Solar Eclipse Begins Today - 22JUL2009

July 22, 2009

The Moon reaches its "new" phase at 9:53 p.m. CDT. When new, the Moon crosses the imaginary line between Earth and Sun. Many societies have viewed new moon as a time of rebirth or renewal. Beginning today a total solar eclipse is visible across parts of Asia and the Pacific. A solar eclipse is defined as a dramatic celestial phenomenon in which light from the Sun is blocked from the Earth by the Moon. In order for this to occur, the Earth, Moon, and Sun must be in a line in that order, which means that the phase of the Moon must be new. More »(source:stardate.org)

Here is animation showing how the solar eclipse will look from Hong Kong. The solar eclipse of July 22, 2009 will be the longest total solar eclipse of the 21st century, lasting at most 6 minutes, 39 seconds:

Mars Appears Below Moon - 23MAR2009

March 23, 2009
Mars will stand just below the Moon early tomorrow, quite low in the southeast about 30 to 40 minutes before sunrise. You probably will need binoculars to spot the planet, which looks like a faint star.

Saturn Can Be Seen Tonight - 11FEB2009

February 11, 2009

The planet Saturn is in good view tonight. It looks like a bright star to the upper left of the Moon as they rise in mid-evening. Its largest moon, Titan, is visible through small telescopes. It looks like a tiny star quite near Saturn.

Get Ready For Lunar Eclipse - 08FEB2009

February 8, 2009

The Moon will undergo a barely perceptible eclipse tomorrow evening (February 9th) as it slips through the faint outer portion of Earth's shadow. Part of the eclipse will be visible across most of the United States, but you will need to look carefully to notice any darkening.

Antares, Brightest Star of Scorpius - 20JAN2009

January 20, 2009

The Moon brushes past Antares, the brightest star of Scorpius, the scorpion, in the dawn sky tomorrow. Antares shines with a distinctly orange hue. It is near the center of the scorpion's sinuous body.

Biggest And Brightest Full Moon In 15 yrs 12/12/08

Each month the Moon orbits the Earth in an oval-shaped path, and on December 12 it will move past it around 28,000km closer than average.

The unusual feature is that this will coincide with a full moon, which will make it appear 14 per cent bigger and 30 per cent brighter than most full moons this year, on Friday night.

Astrologists say the next encounter with a moon this close and full will not be until November 14 2016.

To make the sight even more spectacular much of Britain should be treated to a phenomenon known as the Moon illusion.

This is an optical illusion in which the Moon appears larger near the horizon than it does while higher up in the sky.

Psychologists have tried to explain this as a trick of the eye, as the landscape on the horizon appears to make the Moon loom much larger, an effect that disappears as the Moon rises above the horizon.

Another astronomical treat that could be seen over the weekend is the annual Geminid meteor shower, one of the year's best displays of shooting stars.

Up to 100 meteors an hour can fly across the sky. The meteors, which are easy to spot with the naked eye, appear to shoot out from the constellation Gemini, hence their name, but they can be seen all over the sky.

The best chance of seeing them is to look away from the Moon.

Meteor showers are caused by small fragments of cosmic debris entering Earth's atmosphere at extremely high speed. They vaporise due to friction with the air, leaving a streak of light that usually very quickly disappears.

(source: Telegraph.co.uk / article byLucy Cockcroft)