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"Where were you when I planned the earth? Tell me, if you are so wise. Do you
know who took its dimensions, measuring its length with a cord? What were its
pillars built on? Who laid down the cornerstone while the morning stars burst
out singing and the angels shouted for joy! ...Have you ever commanded morning
or guided dawn to its place - to hold the corners of the sky and shake off the
last few stars? All things are touched with color; the whole world is changed."
The Book of Job, chapter 38
MOON:
Full Moon:
April 2
New Moon:
April 17
CLUB INDOOR MEETING: Thursday, April 5.
STAR GAZE (April 20):
Sun: Sets at 8:06pm, astronomical twilight ends at 9:39pm
and begins at 5:17am the next morning. The Sun rises the next morning at 6:50am.
Between astronomical twilights, we get about 7.6 hours of darkness.
Moon: (illuminated
17%) The Moon sets about 12:30am.
Venus: Venus is high and bright (mag -4.1) in the
west after sunset. As you look at Venus, realize that when you see it in the evening
sky it is heading toward us and will next pass between the Earth and the
Sun. (When you see Venus in the morning sky, it is heading away from us and will
next pass on the far side of the Sun.)
Jupiter & it's moons:
Jupiter rises at 11:58pm and is near culmination (at 32 degrees above the horizon)
when morning astronomical twilight begins. Jupiter culminates at 4:48am.
No
Galilean moons transit tonight, and the Great Red Spot is not visible.
Saturn & it's rings: Saturn will be 68 degrees
above the horizon at sun sunset and it sets at 3:54am Saturday morning. Saturn
transits at 9:03pm. This planet reached opposition in February, so the shadow
of the planet on it's rings is not prominent, but can it still be seen, giving
a noticeable"3-D" effect.
The
"star" located about 3 ring-diameters away to the east is really the
moon Titan. Other fainter moons are visible closer to the planet.
Satellites: You can check for satellite passes by
going to "www.heavens-above.com"
and logging-on as registered user "Astro Asheville" with password "12345".
There are several observing site to choose from. Choosing the correct site is
important only for seeing the Iridium flares.
DEEP SKY OBJECTS (DSO's)
(Not the biggest or brightest, but interesting):
Tau Hydrae
(Binary stars. Also called 31 Hydrae): a colorful F6 (yellow) &
K0 (pink) pair, 66" separation; Magnitudes 4.6 & 7.2. Their distance
from Earth is 17 parsecs (55 light years) & true separation is 1,100 a.u.
(27.5x that of our sun and Pluto). (Location: 9h 29.1m R.A. -2 deg
46' Dec)
49 Leonis (Binary stars): a close pair of white-hot A2 stars at 2.5" separation; Magnitudes 5.8 & 8.5. Their distance from Earth is 82 parsecs, & true separation is at least 200 a.u.. This makes their separation only 5x that of our sun and Pluto (40 a.u.). No beautiful color contrast here, but easy to imagine the size of the Solar System placed there. Just sit at the eye piece and imagine the sun in place of the primary star, and Pluto 1/5 the way to the other star. Then sit there and contemplate a while longer. (Location: 1 degree SE of Rho Leonis, 10h 35.0m R.A. 8 deg 39' Dec).
40 Sextans (Binary stars) : a closer pair of type A2 stars, white & grayish white, at 2.2" separation; Magnitudes 7.0 & 7.8. Their distance from Earth is 120 parsecs, & true separation is at least 260 a.u. This makes their separation 6.5x that of our sun & Pluto. This pair is the most distant of our trio, but the center of our galaxy is 69x further away, and in another direction). (Location:10hr 49.3' R.A. - 4 deg 01' Dec)
HIGHLIGHTS:
May
Day, or Beltane: One of the 4 "cross quarter"
days in the standard calendar, it marks the beginning of Solar Summer in the old
agrarian calendars. This is the quarter of the year with most sunlight (May,June,July),
as opposed to the quarter that is hottest (June,July,August). See this Weather
Almanac article. (Begin celebrating at sundown on April 30, as did the ancient
Celts. Their days began and ended with sunset.)
Lyrid meteors on night of April 21 & morning of April 22. The ZHR averages only 18, but they are fast (49 km/sec) and about 20% leave a persistent train. Lyra will be rising about 11:30pm, and the crescent Moon (illuminated 29%) sets about 1:30am, so viewing should be good. The best viewing time for North America is the last few hours before dawn. These meteors are particles from the comet Thatcher 1861 I.
TERMS
AFOV=apparent field of view / AU=Astronomical
Unit, the average distance from the Sun to the Earth / dec=declination / EP=eye
piece / FOV=field of view / ISS=International Space Station / HST=Hubble Space
Telescope / ly=light year / mag=magnitude / ra=right ascension /
culminates=transits the meridian=when an object as at its highest point in the
sky / transit=passing in front of another object / ZHR=zenithal hourly rate (basically,
the most meteors 1 person could see in 1 hour under ideal conditions)
CLUB STARGAZE
You
can check the AstroAsheville
Yahoo e-group [or call Tim @ 251-0040 or John @ 251-1933 (before 5:00) or
667-9268 (after 5:00)] for a go/no-go decision and to verify location.
CLUB MEETING
Indoor club meetings are usually the first Thursday of every
month, at 6 p.m. in the Sims
Group offices (230 Short Coxe Ave., Asheville, NC.)
Happy Starwatching! Dress Warmly! Blue Ridge Parkway Information
Line is 828-298-0398
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(Much of the above info is derived from Sky & Telescope magazine, Ottewell's
Astronomical Calendar, The Night Sky Observer's Guide, Burnam's Celestial Handbook,
Megastar 5.0, Planets202, Cartes du Ciel, the ol' Miller Planesphere, and a little
(very little) common sense.)