This is the view looking south about 11:30p.m. on May 10. Saturn will appear at about the same position among the stars of Libra every night throughout the month of May. Mars is still large and bright and the bright asteroid Vesta can be seen in binoculars. <\/p>\n
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The Earth zips around the sun 29 times in the time it takes Saturn to make one trip. That means that Saturn, moving so slowly in its orbit, seems to reside in the same constellation for a very long time. It spends all of 2014 in Libra. Once each year, Earth moves between the sun and Saturn and we see it directly opposite the sun. As the sun sets in the west, Saturn will be rising in the east. That opposition occurs on May 10 this year. Around that time, Saturn will reach its greatest brightness for the year and be in our sky all night. It will appear just a bit brighter than the bright stars Spica and Antares and to the naked eye will appear like a beautifulgoldenstar. <\/p>\n
It is in the telescope, however, that Saturn becomes a truly spectacular sight. Its magnificent ring system makes Saturn the jewel of the solar system. This month the planets ring plane is tilted down about 22 degrees from our vantage point so we see the north face of the rings. Scientists are still unsure of exactly how the rings formed. It is tempting to think of the rings as a solid structure or a concentric series of ringlets but they are comprised mostly of ice particles, billions of them, that range in size from dust motes to boulders. Even a small telescope will detect the rings, and bigger telescopes reveal a number of the larger gaps intherings. <\/p>\n
The planet itself is pretty too, its cloud bands are reminiscent of a subtly colored Easter egg. And there are moons galore. Saturn has 62 moons and eight of them are visible in backyard telescopes. Dont miss it. If you dont have your own telescope, be sure to come to the Patterson Observatory public night on June 5 and ask toseeit. <\/p>\n
There is a strong possibility that we will witness a new meteor shower overnight on May 23 to May 24th. Earth will pass through the stream of debris left by an unusually close passage of a tiny periodic comet called 209P\/LINEAR. It is always difficult to accurately predict these things, but this could be a very dramatic event. Most likely we will see a good display, similar to the peak of the typical Perseid meteor shower, but there is at least a small chance of a meteor storm. Youve nothing to lose but a bit of sleep and all you need is a comfortable chair and a wide expanse of sky to observe the shower. The peak should occur around midnight MST but you should be watching by 11 PM on the 23rd and give it at least until 2 AM on the 24th.Goodluck! <\/p>\n
Saturday, May 10 is Astronomy Day, an annual worldwide event specifically designed to bring astronomy to the public. The Huachuca Astronomy Club will be outside of the Sierra Vista Public Library from about 10 a.m. until late afternoon (weather permitting). There will be variety of properly filtered telescopes aimed at the sun and a host of amateur astronomers to answer your questions about astronomy. The moon will be visible in the afternoon sky and we might just catch a daytime glimpse of a planet or two. Have you ever seen Jupiter in the daytime? You can walk a scale model of the solar system that will be set up along Tacoma Street. Youll be surprised at just how empty our suns neighborhood is. Walk all the way to Pluto and youll learn just how far away the next closest star would be. That will probably surprise you too. There will be some free stuff handed out, plenty of stickers and temporary tattoos for the youngsters and just maybe a few surprises. Its all free, its family friendly, educational ,and fun. I hope to seeyouthere. <\/p>\n
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BACKYARD ASTRONOMY: Saturn takes center stage<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" This is the view looking south about 11:30p.m. on May 10. Continue reading