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WATCH this on YouTubeLISTEN as a podcast on Podbean, Stitcher, or iTunes Social Media: @mrwebbpv on Twitter and Instagram @pvplanetarium on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram            Venus shines bright at sunset all month, with Mars nearby, while Saturn, Jupiter, and even Mercury shine in the mornings, and the Beehive Cluster gets two wandering guests, all in the solstice month of June.          Welcome to Observing With Webb, where a high school astronomy teacher tells you what you’re looking at, why it’s so cool, and what you should check out later this month…at night.    Naked-eye PLANETS Sunset Venus – Look W after sunset. It’ll be the brightest object and probably the first “star” you’ll see, about 30˚ above the horizon. Sets between midnight and 11pm.  Get your looks in now, because once August starts, your view of Venus in the evening will disappear, and return to the mornings of September. Mars – Look W and about 5 or 10˚ up and to the left of Venus, for a dull reddish dot in the sky, hanging out in Cancer, and slowing moving toward Leo. Sets between midnight and 11pm. Throughout the night - None Morning – (from left to right) Mercury, Jupiter, Saturn Saturn – Beginning of the month: Rises at 1:30am in the ESE, and is 30˚ above the SE horizon by dawn. End of the month: Rises at 11:30pm in the ESE, and is 40˚ above the S horizon at dawn.  About 60˚ to the right of Jupiter. Jupiter – Beginning of the month: Rises at 4am in the E, and is just 15˚ above the E horizon by dawn. End of the month: Rises at 2am in the E, and is 35˚ above the E horizon at dawn.  About 60˚ to the left of Saturn. Mercury – For the first 3 weeks of June, Mercury is less than 10˚ above the horizon, to the left of East. Hard to find, but not impossible.   EVENTS Full Moon – 3rd (Visible all night) Waning Gibbous (Mostly lit, rises later at night) Last Quarter Moon – 10th (Visible midnight into the morning) Morning Crescents (look East in the AM) New Moon – 17th (darkest skies) Evening Crescents (look West after Sunset) First Quarter Moon – 26th (Visible until midnight) Evening Gibbous (Mostly lit, after Sunset)   2nd – Mars, Beehive Cluster (M44) – Find that dull red dot in the sky which is Mars, then take some binoculars out, or a telescope, and witness Mars being directly in M44, the Beehive Cluster, so named because of its resemblance to a swarm of bees. The day before and after, Mars will be on either side of the cluster. Definitely worth at least a look, if not a picture. 9th + 10th – CLOSE ENCOUNTER - Moon, Saturn – Get up early, look SE, and find a gibbous Moon with Saturn about 8˚ above and to the left on the morning on the 9th.  On the 10th, the Moon will have moved to be 7˚ down and to the left of Saturn. 13th – Venus, Beehive Cluster (M44) – Find that bright brilliant dot in the sky which is Venus, then take some binoculars out, or a telescope, and witness Venus being ALMOST directly in M44, the Beehive Cluster. The day before and after, Venus will be on either side of the cluster. Definitely worth at least a look, if not a picture. 14th – CLOSE ENCOUNTER - Moon, Jupiter – Get up early, after 3am, look E, and find a very thin crescent Moon with bright Jupiter only 2˚ to right. 21st – Summer Solstice – This is the longest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere.  There’s a bit of explanation as to why here. 20th – 22nd – CLOSE ENCOUNTER – Moon, Venus, Mars – Check this out right after sunset! Look West and you’ll easily see Venus being super bright. Each day, Mars will be about 5˚ (or three finger-widths) up and to the left of Venus.  The best part is the Moon traveling through.  On the 20th, a super-duper thin Moon will be about 13˚ down and to the right of Venus.  But on the 21st, the Moon moves to be just 3˚ to the right of Venus, and is a little bigger and easier to spot.  Then, on the 22nd, the Moon moves up and to the l

LISTEN as a podcast on Podbean, Stitcher, or iTunes Social Media: @mrwebbpv on Twitter and Instagram @pvplanetarium on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram             Thanksgiving, 3 planets, a meteor shower (with the possibility of a storm), and a TOTAL LUNAR ECLIPSE.  November is going to be great!          Welcome to Observing With Webb, where a high school astronomy teacher tells you what you’re looking at, why it’s so cool, and what you should check out later this month…at night.     Naked-eye PLANETS Sunset Saturn – About 30˚ above the horizon in the S. Fairly dim, but still brighter than all the stars around it. Jupiter – SUPER bright in the SE after sunset. Just find the brightest point of light in that direction, and you’ve got it. Throughout the night Saturn & Jupiter – Starting off in the SE, with brightest Jupiter on the left and dimmer Saturn about 40˚ to the right, these two march westward through the night, with Saturn setting around 11pm and Jupiter setting around 2am. Mars – Rises at about 8:30pm in the beginning of the month, and just after sunset by the end. Look East early in the evening for a dull reddish dot in the sky, above Orion and between the tips of Taurus’s horns.  Morning Mars – By morning, Mars will have moved to the S or SW, still between Taurus’s horns above Orion, about 2/3 of the way up the sky.   EVENTS First Quarter Moon – 1st (Visible until midnight) Evening Gibbous (Mostly lit, after Sunset) Full Moon – 8th (Visible all night) Waning Gibbous (Mostly lit, rises later at night) Last Quarter Moon – 16th (Visible midnight into the morning) Morning Crescents (look East in the AM) New Moon – 23rd (darkest skies) Evening Crescents (look West after Sunset) First Quarter Moon – 30th (Visible until midnight)   4th – CLOSE ENCOUNTER – Moon, Jupiter – A waxing gibbous Moon is below Jupiter by just 3˚.  Visible all night. 6th – Daylight Savings Time Ends  8th – TOTAL LUNAR ECLIPSE – Only the West coast of the U.S. can pretty much see all of it, with the rest of the U.S. seeing only portions before sunrise.  Here’s the game plan:            4:09am EST – Partial Eclipse Begins – Just look West to find the Full Moon, and watch as the Earth’s shadow appears to nibble on the Moon from the top down, but a little off-center to the left. This phase will last about an hour, and the Moon will drop about 10˚ closer to the horizon. (You might hear that the penumbral portion of the eclipse starts before this.  While true, it is essentially undetectable with the naked eye.)            5:16am EST – Totality Begins – Now the umbra of the Earth’s shadow is completely engulfing the Moon, and only the light from all the sunrises and sunsets on Earth are illuminating our orbital partner’s surface, making it appear anywhere from dark yellow to orange to red to brown.  This phase will last almost an hour and a half, leading into dawn for those of us on the east coast.            6:42am EST – Totality ends, Partiality begins again – now the shadow leaves the Moon, starting to expose its surface from the top down.            7:49am EST – Partial Eclipse Ends, but the Sun is up and the Moon is setting.         Other things to notice during the eclipse As the Moon gets darker, more and more stars will be visible The Pleiades are above the Moon Taurus is up and to the left of the Moon Orion is off to the left of Taurus 10th – CLOSE ENCOUNTER – Moon, Mars – The Moon is 6˚ above and to the right of Mars.  Visible in the NE around 8:30pm, and high in the W by sunrise. 17th – 18th – Leonid Meteor Shower – This annual, weak (10-15 per hour), meteor shower can have some wonderful years.  Could this be one of those years? MAYBE.  Some predict we could get up to 250-300 meteors per hour after midnight on the 18th.  Am I banking on it? No. But am I going out anyway? A

WATCH this on YouTubeLISTEN as a podcast on Podbean, Stitcher, or iTunes Social Media: @mrwebbpv on Twitter and Instagram @pvplanetarium on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram   Halloween month brings us some spooooooooky astronomy.  Saturn and Jupiter soar ominously above, Mars creeps in, and rocks fall from the sky.          Welcome to Observing With Webb, where a high school astronomy teacher tells you what you’re looking at, why it’s so cool, and what you should check out later this month…at night.    Naked-eye PLANETS Sunset Saturn – About 30˚ above the horizon in the SSE. Fairly dim, but still brighter than all the stars around it. Jupiter – SUPER bright in the East after sunset. Just find the brightest point of light in that direction, and you’ve got it. Throughout the night Saturn & Jupiter – Starting off in the SE, with brightest Jupiter on the left and dimmer Saturn about 45˚ to the right, these two march westward through the night, with Saturn setting around 2am and Jupiter setting around 5:30am. Mars – Rises at about 10pm in the beginning of the month, and 8:30pm by Halloween. Look East early in the evening for a dull reddish dot in the sky, above Orion and between the tips of Taurus’s horns. Morning Mars – By morning, Mars will have moved to the S or SW, still between Taurus’s horns above Orion.   EVENTS Evening Crescents (look West after Sunset) First Quarter Moon – 2nd (Visible until midnight) Evening Gibbous (Mostly lit, after Sunset) Full Moon – 9th (Visible all night) Waning Gibbous (Mostly lit, rises later at night) Last Quarter Moon – 17th (Visible midnight into the morning) Morning Crescents (look East in the AM) New Moon – 25th (darkest skies)   5th – CLOSE ENCOUNTER – Moon, Saturn – The Waxing Gibbous Moon is just 6˚ below and to the left of Saturn. Visible after sunset in the SSE, and past midnight.   8th – CLOSE ENCOUNTER – Moon, Jupiter – The essentially Full Moon is below Jupiter by just 4˚.  Visible all night.   14th – CLOSE ENCOUNTER – Moon, Mars – The Moon is just 3˚ above Mars.  Visible in the NE around 9:30pm, and high in the SSW by sunrise.   20th – 22nd – Orionid Meteor Shower – Usually a decent meteor shower, producing around 15 meteors per hour.  This year we don’t have to worry about the Moon, since it won’t rise until very early morning as a crescent.  Get out there whenever you can, let your eyes get dark adapted (don’t look at your phone), find a nice spot to lie down away from light pollution, be patient, and look at the whole sky, with an understanding that they will be coming from a spot in Orion’s club. Some advice for watching:     Find a dark location and lie down in a reclining chair or hammock     Look above Orion’s head, near his club.  That is where the radiant is - where the meteors will appear to be coming from.     The strategy to observe this year is to get out there whenever you can, but the later you stay up, the more you’ll see, since the radiant will be higher and you’ll be closer to the peak.  Check the weather to see if the skies will be clear Adapt your eyes to the dark by staying away from light sources or using a red light if you need to look at a star chart or not trip over something.  If you’re feeling extra nerdy, do a scientific meteor count (S&T and IMO)   31st – Halloween – Halloween will have three great telescopic objects to find: a thick crescent Moon in the South, a super bright Jupiter toward the SE, and Saturn in between the two.  If you have a telescope, this would be a FANTASTIC year for getting the scope out for some sidewalk astronomy.   CONSTELLATIONS... Use a sky map from www.skymaps.com to help you out. After Dinner: The Summer Triangle: Lyra, Cygnus, Aquila, Delphinus - Look straight up before 8pm and you’ll be able to see Lyra (the Harp), Cygnus (the Swan), Aquila (the Eagle), (and Delphinus the Dolphin.)  These three constel

  (In a week or two...) WATCH this on YouTubeLISTEN as a podcast on Podbean, Stitcher, or iTunes Social Media: @mrwebbpv on Twitter and Instagram @pvplanetarium on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram   2022 is the summer of morning planets!  Jupiter, Saturn, Mars, and Venus are all quite prominent, with Mercury stopping by in June.  Throughout the summer, get up early to see the weeks where the Moon drives by the planets, and maybe catch a few meteors in August, as some of the planets return to the evening skies.          Welcome to Observing With Webb, where a high school astronomy teacher tells you what you’re looking at, why it’s so cool, and what you should check out later this month…at night.    Naked-eye PLANETS Sunset – only in August Mercury – All of August, look W right after sunset and you might be able to catch Mercury less than 10˚ above the horizon, the first “star” appearing at dusk in that direction. Saturn – The beginning of the ringed planet’s nightfall appearance schedule is August. August 1st it rises at 9:30pm in the ESE, and is already up in the SE about 10˚ above the horizon at month’s end. Throughout the night – Saturn & Jupiter – about 45˚ apart Saturn – Saturn starts rising before midnight in the SE in July and August, and will be visible into the mornings all summer off in the SW. Jupiter – Jupiter starts rising before midnight in the SE around mid-July, and will be visible into the morning all summer off toward the South. Morning – Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn ALL SUMMER The basic setup for the 3 months is, from left to right, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, all easily visible in the morning sky.  They start June within 70˚ of each other from East to South, ending August with Venus and Saturn on complete opposite sides of the sky.   How far apart are they from each other?  Below are the measurements between each planet in the lineup, on the 1st of each month. June 1:   Venus – 28˚ – Mars –   2˚ – Jupiter – 38˚ – Saturn Mercury – joins the party for much of June, getting to within 10˚ of Venus mid-month. Just look down and to the left of Venus. July 1:   Venus – 42˚ – Mars – 20˚ – Jupiter – 43˚ – Saturn August 1: Venus – 60˚ – Mars – 40˚ – Jupiter – 45˚ – Saturn August 31: Venus – 77˚ – Mars – 60˚ – Jupiter – 46˚ – Saturn Venus (E) – will be consistently about 10˚ above the Eastern horizon and hard to miss. As the brightest object in the morning sky, it will blaze as a “morning star”. Mars – Reddish Mars starts right next to Jupiter, but Jupiter moves away, while Mars creeps ever closer to Taurus throughout the summer, ending up between the V of Taurus and the Pleiades by August 31st. Jupiter ­– Hanging out around Pisces, be sure to find the Galilean Moons, notice their motion day by day, or even hour by hour, or even look up when to see one of its moon’s shadows transits the planet. Saturn – Hanging out in the corner of Capricornus, find a friend with a telescope and stare at its rings, made up of rocks and dust the size of pebbles to the size of a car.   EVENTS Evening Crescents (look West after Sunset) First Quarter Moon – June 7th/July 6th/August 5th (Visible until midnight) Evening Gibbous (Mostly lit, after Sunset) Full Moon – June 14th/July 13th/August 11th (Visible all night) Waning Gibbous (Mostly lit, rises later at night) Last Quarter Moon – June 20th/July 20th/August 19th (Visible midnight into the morning) Morning Crescents (look East in the AM) New Moon – June 28th/July 28th/August 27th (darkest skies)   June 1st – CONJUNCTION – Jupiter, Mars –  Jupiter is less than 2˚ away from Mars in the ESE.  You can start seeing them after 3am. June 17th - 27th – June’s Lunar Close Encounters – Moon, Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, Venus – The Moon joins the sunrise planet party, starting near Saturn on the 17th and ending to the left of Mercu

WATCH this on YouTubeLISTEN as a podcast on Podbean, Stitcher, or iTunes Social Media: @mrwebbpv on Twitter and Instagram @pvplanetarium on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram   Lunar Eclipse Month!!! Get ready for a May that boasts a wonderful blood moon and an array of morning planets all month long.          Welcome to Observing With Webb, where a high school astronomy teacher tells you what you’re looking at, why it’s so cool, and what you should check out later this month…at night.    Naked-eye PLANETS Sunset – Mercury (first week of May) Mercury (WNW) – It sounds like this apparition of Mercury will be the best one of the year. Just get out after sunset, look WNW, and the first point of light you’ll see is Mercury.  BONUS: On the 2nd, Mercury will be right next to the Pleiades, with the Moon. Get out some binoculars or a low-power scope to see both of them in the same view. Throughout the night – None Morning – Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn (SE) Let’s use Venus as our guidepost for the month, as it is the most visible object in the morning sky. Venus (E) – Keep an eye out after 4:30am, looking E, for the highlight of the spring and summer mornings this year, Venus. About 15˚ above the horizon and hard to miss, the brightest object in the morning sky will blaze as a “morning star”. Jupiter (ESE) ­– Jupiter starts May less than 1˚ away from much brighter Venus, then travels 30˚ rightward to finish the month right next to Mars in the SE Mars (ESE) – Mars starts May about 15˚ away from Venus, to the right, and travels away to 30˚ from Venus by the end of the month, with Jupiter joining it. Saturn (SE) – Saturn starts cautiously leaving the group of morning planets in May, starting less than 20˚ to the right of Mars, and ending up double that distance away.   EVENTS Evening Crescents (look West after Sunset) First Quarter Moon – 8th (Visible until midnight) Evening Gibbous (Mostly lit, after Sunset) Full Moon – 17th (Visible all night) Waning Gibbous (Mostly lit, rises later at night) Last Quarter Moon – 22nd (Visible from midnight into the morning) Morning Crescents (look East in the AM) New Moon – 30th (darkest skies)   1st – CONJUNCTION – Jupiter, Venus – Less than 1˚ apart, Jupiter and Venus rise together this morning.  Get out and look low in the East after 4:30am (when they rise) for the brightest object, Venus, with Jupiter barely up and to the right. 2nd – Close Encounter – Mercury, Pleiades, Moon – Get out just after sunset, with a nice view of the NWN horizon.  The first light in the sky will be Mercury, in its crescent phase, with the Pleiades about 2˚ down and to the right.  Get your binoculars and scopes out!  The Moon can also be your guide, being 4˚ up and to the left of Mercury. 15th – 16th – TOTAL LUNAR ECLIPSE – Sunday night into Monday morning            Watch the Moon pass through the Earth’s shadow and witness the light from all the sunrises and sunsets on Earth at the same time! No telescope needed for this event! (Though it will certainly make the event even cooler)  Make sure you have a view of the Moon.  For those of us on the east coast, you’ll be looking South about 25˚ above the horizon.  Those nearby trees could get in the way.  Try going out the night before from 10pm to midnight.  The moon will be in a similar direction, but about 5˚ higher on the 14th. Partial Phases starts: 10:28pm EDT – This is when the dark umbra of the Earth’s shadow will start to “eat away” at the Moon. Totality Starts – 85 minutes – 11:29pm EDT – This is when the Moon is FULLY in the umbra of the Earth’s shadow.  Only the light that has passed through the Earth’s atmosphere and bent toward the Moon is visible.  The atmosphere scatters the blue, violet, green, and yellow, leaving only the orange and red to reach the moon, similar to what you see during a sunrise or sunset.  Notice that the top of the

WATCH this on YouTubeLISTEN as a podcast on Podbean, Stitcher, or iTunes Social Media: @mrwebbpv on Twitter and Instagram @pvplanetarium on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram            Quite the exciting month for planets…if you like getting up early.  4 of the 5 visible planets are hanging out together in the mornings, with Mercury having its best apparition for the year in the evenings, along with two conjunctions of morning planets and some possible meteors.          Welcome to Observing With Webb, where a high school astronomy teacher tells you what you’re looking at, why it’s so cool, and what you should check out later this month…at night.    Naked-eye PLANETS Sunset – Mercury (last week or two of April) Mercury (WNW) – It sounds like this apparition of Mercury will be the best one of the year. The last two weeks of April it SHOULD be visible, but the 30th will be the best day, given Mercury will be higher in the sky than ever, and doesn’t set until 9:45pm.  Just get out after sunset, look WNW, and the first point of light you’ll see is Mercury.  BONUS: On the 30th, Mercury will be right next to the Pleiades.  Get out some binoculars or a low-power scope to see both of them in the same view. Throughout the night – None Morning – Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn (SE) Let’s use Venus as our guidepost for the month, as it is the most visible object in the morning sky. Venus (SE) – Keep an eye out after 5am, looking SE, for the highlight of the spring and summer mornings this year, Venus. About 20˚ above the horizon and almost impossible to miss, the brightest object in the morning sky will blaze as a “morning star”. Mars (SE) – Mars starts February about 5˚ to the right of Venus, with Saturn nearby as well. Mars is considerably dimmer than Venus, so you’ll have to get out there before dawn starts, when it’s still dark, and look right around Venus for it.  Throughout April, Venus moves away from Mars to be about 15˚ to the right by the 30th. Saturn (SE) – Saturn begins the month in between Mars and Venus, but a little lower. By the 5th, Saturn passes Mars in its rightward march away from the cluster of planets, and is less than one degree away from Mars. Onward through the month, Saturn continues to move rightward, ending April about 17˚ degrees to the right of Mars. Jupiter (SE) ­– Jupiter is coming into its own as a morning planet this month. On April 1st, it rises after 6am, so it will be low and hard to see in twilight, and far away (25˚ to the left) from the cluster of Venus, Saturn, and Mars.  Each day from there though, it rises earlier and is higher, pretty easily visible by mid-month, when Jupiter, Venus, Mars, and Saturn are lined up and about equally spaced. Venus then closes in on Jupiter, and on April 30th, the pair are less than 1˚ apart, rise around 5am, and are easily visible.   EVENTS New Moon – 1st (darkest skies) Evening Crescents (look West after Sunset) First Quarter Moon – 9th (Visible until midnight) Evening Gibbous (Mostly lit, after Sunset) Full Moon – 16th (Visible all night) Waning Gibbous (Mostly lit, rises later at night) Last Quarter Moon – 23rd (Visible from midnight into the morning) Morning Crescents (look East in the AM)   5th – CONJUNCTION – MARS, SATURN – The first of a couple conjunctions this month, go out early in the morning after about 5am and find Venus (the brightest one). About 7˚ to the right of Venus will be both Mars and Saturn less than half a degree apart.  Them being so close should allow some good telescope opportunities, astrophotos, and a chance to see how differently colored they are, Mars being red, Saturn typically described as light caramel. 22nd – LYRID METEOR SHOWER – At only 10-20 meteors per hour, it is a minor shower, and we have a Moon washing out the fainter ones starting at 2:30am.  You’ll still be able to see SOME meteors at night, but don’t get too excited.  The showe

Why get out there in the cold of December and January?  It’s a time of transitions and wonder.  We’ve got two meteor showers, plenty of lunar encounters, potentially a comet, planets visible but changing, and very long nights.          Welcome to Observing With Webb, where a high school astronomy teacher tells you what you’re looking at, why it’s so cool, and what you should check out later this month…at night.    Naked-eye PLANETS... Sunset – Venus, Saturn, Jupiter (and a week of weak Mercury in January) Venus (SW) – For the LAST month, Venus stays about 10˚ above the horizon at sunset, setting around 7:30pm, almost all December, but dives toward the horizon around Christmas time. At this point it will be too close to the Sun to see until it pops up in the SE in the mornings of mid-January.  Saturn, Jupiter (SW) – Throughout December, Saturn and Jupiter will appear in the Southwest right as it gets dark, but each night they will get lower in the sky and set earlier and earlier. Jupiter will be the bright point of light on the left, with Saturn about 15˚ to the right.  You can anticipate Saturn getting lost in dusk by the first week of January, Jupiter by the end. Throughout the night – None Morning – Mars?, then Venus in January Mars (SE) – Mars starts December VERY low on the morning SE horizon. It’ll be interesting to see what day we will finally be able to see it clearly in the dawn twilight.  In fact, it doesn’t even progress much higher throughout January, staying about 10-15˚ above the horizon.  Mars will be a challenge, but should get easier in the new year. Venus (SE) – Keep an eye out after 6:30am midway through January, looking SE. The super-bright object low on the horizon will be Venus.  It will keep getting a little higher and rising earlier each day.  This time of Venus being a “morning star” will last until September.   EVENTS... December Morning Crescents (look East in the AM) New Moon – 4th (darkest skies) Evening Crescents (look West after Sunset) First Quarter Moon – 10th (Visible until midnight) Evening Gibbous (Mostly lit, after Sunset) Full Moon – 18th (Visible all night) Waning Gibbous (Mostly lit, rises later at night) Last Quarter Moon – 26th (Visible from midnight into the morning) Morning Crescents (look East in the AM)   January New Moon – 2nd (darkest skies) Evening Crescents (look West after Sunset) First Quarter Moon – 9th (Visible until midnight) Evening Gibbous (Mostly lit, after Sunset) Full Moon – 17th (Visible all night) Waning Gibbous (Mostly lit, rises later at night) Last Quarter Moon – 25th (Visible from midnight into the morning) Morning Crescents (look East in the AM)   December – Comet Leonard – There is much to say about an comet; it’s track, speed, brightness.  Many variables interfere with being able to say what you’re going to see, if you even see it at all.  At this time, keep an eye out and ears open on social media regarding this comet.  It passes closest to us on the 12th, and might just become naked-eye visible at some point this month, but there’s more to consider.  When will the Moon be up?  How close to the horizon will it be?  Will it get lost in dusk? December 6th – 10th – Close Encounter – Moon, Venus, Saturn, Jupiter – What a great 5 days of lunar encounters!  We know the planetary setup from the past couple months.  Venus is low in the SW, but SUPER bright and easy to find.  Hold your fist out in front of you with your pinky and pointer fingers extended, and move one width (15˚) up and to the left and you’ll find Saturn.  Go another 15˚ and you’ll see much brighter Jupiter.  But starting on the 6th, a very thin crescent Moon joins this party.  On the 6th, the Moon is just 4˚ below Venus.   Each night the Moon will move to the left 13˚, and get a bit thicker.  Hence, on the 7th, it will be 6˚ below Saturn.  On the 8th 8˚ below and to the right of Jupi

  WATCH this on YouTubeLISTEN as a podcast on Podbean, Stitcher, or iTunes Social Media: @mrwebbpv on Twitter and Instagram @pvplanetarium on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram            Why get out there at night in November?  It’s Lunar Eclipse Month! Well, partially…   Venus, Saturn, and Jupiter are rocking the sunsets, we technically have a meteor shower, turkey day night will be awesome, and, most importantly, we can witness an almost total lunar eclipse.          Welcome to Observing With Webb, where a high school astronomy teacher tells you what you’re looking at, why it’s so cool, and what you should check out later this month…at night.    Naked-eye PLANETS... Sunset – Venus, Saturn, Jupiter Venus (SW) – Once again, staying about 10˚ above the horizon all month, Venus is a glorious sight for those looking West after sunset. Venus sets around 8:30pm. Saturn, Jupiter (S) – Throughout November, Saturn and Jupiter will appear in the South right as it gets dark. Excitingly, they move closer and closer to Venus in the SW until they are almost equally separated by the 30th.  Jupiter will be the bright point of light on the left, with Saturn about 15˚ to the right.    In the beginning of the month Saturn sets at midnight, with Jupiter trailing at 1am.  By the end of the month, Saturn and Jupiter set in the SW at about 10pm and 11:30pm, respectively. Throughout the night – None Morning – None   EVENTS... Morning Crescents (look East in the AM) New Moon – 4th (darkest skies) Evening Crescents (look West after Sunset) First Quarter Moon – 11th (Visible until midnight) Evening Gibbous (Mostly lit, after Sunset) Full Moon – 19th (Visible all night) Waning Gibbous (Mostly lit, rises later at night) Last Quarter Moon – 27th (Visible from midnight into the morning)   2nd – 3rd – Close Encounter – Moon, Mercury – Even though this would be a tough find, maybe you’ll get lucky.  Look ESE after 6:30am, but before sunrise.  You might catch a glimpse of a VERY thin crescent Moon VERY low on the horizon.  If you’re even luckier, you’ll see Mercury just 3˚ (pinky-widths held at arm’s length) below it.  In this moment you are looking at two objects in the solar system that, when shown up-close pictures, are often confused for each other. 7th – Daylight Savings Time Ends 7th – 12th – Close Encounter – Moon, Venus, Saturn, Jupiter – What a great week of encounters!  Imagine the planetary setup.  Venus is low in the SW, but SUPER bright and easy to find.  Hold your fist out in front of you with your pinky and pointer fingers extended, and move three of these widths (15˚ each) up and to the left and you’ll find the pretty darn bright planet Jupiter (the brightest part of that area of the sky).  If you backtrack 1/3 of the way toward Venus, you’ll find the modestly bright Saturn.  But starting on the 7th, a very thin crescent Moon joins this party.  On the 7th, the Moon is all the way to right of them, just 4˚ to the right of Venus.   Each night the Moon will move to the left 13˚, and get a bit thicker.  Hence, on the 8th, it will be between Venus and Saturn, but closer to Venus.  On the 9th, still in between, but closer to Saturn.  Then on the 10th, the Moon moves to about 5˚ below and to the left of Saturn.  On the 11th 5˚ below and to the left of Jupiter, and now a First Quarter Moon.  Finally, on the 12th, the Moon starts migrating away from our bright planets, being 15˚ away from Jupiter. 17th – Leonid Meteor Shower – This annual, weak (10-15 per hour), meteor shower can have some wonderful years. This is not one of them Why? We essentially have an almost Full Moon, so there’s far too much light pollution interfering with our observing.  That said, you never know when a nice meteor will burn up, to take a nice look at the sky in general, noting that the meteors will appear to go from the radiant in the head of Leo and outward

WATCH this on YouTubeLISTEN as a podcast on Podbean, Stitcher, or iTunes Social Media: @mrwebbpv on Twitter and Instagram @pvplanetarium on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram            An annual meteor shower, three great planets all visible right after sunset, with visits from the Moon, a space launch, and a night where many people are out make October of 2021 a wonderful month for getting out with or without your telescope.          Welcome to Observing With Webb, where a high school astronomy teacher tells you what you’re looking at, why it’s so cool, and what you should check out later this month…at night.    Naked-eye PLANETS... Sunset – Venus Venus (W) – Staying about 10˚ above the horizon all month, Venus is a glorious sight for those looking West after sunset. Saturn, Jupiter – Throughout October, Saturn and Jupiter will appear in the SE right as it gets dark. Jupiter will be the brightest point of light, with Saturn about 15˚ to the right.    Throughout the night – Saturn, Jupiter Saturn, Jupiter - Both gas planets rise from the SE and move S and SW throughout the night. In the beginning of the month Saturn sets at 2am, with Jupiter trailing at 3am.  By the end of the month, Saturn and Jupiter set in the SW at about 11pm and 12am, respectively. Morning – Mercury (last two weeks) Mercury – Always a tough one to find, however you might catch it best and easiest on the morning of the 25th. By 5am, Mercury should be breaking above the horizon in the East. With sunrise being 6:23am, you have less than an hour before the dawn twilight makes it very difficult to find this fast and small planet.  Just look for the bright light low on the Eastern horizon.   EVENTS... Morning Crescents (look East in the AM) New Moon – 6th (darkest skies) Evening Crescents (look West after Sunset) First Quarter Moon – 12th (Visible until midnight) Evening Gibbous (Mostly lit, after Sunset) Full Moon – 20th (Visible all night) Waning Gibbous (Mostly lit, rises later at night) Last Quarter Moon – 28th (Visible from midnight into the morning)   9th – Close Encounter – Moon, Venus – Get out there and watch the sunset (6:33pm) and hang out until you see bright Venus with a thin crescent Moon just 2˚ above it.  The following night, the Moon will move to the left and up from Venus.   13th – 15th – Close Encounter – Moon, Saturn, Jupiter – Any time after sunset, get out there and look South to find the Moon, Saturn, and Jupiter.  On the 13th, they line up with Jupiter on the left, Saturn in the middle, and the Moon down and to the right.  The next night, the Moon passes below the two gas planets. Then, on the 15th the Moon moves down and to the left of Jupiter. All three move westward throughout each night, setting between 3am and 4am.   20th – 22nd – Orionid Meteor Shower – Usually a decent meteor shower, producing around 15 meteors per hour.  However, the Moon is full this year, making it tough to see the faint ones.  Get out there whenever you can, let your eyes get dark adapted (don’t look at your phone), find a nice spot to lie down away from light pollution, be patient, and look at the whole sky, with an understanding that they will be coming from a spot in Orion’s club.  You won’t see a ton, but you might catch a couple good ones this year.   31st – Halloween – Halloween will be a moonless night this year, with Venus, Saturn, and Jupiter nicely visible.  If you have a telescope, this would be a FANTASTIC year for getting the scope out for some sidewalk astronomy (Covid-safe, of course).         Also, Space X will be launching the Crew-3 mission on a Falcon 9 rocket from Kennedy Space Center in Florida.  It will carry 4 astronauts to the International Space Station.  It’s the third operational astronaut flight to the ISS, using a Crew Dragon Spacecraft.  This should be easily watchable on YouTube.   CONSTELLATIONS... Use a sky map from www.sky

Observing With Webb September 2021 WATCH this on YouTubeLISTEN as a podcast on Podbean, Stitcher, or iTunes Social Media: @mrwebbpv on Twitter and Instagram @pvplanetarium on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram   Three great planets all visible right after sunset, with visits from the Moon, make September of 2021 a calm, but convenient month for breaking out that telescope.          Welcome to Observing With Webb, where a high school astronomy teacher tells you what you’re looking at, why it’s so cool, and what you should check out later this month…at night.    Naked-eye PLANETS... Sunset – Venus Venus (W) – Staying about 10˚ above the horizon all month, Venus is a glorious sight for those looking West after sunset. Saturn, Jupiter – Throughout September, Saturn and Jupiter will appear in the SE right as it gets dark. Jupiter will be the brightest point of light, with Saturn about 15˚ to the right.    Throughout the night – Saturn, Jupiter Saturn, Jupiter - Both gas planets rise from the SE and move S and SW throughout the night. In the beginning of the month Saturn sets at 4am, with Jupiter trailing at 5:30am.  By the end of the month, Saturn and Jupiter set in the SW at about 2am and 3am, respectively. Morning – None   EVENTS... Morning Crescents (look East in the AM) New Moon – 6th (darkest skies) Evening Crescents (look West after Sunset) First Quarter Moon – 13th (Visible until midnight) Evening Gibbous (Mostly lit, after Sunset) Full Moon – 20th (Visible all night) Waning Gibbous (Mostly lit, rises later at night) Last Quarter Moon – 28th (Visible from midnight into the morning)   9th – 10th – Close Encounter – Moon, Venus – Get out there and watch the sunset (7:22pm) and hang out until you see bright Venus with a thin crescent Moon directly to the right of it on the 9th.  The following night, the Moon will move to the left and up from Venus.   15th – 19th – Close Encounter – Moon, Saturn, Jupiter – Anytime after sunset, get out there and look SE to find the Moon, Saturn, and Jupiter.  On the 15th, they line up with Jupiter on the left, Saturn in the middle, and the Moon on the right.  After this, the Moon passes by the two gas planets, being just below Saturn on the 16th, down and to the right of Jupiter on the 17th, and to the left of both planets on the 18th and 19th.  All three move westward throughout each night, setting between 3am and 4am.   22nd– Fall Equinox – When all locations on Earth experience a day of almost exactly 12 hours and a night of almost exactly 12 hours.  It is the astronomical first day of fall, even though meteorologically it typically starts in the beginning of September.   CONSTELLATIONS... Use a sky map from www.skymaps.com to help you out. After Dinner: Sagittarius – Use binoculars (or even a telescope) and a star chart to scan through the southern constellation of Sagittarius.  There are at least 7 easily visible clusters and nebulas up and to the right of the “teapot” of Sagittarius. The Summer Triangle: Lyra, Cygnus, Aquila, Delphinus - Look straight up before 10pm and you’ll be able to see Lyra (the Harp), Cygnus (the Swan), Aquila (the Eagle), (and Delphinus the Dolphin.)  These three constellations have the three brightest stars of the summer constellations (Vega, Deneb, Altair – respectively.)  Those bright stars create the summer triangle.  Off to the east of this is the small but beautiful constellation of Delphinus. If you’re under dark skies (away from city lights) you may just catch a glimpse of the Milky Way passing through Cygnus and Aquila.  If you’re looking past 10pm, they’ll be moving toward the West and lower in the sky. Before Work: Cassiopeia – Just a few degrees below the zenith, in the North, is the Queen. Just look North and tilt your head almost all the way up, and you’ll see the 5 bright stars that form an M or upside down W in the sky, depending on what font you normally

WATCH this on YouTubeLISTEN as a podcast on Podbean, Stitcher, or iTunes Social Media: @mrwebbpv on Twitter and Instagram @pvplanetarium on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram   August is good for two things in the sky: bright planets and bright meteors.  Venus, Saturn, and Jupiter reign supreme this month, with the annual Perseid Meteor Shower heating things up with spectacular observing conditions for mid-month.          Welcome to Observing With Webb, where a high school astronomy teacher tells you what you’re looking at, why it’s so cool, and what you should check out later this month…at night.    Naked-eye PLANETS... Sunset – Venus Venus (W) – Staying about 15˚ above the horizon all month, Venus is a glorious sight for those looking West after sunset. Mars, Mercury (W) – Mars is technically in the West after sunset, but is super low, and pretty dim, so it’s doubtful you’ll be able to pick it out. Mercury passes my Mars on the 18th, but again, it’s too low and too dim to see. Throughout the night – Saturn, Jupiter Saturn, Jupiter – Throughout August, Saturn rises around 8pm, and Jupiter just after 9pm, both in the SE. Both gas planets rise and move southward.  In the beginning of August, they get drowned out by the dawn light in the SW in the morning.  But by the end of the month, Saturn sets at 4am, with Jupiter trailing at 5:30am. Morning – Saturn, Jupiter Saturn, Jupiter – This is the last month of seeing Jupiter and Saturn in the dawn sky. You’ll notice that they are quite visible in the SW before sunrise, but they will be lower and lower each morning,  with Saturn disappearing in the beginning of the month, and Jupiter dipping out before the last week.   EVENTS... Morning Crescents (look East in the AM) New Moon – 8th (darkest skies) Evening Crescents (look West after Sunset) First Quarter Moon – 15th (Visible until midnight) Evening Gibbous (Mostly lit, after Sunset) Full Moon – 22nd (Visible all night) Waning Gibbous (Mostly lit, rises later at night) Last Quarter Moon – 30th (Visible from midnight into the morning)   August 10th – 11th – Close Encounter – Moon, Venus – Get out there and watch the sunset (8:07pm) and hang out until you see bright Venus with a thin crescent Moon directly to the right of it on the 10th.  The following night, the Moon will move to the left and up from Venus.   August 11th – 12th – Perseid Meteor Shower – An EXCELLENT year for the Perseids!  In decent skies, you can watch 60 meteors per hour, and you should be able to see some very bright ones here and there the week before and after. Remember, you’re seeing the bits of dust left over from Comet Swift-Tuttle burning up as they crash into the atmosphere at 37 miles per second. Some advice for watching:     Find a dark location and lie down in a reclining chair or hammock     Look toward Perseus (In the NE, rises throughout the night until sunrise where it will be almost directly above.)  That is where the radiant is - where the meteors will appear to be coming from.     The strategy to observe this year is to get out there whenever you can, but the later you stay up, the more you’ll see, since the radiant will be higher.  The shower is usually technically active from mid-July to late August, so you may see some Perseids in the days leading up to and after the peak as well.  Check the weather to see if the skies will be clear Adapt your eyes to the dark by staying away from light sources or using a red light if you need to look at a star chart or not trip over something.  If you’re feeling extra nerdy, do a scientific meteor count (S&T and IMO)   19th – 22nd – Close Encounter – Moon, Saturn, Jupiter – Anytime after 9pm, get out there and look SE to find the Moon, Saturn, and Jupiter.  On the 19th, they line up with Jupiter on the left, Saturn in the middle, and the Moon on the right.  After this, the Moon passes by the two gas planets, be

         Like fireworks, July is mostly quiet and dull, but the noisy and bright events really make it worthwhile.  We have two pairs of planets, visible during opposite times in opposite places, and surreptitious visits from the Moon.          Welcome to Observing With Webb, where a high school astronomy teacher tells you what you’re looking at, why it’s so cool, and what you should check out later this month…at night.    Naked-eye PLANETS Sunset – Mars, Venus Mars (W) – This is your last month to see Mars for a couple more months, as Earth flies around the Sun opposite of Mars in August. Just look West after sunset but before 9:30pm.  You might have some help from Venus and the Moon midmonth.    Venus (W) – Staying about 15˚ above the horizon all month, Venus is a glorious sight for those looking West around the time fireworks start. Throughout the night – Saturn, Jupiter Saturn, Jupiter – I might be jumping the gun here a little bit, but sometimes we stay up late in the Summer. Saturn rises around 10:30pm, with Jupiter rising about an hour later.  Look low in the ESE around this time and you’ll see bright Jupiter down and to the left of bright, but less so, Saturn.  Now that’s in the beginning of the month, and they rise earlier and earlier each day.  By the end of July, Saturn and Jupiter rise around 8:15pm and 9:15pm, respectively, during dusk.  Of course, this means it’s a great time for checking out Saturn’s rings and Jupiter’s moons through your telescopes, but you’ll probably want to stay up until, or get up early in, the morning, when they are higher in the sky, and thus clearer in the telescope. Morning – Saturn, Jupiter Saturn, Jupiter – Speaking of staying up to observe Saturn and Jupiter, where are they around Sunrise? In the beginning of July, before 5am, look S or SE almost half-way up the sky, and Saturn will be to the right and little down from the very bright Jupiter.  But at the end of July, both will be close to setting in the SW during the 5:30am dawn, with Jupiter about 15˚ higher than Saturn.    EVENTS Last Quarter Moon – 1st (Visible from midnight into the morning) Morning Crescents (look East in the AM) New Moon – 9th (darkest skies) Evening Crescents (look West after Sunset) First Quarter Moon – 17th (Visible until midnight) Evening Gibbous (Mostly lit, after Sunset) Full Moon – 23rd (Visible all night) Waning Gibbous (Mostly lit, rises later at night) Last Quarter Moon – 30th (Visible from midnight into the morning)   July 11th – 14th – Close Encounter – Moon, Venus, Mars – Not only are Mars and Venus getting less than a degree from each other on the 12th, the Moon is joining the party!  Get out there after sunset, but before 9:30 and look West.  The easiest to find will likely be the bright beacon known as Venus.  On the 11th, Mars will be only a pinky-width to the left, but very dim, while a 2 day old crescent Moon hangs out about 3 finger-widths to the right at about the same height.  The best night is likely the 12th, when Mars and Venus are half as far apart as the previous night, and the Moon is thicker and easier to find just 6˚ up and to the left, with Leo the lion right above the Moon.  Over the next two nights, the Moon leaves the party, through Leo, and Mars and Venus separate, but are still in the same area.  Get out those binoculars and telescopes! Find a good horizon!  You’ll be looking at the three closest worlds to earth all in one view! 22nd – 26th – Close Encounter – Moon, Saturn, Jupiter – After 10:30pm look SE, or before dawn look SW to find the Moon, with bright Jupiter and Saturn nearby.  The Moon is far to the right of Saturn on the nights of the 22nd and 23rd.  On the 24th the Moon moves in between the planets, and closes in below Jupiter on the 25th, and leaves this party on the 26th.   CONSTELLATIONS... Use a sky map from www.skymaps.com to help you out. After Dinner, Befo