Never pass up a chance to sit down or relieve yourself. -old Apache saying

Monday, October 1, 2012

October Stargazing

Every evening is another opportunity to be filled with awe.

SkyTips: October 2012

Stargazing Summary

With the nights getting longer and cooler, October is one of the best months for some skywatching. The evening sky offers such treats as Andromeda and her famous galaxy, M31, as well as several other constellations associated with her mythological story, and the Pleiades and Hyades star clusters in Taurus. Jupiter is dominating the evening sky, with Mars beginning to bow out. Venus rules the early mornings, passing almost over the top of the heart of the lion early in the month.

More stargazing information »


Orionid Meteor Shower

The next meteor shower is the Orionids on the night of October 20. The shower should be at its best the nights of Saturday, October 20, and Sunday, October 21. The Moon sets by around midnight, so it won't pollute the sky with light during the peak meteor-watching hours.

Meteor shower viewing tips »


Radio Program Highlights

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October 1-7 - Anniversaries: A couple of golden anniversaries are coming up this week. One commemorates the start of a major observatory, while the other marks the arrival of a piece of Mars. Join us for this plus Venus and the heart of the lion.

October 8-14 - Moon meanderings: The Moon passes by the brilliant planet Venus and the heart of the lion in this week's morning skies, and we'll have details. And we'll talk about one of the oddest critters in the sky — the sea-goat.

October 15-21 - Doomed planets: The outer layers of some "dead" stars are polluted by a rain of rocky debris — the pulverized remains of Earth-like planets. We'll have details. We'll also talk about a "dwarf" planet in our own solar system.

October 22-28 - Black holes: Astronomers have discovered what could be the biggest black hole yet found — a behemoth many times the size of our entire solar system. Join us for that, plus what could be the smallest black hole and much more on these dark monsters.

October 29-31 - A "ghoulish" star: A star that both amazed and frightened long-ago skywatchers highlights the sky on this Halloween week, and we'll tell you what gave it such a fearsome reputation. Join us for this and much more about the night sky.

October program schedule »

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Coming Up in StarDate Magazine

In November/December, StarDate will celebrate the 50th anniversary of the first spacecraft encounter with another planet: the 1962 Mariner 2 flyby of Venus. And freelance writer Nick D'Alto brings us the story of the earliest known globe, made by Renaissance astronomers and used by Christopher Columbus to prepare for his legendary voyage.

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 News from the Observatory

Astronomers measure largest-ever magnetic field around massive starA group of astronomers led by Gregg Wade of the Royal Military College of Canada has used the Hobby-Eberly Telescope (HET) at The University of Texas at Austin's McDonald Observatory and the Canada-France Hawaii Telescope (CFHT) on Hawaii's Mauna Kea to measure the most magnetic massive star yet. Their work is published in the September 11 issue of the research journal Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society.


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He's always watching

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