Download Astronomy Club of Asheville July 2016 Sky Events

Astronomy Club of Asheville
July 2016 Sky Events
The Planets this Month - page 2
Planet Highlights - page 7
Moon Phases - page 10
July 4th - Earth Reaches Aphelion - page 11
July 28/29 - Delta Aquarid Meteors - page 13
www.AstroAsheville.org
Astronomy Club of Asheville
July 2016 Sky Events – the Planets
 July 2016 provides 3 planets that will brighten the early evening skies.
Jupiter will dominate the west while Mars and Saturn will reign in the
south.
 Against the background of the constellation Leo, Jupiter is best viewed
early in the evening this month, before it sets in the west.
 Mars, although rapidly fading, remains in great viewing position this
month – high in the sky for most of the night in the constellation Libra.
 The planet Saturn can be found within the boundaries of the constellation
Ophiuchus, the Serpent Holder, all month, and it’s a great time to observe it
with a telescope.
 Saturn’s rings are currently tilted a wide 26˚ toward us (near their
maximum angle of 27˚); so the rings will look spectacular in the telescope
eyepiece. You will be looking at Saturn’s rings from above on their northern
face; not until the year 2025 will you be able to catch a glimpse of the rings
from the planet’s southern face!
Astronomy Club of Asheville
July 2016 Sky Events – the Planets
The Moon Joins the Planet Jupiter
On the evenings of July 7 - 9, the
waxing crescent Moon joins the bright
planet Jupiter in the constellation Leo.
The two solar system objects will
appear closest on the night of July 8th
when they are separated by about 5°
and located about 28° above the
horizon.
Although these 2 celestial objects
appear close in our 2-dimensional
view, Jupiter is some 548 million miles
behind the Moon!
Image courtesy of
Sky & Telescope
Astronomy Club of Asheville
July 2016 Sky Events – the Planets
Conjunction of the Moon with Mars & Saturn
On the evenings of
July 14 - 16, the
waxing gibbous
Moon appears to
glide past the
planets Mars and
Saturn.
The two planets
easily outshine the
red giant star
Antares in the
constellation
Scorpius.
Image courtesy of Sky & Telescope
Astronomy Club of Asheville
July 2016 Sky Events – the Planets
 On July 6th Mercury reaches superior conjunction – on
the other side of the Sun from Earth.
 Venus and Mercury will be lost in the Sun’s glare and not
easily observable until the last week of the July. By then both
planets will be orbiting toward Earth from behind the Sun.
 Looking very low into the west at dusk, you should be able to
spot Venus and Mercury during the last week of July. Using
binoculars will definitely help your effort to locate them
 Uranus and Neptune can be found in the pre-dawn skies this
month in the constellations Pisces and Aquarius respectively.
You will need binoculars or a telescope to locate and observe
these two distant planets.
Astronomy Club of Asheville
July 2016 Sky Events – the Planets
Locate all 5 Naked-Eye Planets Simultaneously
You may see
all 5 nakedeye planets at
the same time
in the early
evening
during the last
Scorpius
week of July.
This is the
scene for
Both the planets Saturn
Friday
and Mars, located on the
night,
border of the constellation
July 29th,
Scorpius, outshine the
about
bright red giant star
9:10 p.m.
Antares.
EDT.
Looking high in the South
All three planets, Jupiter,
Mercury & Venus, easily
outshine the bright star Regulus
in the constellation Leo.
Leo
Due to their low
position at dusk,
Regulus, Mercury and
Venus will be
challenging to spot. A
pair of binoculars will
help!
Looking low to the Western horizon
Astronomy Club of Asheville
July 2016 Planet Highlights
Planet
Avg.
ConstellaDistance tion(s)
from
Earth
Avg.
Avg.
Diameter Magin arc
nitude
seconds
Comments
Page 1 of 3
Mercury 1.2
AUs
Gemini,
Cancer &
Leo
5.5
-0.9
Reaches superior
conjunction on
July 6th
Venus
1.7
AUs
Gemini,
Cancer &
Leo
9.9
-3.9
Not visible until
the last week of
the month
Mars
0.6
AUs
Libra
14.7
-1.1
Shining brightly
in the night sky
most of the
night
Astronomy Club of Asheville
July 2016 Planet Highlights
Avg.
Distance
from
Earth
Constellation(s)
Jupiter
5.9 AUs
Saturn
Uranus
Planet
Avg.
Diameter
in arc
seconds
Avg.
Magnitude
Comments
Leo
33.2
-1.8
View it early
before it sets
this month
9.3 AUs
Ophiuchus
17.9
0.2
Great month
to view it with
a telescope
20 AUs
Pisces
3.5
5.8
Find it in the
pre-dawn sky
this month
Page 2 of 3
Astronomy Club of Asheville
July 2016 Planet Highlights
Planet
Avg.
ConstellaDistance tion(s)
from
Earth
Neptune 29 AUs
Aquarius
Avg.
Avg.
Diameter Magin arc
nitude
seconds
2.3
7.8
Comments
Page 3 of 3
Find it in the
pre-dawn sky
this month
Astronomy Club of Asheville
The Moon – July 2016
New Moon
4th
7:01 a.m.
First Quarter
11th
8:52 p.m.
Full Moon**
19th
6:57 p.m.
Last Quarter
26th
7:00 p.m.
** The “Thunder Moon”
Unless otherwise indicated, all times are EDT
Astronomy Club of Asheville
July 2016 Sky Events
July 4th - Earth Reaches Aphelion
Earth reaches “aphelion” – the farthest position from
the Sun in its annual elliptical orbit.
Distances in miles:
Aphelion ≈ 94.5 million
Perihelion ≈ 91.5 million
Average ≈ 93 million or
1 astronomical unit (AU)
~ the Earth-Sun distance
There is a 3.3% change in
the distance from aphelion
to perihelion.
Earth >
< Sun
Not to scale
Astronomy Club of Asheville
July 2016 Sky Events
July 4th - Earth Reaches Aphelion
On July 4th this year you may notice that you are orbiting
on planet Earth slower than usual! Here’s why:
Kepler’s 2nd Law of
Planetary Motion
states that an
imaginary line joining
a planet and the Sun
sweeps out an equal
area of space in equal
amounts of time.
Perihelion
Aphelion
Not to scale
As determined by Kepler’s 2nd Law of Planetary Motion, the speed of a planet along
its elliptical orbit is fastest when it is closest to the Sun (perihelion) and slowest when
it is farthest from the Sun (aphelion).
Astronomy Club of Asheville
July 2016 Sky Events
Delta Aquarid Meteor Shower
 The Delta Aquarid Meteor Shower peaks in late July,
around July 28 and 29, with estimates of 10 meteors
per hour predicted. These meteors tend to be faint.
 The meteors should be visible for a few weeks on either
side of the estimated peak dates, and they appear to
radiate from the direction of the Delta star (“Skat”) in
the constellation Aquarius– hence their name.
 Look for these meteors between midnight and dawn.
 A waning crescent Moon will be visible after midnight
and before dawn in late July, but its moonlight,
although not ideal, should not interfere much with
observing the meteor shower.
 An unobstructed view of the sky at a dark location will
increase your observing success.
Astronomy Club of Asheville
July 2016 Sky Events
Delta Aquarid Meteor Shower
The view about
1:00 a.m. local time
on July 28th & 29th.
The Delta Aquarid meteors will appear to radiate from this area of the sky.
End