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Stargazing - Blog Posts
Green ribbons of light danced across the darkened rural sky to the song of stringed instruments coming from my phone. The gentle melodies punctuated every sudden arch and smoothed each long stretch. Somewhere off in the distance, the sound of my friends spinning, running, and laughing on the dirt road and through the overgrown ditches. Even further off, the howl of coyotes gives warning to some unfortunate creature.
The song changed.
I lean back on my elbows in the truck box so I'm not craning my neck as much. I watch the sky light and darken as the green strips stretch and compress, appear and dissappear.
I found a place among the souls who offered me a rope, thankful for the day my journey came across the boat
I glance over at the friend next to me, their breath fogging from the cold night air as they try to take a picture of the sight in front of them. A picture can hold a thousand words, and will always far outlast our memories. The last time we watched the sky like this, we were laying on rocks beside a bridge, both being lulled to sleep by the song of a foolish man, enchanted by a forest spirit. I had never known rocks to be so comfortable until that night.
The song changed.
I went back to watching the sky, the ribbons of light greatly diminished from when I last looked. Now, they seemed to be painting a picture of a snowy tundra, briefly illuminated by pine trees, putting emphasis instead on the stars above the green light. I traced the constellations I knew, recalling the stories and different names I knew for each one; wishing I knew more of their names, shapes, and histories.
I know you'd break your neck just to see the stars
I chucked and rubbed the back of my sore neck. If nothing else, the song got that right. The two friends seemed to tire of their galavanting and ran back over to join us at the truck again, watching the stars and northern lights. The ribbons seemed to take that as their cue to take center stage, once again filling the night sky. The lines between each fold and spike grew and shrank, boldened and blurred. We watched the spectacle in awe, music having returned to the familiar, calming strings.
A flash of orange, red, and yellow streaked through the performance, there and gone in an instant. For a moment, all that could be heard was the stringed instruments. My friends began exclaiming their shock, estonishment, and excitement, one regretfully saying they didn't make a wish. I sat there, stunned, replaying the sudden flash of light - a meteor, we agreed - desperately trying to commit it to memory. I didn't want to forget it or that night. The friend next to me suggested I make a note of it on my phone, so I did.
The night drew on, and songs continued to change. Eventually, we moved the truck around so we could watch from inside the cab, as most of us did not dress warmly enough. The friend and I talked about the last time we stargazed like that and of bringing blankets next time. We talked about the people we liked and of people we wished to love.
After what might have been hours, the show did end, and the four of us left our little spot in the country so we could all sleep before work the next day.
(the original note from that night: Fucking commet while watching Northern lights with buds)
Songs referenced are (in order): Journey to Wherever We May Go by Grand Commander, The Willow Maid by Eurtan, Archer by Novo Amor. The referenced string music is from Astronomy, Vol. 1 by Sleeping at Last.
Pictures by @/alyssamoggy on Instagram
Always so much thought put into those little details! I love the foam and light on the sea.
Look at him chilling.
Shared this already (not sure if it was from the same poster) I believe but I needed to do it again. I absolutely LOVE these two characters so much especially together (not sure why but they make me happy especially together). I believe that she makes Crosshair think in a positive/different way (she is the kindest and is one of the most compassionate people in all of the Star Wars universe. Also, she loves him even after he specifically told his men to shoot her or anything else that he did against her. I think/believe that Crosshairs chip is still in but just malfunctioning and not working like it used to. So I think he still loyal to the empire in most ways (saw that he can’t still be COMPLETELY loyal as he still killed his men whether to get them to join the empire. That is something against what “good soldiers” do in my opinion) but at the same time Omega makes Crosshair have more of a conscience if that makes sense any sense. If you make or find any Fanfictions or anything else with Crosshair AND Omega especially interactions with them...please somehow share them with me if possible. Thank you so much, I’m so obsessed with finding everything with these two in them! Sorry for the long explanation and request...hopefully it doesn’t bother anyone. May The Force Be With You!
Speaking of content I desperately crave. Bring back toasty toothpick man. I will not rest till the Bad batch is a whole family again.
Please please please season 2 be kinder to us who love Cross and don’t want him separated from his WHOLE family (because Omega needs her Ori Vod too and we see how her little heart is breaking for him too)!!!!
Season 1’s finale broke my heart...on par with season 2’s finale of The Mandalorian and I’m OBSESSED with anything Grogu. Favorite of all the shows right now are: tying for number 1 is The Mandalorian and The Bad Batch and tying for number 2 is The Clone Wars and Rebels!
Speaking of content I desperately crave. Bring back toasty toothpick man. I will not rest till the Bad batch is a whole family again.
Our Amazing Solar System
After a long fight, he likes to stargaze on the top of mountains
Wonderful lineart by @thestarsofpines
Discovering the Universe Through the Constellation Orion
Do you ever look up at the night sky and get lost in the stars? Maybe while you’re stargazing, you spot some of your favorite constellations. But did you know there’s more to constellations than meets the eye? They’re not just a bunch of imaginary shapes made up of stars — constellations tell us stories about the universe from our perspective on Earth.
What is a constellation?
A constellation is a named pattern of stars that looks like a particular shape. Think of it like connecting the dots. If you join the dots — stars, in this case — and use your imagination, the picture would look like an object, animal, or person. For example, the ancient Greeks believed an arrangement of stars in the sky looked like a giant hunter with a sword attached to his belt, so they named it after a famous hunter in their mythology, Orion. It’s one of the most recognizable constellations in the night sky and can be seen around the world. The easiest way to find Orion is to go outside on a clear night and look for three bright stars close together in an almost-straight line. These three stars represent Orion's belt. Two brighter stars to the north mark his shoulders, and two more to the south represent his feet.
Credit: NASA/STScI
Over time, cultures around the world have had different names and numbers of constellations depending on what people thought they saw. Today, there are 88 officially recognized constellations. Though these constellations are generally based on what we can see with our unaided eyes, scientists have also invented unofficial constellations for objects that can only be seen in gamma rays, the highest-energy form of light.
Perspective is everything
The stars in constellations may look close to each other from our point of view here on Earth, but in space they might be really far apart. For example, Alnitak, the star at the left side of Orion's belt, is about 800 light-years away. Alnilam, the star in the middle of the belt, is about 1,300 light-years away. And Mintaka, the star at the right side of the belt, is about 900 light-years away. Yet they all appear from Earth to have the same brightness. Space is three-dimensional, so if you were looking at the stars that make up the constellation Orion from another part of our galaxy, you might see an entirely different pattern!
The superstars of Orion
Now that we know a little bit more about constellations, let’s talk about the supercool cosmic objects that form them – stars! Though over a dozen stars make up Orion, two take center stage. The red supergiant Betelgeuse (Orion's right shoulder) and blue supergiant Rigel (Orion's left foot) stand out as the brightest members in the constellation.
Credit: Derrick Lim
Betelgeuse is a young star by stellar standards, about 10 million years old, compared to our nearly 5 billion-year-old Sun. The star is so huge that if it replaced the Sun at the center of our solar system, it would extend past the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter! But due to its giant mass, it leads a fast and furious life.
Betelgeuse is destined to end in a supernova blast. Scientists discovered a mysterious dimming of Betelgeuse in late 2019 caused by a traumatic outburst that some believed was a precursor to this cosmic event. Though we don’t know if this incident is directly related to an imminent supernova, there’s a tiny chance it might happen in your lifetime. But don't worry, Betelgeuse is about 550 light-years away, so this event wouldn't be dangerous to us – but it would be a spectacular sight.
Rigel is also a young star, estimated to be 8 million years old. Like Betelgeuse, Rigel is much larger and heavier than our Sun. Its surface is thousands of degrees hotter than Betelgeuse, though, making it shine blue-white rather than red. These colors are even noticeable from Earth. Although Rigel is farther from Earth than Betelgeuse (about 860 light-years away), it is intrinsically brighter than its companion, making it the brightest star in Orion and one of the brightest stars in the night sky.
Credit: Rogelio Bernal Andreo
Buckle up for Orion’s belt
Some dots that make up constellations are actually more than one star, but from a great distance they look like a single object. Remember Mintaka, the star at the far right side of Orion's belt? It is not just a single star, but actually five stars in a complex star system.
Credit: X-ray: NASA/CXC/GSFC/M. Corcoran et al.; Optical: Eckhard Slawik
Sword or a stellar nursery?
Below the three bright stars of Orion’s belt lies his sword, where you can find the famous Orion Nebula. The nebula is only 1,300 light-years away, making it the closest large star-forming region to Earth. Because of its brightness and prominent location just below Orion’s belt, you can actually spot the Orion Nebula from Earth! But with a pair of binoculars, you can get a much more detailed view of the stellar nursery. It’s best visible in January and looks like a fuzzy “star” in the middle of Orion’s sword.
More to discover in constellations
In addition to newborn stars, Orion also has some other awesome cosmic objects hanging around. Scientists have discovered exoplanets, or planets outside of our solar system, orbiting stars there. One of those planets is a giant gas world three times more massive than Jupiter. It’s estimated that on average there is at least one planet for every star in our galaxy. Just think of all the worlds you may be seeing when you look up at the night sky!
It’s also possible that the Orion Nebula might be home to a black hole, making it the closest known black hole to Earth. Though we may never detect it, because no light can escape black holes, making them invisible. However, space telescopes with special instruments can help find black holes. They can observe the behavior of material and stars that are very close to black holes, helping scientists find clues that can lead them closer to discovering some of these most bizarre and fascinating objects in the cosmos.
Next time you go stargazing, remember that there’s more to the constellations than meets the eye. Let them guide you to some of the most incredible and mysterious objects of the cosmos — young stars, brilliant nebulae, new worlds, star systems, and even galaxies!
To keep up with the most recent stellar news, follow NASA Universe on Twitter and Facebook.
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10 Things: How to Photograph a Meteor Shower
Taking photographs of a meteor shower can be an exercise in patience as meteors streak across the sky quickly and unannounced, but with these tips – and some good fortune – you might be rewarded with a great photo.
These tips are meant for a DSLR or mirrorless camera, but some point-and-shoot cameras with manual controls could be used as well.
1. The Photo Op: Perseids Meteors
The Perseids are dusty remnants of comet 109P/Swift-Tuttle.
Earth passes through the comet’s invisible, multi-billion mile trail of tiny debris each year around August, creating a meteor shower of so-called “shooting stars” as the particles are vaporized in our atmosphere.
Perseid meteors already are streaking across the sky. This year's shower peaks on a moonless summer night -from 4 pm on the 12th until 4 am on the 13th Eastern Daylight Time.
Read more on the Perseids ›
2. Get away from city lights and find a place with dark skies.
In this 30 second exposure, a meteor streaks across the sky in Spruce Knob, West Virginia, during the 2016 Perseids meteor shower. Credit: NASA/Bill Ingalls
Too much light and it will be hard for your eyes to see fainter meteors, plus your image will get flooded with the glow of light. Turning down the brightness of the camera’s LCD screen will help keep your eyes adjusted to the dark. The peak of the 2018 Perseid meteor shower occurs just after the new moon, meaning a thin crescent will set long before the best viewing hours, leaving hopeful sky watchers with a moonlight-free sky!
3. Use a tripod.
In this ten-second exposure, a meteor streaks across the sky above Washington, DC during the 2015 Perseids meteor shower, Credit: NASA/Joel Kowsky
Meteor photography requires long exposures, and even the steadiest of hands can’t hold a camera still enough for a clear shot. Heavier tripods help reduce shaking caused by wind and footsteps, but even a lightweight tripod will do. You can always place sandbags against the feet of the tripod to add weight and stability. If you don’t have a tripod, you might be able to prop your camera on or up against something around you, but be sure to secure your camera.
4. Use a wide-angle lens.
In this 30 second exposure taken with a circular fish-eye lens, a meteor streaks across the sky during the 2016 Perseids meteor shower as a photographer wipes moisture from the camera lens Friday, August 12, 2016 in Spruce Knob, West Virginia. Credit: NASA/Bill Ingalls
A wide-angle lens will capture more of the sky and give you a greater chance of capturing a meteor in your shot, while a zoom lens captures a smaller area of the sky. The odds of a meteor streaking past that small patch are lower.
5. Use a shutter release cable or the camera’s built-in timer.
Long exposures are not just for meteors. In this shot taken at Joshua Tree National Park, a hiker's headlamp leaves a trail of light along a twilight path. Credit: National Park Service / Hannah Schwalbe
A tripod does a great job of reducing most of the shaking your camera experiences, but even the act of pressing the shutter button can blur your extended exposure. Using the self-timer gives you several seconds for any shaking from pressing the shutter button to stop before the shutter is released. A shutter release cable (without a self-timer) eliminates the need to touch the camera at all. And if your camera has wifi capabilities, you might be able to activate the shutter from a mobile device.
6. Manually focus your lens.
In this 30 second exposure, a meteor streaks across the sky during the annual Perseids meteor shower Friday, August 12, 2016 in Spruce Knob, West Virginia. Credit: NASA/Bill Ingalls
At night, autofocus will struggle to find something on which to focus. Setting your focus to infinity will get you close, but chances are you’ll have to take some test images and do some fine tuning. With your camera on a tripod, take a test image lasting a few seconds, then use the camera’s screen to review the image. Zoom in to a star to see how sharp your focus is. If the stars look like fuzzy blobs, make tiny adjustments to the focus and take another test image.
Repeat until you are happy with the result.
If your camera has a zoomable electronic viewfinder or live view option, you might be able to zoom to a star and focus without having to take a test image.
7. Aim your camera.
The Perseids appear to radiate from the constellation Perseus, visible in the northern sky soon after sunset this time of year.
Even though we don’t know when or where a single meteor will appear, we do know the general area from which they’ll originate.
Meteor showers get their name based on the point in the sky from which they appear to radiate. In the case of the Perseids, during their peak, they appear to come from the direction of the constellation Perseus in the northern sky.
8. Calculate your exposure time.
In this 20-second exposure, a meteor lights up the sky over the top of a mountain ridge near Park City, Utah. Even though this image was captured during the annual Perseid meteor shower, this "shooting star" is probably not one of the Perseid meteors, which originate from material left behind by Comet Swift-Tuttle. Instead, it's likely one of the many bits of rock and dust that randomly fall into the atmosphere on any given night. Credit: NASA/Bill Dunford
As Earth rotates, the stars in the sky appear to move, and if your shutter is open long enough, you might capture some of that movement. If you want to avoid apparent star movement, you can follow the 500 Rule. Take 500 and divide it by the length in millimeters of your lens. The resulting number is the length of time in seconds that you can keep your shutter open before seeing star trails. For example, if you’re using a 20 mm lens, 25 seconds (500 divided by 20) is the longest you can set your exposure time before star trails start to show up in your images.
9. Experiment!
In this 30 second exposure photo, hikers find their way to the top of Spruce Knob in West Virginia to view the annual Perseids meteor shower, Friday, August 12, 2016. Credit: NASA/Bill Ingalls
Once you know the maximum exposure time, you can set your shutter priority to that length and let the camera calculate other settings for your first image. Depending on how the image turns out, you can manually adjust aperture (set it to a lower number if the image is too dark) and ISO (set it to a higher number if the image is too dark) to improve your next images. Changing only one setting at a time will give you a better understanding of how those changes affect your image.
10. Enjoy the show.
The crew of the International Space Station captured this Perseid meteor falling to Earth over China in 2011. Credit: NASA
With your camera settings adjusted, capturing that perfect photo is just a matter of time and luck. The highest rate of meteors visible per hour is in the hours after midnight and before dawn. Set up your camera next to a lounge chair or a blanket to witness the wonder of a meteor shower for yourself – and, with any luck, you’ll take home some envy-inducing shots, too!
Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com.
What's Up - December 2017
What’s Up For December? Geminid and Ursid meteor showers & winter constellations!
This month hosts the best meteor shower of the year and the brightest stars in familiar constellations.
The Geminds peak on the morning of the 14th, and are active from December 4th through the 17th. The peak lasts for a full 24 hours, meaning more worldwide meteor watchers will get to see this spectacle.
Expect to see up to 120 meteors per hour between midnight and 4 a.m. but only from a dark sky. You'll see fewer after moonrise at 3:30 a.m. local time.
In the southern hemisphere, you won't see as many, perhaps 10-20 per hour, because the radiant never rises above the horizon.
Take a moment to enjoy the circle of constellations and their brightest stars around Gemini this month.
Find yellow Capella in the constellation Auriga.
Next-going clockwise--at 1 o'clock find Taurus and bright reddish Aldebaran, plus the Pleiades.
At two, familiar Orion, with red Betelguese, blue-white Rigel, and the three famous belt stars in-between the two.
Next comes Leo, and its white lionhearted star, Regulus at 7 o'clock.
Another familiar constellation Ursa Major completes the view at 9 o'clock.
There's a second meteor shower in December, the Ursids, radiating from Ursa Minor, the Little Dipper. If December 22nd and the morning of December 23rd are clear where you are, have a look at the Little Dipper's bowl, and you might see about ten meteors per hour. Watch the full What’s Up for December Video:
There are so many sights to see in the sky. To stay informed, subscribe to our What’s Up video series on Facebook. Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com.
What’s Up November 2017
What’s Up For November?
Dawn pairing of Jupiter and Venus, Moon shines near star clusters, meteor activity all month long!
This month binoculars will come in handy--to view the moon, star clusters, and a close pairing of Venus and Jupiter.
You can’t miss bright Venus in the predawn sky. This month Venus pairs up with Jupiter on the morning of November 13th.
The Leonids peak on a moonless November 17th. Expect no more than 10 meteors an hour around 3:00 a.m., the height of the shower.
The Northern and Southern sub-branches of the Taurid meteor shower offer sparse counts of about 5 meteors per hour, but slow, bright meteors are common.
The nearby November Orionids peak on the 28th. In contrast to the Taurids, the Orionids are swift. But don’t expect more than 3 meteors per hour.
The moon glides by three beautiful star clusters in the morning sky this month, and a pair of binoculars will allow you to see the individual stars in the clusters. Aim your binoculars at the Pleiades and the moon on the 5th.
Then aim at the Messier or M-35 cluster and the moon on the 7th and the Beehive cluster and the moon on the 10th.
Meanwhile, at dusk, catch Saturn as it dips closer to the western horizon and pairs up with Mercury on the 24th through the 28th.
Also, Comet C/2017 O1 should still be a binocular-friendly magnitude 7 or 8 greenish object in November. Use Polaris, the North Star as a guide. Look in the East to Northeast sky in the late evening.
Watch the full What’s Up for November Video:
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What’s Up October 2017
What’s Up For October?
Planet Pairs, Stellar Superstars, Observe The Moon Night!!
This month, catch planet pairs, our moon near red stars, an asteroid, meteors and International Observe the Moon Night!
You can't miss bright Venus in the predawn sky. Look for fainter Mars below Venus on the 1st, really close on the 5th, and above Venus after that.
Midmonth, the moon is visible near Regulus, the white starry heart of the constellation Leo.
In the October 8-11 predawn sky watch the moon glide near the Pleiades star cluster and pass near the red stars Aldebaran in the constellation Taurus and Betelgeuse in Orion.
After dusk in the early part of the month look for Saturn in the southwest sky above another red star: Antares in Scorpius. Later in the month, find the moon above Antares October 22 and 23.
Saturn will be above the moon on the 23rd and below it on the 24th.
Uranus reach opposition on October 19th. It's visible all night long and its blue-green color is unmistakeable. It may be bright enough to see with your naked eye--and for sure in binoculars.
The Orionids peak on October 20--a dark, moonless night. Look near Orion's club in the hours before dawn and you may see up to 10 to 15 meteors per hour.
Use binoculars to look for bright asteroid 7 Iris in the constellation Aries. Newbies to astronomy should be able to spot this magnitude 6.9 asteroid - even from the city.
Look later in the month and sketch its positions a day or two apart--to see it move.
Finally, celebrate International Observe the Moon Night on October 28 with your local astronomy club, Solar System Ambassador, museum, or planetarium. The first quarter moon that night will display some great features!
Watch the full What’s Up for October Video:
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What’s Up for September 2017?
Set your sights beyond the solar system and take a late summertime road trip along the Milky Way!
On September 15 the Cassini spacecraft ends its glorious Saturnian science tour by plunging into the atmosphere of Saturn, becoming forever a part of the ringed planet. Learn more about the end of mission activities HERE.
This month Saturn is the only prominent evening planet low in the southwest sky.
Look for it near the constellation Sagittarius. Above and below Saturn--from a dark sky--you can't miss the summer Milky Way spanning the sky from northeast to southwest.
Grab a pair of binoculars and scan the teapot-shaped Sagittarius, where stars and some brighter clumps appear as steam from the teapot. Those bright clumps are near the center of our galaxy, which is full of gas, dust and stars.
Directly overhead is the great Summer Triangle of stars. Vega, Altair and Deneb are in the pretty constellations Lyra, Aquila and Cygnus.
As you gaze toward the northeast you'll see Cassiopeia, the familiar W-shaped constellation...and Perseus. Through your binoculars, look for the Perseus Double Cluster. Both of the clusters are visible with the naked eye, are 7500 light years away, and contain more than 300 blue-white super-giant stars!
Every star and every object you can see with your unaided eye is part of the Milky Way. With one exception: the great Andromeda galaxy, which is faintly visible through binoculars on the opposite side of the night sky from Saturn and the teapot.
You can find out about our missions studying the solar system and universe at: https://www.nasa.gov/topics/solarsystem/index.html
Watch the full What’s Up for September video:
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What’s Up for March 2017?
What’s Up for March? The moon hides red star Aldebaran and crescents dazzle after dusk.
On March 4 the first quarter moon passes between Earth and the star Aldebaran, temporarily blocking our view of the star. This is called an occultation.
The occultation begins and concludes at different times, depending on where you are when you view it.
The event should be easy to see from most of the U.S., Mexico, most of Central America, the Western Caribbean and Bermuda.
Observers along a narrow path from Vancouver, British Columbia, to Hartford, Connecticut, will see the moon “graze” the star. The star will disappear and reappear repeatedly as hills and valleys on the moon alternately obscure and reveal it.
As seen from Earth, both Mercury and Venus have phases like our moon. That’s because they circle the sun inside Earth’s orbit.
Planets that orbit between Earth and the sun are known as inner or inferior planets.
Inferior planets can never be at “opposition,” which is when the planet and the sun are on opposite sides of Earth.
But inferior planets can be at “conjunction,” which is when a planet, the sun and Earth are all in a straight line.
Conjunction can happen once when the planet is on the opposite side of the sun from Earth and again when it’s on the same side of the sun as Earth.
When a planet is on the opposite side of the sun from Earth, we say it is at “superior conjunction.” As the planet moves out from behind the sun and gets closer to Earth, we see less and less of the lit side. We see phases, similar to our moon’s phases.
Mercury is at superior conjunction on March 6.
A few weeks later, the planet emerges from behind the sun and we can once again observe it. By the end of March we’ll see a last-quarter Mercury.
On April 20 Mercury reaches “inferior conjunction.”
Brilliant Venus is also racing toward its own inferior conjunction on March 25. Watch its crescent get thinner and thinner as the planet’s size appears larger and larger, because it is getting closer to Earth.
Finally, look for Jupiter to rise in the East. It will be visible all month long from late evening until dawn.
You can catch up on solar system missions and all of our missions at www.nasa.gov
Watch the full “What’s Up for March 2017″ video here:
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What’s Up for October 2016?
What’s Up for October? Moon phases, Astronomy Day, meteors and Saturn!
The new moon phase starts the month on October 1. Of course, the new moon isn't visible, because it's between Earth and the sun, and the unlit side is facing Earth.
Night by night the slender crescent gets bigger and higher in the sky and easier to see just after sunset. On the 3rd and 4th, the moon will pass just above Venus!
A week later on the 9th the moon has traveled through one quarter of its 29-day orbit around Earth, and we see the first quarter phase. Also look for Mars just below the moon.
Join us in celebrating International Observe the Moon Night Saturday, October 8th, with your local astronomy club or science center. Conveniently, the 8th is also Fall Astronomy Day, celebrated internationally by astronomy clubs since 1973.
One week later on the 16th the moon reaches opposition, or the full moon phase, when the moon and the sun are on opposite sides of Earth. And the sun completely illuminates the moon as seen from Earth.
During this phase, the moon rises in the east just as the sun is setting in the west. Overnight, the moon crosses the sky and sets at dawn.
A week later, on the 22nd of October, the last quarter moon rises at midnight. Later, the pretty and bright Beehive Cluster will be visible near the moon until dawn.
To wrap up the month, 29 days after the last new moon we start the lunar cycle all over again with another new moon phase on October 30th. Will you be able to spot the one-day old moon on Halloween? It will be a challenge!
There are three meteor showers in October--the Draconids, the Taurids and the Orionids. Try for the Draconids on October 8th.
See the Taurids on October 10th.
The Orionids will be marred by the full moon on the 21st, but all three meteor showers will offer some possible bright meteors.
Finally, you’ll have an especially pretty view of Saturn, when it forms a straight line with Venus and the red star Antares on the 27th.
You can catch up on NASA's lunar mission, the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, the Cassini Mission to Saturn and all of our missions at www.nasa.gov.
Watch the full October “What’s Up" video for more:
Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com.
What’s Up for September 2016
We won’t have a solar eclipse until Aug. 21, 2017, but observers in central Africa will see an annular eclipse, where the moon covers most but not all of the sun, on Sept. 1. Observers always need to use safe solar eclipse glasses or filters on telescopes, binoculars and cameras.
Also this month, there are two minor meteor showers, both with about 5 swift and bright meteors per hour at their peak, which will be near dawn. The first is the Aurigid shower on Sept. 1. The new moon on the first means the sky will be nice and dark for the Aurigids.
The second shower is the Epsilon Perseids on Sept. 9. The first quarter moon sets on the 9th at midnight, just in time for the best viewing of the Perseids.
There are many nice pair-ups between the moon and planets this month. You can see the moon between Venus and Jupiter on Sept. 2, and above Venus on the 3rd, right after sunset low on the West-Southwest horizon. On the 15th the nearly full moon pairs up with Neptune, two weeks after its opposition, when the 8th planet is closest to Earth in its orbit around the sun.
Watch the full September “What’s Up” video for more:
Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com.
What’s Up for August 2016
What’s up for August? How to spot Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn, as well as the and the annual Perseid meteor shower.
Here are some highlights in this month’s nighttime skies as picked by astronomer Jane Houston Jones from our Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
Spot Venus, Mercury and Jupiter and the moon low on the western horizon about 45 minutes after sunset from August 4 through 7. On August 11, look in the south-southwest sky for a second planetary dance as Mars and Saturn are high and easy to see and they are joined by the moon.
The famous and reliably active Perseid meteor shower peaks in the morning hours of August 12. The moon, which paired up so nicely with Mars and Saturn on the 11, is bright enough to blot out some of the meteors, but lucky for you it sets about 1 a.m. on the morning of the 12, just at the peak time for the best Perseid viewing.
But wait, there are more planets, dwarf planets and an asteroid visible this month! Uranus and Neptune and dwarf planet Ceres are visible before dawn in the southern sky. Uranus is visible through binoculars but Neptune and Ceres require a telescope.
Watch the full August “What’s Up” video for more:
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What’s Up for July 2016?
What's Up for July? Use Saturn as your guide to a tour of the summer Milky Way.
Saturn continues to dazzle this month. Its wide rings and golden color provide a nice contrast to nearby Mars and Antares. Below Saturn lies the constellation Scorpius, which really does look like a scorpion!
Through binoculars or telescopes you'll be able to spot two pretty star clusters: a compact (or globular) cluster, M-4, and an open cluster, M-7. M-7 is known as Ptolemy's cluster. It was observed and cataloged by Greek-Egyptian astronomer Ptolemy in the first century.
Climbing north, you'll be able to spot the teapot shape which forms part of the constellation Sagittarius. The center of the Milky Way is easy to see. It looks like bright steam rising from the teapot's spout.
With difficulty, a good star chart and a medium-sized telescope you can locate faint Pluto in the "teaspoon" adjacent to the teapot.
A binocular tour of this center core of the Milky Way reveals many beautiful summer sky objects. We first encounter the Eagle Nebula, M-16. Part of this nebula is featured in the famous and beautiful "Pillars of Creation" images taken by our Hubble Space Telescope.
You'll have to stay up later to see the northern Milky Way constellations, which are better placed for viewing later in the summer and fall. Cygnus the swan features the prettiest supernova remnant in the entire sky, the Veil Nebula. It's too big to fit in one eyepiece view, but luckily there are three sections of it.
Look between Aquila and Cygnus to find three tiny constellations: Delphinus the dolphin, Vulpecula the fox and Lyra the lyre (or harp). M-57, the Ring Nebula, is the remains from a shell of ionized gas expelled by a red giant star into the surrounding interstellar medium. It's pretty, too! Look in Vulpecula for the Dumbbell, another planetary nebula.
We'll end our summer tour with Lacerta the lizard and Draco the Dragon. Lacerta is home to a star with an extrasolar planet in its orbit, and Draco, facing away from the center of our Milky Way, is a treasure trove of distant galaxies to catch in your telescope.
Watch the full What’s Up for July 2016 video HERE.
You can catch up on current missions and space telescopes studying our Milky Way and beyond at www.nasa.gov.
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What’s Up for June 2016?
What's Up for June? Saturn at its best! Plus, good views of Mars, Jupiter and Jupiter's moons continue from dusk to dawn.
You don't have to stay up late to see Jupiter, Mars and Saturn this month, because they're all visible soon after sunset. Jupiter is the brightest of the three, visible in the western sky all evening.
The four Galilean moons are easily visible in binoculars or telescopes. If you think you're seeing 5 moons on June 10th, you're not. One of them is a distant star in the constellation Leo.
For telescope viewers, the time near Mars' closest approach to Earth, May 30th this year, is the best time to try to see the two moons of Mars: Phobos and Deimos. It takes patience, very steady skies and good charts! Mars is still large and bright in early June, but it fades as speedy Earth, in its shorter orbit around the sun, passes it.
Saturn has been close to Mars recently. This month Saturn reaches opposition, when Saturn, Earth and the sun are in a straight line with Earth in the middle, providing the best and closest views of the ringed beauty and several of its moons. You'll be able to make out cloud bands on Saturn, in delicate shades of cream and butterscotch. They're fainter than the bands of Jupiter. Through a telescope you'll see Saturn's rings tilted about as wide as they get: 26 degrees.
You'll also have a ring-side view of the Cassini division, discovered by Giovanni Domenico Cassini, namesake of our Cassini spacecraft, orbiting Saturn since 2004 and continuing through September 2017. When you look at Saturn through a telescope, you can't help but see several of its 4 brightest moons, and maybe more. If you just see one, that's Titan, 50% larger than our own moon. A telescope can also reveal more moons, like Saturn's two-colored moon Iapetus. It takes 3 months to orbit Saturn, and it's fairly easy to see.
There's a bright comet visible this month, Comet PanSTARRS. It's best seen from the southern hemisphere, but it's also visible from the U.S. low in the morning sky. Comet PanSTARRS can be seen through a telescope near the beautiful Helix Nebula on June 4, but it is visible all month.
Watch the full June “What’s Up” video for more: https://youtu.be/M7RtIa9zBYA
Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com
What’s Up for September?
Stargazing and looking up into the night sky is always a fun thing to do. This month, it will be especially exciting because there will be a total eclipse of a supermoon, plus the opportunity to see planets and the late-summer Milky Way!
What is a supermoon?
A supermoon is a new or full moon that occurs when it is at, or near its closest approach to Earth in a given orbit. There are usually 4 to 6 supermoons every year.
Observers can view the total eclipse on September 27, starting at 10:11 p.m. EDT until 11:23 p.m. This event will be visible in North and South America, as well as Europe and Africa. So make sure to mark your calendars!
This month, you will also be able to see the planets! Look for Mercury, Saturn, Pluto and Neptune in the evening sky. Uranus and Neptune at midnight, and Venus, Mars and Jupiter in the pre-dawn sky.
Finally, if you’re able to escape to a dark location, you might be able to see a great view of our Milky Way!
So, make sure to get outside this month and take a look at everything our night sky has to offer.
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Discovering the Universe Through the Constellation Orion
Do you ever look up at the night sky and get lost in the stars? Maybe while you’re stargazing, you spot some of your favorite constellations. But did you know there’s more to constellations than meets the eye? They’re not just a bunch of imaginary shapes made up of stars — constellations tell us stories about the universe from our perspective on Earth.
What is a constellation?
A constellation is a named pattern of stars that looks like a particular shape. Think of it like connecting the dots. If you join the dots — stars, in this case — and use your imagination, the picture would look like an object, animal, or person. For example, the ancient Greeks believed an arrangement of stars in the sky looked like a giant hunter with a sword attached to his belt, so they named it after a famous hunter in their mythology, Orion. It’s one of the most recognizable constellations in the night sky and can be seen around the world. The easiest way to find Orion is to go outside on a clear night and look for three bright stars close together in an almost-straight line. These three stars represent Orion's belt. Two brighter stars to the north mark his shoulders, and two more to the south represent his feet.
Credit: NASA/STScI
Over time, cultures around the world have had different names and numbers of constellations depending on what people thought they saw. Today, there are 88 officially recognized constellations. Though these constellations are generally based on what we can see with our unaided eyes, scientists have also invented unofficial constellations for objects that can only be seen in gamma rays, the highest-energy form of light.
Perspective is everything
The stars in constellations may look close to each other from our point of view here on Earth, but in space they might be really far apart. For example, Alnitak, the star at the left side of Orion's belt, is about 800 light-years away. Alnilam, the star in the middle of the belt, is about 1,300 light-years away. And Mintaka, the star at the right side of the belt, is about 900 light-years away. Yet they all appear from Earth to have the same brightness. Space is three-dimensional, so if you were looking at the stars that make up the constellation Orion from another part of our galaxy, you might see an entirely different pattern!
The superstars of Orion
Now that we know a little bit more about constellations, let’s talk about the supercool cosmic objects that form them – stars! Though over a dozen stars make up Orion, two take center stage. The red supergiant Betelgeuse (Orion's right shoulder) and blue supergiant Rigel (Orion's left foot) stand out as the brightest members in the constellation.
Credit: Derrick Lim
Betelgeuse is a young star by stellar standards, about 10 million years old, compared to our nearly 5 billion-year-old Sun. The star is so huge that if it replaced the Sun at the center of our solar system, it would extend past the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter! But due to its giant mass, it leads a fast and furious life.
Betelgeuse is destined to end in a supernova blast. Scientists discovered a mysterious dimming of Betelgeuse in late 2019 caused by a traumatic outburst that some believed was a precursor to this cosmic event. Though we don’t know if this incident is directly related to an imminent supernova, there’s a tiny chance it might happen in your lifetime. But don't worry, Betelgeuse is about 550 light-years away, so this event wouldn't be dangerous to us – but it would be a spectacular sight.
Rigel is also a young star, estimated to be 8 million years old. Like Betelgeuse, Rigel is much larger and heavier than our Sun. Its surface is thousands of degrees hotter than Betelgeuse, though, making it shine blue-white rather than red. These colors are even noticeable from Earth. Although Rigel is farther from Earth than Betelgeuse (about 860 light-years away), it is intrinsically brighter than its companion, making it the brightest star in Orion and one of the brightest stars in the night sky.
Credit: Rogelio Bernal Andreo
Buckle up for Orion’s belt
Some dots that make up constellations are actually more than one star, but from a great distance they look like a single object. Remember Mintaka, the star at the far right side of Orion's belt? It is not just a single star, but actually five stars in a complex star system.
Credit: X-ray: NASA/CXC/GSFC/M. Corcoran et al.; Optical: Eckhard Slawik
Sword or a stellar nursery?
Below the three bright stars of Orion’s belt lies his sword, where you can find the famous Orion Nebula. The nebula is only 1,300 light-years away, making it the closest large star-forming region to Earth. Because of its brightness and prominent location just below Orion’s belt, you can actually spot the Orion Nebula from Earth! But with a pair of binoculars, you can get a much more detailed view of the stellar nursery. It’s best visible in January and looks like a fuzzy “star” in the middle of Orion’s sword.
More to discover in constellations
In addition to newborn stars, Orion also has some other awesome cosmic objects hanging around. Scientists have discovered exoplanets, or planets outside of our solar system, orbiting stars there. One of those planets is a giant gas world three times more massive than Jupiter. It’s estimated that on average there is at least one planet for every star in our galaxy. Just think of all the worlds you may be seeing when you look up at the night sky!
It’s also possible that the Orion Nebula might be home to a black hole, making it the closest known black hole to Earth. Though we may never detect it, because no light can escape black holes, making them invisible. However, space telescopes with special instruments can help find black holes. They can observe the behavior of material and stars that are very close to black holes, helping scientists find clues that can lead them closer to discovering some of these most bizarre and fascinating objects in the cosmos.
Next time you go stargazing, remember that there’s more to the constellations than meets the eye. Let them guide you to some of the most incredible and mysterious objects of the cosmos — young stars, brilliant nebulae, new worlds, star systems, and even galaxies!
To keep up with the most recent stellar news, follow NASA Universe on Twitter and Facebook.
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I Just tried this tonight, and while I didn't manage much in the way of stargazing, I saw fireflies for the first time in my life. I wasn't even aware that they were present here, and yet there was flickering in the front yard at about the same time that the first stars emerged. I also got eaten alive by mosquitos, but the bites will fade, while the fact that I have seen fireflies will not change.
To Stormsaika, Thank you
tonight’s mood is stargazing in the summertime while listening to Welcome to Nightvale and having an existential crisis as the cicadas drone on in the background
You can't call someone family until you go stargazing with them.
Fall 2023 Public Events
Our next round of public events starts in September - here's the schedule (each event is weather-dependent, so always check back to see if the event is on!):
Public Nights on Wednesdays: - Sept. 27, 7:30 - 9:00 pm - Oct. 4, 11, and 18, 7:00 - 8:30 pm - Nov. 1, 7:00 - 8:30 pm - Nov. 8 and 15, 6:00 - 7:30 pm
Special Daytime Event: Oct. 14 Partial Solar Eclipse! 10:30 am - 2:45 pm
Halloween Events! - Oct. 25, 7:00 - 8:30 pm - Rain Date 1: Oct. 26, 7:00 - 8:30 pm (only occurs if Oct. 25 doesn't) - Rain Date 2: Oct. 30, 7:00 - 8:30 pm (only occurs if both Oct. 25 and 26 do not)
During our events, we set up telescopes and find objects in the sky for our visitors to see. We talk astronomy, too! Our events are free, open to the public, and appropriate for all ages.
Regrann from @nasa - What's Up in the night skies this June? First up is Venus. It reaches its highest sunset altitude for the year this month and sets more than two hours after sunset. Then, you can't miss Jupiter, only a month after its opposition--when Earth was directly between Jupiter and the Sun. The best time to observe Jupiter through a telescope is 10:30 p.m. local time at the beginning of the month and as soon as it's dark by the end of the month. Just aim your binoculars at the bright planet for a view including the four Galilean moons. Or just enjoy Jupiter with your unaided eye! Credit: NASA #nasa #space #jupiter #venus #planets #stargazing #astronomy #solarsystem #nightsky #whatsup #lookup #sky #stars #june
Regrann from @nasa - What’s up for April in the night sky? This month, you won’t want to miss red Mars and golden Saturn in the south-southeast sky. By April 7, the Moon joins the pair and if you’re in a dark area, you may see some glow from the nearby Milky Way. Credit: NASA #nasa #space #mars #saturn #moon #planets #south #southeast #stargazing #astronomy #solarsystem #pair #milkyway #nightsky #whatsup #lookup #sky #stars #april
Check out the meteor shower this week. At it ‘s peak tomorrow morning Aug 12 between 2 am and sunrise. nordgrenexperience.com
The Perseid Meteor Shower Is Here!
Image Credit: NASA/Bill Ingalls
The Perseids are at their peak this week!
The Perseid meteor shower, one of the biggest meteor showers of the year, will be at its brightest early in the morning on Wednesday, August 12. Read on for some tips on how to watch the night sky this week – and to find out: what exactly are the Perseids, anyway?
Credit: NASA/Bill Ingalls
Your best chance to spot the Perseids will be between 2 AM and dawn (local time) the morning of August 12. Find a dark spot, avoid bright lights (yes, that includes your phone) and get acclimated to the night sky.
Your eyes should be at peak viewing capacity after about 30 minutes; though the Moon may block out some of the dimmer meteors, you should still be able to see up to 15-20 an hour. If you’re not an early bird, you can try and take a look soon after sunset (around 9 PM) on the 11th, though you may not see as many Perseids then.
Credit: NASA/MEO
If it’s too cloudy, or too bright, to go skywatching where you are, you can try again Wednesday or Thursday night – or just stay indoors and watch the Perseids online!
Our Meteor Watch program will be livestreaming the Perseids from Huntsville, Alabama on Facebook (weather permitting), starting around 9 p.m. EDT on August 11 and continuing through sunrise.
So… why are they called the Perseids?
Because all of a meteor shower’s meteors have similar orbits, they appear to come from the same place in the sky – a point called the radiant.
The radiant for the Perseids, as you might guess from the name, is in the constellation Perseus, found near Aries and Taurus in the night sky.
But they’re not actually coming from Perseus, right?
Credit: NASA/Joel Kowsky
Right! The Perseids are actually fragments of the comet Swift-Tuttle, which orbits within our solar system.
If you want to learn more about the Perseids, visit our Watch the Skies blog or check out our monthly “What’s Up” video series. Happy viewing!
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