.06 at 57 degrees altitude in NNE and 20.31.47 at 26 degrees in NNE
Week of 16th October
Astronomical twilight ends at 20.02 BST at the start of the week and 19.50 BST at the end
The Moon is waning and will be New on Thursday
The Sun is blank for the 7th day in a row
The ISS makes no passes week
There is one superbright evening Iridium flare this week on Wednesday at 19.23.47 at 49 degrees altitude in NNE
Week of 2nd October
Astronomical twilight ends at 20.33 BST at the start of the week and 20.19 BST at the end<br.
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The Moon is waxing and will be Full (Harvest Moon) on Thursday<br.
</br.
The Sun has three quiet sunspot regions
The ISS makes good passes week: Monday at 20.37.28 W to ENE reaching 87 degrees. Tuesday 19.45.19 WSW to E to 83 degrees and 21.21.49 WSW to E to 27 degrees. Wednesday 20.29.39 W to ENE to 85 degrees. Thursday 19.37.28 W to E to 85 degrees and 21.13.59 W to W to 28 degrees. Friday 20.21.47 W to ESE to 84 degrees. Saturday 19.29.35 W to E to 86 degrees and 21.06.06 W to W to 27 degrees and Sunday 20.13.52 W to SSE to 61 degrees
There are no bright evening Iridium flares this week
Week of 25th September
Astronomical twilight ends at 20.51 BST at the start of the week and 20.33 BST at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be First Quarter on Thursday
The Sun has two quiet sunspot regions, but 2673 is about to return around the Eastern limb. It is unlikely to be as powerful as 2 weeks ago
The ISS returns thus week with good passes next week-end: Monday at 20.19.26 from SSE to SSE reaching 10 degrees altitude. Tuesday 21.01.30 SW to SSW to 18 degrees. Wednesday 20.09.42 SSW to SE to 22 degrees and 21.45.09 WSW to WSW to 12 degrees. Thursday 20.52.55 SW to SSW to 42 degrees. Friday 20.00.46 SW to SSW to 37 degrees and 21.36.51 W to W to 19 degrees. Saturday 20.44.29 WSW to S to 76 degrees and Sunday 19.52.10 WSW to E to 59 degrees and 21.28.33 W to W to 24 degrees
There are no bright evening Iridium flares this week
Week of 18th September
Astronomical twilight ends at 21.09 BST at the start of the week and 20.51 BST at the end. The Autumnal Equinox falls on Friday at 21.02 BST. The Sun will rise due East and set due west and we will have equal day and night length
The Moon is waning and will be New on Wednesday
The Sun is quiet with one mature spot 2680
The ISS makes no visible evening passes this week but return from next Monday
There are bright evening Iridium flares this week
Week of 11th September
Astronomical twilight ends at 21.28 BST at the start of the week and 21.14 BST at the end
The Moon is waning and will be Last Quarter on Wednesday
On Friday just before 2.30pm, the Cassini spacecraft will end its 20 year mission by diving into the gaseous planet Saturn
The Sun is now quieting down again as huge active spot 2673 rotates round the limb. It will almost certainly be back in 2 weeks time
The ISS makes no visible evening passes this week
There is bright evening Iridium flare this week on Monday 21.06.22 at 25 degrees in N
Week of 4th September
Astronomical twilight ends at 21.48 BST at the start of the week and 21.31 BST at the end
The Moon will be Full (Harvest Moon) on Wednesday
The Sun has 5 spot groups and 2674 is huge, stretching some 150,000 km and highly active
The ISS makes no visible evening passes this week
There are 2 bright evening Iridium flares this week: Wednesday 21.41.03 at 15 degrees in N and Friday at 21.18.53 at 21 degrees in N
Week of 28th August
Astronomical twilight ends at 22.09 BST at the start of the week and 21.51 BST at the end
The Moon will be First Quarter on Tuesday and will then wax to Full at the start of next week
The Sun has 2 spot groups which are mildly active
The ISS makes no visible evening passes this week
There are 2 bright evening Iridium flares this week: Monday 23.58.03 at 10 degrees in W and Wednesday at 20.04.53 at 45 degrees in N
Week of 21st August
Astronomical twilight ends at 22.31 BST at the start of the week and 22.09 BST at the end
The Moon will be New on Monday, when it will align exactly with the Sun causing a Total Eclipse, viible across 14 states of the USA
The Sun is active again with an extended spot groups 2671
Venus is dominent in the pre Dawn sky
The ISS makes no visible evening passes this week
There are 4 bright evening Iridium flares this week: Thursday 23.45.39 at 19 degrees in WSW. Friday 23.48.42 at 16 degrees in WSW. Saturday 23.51.48 at 14 degrees in W and Sunday 23.03.54 at 12 degrees in W
Week of 14th August
Astronomical twilight ends at 22.54 BST at the start of the week and 22.34 BST at the end
The Moon will be Last Quarter on Tuesday and will then wane to New at the start of next week, when it will align exactly with the Sun causing a Total Eclipse, viible across 14 states of the USA
Perseid meteors will continue to be seen throughout the week
The Sun is blank again
The ISS makes no visible evening passes this week
There are 3 bright evening Iridium flares this week: Tuesday 22.27.23 at 12 degrees altitude in W. Wednesday at 21.45.09 at 19 degrees in N and Friday at 23.54.39 at 28 degrees in WSW
Week of 7th August
Astronomical twilight ends at 23.20 BST at the start of the week and 22.57 BST at the end
The Moon will wax to Full (Storm Moon) on Monday and will then wane to Last Quarter at the start of next week. On Monday the Moon will move into the Earth’s shadow and will be partially eclipsed (fully visible from Asia and mainland Europe). We will see the Moon rise already covered by the Earth’s penumbral shadow at 20.45 BST. The Moon will return to full brightness at 21.50 BST
The Persied meteor shower peaks at 1800 hrs on 12th but already fireballs are being seen as Earth moves into the debris stream left by comet swift-tuttle. It is worth watching out this week and certainly from 10th to 13th as the moonlight becomes less obtrusive
The Sun has one mature spot 2670 (the remains of the huge spot 2665) and has little activity
The ISS makes a couple of last passes on Monday at 22.08.31 from W to S reaching 24 degrees and Wednesday 21.00.54 WSW to S reaching 13 degrees
There are 6 bright evening Iridium flares this week: Monday 23.21.33 at 20 degrees altitude in W. Tuesday 23.20.15 at 19 degrees in W. Wednesday 23.23.26 at 16 degrees in W. Thursday at 23.26.39 at 14 degres in W. Friday 23.29.56 at 12 degrees in WNW and Saturday at 23.33.02 at 10 degrees in WNW
Week of 31st July
Astronomical twilight ends at 23.51 BST at the start of the week and 23.20 BST at the end
The Moon will wax to Full (Storm Moon) at the start of next week. The Moon will move into the Earth’s shadow and will be partially eclipsed on Monday 7th (fully visible from Asia and mainland Europe). We will see the Moon rise already covered by the Earth’s penumbral shadow at 20.45BST. The Moon will return to full brightness at 21.50 BST
The Sun is almost blank again with one inactive sunspot group
ISS pass times and Iridium flare times to follow
Week of 24th July
Astronomical twilight ends at 00.21 BST at the start of the week and 23.51 BST at the end
The Moon will wax to First Quarter at the start of next week
The Sun is now blank again
The ISS makes good passes this week: Monday 23.05.49 SW to E to 52 degrees. Tuesday 22.13.45 SW to E to 36 degrees and 23.49.49 W to E to 89 degrees. Wednesday 22.57.30 WSW to E to 76 degrees. Thursday 22.05.14 WSW to E to 58 degrees and 23.41.37 W to E to 84 degrees. Friday 22.49.15 W to E to 88 degrees . Saturday 21.56.53 WSW to E to 81 degrees and 23.33.22 W to E to 89 degrees and Sunday 22.40.59 W to E to 84 degrees
There are three bright evening Iridium flares this week on Monday at 23.16.39 at 11 degrees altitude in WNW and at 23.55.53 ar 39 degrees in WSW and on Tuesday at 21.50.47 at 19 degrees in NNW
Week of 17th July
Astronomical twilight ends at 00.55 on Friday for the first time true darkness returns
The Moon is waning and will be New at the start of next week
Saturn, though low, is well placed for viewing due south mid evening
The Sun has been active with the enormous sunspot group 2665 causing strong auroral activity as it rotates out of sight on the western limb
The ISS more passes at the end of the week: Saturday 23.14.20 SW to E reaching 32 degrees and Sunday 22.22.34 SSW to E reaching 21 degrees and 23.57.59 WSW to E to 70 degrees
There is one bright evening Iridium flare this week on Tuesday at 23.03.29 at 19 degrees in WNW
Week of 10th July
There is no Astronomical darkness
The Moon is waning and will be Last Quarter at the start of next week
The Sun has one enormous (largest of 2017) sunspot group 2665, which is currently active
The ISS makes no passes this week
There is one superbright evening Iridium flare this week on Wednesday at 23.14.42 at 32 degrees altitude in W
Week of 3rd July
There is no Astronomical darkness
The Moon is waxing and will be Full (Thunder Moon) on Sunday
The Sun is blank again
Noctilucent Clouds, which were wiped out by the heat wave, have again been sighted. On clear evenings it is worth looking west 30 to 60 minutes after sunset
The ISS makes no passes this week
There are no bright evening Iridium flares this week
Week of 26th June
There is no Astronomical darkness
The Moon is waxing and will be First Quarter on Saturday
The Sun has two sunspot groups, neither of whih is active
The ISS makes no passes this week
There are two bright evening Iridium flares: On Monday at 22.51.48 at 25 degrees altitude in W and 22.49.00 at 22 degrees in WNW
Week of 19th June
There is no Astronomical darkness
The Moon is waning and will be New on Saturday
On Wednesday (the Summer Solstice)the Sun reaches a Right Ascension of 6 hours and Declnation of 23.5 degrees at 5.24 BST. The Sun rises at it northernmost extreme (standstill point)on the Eastern horizon and likewise sets at the northernmost extreme, reaching its greatest altitude above the Southern horizon at Noon of 62.5 degrees; thus giving us the longest day of the year
The Sun has two sunspot groups, 2663 is active
Noctilucent Clouds have again been sighted and with clear evenings ,it is worth looking west 30 to 60 minutes after sunset
The Southern evening sky is dominated by 4 bright objects; from the East yellow Saturn, red Antares then blue Spica and finally bright yellow Jupiter. The planets alone will shin with a steady light
The ISS makes no passes this week
There are two bright evening Iridium flares: On Monday at 23.12.21 at 35 degrees altitude in W and Thursday at 23.03.27 at 31 degrees in W
Week of 12th June
There is no Astronomical darkness
The Moon is now waning and will be Last Quarter on Saturday
The Sun has one new sunspot group 2662, ending a number of blank days
The ISS makes no passes this week
There is one bright evening Iridium flare: On Thursday at 23.27.17 at 39 degrees altitude in WSW
Week of 5th June
There is no Astronomical darkness
The Moon is waxing and will be Full (Strawbery Moon) on Friday
The Sun has one new sunspot group 2661, which is active
The ISS makes final passes this week: Monday 23.18.32 W to S reaching 2 degrees. Tuesday 22.26.13 W to SSE to 32 degrees. Wednesday at 23.11.40 WSW to SSW to 12 degrees. Thursday 22.18.47 W to S to 19 degrees and Sunday 22.12.33 SW to SW to 10 degrees
There is one bright evening Iridium flare: On Wednesday at 23.57.17 at 46 degrees altitude in WSW
Week of 29th May
The nights are now not truly dark until Astronomical Twilight ends on 21st July
The Moon is waxing and will be First Quarter on Thursday
The Sun has one disappearing sunspot group
The first Notilucent Cloud (NLC) has been sighted this year. From now till into July they are more common. We now know that they are seeded by debris from meteors and are made up of ice crystals in the mesosphere. Look west for an hour after sunset and they are obvious as high electric blue iridescent clouds
The ISS makes good passes this week: Monday 22.56.50 W to E reaching 85 degrees. Tuesday 22.04.45 W to E to 88 degrees and 23.41.18 W to ESE to 83 degrees. Wednesday at 22.49.12 W to E to 87 degrees. Thursday 21,57,06 W to E to 84 degrees and 23.33.37 W to SE to 60 degrees. Friday 22.41.30 W to ESE to 77 degrees. Saturday 23.25.57 W to SSE to 37 degrees and Sunday 22.33.46 W to SE to 53 degrees
There are two bright evening Iridium flares. On Tuesday at 21.49.06 at 56 degrees altitude in NE and on Friday at 21.36.05 at 61 degrees in NE
Week of 22nd May
Astronomical twilight ends at 00.58 BST at the start of the week after which we do not see true astronomical darkness till 21st July
The Moon is waning and will be New on Thursday
The Sun has three small sunspots groups, none of which is active
The ISS makes passes this week: Tuesday 23.19.58 reaching 38 degrees from SW to E. Wednesday at 22.28.20 to 26 degrees SSW to E. Thursday 23.12.04 to 60 degrees WSW to E. Friday 22.20.10 to 43 degrees SW to E. Saturday 23.04.18 to 83 degrees WSW to E and Sunday 22.12.14 to 67 degrees WSW to E and 23.48.42 to 85 degrees from W to E
There are three bright evening Iridium flares. On Wednesday at 22.15.05 at 47 degrees altitude in SE and on Friday at 22.02.06 at 51 degrees in NE and a superbright flare on Saturday at 22.04.01 at 55 degrees in NE
Week of 15th May
Astronomical twilight ends at 23.57 BST at the start of the week and 00.58 BST at the end. The times now changing rapidly as we approach the period of continual astronomical twilight when from 23rd May till 21st July, the Sun never goes more than 18 degrees below the horizon and there is no astronomical darkness
The Moon is waning and will be Last Quarter on Friday<br.
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The Sun is again blank for the 5th successive day. Solar minimum is predicted in 2019-2020
The ISS makes no passes this week, but returns from 23rd
There are three bright evening Iridium flares. On Tuesday at 22.40.38 at 37 degrees altitude in NE and a super-bright flare at 23.00.33 at 37 degrees in NE and on Thursday at 22.37.32 at 37 degrees in NE
Week of 8th May
Astronomical twilight ends at 23.26 BST at the start of the week and 23.57 BST at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be Full (Flower Moon) on Wednesday
The Sun has two small sunspot groups, neither of which is active
The ISS makes no passes this week
There are two bright evening Iridium flares. On Monday at 23.09.10 at 29 degrees altitude in NNE and a super-bright flare on Tuesday at 21.38.34 at 57 degrees in ENE
Week of 1st May
Astronomical twilight ends at 23.00 BST at the start of the week and 23.26 BST at the end
Monday is May Day and one of the Cross-Quarter days, roughly half-way between the Equinox and the Solstice. Known as Beltane in the Celtic calendar it is associated the World over with fertility celebrations
The Moon is waxing and will be First Quarter on Wednesday
The Sun has three small sunspot groups, none of which is active
The ISS makes no passes this week
There is one bright evening Iridium flare on Friday at 23.17.02 at 14 degrees altitude in NNE
Week of 24th April
Astronomical twilight ends at 22.38 BST at the start of the week and 23.00 BST at the end
The Lyrid meteor shower peaks at the start of this week. Observing just before dawn may allow 10-20 shooting stars an hour to be seen
The Moon is New on Wednesday and will then wax to First Quarter next week
The Sun has two sunspot groups, 1653 is a return of the active 2645 group
The ISS makes no passes this week
There are 2 bright evening Iridium flares: Wednesday at 20.54.07 (superbright) at 68 degrees altitude in E and 22.29.16 at 37 degrees in NE
Week of 17th April
Astronomical twilight ends at 19.59 BST at the start of the week and 20.10 BST at the end
The Moon is Last Quarter on Tuesday
Jupiter, which rises around 8.30pm and dominates the South-Eastern evening sky and is well positioned for observations, with blue Spica following it up mid evening
The Sun is almost blank
The ISS makes no passes this week
There are 3 very bright evening Iridium flares: Wednesday at 21.21.22 at 59 degrees altitude in ENE and 22.46.43 at 43 degrees in NE and on Thursday, a super bright flare at 21.15.21 at 61 degrees in ENE
Week of 10th April
Astronomical twilight ends at 19.48 BST at the start of the week and 19.58 BST at the end
The Moon is Full (Paschal Moon) on Tuesday
Jupiter, which rises around 8.30pm and dominates the South-Eastern evening sky and is well positioned for observations
The Sun has 2 sunspot groups but neither is active
The ISS makes its last passes this week: Monday at 21.28.58 W to S reaching 25 degrees. Tuesday 20.36.38 W to SE to 36 degrees and Wednesday 21.21.44 WSW to S to 14 degrees
There are 4 bright evening Iridium flares: Tuesday at 23.00.57 at 9 degrees in NE. Thursday at 20.09.46 at 73 degrees in SE. Friday at 20.03.43 at 74 degrees in SE and Saturday at 22.57.45 at 17 degrees in NE
Week of 3rd April
The Moon is waxing to First Quarter on Monday and then will continue to wax to Full at the start of next week
Orange Arcturus heralds the arrival of bright yellow Jupiter, which rises around 8.30pm and dominates the Eastern sky
After significant inactivity The Sun has now a huge 120,000 km wide sunspot group 2645, almos central on the disk and facing Earth
The ISS makes good passes this week: Monday at (times now BST) 21.07.38 W to E to 86 degrees and 22.44.08 W to W to 22 degrees. Tuesday 20.15.12 WSW to E to 84 degrees and 21.51.41 W to SE to 87 degrees. Wednesday 20.59.13 W to E to 85 degrees and 22.35.43 W to W to 25 degrees. Thursday 21.43.13 W to SSE to 65 degrees. Friday 20.50.45 W to ESE to 82 degrees and 22.27.21 W to WSW to 23 degrees. Saturday 21.34.45 W to SSE to 42 degrees and Sunday 20.42.13 W to ESE to 59 degrees and 22.19.14 W to SW to 16 degrees
There is one bright evening Iridium flares next Saturday at 20.30.55 at 68 degrees altitude in ESE
Week of 20th March
Astronomical Twilight ends at 20.20 UT at the start of the week and at 19.30 UT+1 (BST) at the end. The clocks go forward one hour to British Summer Time next Saturday night
Monday is the Vernal Equinox. Ths start of the Astronomical Year when the Sun crosses the Celestial Equator at 0 hours RA and 0 Degrees Dec. Sunrise and sunset are due East and West respectively
The Moon will wane to New next Week
The Sun is totally blank for the 12th successive day
The ISS makes no evening passes this week but returns next week
There are no bright evening Iridium flares this week
Week of 13th March
Astronomical Twilight ends at 20.00 UT at the start of the week and at 20.12 UT at the end
The Moon will wane to Last Quarter next Monday
The Sun is totally blank
The ISS makes no evening passes this week
There are two superbright evening Iridium flares this week on Tuesday at 19.40.59 at 57 degrees altitude in ESE and Wednesday at 19.34.56 at 58 degrees altitude in SE
Week of 6th March
Astronomical Twilight ends at 19.47 UT at the start of the week and at 19.59 UT at the end
The Moon will wax to Full (Lenten Moon) on Sunday
The Sun is totally blank. As Solar activity decreases, so Cosmic Ray radiation increase. There has been a 10% increase since 2015. The Earh’s magnetic field also appears to be weakening. The South Atlantic anomaly has weakened 2% since 1999
The ISS makes no evening passes this week
There is one superbright evening Iridium flare this week on Friday at 19.56.04 at 53 degrees altitude in ESE
Week of 27th February
Astronomical Twilight ends at 19.35 UT at the start of the week and at 19.47 UT at the end
The Moon will wax to First Quarter on Sunday. The new Crescent Moon will be close to Venus at the start of the week
The Sun is quiet with two inactive spot groups
The ISS makes no evening passes this week
There is one bright evening Iridium flare this week on Wednesday at 18.56.43 at 54 degrees altitude in SSE
Week of 20th February
Astronomical Twilight ends at 19.23 UT at the start of the week and at 19.33 UT at the end
The Moon will wane to New on Sunday
Three planets line up in the evening western sky. From West Venus at magnitude -4.3 then Mars at +1.6 and then at +6.2 Uranus (should be easy in Binos)
The Sun is quiet with one inactive spot group
The ISS makes no evening passes this week
There are two super-bright evening Iridium flares this week on Monday at 19.32.59 at 48 degrees altitude in SE and on Thursday at 53 degrees in NNE
Week of 13th February
Astronomical Twilight ends at 19.11 UT at the start of the week and at 19.21 UT at the end
The Moon will wane to Last Quarter on Saturday
The Sun is quiet with one inactive spot group
The ISS makes its last passes: Monday at 18.52.45 from W to SSE reaching 23 degrees. Tuesday 18.00.04 W to SE reaching 34 degrees and Wednesday 18.44.57 WSW to S to 13 degrees
There is one bright evening Iridium flare this week on Wednesday at 19.21.41 at 38 degrees in NNE
Week of 6th February
Astronomical Twilight ends at 19.00 UT at the start of the week and at 19.10 UT at the end
The Moon will Wax to Full (Snow Moon) on Saturday
The Sun is totally quiet
The ISS continues to makes good passes as follows: on Monday at 18.33.31 from W to E reaching 85 degrees and 20.10.01 W to W to 16 degrees. Tuesday 17.41.05 W to E to 87 degrees and 19.17.35 W to W to 69 degrees. Wednesday 18.25.08 W to E to 86 degrees and 20.01.39 W to W to 21 degrees. Thursday 19.09.10 W to SSE to 61 degrees. Friday 18.16.41 W to ESE to 79 degrees and 19.53.21 W to WSW to 22 degrees. Saturday 19.00.43 W to SSE to 39 degrees and Sunday 18.08.10 W to ESE to 55 degrees and 19.45.22 WSW to SSW to 15 degrees altitude
There is one bright evening Iridium flare this week on Thursday at 19.49.56 at 25 degrees in NNE
Week of 23rd January
Astronomical Twilight ends at 18.39 UT at the start of the week and at 18.48 UT at the end
The Moon wanes to New on Sunday
Venus dominates the evening sky in the West with Mars just above and to the left. In the pre-dawn sky Jupiter (with blue Spica below it) form a line with the Moon (at the start of the week) and Saturn and Mercury
The Sun at last has some spot activity, of the 4 small groups, 2628 has some activity
The ISS returns at the end of the week with a psss on Sunday at 19.07.31 from SSW to S reaching 16 degrees
There are two bright evening Iridium flares this week on Thursday at 19.00.55, 41 degrees altitude in NNE and Friday at 18.54.47, 43 degrees in NNE
Week of 9th January
Astronomical Twilight ends at 18.21 UT at the start of the week and at 18.29 UT at the end
The Moon will be Full on Thursday and will then wane to Last Quarter next week. It passes less than a degree from Red giant star Aldeberan on Monday
Venus dominates the evening sky in the West, reaching Greatest Eastern Elongation on Thursday
The Sun is very quiet and remains blank
The ISS makes no passes this week
There are two bright (the first is superbright and the beam within a km of the Observatory) evening Iridium flares this week on Wednesday at 16.18.37 at 73 degrees altitude in ESE and Thursday at 18.12.19 at 52 degrees in NE
Week of 2nd January
Astronomical Twilight ends at 18.13 UT at the start of the week and at 18.21 UT at the end
The Moon will be First Quarter on Thursday and will then wax to Full next week. Just after sunset the Moon moves eastwards over the next few days past Venus and Mars
The Sun is very quiet and almost blank
The ISS makes no passes this week
There is one bright evening Iridium flare this week on Friday at 16.44.12 at 70 degrees altitude in ENE
Astronomical Twilight ends at 18.08 UT at the start of the week and at 18.13 UT at the end
The Moon will be New on Thursday and will then wax to First Quarter next week. Jupiter domninates the pre dawn sky with the decrescent Moon
The Sun is blank
The ISS makes no passes this week
There are no bright evening Iridium flares this week
Week of 19th December
Astronomical Twilight ends at 18.04 UT at the start of the week and at 18.08 UT at the end. The Winter Solstice is on Wednesday, when the Sun rises and sets at its southerly extrems on the horizon, only reaching 15.5 degrees altitude at midday due South
The Moon will be Last Quarter on Wednesday and will then wane to New next week
The Sun is inactive with one tiny sunspot group
The ISS makes one evening pass this week on Wedmesday at 17.01.32 from WSW to S reaching 14 degrees altitude
There is one superbright evening Iridium flare this week on Christmas Eve at 17.54.37, 53 degrees altitude in ESE
Week of 5th December
Astronomical Twilight ends at 18.02 UT at the start of the week and at 18.02 UT at the end. We are approaching the Winter Solstice
The Moon will be First Quarter on Tuesday and will then wax to Full (Solstice Moon) at the start of next week
Venus continues to dominate the evening twilight sky in the SW and familar Orion rises in the ESE mid evening, with bright red Betelgeuse at the top left ‘shouler’
The Sun has 4 sunspot groups and 2615 is active
The ISS makes good evening passes: Monday at 18.00.39 from SW to SE reaching 49 degrees. Tuesday 17.08.58 SW to E reaching 34 degrees and 18.45.00 W to W to 33 degrees. Wednesday 17.53.03 WSW to E to 73 degrees and 19.29.33 W to W to 11 degrees. Thursday 17.01.09 WSW to E to 55 degrees and 18.37.32 W to W to 39 degrees. Friday 17.45.31 W to W to 89 degrees and 19.22.03 W to W to 13 degrees. Saturday 16.53.31 WSW to E to 79 degrees and 18.30.01 W to W to 49 degrees and Sunday at 17.38.00 W to E to 84 degrees and 19.14.31 W to w to 16 degrees
There are no bright evening Iridium flares this week
Week of 28th November
Astronomical Twilight ends at 18.04 UT at the start of the week and at 18.02 UT at the end
The Moon will be New on Tuesday and will then wax to First Quarter at the start of next week
The Sun has 1 sunspot group but is innactive
The ISS returns from Thursday making eveningpasses: Thursday at 18.16.42 from S to S reaching 14 degrees. Friday 17.26.25 from SSE to SE reaching 11 degrees and 18.59.58 from SW to SW to 15 degrees. Saturday at 18.08.22 from SSW to SSE to 29 degrees and Sunday at 17.17.02 from SSW to ESE reaching 20 degrees and 18.52.20 from WSW to WSW to 25 degrees
There are no bright evening Iridium flares this week
Week of 21st November
Astronomical Twilight ends at 18.09 UT at the start of the week and at 18.05 UT at the end
The Moon is waning and will be New at the start of next week (Frost Moon) on 14th and will then wane to Last Quarter at the start of next week
The Sun has 2 sunspot groups but is very innactive
There are no evening ISS passes this week
There is one bright evening Iridium flares this week on Saturday at 18.23.11 at 43 degrees altitude in NNE
Week of 14th November
Astronomical Twilight ends at 18.15 UT at the start of the week and at 18.09 UT at the end
The Moon is Full (Frost Moon) on 14th and will then wane to Last Quarter at the start of next week. The Moon will be at its closest point to Earth in its elliptical orbit (Perigee) and will thus be a ‘supermoon’. It has not been so close (and hence apparently large diameter (14% larger than at Apogee, its furthest) and thus brighter (30%)) since 1948 and won’t be closer till November 2034!Of course no telescope is required (in fact, without filters, it could be damaging for the eyes)
The Leonid meteor shower peaks on Thursday. This year the bright Moon will interfere with sighting. Only 15-20 meteors are expected an hour. The next storm quality Leonids is not expected till 2033
Sirius dominates the pre-dawn sky in the West and Jupiter in the East
The Sun has 3 sunspot groups but is very innactive
There are no evening ISS passes this week
<li<>There are 3 bright early evening Iridium flares this week on Tuesday at 17.25.30 at 62 degrees altitude in NE. Thursday at 16.36.44 at 24 degrees in W and a superbright flare on Friday at 17.07.07 at 66 degrees altitude in NE</li<>
Week of 7th November
Astronomical Twilight ends at 18.24 UT at the start of the week and at 18.16 UT at the end
The Moon is waxing to Full (Frost Moon) on 14th. The Moon will be at its closest point to Earth in its elliptical orbit (Perigee) and will thus be a ‘supermoon’. It has not been so close (and hence apparently large diameter (14% laregr than average) and brighter (30%)) since 1948 and won’t be closer till November 2034!Of course no telescope is required (in fact, without filters, it could be damaging for the eyes)
The Sun has 2 sunspot groups but is very innactive
There are no evening ISS passes this week
There is one bright early evening Iridium flare this week on Friday at 16.39.51, 21 degrees altitude in SW
Week of 24th October
Astronomical Twilight ends at 19.46 BST at the start of the week and at 18.34 UT at the end. The clocks go back one hour to UT (GMT) in the early morning of Sunday 30th
The Moon is waning to New on Sunday
The Sun has 2 sunspot groups, neither of which is currently active
There are no evening ISS passes this week
There are two bright evening Iridium flares this week on Tuesday at 17.52.55 at 18 degrees altitude in W and Saturday at 18.20.43 at 39 degrees altitude in SSW
Week of 17th October
Astronomical Twilight ends at 20.00 BST at the start of the week and at 20.02 BST at the end
The Moon is waning to Last Quarter on Saturday
The Orionid meteor shower (debris from Halley’s comet) peaks over 21st to 24th, possibly best on 22nd.The Moon is particularly favourable. Due to the lack of Moon more may be visible though rates are unlikely to reach more than 20 an hour
The Sun has 3 sunspot groups, none of which is currently active
The ISS makes its last passes: Monday 19.02.32 W to SSE reaching 27 degrees and Wednesday 18.54.46 WSW to S to 16 degrees<br.
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There is one bright evening Iridium flare this week on Wednesday at 19.02.36 at 49 degrees altitude in S
Week of 10th October
Astronomical Twilight ends at 20.14 BST at the start of the week and at 20.02 BST at the end
The Moon is waxing to Full (Hunter Moon) on Sunday
The Sun has 3 sunspot groups, none of which is currenlty active, though 2599 is large
The ISS continues to make good passes this week: Monday at 20.19.02 W to S reaching 75 degrees altitude. Tuesday 19.26.49 W to E to 89 degrees and 21.03.23 W to W to 22 degrees. Wednesday 20.11.06 W to S to 51 degrees. Thursday 19.18.52 W to ESE to 69 degrees and 20.55.41 W to WSW to 18 degrees. Friday 20.03.13 W to S to 31 degrees. Saturday 19.10.52 W to SE to 45 degrees and 20.48.41 WSW to SW to 12 degrees and Sunday 19.55.32 W to S to 18 degrees
There are no bright evening Iridium flares this week
Week of 3rd October
Astronomical Twilight ends at 20.30 BST at the start of the week and at 20.17 BST at the end
The Moon is waxing to First Quarter on Sunday
The Sun is blank with no sunspot groups
The ISS makes good passes this week: Monday at 19.58.28 SW to E reaching 45 degrees and 21.34.43 W to W to 16 degrees. Tuesday 20.42.33 WSW to WSW to 69 degrees. Wednesday 19.50.24 WSW to E reaching 69 degrees and 21.26.51 W to W to 20 degrees. Thursday 20.34.39 W to NW to 80 degrees. Friday 19.42.25 W to E to 89 degrees and 21.18.56 W to W to 22 degrees. Saturday 20.26.42 W to NNW to 87 degrees and Sunday 19.34.27 W to E to 84 degrees and 21.10.57 W to W to 23 degrees
There are two bright evening Iridium flares this week on Monday at 18.36.01 at 52 degrees altitude in SSW and Friday at 19.56.35 at 55 degrees in SE
Week of 26th September
Astronomical Twilight ends at 20.47 BST at the start of the week and at 20.35 BST at the end
The Moon is waning to New on Saturday
The Sun has 3 sunspot groups. 2597 is growing. Auroral activity is high as usual near the Equinox, but only at high latitudes
The ISS returns at the end of the week: Thursday 20.15.30 from S to SSE reaching 14 degrees. Friday 20.58.24 from SW to SSW reaching 20 degrees. Saturday 20.06.40 fro SSW to SE reaching 27 degrees and 21.42.26 WSW to WSW to 11 degrees and Sunday 19.15.13 from S to E to 18 degrees and 20.50.22 WSW to SW to 43 degrees
There is one superbright evening Iridium flares this week on Saturday at 20.23.20 at 55 degrees altitude in ESE
Week of 19th September
The Autumnal Equinox is on Thursday. The Sun rises due East and sets due West
Astronomical Twilight ends at 21.05 BST at the start of the week and at 20.47 BST at the end
The Moon is waning to Last Quarter on Friday
The Sun has 1 sunspot groups. There is no activity at the moment
The ISS makes no evening passes this week
There are three bright evening Iridium flares this week on Monday at 21.17.37 at 47 degrees altitude in E. Tuesday ay 19.35.56 at 64 degrees in SSE and Wednesday at 19.30.09 at 63 degrees in SSE
Week of 12th September
Astronomical Twilight ends at 21.24 BST at the start of the week and at 21.24 BST at the end
The Moon is wanxing to First Quarter on Friday
The Sun has 3 sunspot groups. None is active at the moment but 2585 is larger and growing
The ISS makes no evening passes this week
There is one bright evening Iridium flare this week on Tuesday at 20.42.06 at 64 degrees altitude in ESE
Week of 5th September
Astronomical Twilight ends at 21.24 BST at the start of the week and at 21.24 BST at the end
The Moon is wanxing to First Quarter on Friday
The Sun has 3 sunspot groups. None is active at the moment but 2585 is larger and growing
The ISS makes no evening passes this week
There is one bright evening Iridium flare this week on Tuesday at 20.42.06 at 64 degrees altitude in ESE
Week of 29th August
Astronomical Twilight ends at 22.05 BST at the start of the week and at 21.44 BST at the end
The Moon is waning to New on Thursday
The Sun has four sunspot groups. None is active at the moment
The ISS makes no evening passes this week
There is one bright evening Iridium flare this week on Saturday at 22.26.02 at 32 degrees altitude in NE
Week of 22nd August
Astronomical Twilight ends at 23.27 BST at the start of the week and at 22.08 BST at the end
The Moon is Last Quarter on Wednesday
Jupiter and Venus are in Conjunction and very close on Friday but only visible in the western twilight just befoe they set around 7.45pm. By 9pm Saturn, Mars and Antares are also in close conjunction in South
The Sun has three sunspot groups. None is active at the moment
The ISS makes no evening passes this week
There are two bright evening Iridium flares this week on Tuesday at 23.03.21 at 17 degrees altitude in NNE and Wednesday at 21.36.14 at 54 degrees in ENE
Week of 15th August
CEB on Queen Mary 2 mid-Atlantic
Week of 8th August
Astronomical Twilight ends at 23.14 BST at the start of the week and at 22.53 BST at the end
The Moon is First Quarter on Wednesday and will wax to Full next week
.The famous Perseids meteor shower (Tears of St Lawrence) peaks at noon (BST) on 12th, but already some early Perseids may be seen. A larger than normal peak is predicted. It is worth observing on Thursday night as well. Look North East after sunset and towards Cassiopeia. The Moon will be rather bright till after midnight. The early hours of Friday morning could be best
There are 5 naked-eye planets visible: Venus, Mercury and Julpiter low in the WNW twighlight just after sunset and Saturn and Mars low in the South. On Thursday The Moon, Saturn, Mats and Antares form a tight parallelogram
The Sun has two sunspot groups. Neither is active at the moment
The ISS makes last passes this week: Monday 21.40.41 W to ESE reaching 64 degrees altitude and 23.17.34 W to SW to 18 degrees. Tuesday 22.24.17 W to S to 28 degrees. Wednesday 21.31.10 W to SE to 42 degrees and 23.09.26 SW to SW to 10 degrees. Thursday 22.15.08 W to S to 17 degrees. Friday 21.21.45 W to SSE to 25 degrees and Sunday 21.12.41 WSW to S to 15 degrees
There are two bright evening Iridium flares this week on Monday at 22.50.30 at 32 degrees altitude in NE and Friday at 22.35.59 at 38 degrees in NE
Week of 1st August
Astronomical Twilight ends at 23.41 BST at the start of the week and at 23.18 BST at the end
The Moon is New on Tuesday and will then wax to First Quarter next week
Monday is the mid-Summer Cross-Quarter day, half-way between the Solstice and the Equinox. This is the Feast of Lughnasa
The famous Persieds meteor shower peaks on 12th, but already some early Persieds may be seen. Look North East after sunset and towards Cassiopeia. The Sun is almost blank again
The ISS make excellent evening passes: Monday 23.02.10 W to E reaching 84 degrees. Tuesday 22.09.12 W to E to 87 degrees and 23.45.40 W to SSW to 74 degrees. Wednesday 22.52.43 W to E to 89 degrees. Thursday 21.59.44 W to E to 84 degrees and 23.36.12 W to SW to 47 degrees. Friday 22.43.13 W to ESE to 69 degrees. Saturday 21.50.16 W to ESE to 85 degrees and 23.26.48 W to SW to 29 degrees and Sunday 22.33.45 W to SSE to 46 degrees
There is one bright evening Iridium flares this week on Wednesday at 23.10.57 at 25 degrees altitude in NE
Week of 25th July
Astronomical Twilight ends at 00.14 BST at the start of the week and at 00.45 BST at the end
The Moon is waning and will be Last Quarter on Tuesday
The Sun is almost blank again
The ISS returns with evening passes: Tuesday 21.56.24 S to ESE reaching 13 degrees and 23.30.42 SW to E to 49 degrees. Wednesday 22.38.03 SW to E to 34 degrees. Thursday 21.45.38 SSW to E to 23 degrees and 23.21.06 WSW to E to 73 degrees. Friday 22.28.16 WSW to E to 54 degrees . Saturday 21.35.34 SW to E to 38 degrees and Sunday 22.18.42 WSW to E to 78 degrees and 23.55.09 W to E to 89 degrees
There are no bright evening Iridium flares this week
Week of 18th July
With lengthening nights Astronomical Twilight ends on Thursday at 00.52 and by the end of the week at 00.20 and we get brief period (30 minutes) of ‘true’ darkness
The Moon is Full on Tuesday (Thunder Moon) and will then wane to Last Quarter at the start of next week
The Sun has 3 large sunspot groups, 2567 is active
The ISS returns with evening passes next week
There are no bright evening Iridium flares this week
Week of 11th July
The Moon is waxing and will be First Quarter on Tuesday
The Sun has 4 spot groups, none of which is active
The ISS makes no evening passes this week
Thereare two superbright evening Iridium flare this week on Thursday at 23.08.58 at 30 degrees altitude in NNE and Saturday at 21.22.18 at 66 degrees in ENE
Week of 27th June
The Moon is Last Quarter on Monday and will wane to New at the start of next week
3 naked-eye planets are visible in the evening sky after sunset with Jupiter appearing brght yellow in the West in Leo and Mars bright redish in SSE in Libra. Saturn is yellow and a little dimmer and to the East of Mars in Ophiucus. Below Mars, closer to the horizon is red Antares (in Scorpio). Arcturus is high in SW and if you follow the arc from the handle of the ‘saucepan’ down you reach blue Spica (alpha Virgo)
The Sun is still blank after 4 days and activity is very low
The ISS makes no evening passes this week
There is one superbright evening Iridium flare this week on Monday at 21.48.58 at 38 degrees altitude in NE
Week of 20th June
The Summer Solstice occurs on 20th and the Sun rises at 4.45am at the furthest North point on the Eastern horizon in the year. At noon shadows will be the shortest for your location with the Sun culminating at its highest altitude (62.5 degrees in Marlborough)
The Moon is Full on the Solstice (Strawberry Moon) and will then wane
,li>3 naked-eye planets are visible in the evening sky after sunset with Jupiter appearing brght yellow in the West in Leo and Mars bright redish in SSE in Libra. Saturn is yellow and a little dimmer and to the East of Mars in Ophiucus. Below Mars , closer to the horizon is red Antares (in Scorpio). Arcturus is high in SW and if you follow the arc from the handle of the ‘saucepan’ down you reach blue Spica (alpha Virgo)
The Sun has 4 spot groups, none of which is active
The Noctilucent Cloud (NLC) season has started. Look West 30 to 60 minutes after sunset. These electric blue wispy ‘clouds’ are seeded by meteorites and occur at 80km altitude
The ISS makes no evening passes this week
There is one superbright evening Iridium flare this week on Monday at 21.37.53 at 61 degrees altitude in NE
Week of 12th June
The Moon is waxing to Full at the start of next week
The Sun has 3 spot groups, none of which is active
The Noctilucent Cloud (NLC) season has started. Look West 30 to 60 minutes after sunset. These electric blue wispy ‘clouds’ are seeded by meteorites and occur at 80km altitude
The ISS makes its last evening pass for a while on Monday 22.10.35 WSW to SSW reaching 12 degrees altitude
There is one bright evening Iridium flare this week on Saturday at 23.23.53 at 23 degrees altitude in NNE
Week of 6th June
The Moon is waxing to First Quarter next Sunday
Solar Minimum is on the way. The Sun has had a second day completely blank and devoid of sunspots
The Noctilucent Cloud (NLC) season has started. Look West 30 to 60 minutes after sunset. These electric blue whispy ‘clouds’ are seeded by meteorites and occur at 80km altitude
The ISS makes its last evening passes for a while this week: Monday 23.28.28 W to SSE reaching 39 degrees altitude. Tuesday 22.35.36 W to ESE to 56 degrees. Wednesday 23.19.28 W to S to 23 degrees. Thursday 22.26.27 W to SE to 35 degrees. Friday 23.10.55 WSW to SSW to 13 degres and Saturday 22.17.28 W to SSE to 21 degrees
There is one bright evening Iridium flare this week on Wednesday at 22.31.42 at 43 degrees altitude in NE
Week of 30th May
The Moon is waning to New next Sunday
The Sun has 2 sunspot groups neither of which is active
The Noctilucent Cloud (NLC) season has started. Look West 30 to 60 minutes after sunset. These electric blue whispy ‘clouds’ are seeded by meteorites and occur at 80km altitude
The ISS makes good evening passes this week every evening as follows: Monday at 23.12.12 from WSW to E reaching 84 degrees altitude. 22.19.28 WSW to E to 68 degrees and 23.55.53 W to E to 85 degrees. Wednesday 23.03.06 W to E to 85 degrees. Thursday 22.10.19 W to E to 88 degrees and 23.46.48 W toESE to 83 degrees. Friday 22.54.00 W to E to 86 degrees. Saturday at 22.01.12 W to E to 61 degrees and 23.37.41 W ti SE to 61 degrees and Sunday 22.44.53 W to ESE to 79 degrees
There is one bright evening Iridium flare this week on Monday at 23.00.02 at 11 degrees in WNW
Week of 23rd May
There is no Astronomical darkness till 20th July
The Moon is waning to Last Quarter on Saturday
The Sun has 2 sunspot groups neither of which is active
The ISS makes evening passes this weekas follows: Thursday at 23.30.40 SW to E reaching 40 degrees. Friday 22.38.18 SSW to E to 27 degrees. Saturday at 23.21.19 WSW to E to 62 degrees and Sunday 22.28.43 W to E to 44 degrees
There are 4 bright evening Iridium flares this week on Thursday at 21.47.32 at 56 degrees altitude in NE. Friday 22.17.26 at 11 degrees in NNW and 22.49.53 at 17 degrees in WNW and 23.15.33 at 23 degrees in NNE
Week of 16th May
Astronomical twilight ends at 00.03 BST at the start of the week and at 00.42 BST on Saturday, after which there is no astronomical darkness till 20th July
The Moon is waxing to Full (Flower Moon) on Saturday
The Sun has 4 sunspot groups none of which is active
The ISS makes no evening passes this week
There are 4 bright evening Iridium flares this week on Monday at 22.29.18 at 40 degrees altitude in NE. Wednesday at 23.06.49 at 28 degrees in W and Saturday at 22.08.28 at 47 degrees in NE and 22.58.03 at 25 degrees in W
Week of 9th May
Astronomical twilight ends at 23.31 BST at the start of the week and at 23.58 BST at the end
The Moon is waxing to First Quarter on Friday
The Sun has 3 sunspot groups none of which is active
Mercury will make its first of the pair of Transits this decade on Monday. The Transit starts at 12.12 BST and ends at 19.42 BST. Mid Transit is 15.57 BST. The observatory will be open throughout weather permitting. Next Transit is November 11th 2019
The ISS makes no evening passes this week
There is one superbright evening Iridium flares this week on Wednesday at 22.44.05 at 34 degrees altitude in NE
Week of 2nd May
Astronomical twilight ends at 23.04 BST at the start of the week and at 23.31 BST at the end
The Moon is waning to New on Friday
The Sun is peppered with 6 sunspot groups, none of which is active
Mercury is moving towards its first of the pair of Transits this decade next Monday. The Transit starts at 12.12 and ends at 19.42. Mid Transit is 15.57. The observatory will be open throughout weather permitting. Next Transit is November 11th 2019
The ISS makes no evening passes this week
There are 4 bright evening Iridium flares this week on Monday at 23.17.21 at 13 degrees altitude in WNW. Tuesday at 23.09.39 at 18 degrees altitude in NNE and 23.20.47 at 11 degrees in WNW and Wednesday at 22.05.53 at 12 degrees altitude in N
Week of 25th April
Astronomical twilight ends at 22.42 BST at the start of the week and at 23.04 BST at the end
The Moon is waning to Last Quarter on Saturday<br.
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Next Sunday is the Pagan festival of Beltane. Half-way between the Vernal Equinox and the Summer Solstice and marks mid-Spring
The Sun has one inactive spot group
Mercury is now in its Decrescent phase, reaching inferior conjunction (and Transit)on 9th May<br.
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The ISS makes no evening passes this week
There is one bright evening Iridium flare this week on Friday at 23.16.44 at 17 degrees altitude in W
Week of 18th April
Astronomical twilight ends at 22.22 BST at the start of the week and at 22.42 BST at the end
The Moon is waxing to Full (Grass Moon) on Friday
The Sun has three spot groups and 2529 is active
Jupiter dominates the evening sky still and is close to the Moon at the start of the week
The ISS makes no evening passes this week
There is one bright evening Iridium flare this week on Thursday at 23.36.57 at 22 degrees altitude in WSW
Week of 11th April
Astronomical twilight ends at 22.03 BST at the start of the week and at 22.22 BST at the end
The Moon is waxing to First Quarter on Thursday
The Sun has one large Neptune sized spot 2529 so far its magnetic field is simple and so the activity is low. The number of spots is declining even more rapidly than normal as we head towards the next Solar minimum. The current Cycle 24 has been one of the weakest for over a century and bears resemblance to Cycle 5 which led to the Dalton miminum at the start of the 19th Century. With the demise in Solar activity the Cosmic Ray flux is rising noticeably
The ISS makes its last passes this week: Monday 20.29.21 W to ESE reaching 85 degrees and 22.05.55 W to SSW to 31 degrees. Tuesday 21.12.55 W to SE to 45 degrees. Wednesday 21.56.42 W to SSW to 18 degrees. Thursday 21.03.08 W to SSE to 28 degrees. Friday 21.47.59 SW to SW to 10 degrees and Saturday 20.52.55 W to S to 17 degrees
There are no bright evening Iridium flares this week
Week of 4th April
Astronomical twilight ends at 21.47 BST at the start of the week and at 22.01 BST at the end
The Moon is New on Thursday and will then wax to First Quarter next week
The Sun has just 1 spot group. The number of spots is declining even more rapidly than normal as we head towards the next Solar minimum. The current Cycle 24 has been one of the weakest for over a centrury and bears resemblance to Cycle 5 which led to the Dalton miminum at the start of the 19th Century. Whether lower global temperatures will result will remain to be seen. With the demise in Solar activity the Cosmic Ray flux is rising noticeably
The ISS makesgood passes this week: Monday 21.47.37 W to E reaching 89 degrees. Tuesday 20.55.12 WSW to E to 77 degrees and 22.31.40 W to W to 35 degrees. Wednesday 21.39.13 W to E to 84 degrees and 23.15.42 W to W to 12 degrees. Thursday 20.46.45 W to E to 87 degrees and 22.23.14 W to W to 46 degrees. Friday 21.30.47 W to E to 88 degrees and 23.07.19 W to W to 14 degrees. Saturday 20.38.18 W to E to 84 degrees and 22.14.48 W to SW to 45 degrees and Sunday 21.22.18 W to ESE to 68 degrees and 22.59.07 W to WSW to 13 degrees
There is one bright evening Iridium flare this week on Monday at 20.02.36 at 46 degrees altitude in N
Week of 28th March
Astronomical twilight ends at 21.31 BST at the start of the week and at 21.47 BST at the end
The Moon is Last Quarter on Wednesday and then continues to wane
The Sun has 2 spot groups, neither of which is active
The ISS makes new passes this week: Wednesday at 21.21.34 from SSW toS reaching 11 degrees. Thursday 20.30.22 from SSE to SE to 12 degrees and 22.04.34 SW to SW to 15 degrees. Friday 21.12.27 SW to SE to 33 degrees and 22.48.25 W to W to 10 degrees. Saturday 20.20.35 SSW to E to 22 degreesand 21.56.03 WSW to SW to 53 degrees and Sunday 21.03.44 WSW toE to 53 degrees and 22.40.05 W to W to 22 degrees
There are no bright evening Iridium flares this week
Week of 21st March
Astronomical twilight ends at 20.16 UT at the start of the week and at 20.29 UT at the end. The Sun will now rise and set progressively further north on the horizon
The Moon is Full (Pascal Moon)on Wednesday> Since this is fter the Vernal Equinox, next Sunday is Easter Day
The Sun has 2 small spot groups, none of which is active
There are no evening ISS passes this week
There are two bright evening Iridium flares this week: Monday at 20.20.22 at 22 degrees altitude in N and Wednesday at 20.07.44 at 26 degrees in N
Week of 14th March
Astronomical twilight ends at 20.03 UT at the start of the week and at 20.16 UT at the end. Next Sunday (20th) this year is the Vernal Equinox (4.30pm). The Sun will rise due East in the morning and set due West
The Moon is First Quarter on Tuesday and will then wax to Full next week
The Sun has 4 small spot groups, none of which is active
Jupiter is now dominating the evening sky in the SE just below the Sphinx shaped constelltion of Leo
There are no evening ISS passes this week
There are no bright evening Iridium flares this week
Week of 29th February
Astronomical twilight ends at 19.37 UT at the start of the week and at 19.4 UT at the end
The Moon is Last Quarter on Monday and will then wane to new next week
The Spring marker Arcturus can now be seen rising bright orange in the East after sunset
The Sun has 2 spot groups, neither of which is active. The Sun is very quiet at the moment
A 30m asteroid 2013 TX68 will make a close pass (less than 17000km) to Earth on March 5th
There are no evening ISS passes this week
There are no bright evening Iridium flares this week
Week of 22nd February
Astronomical twilight ends at 19.25 UT at the start of the week and at 19.37 UT at the end
The Moon is Full (Snow Moon) on Moday and will then wane
On Tuesday there is a conjunction between the Moon and Jupiter below the constellation of Leo
The Spring marker Arcturus can now be seen rising bright orange in the East after sunset
The Sun has 3 spot groups, none of which is active
A 30m asteroid 2013 TX68 will make a close pass (less than 17000km) to Earth on March 5th
There are no evening ISS passes this week
There are two superbright evening Iridium flares this week: Thursday at 20.21.46 at 15 degrees altitude in N and on Friday one of the brightest possible at 18.08.32 at 63 degrees in NNE
Week of 15th February
Astronomical twilight ends at 19.13 UT at the start of the week and at 19.25 UT at the end
The Moon is First Quarter on Monday and will then wax to Full next week
The Sun has 2 spot groups, 2497 is currently active
A 30m asteroid 2013 TX68 will make a close pass (less than 17000km) to Earth on March 5th
The ISS (with Tim Peake on board) makes last evening passes this week: Monday at 17.52.51 W to ESE reaching 83 degrees and 19.29.27 W to SSW to 29 degrees. Tuesday 18.36.30 W to SE to 42 degrees and 20.14.38 WSW to SW to 10 degrees. Wednesday at 19.20.36 W to S to 17 degrees. Thursday 18.27.21 W to SSE to 26 degrees and Saturday 18.18.27 WSW to S to 15 degrees
There are thre superbright evening Iridium flares this week: Tuesday 19.00.46 at 45 degrees altitude in NNE. Wednesday 17.24.27 at 35 degrees in SSW and the brightest at 18.54.36 at 48 degrees in NNE
Week of 8th February
Astronomical twilight ends at 19.02 UT at the start of the week and at 19.13 UT at the end
The Moon is New on Monday and will then wax to First Quarter next week
Comet C/2013 US10 Catalina is currently still in Camelopardalis and heading Perseues and Auriga
The Sun has 4 spot groups, none of which is currently active
The ISS (with Tim Peake on board) makes more evening passes this week: Monday at 19.12.28 W to W reaching 82 degrees. Tuesday 18.19.53 WSW to E to 80 degrees and 19.56.21 W to W to 24 degrees. Wednesday at 19.03.43 W to ENE to 84 degrees. Thursday 18.11.04 W to E to 86 degrees and 19.47.34 W to W to 32 degrees. Friday 18.54.54 W to ESE to 86 degrees and 20.31.28 W to W to 11 degrees. Sturday 18.02.13 W to E to 85 degrees and 19.38.42 W to WSW to 40 degrees and Sunday 18.45.59 W to ESE to 65 degrees and 20.22.52 W to WSW to 13 degrees
There are several superbright evening Iridium flares this week: Tuesday 17.54.35 at 39 degrees altitude in S and 19.34.57 to 32 degrees in NNE. Wednesday 19.28.42 to 34 degrees in NNE and Saturday at 17.39.28 at 38 degrees in SSW
Week of 1st February
Astronomical twilight ends at 18.48 UT at the start of the week and at 18.59 UT at the end
li>The Moon will be New next week
The pre-dawn planetary alignment continues and the waning Moon joins them, working its way towards the Sun. It will make Conjunctions with Mars on Monday, Saturn on Wednesday and Venus (which is closing with Mercury) on Saturday
Comet C/2013 US10 Catalina is currently near Polaris in Camelopardalis about half way from UMa to Cassiopeia, thus almost due N
The Sun has 3 spot groups, none of which is currently active
The ISS (with Tim Peake on board) returns with evening passes this week: Tuesday at 19.38.49 from SW to SSW reaching 12 degrees altitude. Wednesday 18.46.55 SSW to SSE to 21 degrees. Thursday 17.55.29 S to ESE to 14 degrees and 19.29.57 SW to SW to 26 degrees. Friday 18.37.42 SW to ESE to 35 degrees and 20.13.44 W to W to 12 degrees. Saturday 17.45.41 SSW to E to 24 degrees and 19.21.16 WSW to WSW to 50 degrees and Sunday 18.28.50 WSW to E to 57 degrees and 20.05.11 W to W to 18 degrees
There are no particularly bright evening Iridium flares this week
Week of 25th January
Astronomical twilight ends at 18.39 UT at the start of the week and at 18.49 UT at the end
The Moon will be Last Quarter on 1st February
The pre-dawn planetary alignemnt will be spectacular this week with (from the rising Sun in the East) Mercury, Venus, Saturn, Mars and Jupiter in an arc along the Ecliptic plane and through the Zodiac constellations from Sagitarius to Leo, all visible around 6.40am if you have a clear Southern horizon
Comet C/2013 US10 Catalina is currently near k Draco and heading towards UMi. It is nearly 1.5 AU from the Sun. It is a faint grey blur in binoculars but should be a little better once the Moon has waned further
The Sun has 3 spot groups, none of which is currently active
There are no ISS evening passes this week
There is one bright evening Iridium flare this week on Wednesday at 17.19.39 at 26 degrees altitude in SSW
Week of 18th January
Astronomical twilight ends at 18.31 UT at the start of the week and at 18.39 UT at the end
The Moon will be Full (Snow Moon) next Friday
Comet C/2013 US10 Catalina is currently near Mizr in the handle of the ‘Saucepan/Plough’. It reached perigee on 17th January. So far it has reached a maximum brightnes of +6 and is now +7, so just not naked eye, but binoculars should show a grey/greenish smudge
The Sun has 3 spot groups, none of which is currently active
There are no ISS evening passes this week
There are two bright evening Iridium flares this week: Tuesday at 16.29.14 at 31 degrees in W and Wednesday at 17.43.39 at 31 degrees in S
Week of 11th January
Astronomical twilight ends at 18.21 UT at the start of the week and at 18.28 UT at the end
The Moon will be First Quarter next Saturday
Comet C/2013 US10 Catelina which has been a pre-dawn object since November comes into the evening skies and over the next couple of week heads up from Arcturus towards Polaris covering more than 2 degrees a day and accelerating. From 13th to 16th it will be just left of Alkaid (the last star in the handle of the Saucepan/Plough). It reaches perigee on 17th January. So far it has reached a maximum brightnes of +6 and is now +7, so just not naked eye, but binoculars should show a grey/greenish smudge
The Sun has 6 spot groups, none of which is currently active
There are no ISS evening passes this week
There are four bright evening Iridium flares this week: Monday at 18.02.15 at 13 degrees in WNW. Tuesday at 17.47.22 at 16 degrees in WNE. Wednesday at 17.09.39 at 11 degrees in SW and 17.32.24 at 19 degrees in WNW
Week of 4th January
Astronomical twilight ends at 18.15 UT at the start of the week and at 18.21 UT at the end
The Moon will be New next Sunday
An Oort cloud comet C/2013 US10 Catelina which has been a pre-dawn object since November comes into the evening skies and over the next couple of week heads up from Arcturus towards Polaris covering more than 2 degrees a day and accelerating. From 13th to 16th it will be just left of Alkaid (the last star in the handle of the Saucepan/Plough). It reaches perigee on 17th January. So far it has reached a maximum brightnes of +6 and is now +7, so just not naked eye, but binoculars should show a grey/greenish smudge
The Sun has 4 spot groups, 2473 is still active and produced New Years Eve aurorae in Edinburgh
The Quadrantid meteor shower (2nd most prolific in the year) peaks in the early morning of Monday 4th. Up to 80 per hour are possible at the narrow peak
There are no ISS evening passes this week
There are three bright evening Iridium flares this week: Monday at 18.43.52 at 33 degrees altitude in SSE and Friday at 17.11.59 at 19 degrees in SSW and 18.28.47 at 34 degrees in SSE
Astronomical twilight ends at 18.09 UT at the start of the week and at 18.15 UT at the end
The Moon will be Last Quarter on Saturday
The Earth reaches Aphelion on Saturday
There is a good pre-dawn planetary alignment at the start of the week of Jupiter, Mars, Venus and Saturn
The Sun has 2 spot groups, 2473 is currently active
The Quadrantid meteor shower (2nd most prolific in the year) peaks on the morning of Monday 4th. Up to 80 per hour are possible at the narrow peak
There are no ISS evening passes this week
There are two bright evening Iridium flares this week: Thursday at 16.02.31 at 36 degrees in W and Sunday at 17.23.40 at 24 degrees in SSW
Week of 21st December
Astronomical twilight ends at 18.04 UT at the start of the week and at 18.09 UT at the end. Monday is the Winter Solstice and the Sun rises at its extreme southerly point on the horizon and only reaches an altitude of 15.5 degrees at Noon. Days will then start to lengthen
The Moon will be Full (Solstice Moon) on Friday
The Sun has 3 spot groups, 2470 is currently active
The ISS makes its last evening passes this week: Monday at 16.44.12 from W to ESE reaching 65 degrees and 18.21.04 from W to S to 19 degrees. Tuesday at 17.27.44 W to SSE to 29 degrees. Wednesday 18.12.41 from WSW to SSW to 11 degrees and Thursday 17.18.24 W to S to 17 degrees
There are two bright evening Iridium flares this week: Monday at 18.05.36 at 11 degrees in WNW and Wednesday at 17.04.35 at 10 degrees in SW
Week of 14th December
Astronomical twilight ends at 18.02 UT at the start of the week and at 18.04 UT at the end. Next Monday is the Winter Solstice
The Moon will be First Quarter on Saturday
The Geminids meteor shower is probably the most prolific in the year(up to 120 per hour) and peaks on 13th/14th, it is worth watching out if the sky is clear or you can listen to http://spaceweatherradio.com for the radar signatures of the meteors
The Sun has 7 spot groups, none of which is currently active, though 2470 could produce flares
The ISS continues to make good evening passes this week: Monday at 18.05.28 W to ENE reaching 84 degrees. Tuesday 17.12.40 W to E to 87 degrees and 18.49.09 W to W to 29 degrees. Wednesday 17.56.21 W to E to 89 degrees and 19.32.52 W to W to 10 degrees. Thursday 17.03.31 W to E to 84 degrees and 18.40.00 W to WSW to 38 degrees. Friday 17.47.10 W to ESE to 70 degrees and 19.23.57 W to W to 13 degrees. Saturday 16.54.20 W to ESE to 85 degrees and 18.30.53 W to SSW to 32 degrees and Sunday 17.37.58 W to SE to 46 degrees and 19.15.38 WSW to SW to 12 degrees
There are three bright evening Iridium flares this week: Monday at 17.12.22 at 23 degrees in SSW. Tuesday at 18.32.28 at 33 degrees in SSE and Wednesday at 18.26.28 at 32 degrees in SSE
Week of 7th December
Astronomical twilight ends at 18.02 UT at the start of the week and at 18.02 UT at the end
The Moon will be New on Friday
The Geminids meteor shower is probably the most prolific in the year and peaks on 13th/14th, already one or two are being seen
The Sun has 2 spot groups and both have the potential to be active
There ISS makes good evening passes this week: Monday at 17.49.50 reaching 20 degrees SSW to SE and 19.25.08 WSW to WSW to 10 degrees. Tuesday at 16.58.22 SSE to ESE to 13 degrees and 18.32.40 SW to SSW to 33 degrees. Wednesday 17.40.19 SW to ESE to 34 degrees and 19.16.17 W to W to 15 degrees. Thursday 16.48.11 SSW to E to 23 degrees and 18.23.40 WSW to SW to 56 degrees.Friday 17.31.07 WSW to E to 54 degrees and 19.07.26 W toW to19 degres. Saturday 16.38.39 SW to E to 38 degrees and 18.14.44 W to W to 80 degrees and Sunday 17.22.02 WSW to E to 778 degrees and 18.58.30 W to W to 23 degrees
There are three bright evening Iridium flares this week: Monday at 17.36.02 at 30 degrees in S. Wednesday 16.03.08 at 33 degrees in W and Friday at 17.21.10 at 26 degrees in SSW
Week of 30th November
Astronomical twilight ends at 18.04 UT at the start of the week and at 18.02 UT at the end
The Moon will be Last Quarter on Thursday
The Sun has 4 spot groups and none of these are active
There ISS returns with evening passes this week: Friday at 18.00.36 reaching 10 degrees altitude SSE to SSE. Saturday at 18.42.13 reaching 17 degrees SSW to SSWand Sunday at 17.50.20 reaching 20dgerees SSW to SE
There are four bright evening Iridium flares this week: Monday at 17.51.23 at 11 degrees in WNW and 17.59.50 at 34 degrees in S. Wednesday at 16.49.44 at 12 degrees in SW. Thursday at 17.06.27 at 20 degrees in WNW and Friday at 17.44.55 at 32 degrees in S
Week of 23rd November
Astronomical twilight ends at 18.08 UT at the start of the week and at 18.04 UT at the end
The Moon will be Full (Frost Moon) on Wednesday. As far as the weather forecast goes, this may be the only clear night this week
The Sun has 3 spot groups and only 2454 is slightly active
There are no ISS evening passes this week
There is one bright evening Iridium flare this week: Friday at 16.51.52 at 21 degrees altitude in SSW
Week of 16th November
Astronomical twilight ends at 18.14 UT at the start of the week and at 18.08 UT at the end
The Moon will be First Quarter on Wednesday
The Leonid meteor shower (debris from comet Swift-Tuttle) peaks early on Wenesday morning. If clear, Tuesday and Wednesday should provide good chances of catching these often bright meteors. Large rates are not however expected
The Sun has 4 spot groups none of which are currently active
There are no ISS evening passes this week
There is one super bright evening Iridium flare this week: Friday at 18.41.44 at 37 degrees altitude in SE
Week of 9th November
Astronomical twilight ends at 18.22 UT at the start of the week and at 18.14 UT at the end
The Moon will be New on Wednesday and will then wax to First Quarter in the middle of next week
The Leonid meteor shower peaks next week, but the lack of Moon may enable some early meteors to be seen
By late evening the great winter constellations of Taurus and Orion are rising in the East
The Sun has 5 spot groups none of which are currently active
There are no ISS evening passes this week
There are three bright evening Iridium flares this week: Tuesday at 17.31.30 at 11 degrees altitude in WNW. Wednesday at 16.34.25 at 17 degrees in SW and Thursday 17.01.25 at 19 degres in WNW
Week of 2nd November
Astronomical twilight ends at 18.32 UT at the start of the week and at 18.23 UT at the end
The Moon will be Last Quarter on Tuesday and will then wane to New at the start of next week
The Taurid meteor shower is already producing a few bright fireballs. Only a few an hour are expected but possible till 10th. The debris is from Comet Encke (3.3 year period)
The Pleiades (M45), the winter marker, are now high in the sky in the evening and a beutiful target in binoculars. They reached their heighest at midnight this week-end, the ‘Feast of the Pleiades’ (forerunner of Halloween?)
The Sun is active with 4 spot groups and 2443 is huge and active enough for flares. The Earth will pass through a strong solar wind stream on Monday/Tuesday night
There are no ISS evening passes this week
There are two bright evening Iridium flare this week: Wednesday at 18.14.58 at 44 degrees in SSE and Saturday at 16.39.55 at 24 degrees in SSW
Week of 26th October
We are now on Universal Time (UT or GMT). Astronomical twilight ends at 18.44 UT at the start of the week and at 18.34 UT at the end
The Moon will be Full (Hunter’s Moon) on Monday and will then wane
Venus, Jupiter and Mars are closely grouped in the pre-dawn twilight sky over the next few days and are within 5 degrees of each other
The Sun is quite active with 5 spot groups and 2436 is active enough for flares
There are no ISS evening passes this week
There is one bright evening Iridium flare this week: Wednesday at 17.12.25 at 38 degrees in SSW
Week of 19th October
Next Satruday/Sunday night the clocks go back one hour to Universal Time (UT or GMT). Astronomical twilight ends at 19.57 BST at the start of the week and at 18.44 UT at the end
The Moon will wax from First Quarter on Wednesday to Full next week
The Orionids meteor shower (debris from Halley’s Comet) peaks in the early hours of Wednesday morning. Up to 20 per hour are expected. It is worth watching any dark clear night this week
The Sun is quite active with 5 spot groups and 2434 is active enough for flares
The ISS makes a few last passes: Monday 19.33.02 W to SSE reaching 38 degrees. Tuesday 18.40.26 W to ESE to 55 degrees and 20.17.37 WSW to SSW to 15 degrees. Wednesday 19.24.35 W to SSE to 23 degrees. Thursday 18.31.48 W to SE to 34 degrees and Friday 19.16.34 WSW to SSW to 13 degrees
There are two bright evening Iridium flare this week: Friday at 20.08.57 at 47 degrees in SE and Saturday 20.02.56 at 47 degrees altitude in SE
Week of 12th October
Astronomical twilight ends at 20.12 BST at the start of the week and at 19.59 BST at the end
The Moon will wax to First Quarter at the start of next week
The Sun is quiet with only 2 innactive spot groups
There is a conjunction of planets in the pre dawn sky from 4.30am. Bright Venus rises followed by dimmer and redder Mars and the yellow Jupiter. They are within a few degrees in a line
The ISS makes super evening passes: Monday 19.14.11 WSW to E reaching 83 degrees and 20.50.40 W to W to 35 degrees. Tuesday 19.58.17 W to E to 85 degrees and 21.34.48 W to W to 11 degrees. Wednesday 19.05.54 W to E to 85 degrees and 20.42.24 W to W to 37 degrees. Thursday 19.50.01 W to ESE to 83 degrees and 21.26.37 W to W to 11 degrees. Friday 18.57.36 W to E to 86 degrees and 20.34.07 W to WSW to 36 degrees. Saturday 19.41.40 W to SE to 61 degrees and 21.18.40 W to W to 11 degrees and Sunday 18.49.14 W to ESE to 78 degrees and 20.25.53 W to SW to 26 degrees
There is one bright evening Iridium flare this week: Tuesday 19.15.17 at 53 degrees altitude in SSE
Week of 5th October
Astronomical twilight ends at 20.30 BST at the start of the week and at 20.14 BST at the end
The Moon is waning from Last Quarter on Monday and will be New at the start of next week
The Sun has only 3 spot groups with number 2427 producing activity
The ISS returns with evening passes: Monday 20.31.16 SW to S reaching 27 degrees altitude. Tuesday 19.39.23 SSW to ESE to 22 degrees and 21.14.53 WSW to WSW to 18 degrees. Wednesday 20.22.32 WSW to ESE to 54 degrees. Thursday 19.30.16 SW to E to 38 degrees and 21.06.22 W to W to 26 degrees. Friday 20.13.49 WSW to ESE to 78 degrees. Saturday 19.21.17 WSW to E to 60 degrees and 20.57.39 W to W to 32 degrees and the best on Sunday 20.04.58 WSW to ESE to 87 degrees and then 21.41.26 W to W to 11 degrees
There is one superbright evening Iridium flare this week on Wednesday at 18.59.49 at 59 degrees altitude in N
Week of 28th September
Astronomical twilight ends at 20.44 BST at the start of the week and at 20.30 BST at the end<br.
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The Moon is Full (Harvest Moon)tomorrow (28th) and is also at Perigee (closest point in its elliptical orbit to Earth. The media have coined the phrase ‘supermoon’ to indicate the apparent increased size and 30 percent extra brightness. The Sun, Earth and Moon are also exactly alligned thus the Moon will pass into the Earth’s shadow which itself is particularly large. The eclipse which will start at 1.12 am will thus be very long with 1 hour 12 minutes of Totality. The darkest phase, where the refractive effects of the Earth’s atmosphere will turn the Moon a shade of red, will last from 3.11 to 4.23am, with maximum eclise at 3.47am. The forecast is good and it will be worth looking out. The next Total Lunar eclipse visible from the UK will be in 2019
The Sun is peppered with spots (7 groups) and 2422 is active
The ISS returns with evening passes next week
There are two bright evening Iridium flares this week: Wednesday at 20.15.20 at 57 degrees altitude in SE and Friday at 19.30.21 at 50 degrees in N
Week of 21st September
Astronomical twilight ends at 21.00 BST at the start of the week and at 20.44 BST at the end
Wednesday 23rd at 9.21am is the Autumnal Equinox. On Wednesday the Sun will rise due East and set due West
The Moon is waxing and will be Full at the start of next week
The Sun is quite active with 3 spot groups. Spot 2415 could produce activity and produce Equinox aurorae
There are no ISS evening passes
There is one bright evening Iridium flare this week: Monday at 20.38.17 at 31 degrees altitude in
Week of 14th September
Astronomical twilight ends at 21.21 BST at the start of the week and at 21.02 BST at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be First Quarter at the start of next week
The Sun is not very active though it has 6 spot groups. 2414 could produce flares
There are no ISS evening passes
There are 3 bright evening Iridium flares this week: Wednesday at 22.27.42 at 17 degrees altitude in NE. Thurday at 21.15.18 at 51 degrees in E and Friday at 29.56.58 at 26 degrees in N
Week of 7th September
Astronomical twilight ends at 21.41 BST at the start of the week and at 21.18 BST at the end
The Moon is waning and will be New on Sunday
Venus and Mars are now bright morning ‘objects’ in E before sunrise with Mars quickly disappearing in the twilight
The Sun is not active with 3 quiet spot groups
There are no ISS evening passes or evening Iridium flares this week
Week of 24th August
Astronomical twilight ends at 22.23 BST at the start of the week and at 22.24 BST at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be Full (Harvest Moon) on Saturday
The Sun is active with 2 spot groups. 2403 is enourmous and highly active, greater than Jupiter in extent, and could lead to Earth bound storms at the start of the week
There are no ISS evening passes this week
There are 4 bright evening Iridium flares: On Monday at 22.52.54 at 23 degrees altitude in NE. Wednesday at 21.12.59 at 26 degrees in N. Friday at 22.38.27 at 29 degrees in NE and Saturday 23.57.22 at 16 degrees in WSW.
Week of 17th August
Astronomical twilight ends at 22.46 BST at the start of the week and at 22.26 BST at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be First Quarter on Friday
The Sun is barely active with 3 small spot groups
The ISS makes 2 last passes: On Monday at 21.15.08 W to SSE to 23 degrees and Wednesday at 21.05.34 WSW to S to 14 degrees
There are a number of bright evening Iridium flares: On Monday at 23.15.09 at 13 degrees in W and 23.29.09 at 12 degrees in W. Thursday 22.09.34 at 11 degrees in N and 23.07.10 at 18 degrees in NNE
Week of 10th August
Astronomical twilight ends at 23.10 at the start of the week and at 22.46 at the end
The Moon is waning and will be New on Friday. It should be visble as a slender crescent at the start of next week
The Perseids metoer shower (Tears of St Lawrence) peaks in the early hours of Thursday 13th. From Monday night onwards it hshould be possible to see plenty of meteors after twilight. At the peak we may hope for 60 or so per hour. The debris is from comet Swift-Tuttle and this year the phase of the Moon makes it a very favourable shower to view, weather permitting
The Sun is active with 6 spot groups and spot 2396 is 150,000 km in extent and will potentially lead to magnetic storms over the week
The ISS continue to make passes: On Monday at 22.38.15 W to SE reaching 64 degrees altitude. Tuesday at 21.45.08 W to ESE to 82 degrees and 23.21.43 W to WSW to 25 degrees. Wednesday 22.28.27 W to SSE to 42 degrees. Thursday 21.35.16 W to ESE to 59 degrees and 23.12.16 W to SW to 16 degrees. Friday 22.18.44 W to S to 26 degrees. Saturday 21.25.24 W to SE to 38 degrees and Sunday 22.09.19 WSW to SSW to 15 degrees
There is one bright evening Iridium flare on Wednesday at 23.28.55 at 23 degrees altitude in W
Week of 20th July
Darkness returns for an hour or so by the end of the week as Astronomical Twilight ends at 00.49 on Wednesday and at 00.13 by Sunday
The Moon is now waxing to First Quarter on Thursday
The Sun is still inactive despite 4 sunspot groups
There are no ISS passes this week
There are two bright evening Iridium flares this week; on Tuesday at 23.11.45 at 27 degrees altitude in W and Thursday 23.08.54 at 24 degrees in W
Week of 13th July
Astronomical Twilight lasts all night until 21st July
The Moon is waning to New on Thursday
New Horizons mission is approaching Pluto after 3460 days since launch. Only 2.5 Mkm to go. The histric flyby will occur 12.50 BST on Tuesday. Already complex surface details are being resolved
The Sun is inactive again and though there are 6 spot groups, none of these is active
There are no ISS passes this week
There is one bright evening Iridium flare this week on Thursday at 23.23.34 at 34 degrees altitude in W
Week of 6th July
Astronomical Twilight lasts all night until 21st July
The Moon is waning to Last Quarter on Wednesday
The Sun is active again and peppered with 9 spot groups. 2381 is likely to produce flares this week
There are no ISS passes this week
There are a number of bright evening Iridium flares this week on Tuesday at 22.52.20 at 18 degrees altitude in WNW. Wednesday at 22.55.38 at 16 degrees in WNW and 23.53.33 at 42 degrees in WSW. Thursday 22.58.56 at 14 degrees in WNW and Friday at 21.51.24 at 19 degrees in NNW
Week of 29th June
Astronomical Twilight lasts all night until 21st July
An extra (leap) second is being added to June, so on Tuesday 23.59.59 will go to 23.59.60 before going to 00.00.00. This is to bring clocks in line with atomic clocks, due to the Earth’s rotation slowing down. This is the 26th extra second since first used in 1972
The Moon is waxing to Full (Thunder Moon) on Thursday<br.
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The Sun is quiet again, there is only one departing sunspot group
The western sky after sunset continues to be dominated by Venus and Jupiter. They will slowly approach to within a third of a degree on Tuesday. Venus reaches an incredible super-bright m = -4.36 at the start of next week
There are no ISS passes this week
There is one bright evening Iridium flare this week on Monday at 23.03.26 at 31 degrees altitude in W
Week of 22nd June
Astronomical Twilight lasts all night until 21st July
The Moon is waxing to First Quarter on Wednesday
The Sun is again active, though with only 2 sunspot groups. 2371 has 2 enormous spots and could produce X-class flares
The western sky after sunset continues to be dominated by Venus and Jupiter. They will slowly approach to within half a degree by 1st July
Saturn is visible low in the sky in the South late evening. Bright red super-giant Antares (the eye of Scorpio) is visible near the horizon below and left of Saturn, culminating at 23.20 BSTat the start of the week. Bright blue Spica can be seen to the west of Saturn and found by following the arc of the saucepan’s handle down and beyond Arcturus
There are no ISS passes this week
There are two bright evening Iridium flares this week on Monday at 23.27.16 at 38 degrees altitude in WSW and Friday at 23.12.20 at 34 degrees in W
Week of 15th June
Astronomical Twilight lasts all night until 21st July
The Moon is New on Tuesday and will then wax to a slender crescent by the end of the week; on Saturday it will join Venus and Jupiter in a triangle
The Summer Solstice occurs next Sunday at 5.39pm. At sunrise the Sun will be at its furthest North on the horizon. At noon the Sun culminates at its highest point due South, an altitude of 62.5 degrees
The Sun is active with 6 sunspot groups. 2360 is currently producing flares
The western sky after sunset is dominated by Venus and Jupiter. They will slowly approach to within half a degree by 1st July
Saturn is visible low in the sky and due South at 11pm at the start of the week
The ISS makes its last pass this week: On Tuesday at 22.38.10 WSW to SSW reaching 13 degrees
There is one super-bright evening Iridium flare this week on Thursday at 23.42.13 at 43 degrees altitude in WSW
Week of 8th June
Astronomical Twilight lasts all night until 21st July
The Moon is Last Quarter on Tuesday and will then wane to New at the start of next week
The Sun is becomming more active with 8 sunspot groups. 2361 is currently producing flares.has 2 sunspot groups at the moment, neither of which is active
The noctilucent cloud (NLC) season has begun and will last till a few weeks after the Solstice. Look West if clear 30 to 60 minutes after sunset. The electric blue high shimmering clouds are unmistakable (formed at 80km altitude and seeded by meteorites). Given the Earth is passing through an intense stream of meteoroids (Arietids) , the next few days might be a good time to look
The ISS makes more passes this week: On Monday at 23.18.07 W to ESE reaching 80 degrees. The best on Tuesday 22.24.45 W to E to 88 degrees. Wednesday 23.07.48 W to SE to 57 degrees. Thursday 23.14.24 W to ESE to 76 degrees and 23.51.02 W to SSW to 24 degrees. Friday 22.57.29 W to SSE to 36 degrees. Saturday 23.41.14 WSW to SSW to 14 degrees and Sunday 22.47.18 W to SSE to 22 degrees
here is one super-bright evening Iridium flare this week on Saturday at 22.46.31 at 22 degrees altitude in WNW
Week of 1st June
Astronomical Twilight lasts all night until 21st July
The Moon is Full (Rose Moon) on Tuesday and will then wane to Last Quarter at the start of next week
On Monday there is a conjunction between the Moon and Saturn. They will be less than 2 degrees apart. The Moon rises around 8pm and Saturn a few minutes later. Though low to the Southeastern horizon, they should make a nice view. They reach due south at 00.30
The Sun has 2 sunspot groups at the moment, neither of which is active
The noctilucent cloud (NLC) season has begun and will last till a few weeks after the Solstice. Look West if clear 30 to 60 minutes after sunset. The electric blue high shimmering clouds are unmistakable (formed at 80km altitude and seeded by meteorites)
The ISS returns with many good high passes this week: On Monday at 23.05.55 SW to E reaching 45 degrees and 00.45.21 W to E reaching 86 degrees. Tuesday 22.12.58 SW to E to 31 degrees and 23.48.48 WSW to E to 85 degrees. Wednesday 22.55.33 WSW to E reaching 68 degrees. Thursday 22.02.24 SW toE to 49 degrees and 23.38.37 W to E to 85 degrees. Friday 22.45.18 W to E to 88 degrees and 00.21.45 W to ESE to 83 degrees. Saturday 23.28.25 W to E to 86 degrees and Sunday 22.35.05 W to E to 84 degrees
There is one super-bright evening Iridium flare this week on Friday at 23.06.55 at 32 degrees altitude in W
Week of 25th May
Astronomical Twilight now lasts all night until 21st July
The Moon is First Quarter on Monday and will then wax to Full on 2nd June
The Sun has 5 sunspot groups at the moment, none of which is active
The ISS returns with two passes at the end of this week: On Saturday at 23.17.19 from SSW to E reaching 28 degrees and Sunday 22.23.32 S to E reaching 63 degrees
There are two bright evening Iridium flares this week on Thursday at 23.36.45 at 39 degrees in WSW and Friday at 23.30.45 at 39 degrees in WSW
Week of 11th May
Astronomical Twilight ends at 23.36 BST at the start of the week and 00.11 BST at the end
The Moon is First Quarter on Monday and then will wane to New next Sunday
The Sun has 7 sunspot groups at the moment and 2339 is potentially active
There are no ISS passes this week
There is one bright evening Iridium flare this week on Sunday at 00.21.45 at 26 degrees in W
Week of 4th May
Astronomical Twilight ends at 23.09 BST at the start of the week and 23.32 BST at the end
The Moon is Full (Beltane or Flower Moon) early on Monday and then will wane to Last Quarter by the start of next week
The Sun has 1 sunspot and is relatively quiet
There are no ISS passes this week
There is one bright evening Iridium flare this week on Saturday at 23.28.17 at 31 degrees in WSW
Week of 27th April
Astronomical Twilight ends at 22.46 BST at the start of the week and 23.02 BST at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be Full (Beltane or Flower Moon) early on Monday 4th<br.
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Friday 1st May is the Celtic feast of Beltane, one of the cross-quarter days, roughly half-way between the Equinox and the Solstice and really marks the mid-Spring season
The Sun has 5 sunspot groups, 2331 is potentially active
There are no ISS passes this week
There is one bright evening Iridium flare this week on Friday at 23.58.00 at 34 degrees in SW
Week of 20th April
Astronomical Twilight ends at 22.25 BST at the start of the week and 22.43 BST at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be First Quarter on Saturday<br.
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The Sun has 5 sunspot groups, 2321 is potentially active<br.
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There are no ISS passes this week
There is one superbright evening Iridium flare this week on Thursday at 21.36.16 at 55 degrees in ENE
Week of 13th April
Astronomical Twilight ends at 22.06 BST at the start of the week and 22.22 BST at the end
The Moon is waning and will be New on Saturday
Venus dominates the Western evening sky and is close to M45 The Pleiades at the start of the week and Jupiter the South. Saturn rises just before midnight
Orange Arcturus is now in the East in the evening signifying Spring and if you follow the curve of the ‘Saucepan’s’ handle onwards you will find blue Spica
The Sun has 2 sunspot groups, 2320 is potentially active
There are good ISS passes this week. Monday 21.23.13 W to E reaching 87 degrees and 22.59.42 W to W to 19 degrees. Tuedsay 22.06.01 W to SSW to 49 degrees. Wednesday 21.12.20 W to ESE to 68 degrees and 22.49.05 W to WSW to 17 degrees. Thursday 21.55.10 W to S to 31 degrees. Friday 21.01.22 W to SE to 46 degrees and 22.39.01 WSW to SW to 11 degrees. Saturday 21.44.26 W to S to 19 degrees and Sunday 20.50.23 W to SSE reaching 29 degrees
There is one superbright evening Iridium flare this week on Wednesday at 20.30.24 at 71 degrees in ESE
Week of 16th March
Astronomical Twilight ends at 20.05 UT at the start of the week and 20.17 UT at the end as we approach the start of the Astronomical Year when the Sun rises due East and sets due West. The Vernal Equinox this year occurs at 22.45 UT on Friday<br.
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The Moon is waning and will be New on Friday as it exactly aligns with the Sun
The deepest Partial Solar Eclipse since 1999 and till 2026 will occur on Friday morning. The Eclipse will start at 8.29am here and last 2 hours and at maximum at 9.34am will leave a ‘smiley’ in the SE sky with only 18% of the bright photosphere remaining. At NO stage can the Sun be viewed directly safely. For details see the brochure ‘How to observe an eclipse safely’ at https://www.ras.org.uk/images/solar_eclipse_leaflet.pdf. The 10 inch will be used to time first contact and the Dome will remain open for external guests. If weather allows the whole College community will gather from 9.15am on Hamersley for an aerial photoThe Sun has 3 sunspot groups, 2297 is still active
There are no ISS passes this week
There are no bright evening Iridium flares this week
Week of 9th March
Astronomical Twilight ends at 19.52 UT at the start of the week and 20.05 UT at the end
The Moon is waning and will be Last Quarter on Friday
The Sun has 3 sunspot groups, 2297 is likely to bring raised activity this week
There are no ISS passes this week
There are three bright evening Iridium flares this week; on Monday at 18.50.31 at 57 degrees in SSE and Friday at 18.35.27 at 59 degrees in S and 20.10.59 at 49 degrees in ESE
Week of 2nd March
Astronomical Twilight ends at 19.39 UT at the start of the week and 19.50 UT at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be Full (Lenten Moon) on Thursday. We thus have just over 2 weeks to the next New Moon and the solar eclipse
The Sun has 4 sunspot groups, 2 of which are potentially active
There are no ISS passes this week
There is one superbright evening Iridium flare this week; on Wednesday at 19.11.46 at 55 degrees in SE
Week of 23rd February
Astronomical Twilight ends at 19.27 UT at the start of the week and 19.36 UT at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be First Quarter on Wednesday
Bright Venus and dim red Mars above it make a lovely pair in the western twilight
The Sun has 4 minute sunspot groups and is at its least active for a while
The ISS makes one final pass on Monday at 18.14.59 W to SSE to 20 degrees
There are two superbright evening Iridium flares this week; on Friday at 19.32.53 at 51 degrees in SE and Saturday at 19.28.50 at 52 degrees altitude in SE
Week of 16th February
Astronomical Twilight ends at 19.15 UT at the start of the week and 19.25 UT at the end
The Moon is waning and will be New on Wednesday
The Sun has 4 sunspot groups, 2282 is potentially active
The ISS makes final passes this week: Monday 18.00.20 W to W to 88 degrees altitude and 19.36.47 W to WSW to 51 degrees. Tuesday 18.43.49 W to ESE to 76 degrees and 20.20.29 W to WSW to 16 degrees. Wednesday 19.27.17 W to S to 36 degrees. Thursday 18.34.11 W to SE to 22 degrees and 20.11.25 WSW to SW to 14 degrees. Friday 19.17.47 W to S to 22 degrees. Saturday 18.24.25 W to SE to 33 degrees and Sunday 19.08.38 WSW to SSW to 13 degrees
There is one superbright evening Iridium flare this week; on Friday at 19.38.58 at 47 degrees in SE
Week of 9th February
Astronomical Twilight ends at 19.04 UT at the start of the week and 19.14 UT at the end
The Moon is waning and will be Last Quarter on Thursday
Venus is now dominating the Western sky for a couple of hours after sunset
The Sun has 3 sunspot groups, 2280 is potentially active
The ISS makes good passes this week: Monday 17.45.19 SSW to E reaching 19 degrees and 19.20.33 WSW to SW to 54 degrees. Tuesday 18.28.05 SW to E to 47 degrees and 20.04.20 W to W to 21 degrees. Wednesday 19.11.41 W to ESE to 87 degrees. Thursday 18.19.02 WSW to E to 71 degrees and 19.55.28 W to W to 28 degrees. Friday 19.02.44 W to E to 84 degrees and 20.39.12 W to W to 10 degrees. On Saturday there is a rare Valentine’s Day treat with a Zenith pass 18.09.58 W to E reaching 90 degrees altitude and then 19.46.26 W to W to 40 degrees and Sunday 18.53.38 W to E to 88 degrees and 20.30.08 W to W to 14 degrees
There are three bright evening Iridium flares this week; on Monday at 17.39.20 at 36 degrees in SSW. On Wednesday at 17.31.14 at 35 degrees in SSW and Friday at 18.54.40 at 47 degrees in SSE
Week of 2nd February
Astronomical Twilight ends at 18.51 UT at the start of the week and 18.59 UT at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be Full on Tuesday
Jupiter will be only 5 degrees from the Moon on Wednesday and will reach Opposition on Friday
The Sun has 8 sunspot groups, 2268 and 2277 are potentially active
The ISS returns with low passes this week: Thursday 19.38.34 SSW to SSW reaching 10 degrees. Friday 18.46.54 S to SE to 17 degrees. Saturday 17.56.06 SSW to ESE to 11 degrees and 19.29.35 SW to SSW to 26 degrees and Sunday 18.37.26 SSW t ESE to 29 degrees and 20.13.15 WSW to WSW to 14 degrees
There are two bright evening Iridium flares this week; on Tuesday at 18.01.27 at 39 degrees altitude in S and Saturday at 17.46.20 at 37 degrees in SSW
Week of 26th January
Astronomical Twilight ends at 18.41 UT at the start of the week and 18.48 UT at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be First Quarter on Tuesday
Comet Lovejoy 2014 Q2 is now visibly fading as it reaches Perihelion
The Sun has 4 sunspot groups, none of which are active
There are no ISS passes this week
There are two bright evening Iridium flares this week; on Tuesday at 17.32.25 at 67 degrees altitude in NE
Week of 19th January
Astronomical Twilight ends at 18.33 UT at the start of the week and 18.40 UT at the end
The Moon is waning and will be New on Tuesday
As the Moon wanes the chances to see Comet Lovejoy 2014 Q2 increase. The Comet is best found by sweeping up the right side of the Pleiades with wide angle low magnification binoculars. It is a grey smudge and large (0.5 degrees) and hence diffuse. It is moving so fast against the background (around 0.1 degrees an hour) that using a telescope and inputting coordinates is not easy. Though it has passed its closest approach to the Earth it has yet to reach Perihelion. As it recedes from us its magnitude will fade quickly as it climbs higher in the sky through Taurus and Aries. It is just visible by eye over the next couple of weeks (best using averted vision) if away from light polution. Photography and image stacking is needed to see its tail (which is now some 7 degrees long)
The Sun has 5 sunspot groups, none of which are active
Venus and Mercury still form a nice pair bright and low in the western twilight just after sunset around 4.30pm and as they set, by 5pm, Mars appears behind them
Jupiter rises around 7.30pm and is becoming a super bright object as it approaches opposition. It is also approaching Equinox and the orbital plane of the moons will cross our line of sight leading to multiple eclipses and transits. There is a triple shadow transit (Io, Callisto and Europa) on Saturday morning at 6.05am, though Jupiter will be low in the western dawn sky
There are no ISS passes this week
There are two bright evening Iridium flares this week; on Monday at 18.12.18 at 54 degrees altitude in NE and Wednesday at 18.52.44 at 38 degrees in SSE
Week of 12th January
Astronomical Twilight ends at 18.24 UT at the start of the week and 18.31 UT at the end
The Moon is waning and will be Last Quarter on Tuesday<br.
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As the Moon wanes the chances to sees Comet Lovejoy 2014 Q2 increase. The Comet is best found by sweeping up the right side of Orion towards the Pleiades with wide angle low magnification binoculars. It is a grey smudge and quite large (0.3 degrees) and hence diffuse. It is moving so fast against the background that using a telescope and inputting coordinates is not easy. Though it has passed its closest approach to the Earth it wont reach perihelion till 14th February. As it recedes from us its magnitude will fade quickly as it climbs highr in the sky through Taurus (passing close to the Pleaides on Friday and Saturday) and Aries. It is visible by eye over the next couple of weeks (best using averted vision) if away from light polution. Photography and image staking is needed to see its tail<br.
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The Sun has 8 sunspot groups; 3 are potentially active<br.
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Venus and Mercury are visible low in the western twilight just after sunset around 4.30pm and as they set, by 5pm, Mars appears behind them<br.<br.
Jupiter rises around 7.30pm and then dominates the southern sky<br.
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There are no ISS passes this week
There are two bright evening Iridium flares this week; on Monday at 18.46.15 at 42 degrees altitude in NNE and Wednesday at 16.38.01 at 73 degrees in E
Week of 5th January
Astronomical Twilight ends at 18.16 UT at the start of the week and 18.22 UT at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be Full (Cold Moon) on Monday
The Sun has 7 sunspot groups; 2253 is active
Venus and Mercury are now visible low in the western twilight just after sunset around 4.30pm
Jupiter rises around 7.30pm and then dominates the southern sky, though will be much more impressive once the Moon wanes
There are no ISS passes this week
There is one bright evening Iridium flare on Monday at 17.23.58 at 63 degrees altitude in NE
Astronomical Twilight ends at 18.09 UT at the start of the week and 18.16 UT at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be Full next Monday
The Sun has 7 sunspot groups; 2249 is active
Comet Lovejoy C/2014 Q2 is just visible by eye as a fuzzy dot at 5.5 magnitude in Lepus just below Rigel. During January it will move steadily into Taurus, but moonlight will make it hard to see
The Quadrantid meteor shower peaks on Saturday at midnight and usually produces up to 80 meteors per hour. This year sadly the Full Moon will render many invisible
There are no ISS passes this week
There are no bright evening Iridium flares this week
Week of 22nd December
Astronomical Twilight ends at 18.05 UT at the start of the week and 18.09 UT at the end. The days will now start to lengthen following the Winter Solstice, when the Sun rises and sets at its southerly extremes on the Eastern and Western horizons respectively and at noon only reaches 15.5 degrees above the horizon
The Moon is waning and is New on 22nd
The Sun has 8 sunspot groups, 2 of which are active. Number 2242 produced an X-class flare on 20th
Saturn dominates the Eastern horizon just before dawn and Venus will soon be visible in the Western twilight just after Sunset
The ISS continues to make passes: The best is on Monday at 17.25.25 W to ESE to 76 degrees and 19.02.14 W to WSW to 21 degrees. Tuesday 18.11.12 W to SSE to 36 degrees. Christmas Eve at 17.20.13 W to SE reaching 50 degrees and 18.57.45 WSW to SSW to 13 degrees. Christmas Day at 18.06.11 W to SSE to 20 degrees. Boxing Day at 17.12.56 W to SSE to 30 degrees. Saturday at 18.02.02 WSW to SSW to 11 degrees and Sunday 17.09.46 W to S to 17 degrees
There are no bright evening Iridium flares this week
Week of 15th December
Astronomical Twilight ends at 18.02 UT at the start of the week and 18.04 UT at the end. Very little change due to the approach of the Winter Solstice
The Moon is waning and will be New at the start of next week
The Sun has 8 sunspot groups, 2 of which could produce flares
The ISS makes good passes: Monday 16.54.02 SW to E reaching 40 degrees and 18.30.19 W to W to 50 degrees. Tuesday 17.39.49 WSW to E to 81 degrees and 19.16.27 W to W to 15 degrees. Wednesday 16.49.20 WSW to E reaching 65 degrees and 18.25.53 W to W to 57 degrees. Thursday 17.35.17 W to E to 85 degrees and 19.11.54 W to W to 17 degrees. Friday sees the best pass at 16.44.38 W to E to 88 degrees and then 18.21.16 W to W to 69 degrees. Saturday 17.30.34 W to E to 87 degrees and 19.07.12 W to W to 20 degrees and Sunday 16.39.49 W to 84 degrees and 18.16.26 W to S to 59 degrees
There are two bright evening Iridium flares on Monday at 17.13.38 at 62 degrees in NE and a superbright flare on 17.00.09 at 66 degrees in ENE
Week of 8th December
Astronomical Twilight ends at 18.02 UT at the start of the week and 18.02 UT at the end. Very little change due to the approach of the winter solstice<br.
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The Moon is waning and will be Last Quarter on Sunday
The Sun has 5 sunspot groups but is quieter than in the last few weeks
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The Geminids meteor shower, typically the most active in the year with up to 120 meteors an hour expected, peaks on 13th/14th. Already many bright Geminids have been seen and this flux will increase over the week
The ISS returns on Tuesday 18.43.19 SSW to SSW reaching 14 degrees. Wednesday 17.53.45 S to SE to 18 degrees. Thursday 17.04.46 SSE to ESE to 12 degrees and 18.38.52 SW to SSW to 27 degrees. Friday 17.48.51 SW to SE reaching 32 degrees and 19.24.56 WSW to WSW to 12 degrees. Saturday 16.59.00 SSW to E to 22 degrees and 18.34.38 WSW to WSW to 41 degrees and Sunday 17.44.21 WSW to ESE to 55 degrees and 19.20.51 W to W to 14 degrees. The best passes will be next week
There is an extraordinary pair of superbright Iridium flares on Monday less than one minute apart in the same spot in the sky; at 17.51.25 at 53 degrees altitude in NE and at 17.52.20 at 52 degrees altitude in NE
Week of 1st December
Astronomical Twilight ends at 18.03 UT at the start of the week and 18.02 UT at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be Full (Cold Moon) on Saturday
The Sun has 8 sunspot groups and 2219 could produce flares this week<br.
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The Geminids meteor shower is typically the most active in the year with up to 120 mteors an hour expected. The shower does not peak till 13th/14th December but Geminids may be see from 4th onwards. One fireball has already been recorded
There are no evening ISS passes this week but will return on 9th
There are no bright evening Iridium flares this week
Week of 24th Novembef
Astronomical Twilight ends at 18.07 UT at the start of the week and 18.03 UT at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be First Quarter on Saturday
The Sun has 3 large sunspot groups and 2209 and 2216 could produce flares this week
There are no evening ISS passes this week
There is one extremely superbright Iridium flare this week, which should be visible even in the twilight: Friday at 16.48.45 at 68 degrees altitude in ENE
Week of 17th November
Astronomical Twilight ends at 18.13 UT at the start of the week and 18.07 UT at the end
The Moon is waning and will be New on Saturday
The Leonid meteor shower peaks at 1am on 18th. Every 33 years they expect to be prolific in number. Not this year. 15 to 20 meteors are expected per hour
The Sun has 7 sunspot groups and the huge active group 2192 has made it all the way round the Sun and now is back as 2209. There is again a chance of strong X-class fares this week
The Rosetta mission and its lander Philae has already been a huge success, despite the bounce which landed Philae on its back and in the shadow of a cliff. Before its batteies depleted, so that it is now in sleep mode, the scientifc instruments sent back a huge amount of data, sniffing both the gases near the surface and a sample from the surface nucleus of Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko
There are no evening ISS passes this week
There are no bright evening Iridium flares this week
Week of 10th November
Astronomical Twilight ends at 18.21 UT at the start of the week and 18.13 UT at the end<br.
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The Moon is waning and will be Last Quarter on Friday
The Sun is quieter at the moment but still has 5 sunspot groups and 2205 is both large and potentially active<br.
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On Wednesday the Rosetta probe, some 500Mkm from Earth, will attempt to land Philae (a complex scientific package of instruments) onto the nucleus of Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko. Already a hugely succesful mission, the landing at the site, now named Agilkia after an ancient Egyptian site on an island in the Nile, will perhaps be the greatest engineering feat attempted by humankind. The lander is due to be released Wednesday morning and will hopefully land around 5pm. There is a webcast (via Space.com) from 3pm
There are no evening ISS passes this week
There are 2 bright Iridium flares this week on Thursday at 18.11.34 at 48 degrees altitude in NNE and Friday at 18.05.25 at 64 degrees in NE
Week of 3rd November
Astronomical Twilight ends at 18.33 UT at the start of the week and 18.24 UT at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be Full on Thursday (Frosty Moon)
The Sun is quieter this week but still has 6 sunpot groups
There are no ISS passes this week
There is one superbright Iridium flares this week on Wednesday at 16.55.31 at 71 degrees altitude in NE
Week of 27th October
All times are now in UT (GMT) Astronomical Twilight ends at 18.42 UT at the start of the week and 18.32 UT at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be First Quarter on Friday
Saturday November 1st is the last Cross-Quarter days (half-way between an Equinox and a Solsice and a true mid-Autumn marker) of the year. The ancient feast of the Pleiades (7 Sisters/Subaru) and the Celtic feast of Samhain (Feast of the Dead)
The Sun has been at its most active this Solar Cycle. Sunspot group 2192 is larger than Jupiter and has unleashed the strongest flare for many years (X3) and an X1 flare on 24th and 25th. The chances are high that more M and X class flares will follow in the next few days causing HF radio disruption
The ISS makes its last passes for a while: On Monday at 18.11.40 WSW to SSW reaching 11 degrees and Tuesday at 17.21.29 W to S to 17 degrees
There are two bright Iridium flares this week: Monday at 19.49.17 at 11 degrees altitude in N and Tuesday at 19.42.29 at 15 degrees altitude in N
Week of 20th October
This is the last week of British Summer Time. The clocks go back one hour to Universal Time (UT) or GMT next Saturday night. Astronomical Twilight ends at 19.55 BST at the start of the week and 18.44 UT at the end
The Moon is waning and will be New on Wednesday and a slender crescent next week-end
The Sun only has 3 sunspot groups but 2192 is huge and highly active. X-class flares, CMEs and HF radio frequency intereference is likely over the next week or so
The Orionids meteor shower peaks on Wednesday. The meteors originate from Halley’s comet and are generally fast. Up to 20 or so per hour are expected at best. The lack of moonlight makes this very favourable. The Radiant does not rise till 10pm
Mars has a close call with comet Siding Spring which on 19th October passes only 140,000km from the planet. It is possible that there will be some interaction between the coma and the planet’s thin atmosphere
The ISS makes more passes this week: Monday 20.04.09 W to S reaching 52 degrees altitude. Tuesday 19.15.10 W to ESE to 68 degrees and 20.52.15 W to W to 17 degrees. Wednesday 20.03.02 W to S to 29 degrees. Thursday 19.13.55 W to SE to 41 degrees. Friday 18.24.51 W to ESE to 55 degrees and 20.02.16 WSW to S to 15 degrees. Saturday 19.12.47 W to SE to 22 degrees and Sunday 17.23.30 W to SE to 31 degrees
There are no bright Iridium flares this week
Week of 13th October
Astronomical Twilight ends at 20.09 BST at the start of the week and 19.55 BST at the end
The Moon is now waning and will be Last Quarter on Wednesday
The Sun is less active and 2182 will soon rotate away from the nearside
The ISS makes good passes this week: Monday 19.19.24 WSW to E reaching 56 degrees and 20.56.01 W to W to 30 degrees. Tuesday 20.07.12 W to ENE to 88 degrees. Wednesday 19.18.23 WSW to E to 83 degrees and 20.55.08 W to W to 28 degrees. Thursday 20.06.16 W to ENE to 85 degrees. Friday 19.17.23 W to E to 84 degrees and 20.54.08 W to W to 26 degrees. Saturday 20.05.13 W to SSE to 79 degrees and on Sunday a rare Zenith pass directly overhead at 90 degrees at 19.16.17 W to E and then a lower pass at 20.53.04 W to W to 22 degrees
For those of you now hooked on Iridium flare ‘hunting’, there is just one superbright evening flare this week on Friday at 19.42.55 at 43 degrees elevation in NNE
Week of 6th October
Astronomical Twilight ends at 20.25 BST at the start of the week and 20.11 BST at the end
The Moon is waning and will be Full (Hunters Moon) on Wednesday. The Total Lunar eclipse will not be visible from here
The Sun is peppered with 9 sunspot groups. 2181 is potentially active
The ISS makes 8 passes this week but the best will be next week: Tuesday at 20.58.56 SW to SW reaching 11 degrees. Wednesday 20.10.04 SSW to SSE to 22 degrees. Thursday 19.21.28 S to ESE to 16 degrees and 20.56.34 WSW to SW to 22 degrees. Friday 20.07.22 SW to SE to 43 degrees. Saturday 19.18.17 SSW to E to 31 degrees and 20.54.22 WSW to WSW to 31 degrees and the best on Sunday at 20.04.58 WSW to ESE reaching 70 degrees
There are 5 bright evening Iridium flares this week: Monday at 20.51.31 at 21 degrees in N. Tuesday 20.45.09 at 24 degrees in N. Wednesday at 18.32.55 at 67 degrees in NNE. Thursday at 18.26.47 at 69 degrees in NNE and Friday at 18.20.38 at 70 degrees in NNE
Week of 29th September
Astronomical Twilight ends at 20.41 BST at the start of the week and 20.27 BST at the end
The Moon is waning and will be First Quarter on Wednesday
The Sun has 6 sunspot groups. 2173 flared up early on 28th and caused temporary radio blackout. A CME may sesult. 2175 is highly active and could give rise to a strong flare
The planned deployment of the Rosetta mission lander, Philae, to landing suite ‘J’ on 67P Churyumov-Gerasimenko has been put back a day to 12th November
The ISS make no evening passes this week but will return from 7th October
There are no bright evening Iridium flares this week
Week of 22nd September
Astronomical Twilight ends at 20.59 BST at the start of the week and 20.44 BST at the end
The Moon is waning and will be New on Tuesday and will then be visible as a slender crescent by the end of the week
The Autumnal Equinox is on Tuesday as the Sun crosses the Celestial Equator at coordinates 12h RA, 0 degrees Dec and the Northern summer ends. From now the day length is less than that of the night
The Sun has 6 sunspot groups none of which are active
The ISS make no evening passes this week
There are no bright evening Iridium flares this week
Week of 15th September
Astronomical Twilight ends at 21.18 BST at the start of the week and 21.02 BST at the end
The Moon is waning and will be Last Quarter on Tuesday and will then wane to New at the start of next week
The most powerful solar storms this year (G3) hit the Earth last week causing mid-latittude aurorae. The Sun still has 7 sunspot groups. 2157 and 2158 are still active
The ISS make no evening passes this week
There are no bright evening Iridium flares this week
Week of 8th September
Astronomical Twilight ends at 21.37 BST at the start of the week and 21.20 BST at the end
The Moon is Full (Harvest Moon) on Tuesday and will then wane to Last Quarter at the start of next week
The Sun has 7 sunspot groups. 2157 is potentially active
The ISS make no evening passes this week
There is one bright evening Iridium flare this week on Saturday at 21.07.07 24 degrees altitude in N
Week of 1st September
Astronomical Twilight ends at 21.58 BST at the start of the week and 21.40 BST at the end
The Moon is First Quarter on Tuesday and will then wax to Full next Tuesday
The two pairs of planets continue to dominate the twilight: Jupiter and Venus pre sunrise in the East (also with bright Sirius) and Mars and Saturn in the West after sunset
The Sun has 5 sunspot groups. 2152 is potentially active
The ISS make no evening passes this week
There are no bright evening Iridium flares this week
Week of 25th August
Astronomical Twilight ends at 22.19 BST at the start of the week and 22.01 BST at the end
The Moon is New at the start of the week and will then wax to First Quarter early next week
The Sun has 8 sunspot groups which are gaining in activity
The ISS make no evening passes this week
There is 1 bright evening Iridium flare this week: On Tuesday 22.39.14 at 20 degrees in WSW
Week of 18th August
Astronomical Twilight ends at 22.41 BST at the start of the week and 22.22 BST at the end
The Moon is waning and will be New at the start of next week
Venus and Jupiter (higher elevation)are in conjunction and dominate the pre-dawn sky below Gemini and on 23rd will be joined by a slim decrescent Moon. Look East at 5am. A little further to the South Sirius and Orion are visible
The Sun has 6 sunspot groups which are waning in activity
The ISS makes its last 2 low evening passes: On Tuesday at 21.30.38 W to SSE reaching 26 degrees and Thursday at 21.31.11 WSW to S to 13 degrees
There are 2 bright evening Iridium flares this week: On Friday at 23.52.14 24 degrees altitude in WSW and Sunday 23.49.13 at 22 degrees in WSW
11th August
Astronomical Twilight ends at 2305 BST at the start of the week and 2241 BST at the end
The Moon is waning and will be Last Quarter on Sunday
The Perseid meteor shower (Tears of St Lawrence) peaks between 10th and 13th. The peak will be largely hidden by the Full Moon, nevertheless bright meteors should still be visible especially just after sunset/moonrise when earthgrazers (long trails across the sky) are possible
The Sun is fairly active again with 5 sunspot groups and 2135 could be a source of flares
The ISS continues with good passes this week: On Monday at 21.32.36 W to E reaching 87 degrees and 23.09.20 W to SSE to 73 degrees. Tuesday 22.20.19 W to ESE to 86 degrees and 23.57.08 W to W to 18 degrees. Wednesday 21.31.18 W to E to 86 degrees and 23.08.02 W to SW 43 degrees. Thursday 22.18.58 W to SE to 61 degrees and 23.56.11 W to W to 11 degrees. Friday 21.29.55 W to ESE to 77 degrees and 23.06.50 W to SW to 23 degrees. Saturday 22.17.37 W to S to 35 degrees and Sunday 21.28.29 W to SE to 49 dgerees and 23.06.11 WSW to WSW to 12 degrees
There are no particularly bright evening Iridium flares this week
4th August
Astronomical Twighlight ends at 2331 BST at the start of the week and 2309 BST at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be Full (Grain Moon, a ‘supermoon’ since it is at Perigee) at the start of next week
The Perseid meteor shower (Tears of St Lawrence) peaks between 10th and 13th. The peak will be largely hidden by the Full Moon, thus observing before dawn this week should give the greatest rate of shooting stars
The Sun is beginning to be active again with 10 sunspot groups and 2132 could be a source of flares<br.
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The Summer Triangle of Vega, Deneb and Altair now dominates the southern sky as it culminates in the evening, signalling mid-summer and the harvest
Red supergiant Antares (the eye of the scorpion) culminates at 2030 BST at 12 degrees above the horizon and will be more visible over the next couple of weeks<br.
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The ISS returns with good passes this week: On Monday at 22.25.35 SW to E reaching 37 degrees . Tuesday at 21.37.05 SSW to E to 26 degrees and 23.13.00 WSW to E to 78 degrees. Wednesday 22.24.09 WSW to E to 63 degrees. Thursday at 21.35.22 SW to E to 47 degrees and 23.11.51 W to E to 85 degrees. Friday 22.22.55 W to E to 87 degrees and 23.59.29 W to W to 50 degrees. Saturday 22.21.43 W to E to 84 degrees and 23.58.27 W to W to 30 degrees and Sunday 21.32.43 W to E to 86 degrees and 23.09.27 W to SSE to 73 degrees<br.
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There are no bright evening Iridium flares
28th July
Astronomical Twighlight ends at 0001 BST at the start of the week and 2335 BST at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be First Quarter at the start of next week
The Sun is still relatively quiet with 5 small sunspot groups
The ISS returns with a few passes at the end of this week, then next week will give good passes: On Saturday at 22.27.39 at 10 degrees in SSW and Sunday at 21.39.48 at 10 degrees in S
There are two bright evening Iridium flares; on Monday at 22.36.26 at 41 degrees altitude in NE and Tuesday at 22.30.27 at 42 degrees in NE
21st July
The nights are now getting longer and Astronomical Twighlight now ends again for about an hour at 0046 BST at the strt of the week and 0006 BST at the end
The Moon is waning and will be New on Saturday
The Sun is extremely quiet and indeed has recently had no sunspots at all
There are no ISS passes this week
There are three bright evening Iridium flares; on Wednesday at 22.57.07 at 34 degrees altitude in NE, Friday at 21.10.14 at 70 degrees in ENE and Saturday at 21.04.12, 71 degrees altitude in ENE
14th July
The Moon is waning and will be Last Quarter on Saturday
The Sun is again active with 8 sunspot groups. 2108 could still produce flares
There are no ISS passes this week
There are two super-bright evening Iridium flares; on Friday at 21.43.11 at 60 degrees altitude in NE and Saturday at 21.37.14, 61 degrees altitude in NE
7th July
The Moon is waxing and will be Full (Thunder Moon) on Saturday
The Sun is again active with 8 sunspot groups. 2104 and 2108 could produce flares
Good Notilucent Clouds (NLCs)have already been seen this summer. Look West 30 minutes to an hour after sunset for lumninous electric blue tendril clouds<br.
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There are no ISS passes this week
There is one bright evening Iridium flare on Monday at 22.31.00 at 44 degrees altitude in NE
30th June
The Moon is waxing and will be First Quarter on Saturday
The Sun is less active with 5 sunspot groups, though activity may pick up during the week
There are no ISS passes now for a few weeks
There is one super-bright evening Iridium flare on Tuesday at 22.57.46 at 35 degrees altitude in NE
23rd June
The Moon is waning and will be New on Friday and visible as a slender crescent at the start of next week
The Sun is less active with 5 sunspot groups, though 2093 could produce flares
The Summer Triangle is now prominent with bright magnitude 0 Vega following Mars as the twilight darkens. Orange Arcturus at higher altitude is next and then Saturn. The line from West to East of Mars, Spica, Saturn then supergiant Antares (even redder than Betelgeuse in a small telescope) makes a nice ‘target hop’ and with a reasonable telescope Vesta and Ceres are within a couple of degrees and close to Mars. Sagitarius and the densest part of the Milky Way near the Galactic centre just skim the southern horizon
There are no ISS passes now for a few weeks
There is one bright evening Iridium flare on Thursday at 23.18.12 at 26 degrees in NNE
16th June
The Moon is waxing and will be Last Quarter on Thursday
The Sun is still active with 11 sunspot groups but the sources of activity last week 2080 and 2085 have rotated round the western limb
Red Mars and yellow Saturn are now visible in the S from 9.30pm only reaching 25 or so degrees above the horizon. They are followed by deep red Antares (the eye of Scorpio), perhaps the biggest diameter and brightest star we can see (it is in fact 10000 times brighter than the Sun) It reaches its maximum elevation when it culminates at 11.30pm
The ISS makes its last passes for a while on Monday at 22.56.44 W to SSE reaching 24 degrees . Tuesday at 22.07.30 W to SE to 34 degrees and Wednesday 22.56.12 WSW to SSW to 12 degrees
There is one bright evening Iridium flare on Wednesday at 23.45.51 at 10 degrees in NNE
9th June
The Moon is waxing and will be Full (Solstice Moon) on Friday
The Sun is active with 8 sunspot groups of which 3 are crackling with activity
The ISS makes excellent passes this week: On Monday at 22.12.49 W to E reaching 89 degrees altitude and 22.49.34 W to ESE to 82. Tuesday 23.00.36 W to E to 88 degrees. Wednesday 22.11.37 W to E to 84 degrees and 23.48.21 W to SE to 55 degrees. Thursday 22.59.21 W to ESE to 71 degrees. Friday 22.10.22 W to ESE to 85 degrees and 23.47.11 W to S to 31 degrees. Saturday 22.58.06 W to SE 43 degrees and Sunday 21.09.04 W to ESE to 59 degrees and 23.46.22 W to SSW to 17 degrees
There are no bright evening Iridium flares this week
2nd June
The Moon is waxing and will be First Quarter on Thursday
The Sun is relatively quiet with 4 non-active sunspot groups<br.
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The season for Noctilucent Clouds (NLCs) has started. They should build in intensity over the Solstice. Look West on a clear evening 30 to 60 minutes after sunset for electric blue veils of clouds
The ISS returns this week: On Monday at 23.05.48 SSW to E reaching 29 degrees altitude.22.17.27 SSW to E to 21 degrees and 23.53.01 WSW to E to 68 degrees. Wednesday 23.04.13 SW to E to 52 degrees. Thursday 22.15.31 SW to E to 38 degrees and 23.51.52 W to E to 89 degrees. Friday 23.02.57 WSW to E to 80 degrees. Satyurday 22.14.04 WSW to E 65 degrees and 23.50.44 W to E to 84 degrees and Sunday 23.01.47 W to E to 85 degrees
There are two super-bright evening Iridium flares this week on Thursday at 21.32.55 at 61 degrees altitude in NE and Friday at 23.06.58 at 29 degrees altitude in NNE
26th May
Astronomical twilight now lasts all night till 21st July. Astronomical darkness does not return again till 21st July<br.
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The Moon is waning and will be New on Wednesday
The Sun is active with 6 sunspot groups in total, 2 of which are active
The ISS returns at the satart of June. It makes a late pass next Sunday 1st at 23.54.52 from SW to E reaching 41 degrees altitude<br.
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There are two bright evening Iridium flares this week on Tuesday at 22.14.20 at 47 degrees altitude in NE and Friday at 23.29.31 at 16 degrees altitude in NNE
19th May
Astronomical twilight ends at 00.19 BST at the start of the week but by the end of the week Astronomical twilight continues all night. Astronomical darkness does not return again till 21st July
The Moon is waning and will be Last Quarter on Wednesday
The Sun is active with 9 sunspot groups in total, 3 of which are active<br.<br.
The ISS does not make any passes this week
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There is one super-bright evening Iridium flares this week on Friday at 22.29.15 at 41 degrees latitude in NE
12th May
Astronomical twilight ends at 23.43 BST at the start of the week and 00.19 BST at the end<br.
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The Moon is waxing and will be Full (Flower Moon) on Wednesday
The Sun is active again with 3 active sunspot groups. There are 8 groups in total and a chance of flares
The ISS does not make any passes this week<br.
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There are 2 bright evening Iridium flares this week on Monday at 23.07.06 at 22 degrees latitude in NNE and Thursday 22.58.38 at 29 degrees in NE
5th May
Astronomical twilight ends at 23.13 BST at the start of the week and 23.37 BST at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be First Quarter on Wednesday
The Eta Aquarid meteor shower peaks on Monday night-Tuesday morning. Up to 30 meteors an hours may be seen in the Northern hemisphere. This is debris from Comet Halley and is the first time in the year that the Earth crosses the debris stream. The second time is in October for the better known Orioninds
The Sun is active again with a huge rapidly developing sunspot group 2051. There are 5 groups in total and a chance of X-flares
The ISS does not make any passes this week
There are 2 bright evening Iridium flares this week on Monday at 22.06.05 at 46 degrees altitude in NE and Saturday 21.45.07 at 55 degrees in ENE
28th April
Astronomical twilight ends at 22.53 BST at the start of the week and 23.06 BST at the end
The Moon is waning and will be New on Tuesday it will then wax and be visible as a slender crescent at the end of the week
Thursday is May Day and the feast of Beltane, the spring cross-Quarter day. The Sun will rise soon after 5.20am
The Sun is relatively quiet and has 3 sunspot groups
The ISS does not make any passes this week
There are 2 bright evening Iridium flares this week on Friday at 20.39.41 at 74 degrees altitude in E and Sunday 20.3.42 also at 74 degrees in E
21st April
Astronomical twilight ends at 22.29 BST at the start of the week and 22.46 BST at the end
The Moon is waning and will be Last Quarter next Tuesday
The Lyrid meteor shower (Debris from comet Thatcher) peaks on 22nd in the early hours (Th Moon risesat 2am). Around 15 meteors per hour are expected
The Sun has 8 sunspot groups, some of which are currently active
The ISS makes its last 2 passes: On Monday at 21.01.51 W to SSE reaching 27 degrees and Wednesday 21.02.05 WSW to S reaching 14 degrees
There are5 bright evening Iridium flares this week on Monday at 22.53.00 at 24 degrees altitude in NE. Tuesday 21.21.52 at 58 degrees in ENE. Thursday 22.44.22 at 29 degrees in NE. Sunday 21.00.47 at 66 degrees in E and 22.35.41 at 34 degrees in NE
14th April
Astronomical twilight ends at 22.10 BST at the start of the week and 22.29 BST at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be Full (Paschal Moon) next Tuesday. Given this is the first Full Moon after the Vernal Equinox then next Sunday 20th is Easter
There will be Total Lunar eclipse on Tuesday morning but this will not be visible from here. We will have to wait till 28th September 2015<br.
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The Sun has 5 sunspot groups but has now quietened down after a period of hightened activity
The ISS makes good passes: Monday 21.49.37 W to E reacghng 88 degrees altitude and 23.26.27 W to W to 14 degrees. Tuesday 21.01.14 W to E to 85 degrees and 22.38.01 W to WSWto 39 degrees. Wednesday 21.49.29 W to SE to 62 degrees and 21.26.42 W to W to 10 degrees. Thursday 21.00.50 W to ESE to 78 degrees and 22.37.46 W to SW to 24 degrees. Friday at 21.48.52 W to SSE to 36 degrees. Saturday 20.59.55 W to SE to 50 degrees and 22.37.37 WSW to SW to 13 degrees and Sunday at 21.48.00 W to S to 20 degrees
There are three bright evening Iridium flares this week on Tuesday at 22.59.57 at 11 degrees altitude in NNE and Thursday at 21.42.51 at 51 degrees in ENE and Saturday at 22.55.32 at 20 degrees in NE
7th April
Astronomical twilight ends at 21.52 BST at the start of the week and 22.10 BST at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be Full (Paschal Moon) next Tuesday. Given this is the first Full Moon after the Vernal Equinox then the next Sunday 20th is Easter
The Sun has 7 sunspot groups but has now quietened down after a period of hightened activity<br.
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The ISS returns to our skies making good passes: Monday 21.04.50 SSW to ESE reaching 25 degrees and 22.40.40 WSW to WSW to 16 degrees. Tuesday 21.51.48 WSW to ESE to 60 degrees. Wednesday 21.03.00 SW to E to 44 degrees and 22.39.27 W to W to 34 degrees. Thursday 21.50.27 WSW to E to 85 degrees and 23.27.11 W to W to 13 degrees. Friday 21.01.27 WSW to E to 72 degrees and 22.38.09 W to W to 48 degrees. Saturday 21.49.04 W to E to 84 degrees and 23.25.48 W to W to 15 degrees and Sunday 20.59.58 W to E to 88 degrees and 22.36.42 W to W to 51 degrees
.There are three bright evening Iridium flares this week on Wednesday at 22.12.45 at 38 degrees altitude in ENE and Friday at 20.02.27 at 46 degrees in N and Saturday at 22.03.51 at 44 degrees in ENE
31st March
Astronomical twilight ends at 21.36 BST at the start of the week and 21.50 BST at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be First Quarter next Monday
The Sun has 8 sunspot groups and following an X-1 flare on Saturday there is still potential for activity
Mars now rises at 8.30pm, following orange Arcturus, and in small instruments is already showing some detail
The ISS makes its first pass week: Sunday 21.52.51 SW to SSW reaching 18 degrees altitude. It will return with passes next week
There are two bright evening Iridium flares this week on Thursday at 22.30.20 at 29 degrees altitude in NE and Sunday at 22.21.31 reaching 33 degrees in ENE
24th March
Astronomical twilight ends at 20.20UT at the start of the week and 20.33 UT at the end
The Moon is waning and will be New next Monday
The Sun has 7 sunspot groups, 2010 and 2014 are potentially active
Mars now rises at 8pm and in small instrumernts is already showing some detail
The ISS makes no passes this week
There are four bright evening Iridium flares this week on Monday at 20.55.30 at 10 degrees altitude in N. Wednesday at 21.40.29 at 14 degrees in NE. Thursday at 20.26.31 at 20 egrees in N and Friday at 21.38.13 at 18 degrees in NE
17th March
Astronomical twilight ends at 20.08UT at the start of the week and 20.19 UT at the end
The Moon is waning and will be Last Quarter on Monday 24th
Friday 21st is the Vernal Equinox. The start of the Astronomical Year and Origin (0,0) of the Celestial coordinate system. The Sun rises due East and sets due West. From Friday the days are longer than the nights and the Sun rises progressively further north on the horizon
The Sun has 6 sunspot groups, none of which are currently particularly active
Arcturus ‘the Spring marker’ is now rising in the East in the early evening (arc from the handle of the saucepan (Plough) to Arcturus..and on to Spica and Mars)
The ISS makes no passes this week
There are no bright evening Iridium flares this week
10th March
Astronomical twilight ends at 19.54 UT at the start of the week and 20.06 UT at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be Full (Lent Moon) on Sunday<br.
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The Sun is covered with small spots, unlike last week, none of which are currently particularly active
Mars is now rising in the East late evening and is approaching Opposition on April 8th, when it will rise at sunset
The ISS makes no passes this week<br.
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There is one bright evening Iridium flares this week on Friday at 19.21.39 at 41 degrees altitude in N
National Astronomy Week beginning 3rd March
Astronomical twilight ends at 19.42 UT at the start of the week and 19.52 UT at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be First Quarter on Saturday
National Astronomy Week all over the UK to celebrate the excellent potential viewing in the evening sky of Jupiter which is at its best elevation for many years. Events can be located on the NAW website www.astronomyweek.org.uk
The Sun has 9 active sunspot groups strung out across its disc. 1990 and 1991 have the potential for real activity and even X-class flares. Watch the live monitors on the right of the website’s front page
The ISS makes no more passes this week
There are two extremely bright evening Iridium flares this week on Monday at 20.21.19 at 18 degrees altitude in N and Tuesday at 18.08.30 at 63 degrees in NNE
Week of 24th February
Astronomical twilight ends at 19.29 UT at the start of the week and 19.40 UT at the end
The Moon is waning and will be New on Saturday and a slim crescent at the start of NAW
National Astronomy Week returns next week after 5 years to celebrate the excellent potential viewing in the evening sky of Jupiter. Events are running across the Country and can be located on the NAW website www.astronomyweek.org.uk
The Sun has 8 active sunspot groups strung out across its disc. 1982 is worth watching for flares and unusually 1967 is returning again after its January appearance and whole rotation survival
The ISS makes last passes this week: Monday 18.26.48 from W to SSE reaching 23 degrees and the last on Wednesday 18.26.28 WSW to SSW to 12 degrees
There are no bright evening Iridium flares this week
Week of 17th February
Astronomical twilight ends at 19.17 UT at the start of the week and 19.28 UT at the end
The Moon is waning and will be Last Quarter on Thursday
The Sun has 6 large active sunspot groups strung out across its disc. 1974 is worth watching for flares
The ISS makes good passes this week: Monday 19.18.52 from W to SE reaching 81 degrees. The best on Tuesday 19.30.04 W to E to 89 degrees and 20.06.51 W to WSW to 26 degrees. Wednesday 19.17.59 W to SSE to 53 degrees. Thursday 18.29.06 W to ESE to 69 degrees and 20.06.10 W to SW to 20 degrees. Friday 19.17.04 W to SSE to 30 degrees. Saturday 18.28.03 W to SE to 41 degrees and 20.06.41 Sw to SW to 10 degrees and Sunday 19.16.28 WSW to S to 16 degrees
There is one superbright evening Iridium flares this week on Saturday at 19.00.43 at 46 degrees altitude in NNE
Week of 10th February
Astronomical twilight ends at 19.06 UT at the start of the week and 19.16 UT at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be Full (Snow Moon..or Rain Moon) on Thursday
The Sun has 7 sunspot groups and there is a slight chance of activity
The ISS returns with low passes this week: Monday 18.33.19 SSW to ESE reaching 30 degrees and 20.09.27 WSW to WSW to 18 degrees. Tuesday 17.45.15 SSW to E to 21 degrees and 19.20.54 WSW to SSW to 64 degrees. Wednesday 18.32.24 WSW to E 54 degrees and 20.09.00 W to W to 22 degrees. Thursday 19.20.21 W to NNW to 88 degrees. Friday 18.31.42 WSW to E to 81 degrees and 20.08.28 W to W to 24 degrees. Saturday 19.19.46 W to ENE to 85 degrees. Sunday 18.31.02 W to E to 84 degrees and 18.31.02 W to W to 26 degrees
There is one superbright evening Iridium flares this week on Tuesday at 17.53.47 at 65 degrees altitude in NNE
Week of 3rd February
Astronomical twilight ends at 18.55 UT at the start of the week and 19.04 UT at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be First Quarter on Thursday
The Sun has 2 sunspot groups and 1967 is enormous and active
The Type 1a Supernova in M82 (now nearly 2 weeks old) is still visible at around apparent magnitude +11 and is visible in small telescopes
The ISS returns with low passes this week: Friday 19.22.37 SSW to S reaching 15 degrees. Saturday 18.34.55 S to SE to 16 degrees and 20.09.58 WSW to WSW to 12 degrees and Sunday 17.48.03 SSE to SE to 11 degrees and 19.21.39 SW to SSW to 34 degrees. Next week will be a good ISS pass week
There are no particularly bright evening Iridium flares this week
Week of 27th January
Astronomical twilight ends at 18.44 UT at the start of the week and 18.53 UT at the end
The Moon is waning and will be New on Thursday and a slender Crescent next week-end
The Sun is slightly less active, though there are still 9 sunspot groups
The Type 1a Supernova in M82 (now less than a week old) is the closest in over 20 years. It will be an ideal candidate to study for its lightcurve given the dependence on thee type of evenst for measuring the acceleration of the Universe’s expansion. At apparent magnitude +11 it should be visible in the 10 inch. We await a clear night
There are no ISS passes this week
There is 1 bright evening Iridium flare: Wednesday 16.59.24 at 74 degrees altitude in ENE
Week of 20th January
Astronomical twilight ends at 18.34 UT at the start of the week and 18.43 UT at the end
The Moon is waning and will be Last Quarter on Thursday
The Sun is less active, though there are still 6 sunspot groups and an active region is about to emerge on the Eastern limb
There are no ISS passes this week
There are 3 bright evening Iridium flares: Monday 17.13.58 at 22 degrees altitude in WNW and 17.45.16 at 61 degrees in NE and Wednesday at 16.56.21 at 25 degrees in W
Week of 13th January
Astronomical twilight ends at 18.25 UT at the start of the week and 18.34 UT at the end<br.
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The Moon is waxing and will be Full on Thursday
The Sun is still active and the giant sunspot 1944 is now on the limb but has the potential for a final flares. There are 7 other sunspot groups
There are no ISS passes this week
There are 4 bright evening Iridium flares: Monday 17.11.32 at 21 degrees altitude in SSW. Tuesday 17.11.46 at 19 degrees in SSW. Thursday at 17.08.57 at 16 degrees in SW and Friday 17.53.20 at 15 degrees in WNW
Week of 6th January
Astronomical twilight ends at 18.17 UT at the start of the week and 18.25 UT at the end
The Moon is waxing and will be First Quarter on Wednesday
Venus will be in Inferior Conjunction on Saturday 11th
The Sun is highly active and giant sunspot 1944 has the potential to release flares. An Earth directed CME left the Sun on 4th and could impact on 7th causing geomagnetic storms. There are 6 other sunspot groups
There are no ISS passes this week
There are 2 bright evening Iridium flares: Thursday at 17.23.28 at 24 degrees altitude in SSE and Saturday at 18.31.19 at 47 degrees in NNE
