This year's special events in the sky

 

 

Sun:   Looking at the Sun either with the unaided eye or through binoculars or telescope is EXTREMELY DANGEROUS!
PERMANENT EYE DAMAGE CAN OCCUR. Click here to find out how to observe the Sun safely.

 

Moon Phases: 

The Moon is ideal for viewing in the week centred on the First Quarter phase, both regarding the sights presented and the most convenient time for observing (evenings). In addition, it is nearly overhead at sunset. First Quarter will occur on the following dates:

2010:   January 23;   February 22;   March 23;   April 22;   May 21;   June 19;   July 18;   August 17;   September 15;   October 15;   November 14;   December 13

 

Eclipses in 2010:

Lunar:

JUNE 26:   There will be a partial eclipse of the Moon on the evening of Saturday, June 26. The Full Moon will enter the Earth's penumbra at 6:56 pm. The penumbra is not very dark, so the visible effect on the Moon will not be very marked. At 8:17 pm the Moon will enter the main shadow or umbra. This will be noticeable to even the most casual observer. The maximum phase of the eclipse will occur at 9:39 pm, when 53% of the Moon will be in shadow. This darkened side of the Moon may be faintly visible with a reddish tinge, due to sunlight being refracted through the Earth's atmosphere. The spectacular effect of a blood-red Moon only occurs during a total lunar eclipse or one that is nearly so, and won't occur this month.

The amount of Moon obscured in the Earth's shadow will then diminish, and the Moon will leave the umbra completely at 11:01 pm. The penumbral phase will conclude at 12:22 am. 

DECEMBER 21:   The next lunar eclipse will occur on December 21 next, when the Full Moon will rise at 6:38 pm, already totally eclipsed. Totality will end soon after at 6:54 pm, and the Moon will leave the Earth's umbra at 8:02 pm. The penumbral phase will end at 9:06 pm.

 

Solar:

JULY 12:    On the morning of July 12 next, there will be an eclipse of the Sun in which two-thirds of the Sun will be obscured. Unfortunately, the eclipse will not be visible from the Sunshine Coast, as it will end at 5:08 am, an hour and a half before sunrise.

 

The Planets in 2010: 

Mercury:      January 5:               Inferior conjunction
                     January 16:             Western stationary point                     
                     January 27:             Greatest elongation from Sun in morning sky (24.7º)
                      March 14:               Superior conjunction
                      April 9:                    Greatest elongation from Sun in evening sky (19.2º)
                      April 18:                  Eastern stationary point
                      April 29:                  Inferior conjunction
                      May 12:                  Western stationary point
                      May 26:                  Greatest elongation from Sun in morning sky (24.9º)
                      June 28:                 Superior conjunction
                      August 7:                Greatest elongation from Sun in evening sky (27.3º)
                      August 21:              Eastern stationary point
                      September 3:         Inferior conjunction
                      September 13:       Western stationary point
                      September 20:       Greatest elongation from Sun in morning sky (17.8º)
                      October 17:            Superior conjunction
                      December 2:          Greatest elongation from Sun in evening sky (21.3º)
                      December 10:        Eastern stationary point
                      December 20:        Inferior conjunction
                      December 30:        Western stationary point 
                             

Venus:          January 12:             Superior conjunction
                      August 20:              Greatest elongation from Sun in evening sky (45.9º)
                      October 8:              Eastern stationary point
                      October 29:            Inferior conjunction
                      November 19:         Western stationary point
                               

From March until October, Venus will dominate the western twilight sky. In the early part of the year it will appear 'Full' - a small circular disc, as it will be on the opposite side of the Sun from us, and therefore fully illuminated. As it overtakes the Earth, Venus will become progressively larger in angular size, but its phase will decrease to gibbous, then half phase, and finally to a thin crescent. The increasing size and reducing phase cancel out any major changes in brightness, so Venus will maintain a brightness of about magnitude -4 all through the year.

      January, 2010                       August, 2010                          October, 2010      

 

Mars:            January 30:               Opposition
                      March 11:                  Eastern stationary point
                      May 4:                       Eastern quadrature. Mars is transitting the meridian at sunset, high in the north, in the constellation Cancer.
                      April 3, 2011:             Conjunction

The Earth overtakes Mars on January 30. During 2010 the Earth will leave Mars behind, and the red planet will diminish in angular size and brightness for the whole of the year. It begins 2010 near the Leo-Cancer boundary, and moves westwards through Cancer during February, gradually slowing down. Its apparent movement against the starry background stops on March 11, and Mars reverses direction and heads back eastwards towards Leo. It re-enters Leo on May 13, then Virgo on July 19, Libra on September 26, Scorpius on October 27, Ophiuchus on November 8, and Sagittarius on December 3.

For the second half of 2010, Mars will appear through the telescope as a small, insignificant orange disc.

 

Jupiter:         February 28:            Conjunction
                      June 23:                   Western quadrature
                      July 23:                     Western stationary point
                      September 21:         Opposition (Jupiter rises in the east at sunset)
                      November 19:           Eastern stationary point
                      December 17:          Eastern quadrature
                      April 7, 2011:            Conjunction 

The giant planet begins 2010 in Capricornus, crosses Aquarius during the year, and then joins Uranus in Pisces.

 

Saturn:          January 14:              Western stationary point
                       March 22:                Opposition
                       May 31:                    Eastern stationary point
                       June 19:                   Eastern quadrature
                       October 1:               Conjunction
                       January 7, 2011:      Western quadrature
                       January 26, 2011:    Western stationary point
                       April 4, 2011:            Opposition

Saturn spends all of 2008 in the constellation Virgo.

 

Uranus:          March 17:                Conjunction
                       June 22:                   Western quadrature
                       July 5:                       Western stationary point
                       September 22:         Opposition
                       December 6:            Eastern stationary point
                       December 19:          Eastern quadrature

Uranus begins 2010 on the border between Aquarius and Pisces, then crosses into Pisces and spends the rest of the year there.

 

Neptune:       February 15:            Conjunction
                       May 20:                    Western quadrature
                       May 31:                    Western stationary point
                       August 20:               Opposition
                       November 7:            Eastern stationary point
                       November 18:          Eastern quadrature

Neptune begins 2010 in Capricornus, and crosses into Aquarius on March 19. It retrogrades back into Capricornus on August 20, and then re-enters Aquarius on January 19, 2011.

 

Pluto:             March 26:                Western quadrature
                       April 7:                     Western stationary point
                       June 26:                   Opposition
                       September 14:         Eastern stationary point
                       September 26:         Eastern quadrature
                       December 27:          Conjunction

Pluto spends all of 2010 in Sagittarius.

 

 

Planetary alignments

Mercury

 

 

Lunar occultations or near occultations of bright stars, as observed from Nambour

January 24 /

Lunar occultations or near occultations of planets, as observed from Nambour

March

 

Meteor Showers:

January 4:            Quadrantids
February 8:           Alpha-Centaurids
April 22:                Lyrids
 April 24:                Pi-Puppids
May 4:                  Alpha Scorpids
May 5:                  Eta Aquarids (from Comet Halley)
June 8:                 Arietids
June 10:               Zeta Perseids
June 29:               Beta Taurids
July 10:                Pegasids
July 29:                S Delta-Aquarids
July 30:                Alpha-Capricornids
August 13:           Perseids (from Comet Swift-Tuttle)
September 1:      Alpha-Aurigids
October 22:         Orionids (from Comet Halley)
November 3:        S Taurids (from Comet Encke)
November 13:      N Taurids (from Comet Encke)
November 18:      Leonids (from Comet Tempel-Tuttle)
December 7:       Phoenicids
December 14:     Geminids (from Comet Phaethon)
December 24:     Ursids

The 3.9 metre Anglo-Australian Telescope near Coonabarabran, NSW

 

The main Constellations visible at about 8.00 pm each month, from the horizon to the zenith:          

January:

East:       Hydra, Canis Minor, Canis Major, Puppis
South:    Crux, Musca, Carina, Vela, Pavo
West:      Aquarius, Capricornus, Pisces, Grus, Piscis Austrinus, Phoenix, Cetus, Eridanus
North:     Aries, Perseus, Taurus, Auriga, Gemini, Orion

February:

East:       Leo, Crater, Corvus, Hydra, Canis Major, Puppis
South:    Grus, Centaurus, Crux, Musca, Carina, Vela
West:      Cetus, Eridanus, Aries
North:     Auriga, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Orion

March:

East:       Virgo, Libra, Lupus, Centaurus, Corvus, Crater, Hydra, Crux, Musca, Vela
South:    Triangulum Australe, Toucan, Carina, Puppis
West:      Phoenix, Cetus, Eridanus, Taurus, Orion, Canis Major
North:     Gemini, Cancer, Leo, Canis Minor

April:

East:       Bootes, Libra, Scorpius, Virgo, Centaurus, Lupus, Ara, Crux, Musca, Corvus
South:    Triangulum Australe, Pavo, Carina, Vela
West:      Eridanus, Orion, Gemini, Canis Minor, Canis Major, Puppis
North:     Cancer, Ursa Major, Leo, Crater, Hydra

May:

East:       Corona Borealis, Serpens, Ophiuchus, Sagittarius, Libra, Scorpius, Ara, Lupus, Centaurus
South:     Indus, Pavo, Triangulum Australe, Crux, Musca, Carina
West:      Canis Major, Canis Minor, Cancer, Puppis, Hydra
North:     Ursa Major, Leo, Coma Berenices,Bootes, Virgo, Crater, Corvus

June:

East:       Ophiuchus, Capricornus, Sagittarius, Scorpius
South:     Pavo, Triangulum Australe, Ara, Lupus, Crux, Musca
West:      Hydra, Leo, Carina, Vela, Puppis, Crater, Corvus
North:     Coma Berenices, Bootes, Corona Borealis, Hercules, Virgo, Serpens, Libra

July:

East:       Aquarius, Delphinus, Grus, Capricornus, Aquila, Sagittarius, Scorpius
South:    Carina, Musca, Crux, Ara, Triangulum Australe, Centaurus
West:      Hydra, Crater, Corvus, Virgo, Vela, Libra
North:     Bootes, Corona Borealis, Hercules, Lyra, Ophiuchus, Serpens

August:

East:       Aquarius, Phoenix, Piscis Austrinus, Grus, Sagittarius
South:    Eridanus, Musca, Crux, Triangulum Australe
West:      Corvus, Virgo, Bootes, Libra, Centaurus, Ara, Lupus, Scorpius
North:     Corona Borealis, Hercules, Lyra, Cygnus, Delphinus, Aquila

September:

East:       Pisces, Cetus, Eridanus, Phoenix, Piscis Austrinus, Grus, Aquarius, Capricornus
South:     Crux, Musca, Triangulum Australe, Pavo
West:      Centaurus, Libra, Serpens, Ophiuchus, Scorpius, Lupus, Ara
North:      Lyra, Cygnus, Pegasus, Delphinus, Aquila

October:

East:        Eridanus, Cetus, Aries, Piscis Austrinus
South:     Hydrus, Centaurus, Musca, Triangulum Australe, Ara, Pavo, Grus
West:       Lupus, Scorpius, Ophiuchus, Sagittarius, Aquila, Capricornus
North:      Cygnus, Delphinus, Pegasus, Andromeda, Aquarius

November:

East:        Taurus, Eridanus, Cetus, Phoenix
South:     Carina, Musca, Triangulum Australe, Pavo
West:       Scorpius, Sagittarius, Aquila, Delphinus, Capricornus, Grus, Piscis Austrinus
North:      Pegasus, Andromeda, Aries, Pisces, Cetus, Aquarius

December:

East:        Taurus, Orion, Canis Major, Puppis, Carina, Eridanus
South:     Carina, Musca, Pavo
West:       Capricornus, Aquarius, Grus, Piscis Austrinus, Phoenix
North:      Pegasus, Andromeda, Aries, Perseus, Cetus

 

Observatory Index