Last week's Mercury Transit makes the planet still too close to the Sun. The distance to the Sun is reaching 20° West. The planet rises at 4.32 am and 22 minutes before Sun rise. Mercury orbits the Sun in about 3 months. Hence, it will never get farther away from our central star than 25° and always stays in bright twilight. This makes Mercury a difficult object to view, although it shines as brightly as Sirius. Venus is far too close to the Sun and not visible. The planet is only 3° West from the Sun and rises at 4.49 am, which is 3 minutes before Sun rise. Mars is best seen from 9.35 pm to 4.30 am in the constellation Scorpius. Jupiter is best seen from 9.35 pm to 2.35 am in the constellation Leo. Saturn is best seen from 10 pm to 4.10 am in the constellation Ophiuchus.
Wednesday 25 May
Today in 1961 the formal announcement of an American lunar landing was made by President John F. Kennedy speaking to the Congress: “I believe that this nation should commit itself to achieving the goal, before this decade is out, of landing a man on the Moon and returning him safely to the Earth. No single space program in this period will be more impressive to mankind, or more important in the long-range exploration of space; and none will be so difficult or expensive to accomplish.”
Satellites are visible with the naked eye. They move slowly, as "stars" or "dots" in the night sky. Iridium flares sudden lit up at certain times and at certain places in the night sky. At 10.49 pm an Iridium flare appears in the North at an altitude of only 7° in the constellation Perseus. Another flare, this time much brighter, is at 10.53 pm in the West North West at an altitude of 21° in the constellation Cancer.
The International Spaces Station (called ISS) is visible as a satellite and can be seen with the naked eye as a bright star moving between all other stars. ISS appears at 10.52 pm in the East South East and 8° above the horizon. ISS disappears after only 2 minutes at 10.55 pm in the East. Another pass at 0.25 pm in the South South West at an altitude of 29°. Culmination is at 0.26 am in the South South East at an altitude of 41°. ISS disappears at 0.31 am in the East.
The Moon is close to the bright star called Rho1 Sgr at 0.40 am. Their separation is about 5 lunar diameters. Look for a clear horizon as the altitude is only 6°. The Moon phase is 84%.
ISS appears again at 1.58 am in the West. Culmination is at 2.03 am in the South at an altitude of 70°. ISS disappears at 2.08 am in the Eastern horizon.
A very bright Iridium flare appears at 3.04 am in the West North West at an altitude of 43° in the constellation Canes Venatici.
ISS appears once more at 3.34 am in the West. Culmination is at 3.39 am in the South South West at an altitude of 43°. ISS disappears at 3.44 am in the East South East horizon.
Thursday 26 May
An Iridium flare appears at 9.39 pm in the North North East at an altitude of 72° in the constellation Ursa Minor. A very very bright flare a few minutes after at 9.47 pm in the North East 56° altitude in the constellation Draco.
ISS appears at 9.54 pm in the South. Culmination is at 9.58 pm in the South East at only 8° above the horizon. ISS disappears at 10.02 pm in the Eastern horizon.
Another Iridium flare appears at 10.33 pm in the North North West at an altitude of 10° in the constellation Perseus.
After its orbit around the Earth, which takes about 90 minutes, ISS appears again at 11.28 pm in the South West. Culmination is at 11.33 pm in the South South East at an altitude of 30°. ISS disappears at 11.38 pm in the East. Once more ISS appears at 1.04 am in the West South West. Culmination is at 1.10 am in the South at an altitude of 66°. ISS disappears at 1.15 am in the East.
The Moon is close to the star called Dabih at 1.20 am. They are about 4 lunar diameters apart. The altitude is only 6°, so look for a clear an open horizon. The Moon phase is 76%.
The Great Red Spot is in transit on the Jupiter disc at 1.35 am. You can see the 4 brighter Moons of Jupiter and as well some obvious features on the planet's surface with a smaller telescope or if you have a steady and good binocular.
Still not enough watching the International Space Station? ISS appears again at 2.41 am in the West. ISS passes the bright star Arcturus at 2.45 am and they are only about 2 lunar diameters separated. Culmination is at 2.46 am in the South South West at an altitude of 55°. ISS passes then the bright star Altair with only one lunar diameter separation at 2.47 am. ISS disappears at 2.51 am in the East South East horizon. And if you did not had enough of ISS ... ISS appears again at 4.17 am in the West. Culmination is at 4.22 am in the South South West at an altitude of 20° and ISS disappears at 4.27 am in the South East horizon.
Friday 27 May
The Moon is in maximum libration West at 9.04 pm. The crater Grimaldi is tipped into the Earth's view.
At 9.27 pm the Great Red Spot is in transit on the Jupiter disc.
An Iridium flare appears at 9.41 pm in the North East at an altitude of 57° in the constellation Draco.
ISS appears at 10.36 pm in the South West. Culmination is at 10.41 pm in the South South East at an altitude of 21°. ISS disappears at 10.46 pm in the Eastern horizon.
A flare appears at 10.50 pm in the West North West at an altitude of 18° in the constellation Gemini. Another Iridium flare appears at 11.15 pm in the North North East at 23° altitude an in the constellation Cassiopeia.
ISS appears after midnight at 0.11 am in the West South West. Culmination is at 0.17 am in the South South East at an altitude of 57°. ISS disappears at 0.22 am in the Eastern horizon. The next pass is at 1.48 am, appearing in the West. Culmination is at 1.53 am in the South at 65° altitude and ISS disappears at 1.58 am in the East South East. And one more pass at 3.24 am from the Western horizon, culmination at 3.29 am in the South South West at an altitude of 29°. ISS disappears at 3.34 am in the South East.
Saturday 28 May
Today in 2003 the first cloned horse was born in a natural delivery. It is also the first cloned mammal born to its genetic mother. The foal was called Prometea and was created in a lab in Italy by fusing an adult skin cell and an empty egg then returning the resulting embryo to the female's womb after a few days.
ISS appears at 9.44 pm in the South South West. Culmination is at 9.48 pm in the South East at an altitude of 15°. ISS disappears at 9.53 pm in the East.
An Iridium flare appears at 10.53 pm in the West North West at an altitude of 16° in the constellation Gemini.
ISS appears once more at 11.19 pm in the West South West. Culmination is at 11.24 pm in the South South East at an altitude of 45°. ISS disappears at 11.29 pm in the East. After one orbit ISS appears once more at 0.55 am in the West. Highest point in the sky is at 1 am in the South and 70° above the horizon. ISS disappears again at 1.06 am in the East. But ISS appears again after its orbit around the Earth at 2.31 am in the West. Culmination is at 2.37 am in the South South West at an altitude of 39°. And ISS disappears at 2.42 am in the East South East.
At 3.14 am the Great Red Spot is in transit on Jupiter.
ISS appears once more at 4.08 am in the West. Culmination is at 4.12 am in the South West at an altitude of 12°. ISS disappears at 4.17 am in the South South East.
Close of the night observations with a bright Iridium flare at 4.32 am. Appearing in the West at an altitude of 68° in the constellation Hercules.
Sunday 29 May
Today in 1919 a solar eclipse permitted observation of the bending of starlight passing through the Sun's gravitational field, as predicted by Albert Einstein's theory of relativity. Separate expeditions of the Royal Astronomical Society travelled to Brazil and off the West coast of Africa. Both made measurements of the position of stars visible close to the Sun during a solar eclipse. These observations showed that, indeed, the light of stars was bent as it passed through the gravitational field of the Sun. This was a key prediction of Albert Einstein's theory that gravity affected energy as in addition to the familiar effect on matter. The verification of predictions of Einstein's theory, proved during the solar eclipse was a dramatic landmark scientific event.
At 1.12 pm it is Last Quarter Moon.
An Iridium flare appears in the North North West at an altitude of 18° in the constellation Perseus.
ISS appears at 10.26 pm in the South West. Culmination is at 10.31 pm in the South South East at an altitude of 33°. ISS disappears at 10.37 pm in the East.
Another Iridium flare appears at 10.56 pm in the West North West at an altitude of 14° in the constellation Gemini.
ISS appears once more after midnight at 0.02 am in the West. The International Space Station passes the bright planet Jupiter with less than 2 lunar diameters at 0.05 am. Worth a watch! Culmination is at 0.08 am in the South at an altitude of 68°. ISS disappears at 0.13 am in the Eastern horizon. And ISS appears again at 1.39 am in the West. Culmination is at 1.44 am in the South South West at an altitude of 51°. ISS disappears at 1.49 am in the East South East.
The Moon is close to the star called Lam Aqr at 2.40 am. They are about 8 lunar diameters apart. The altitude is only 6°, so look for an open and clear horizon. The Moon phase is 44%.
ISS appears again at 3.15 am in the West. Culmination is at 3.20 am in the South West at an altitude of 18° and ISS disappears at 3.25 am in the South South East horizon.
Monday 30 May
Scorpius the Scorpion is a summer constellation that actually rises to prominence in late Spring. Unfortunately, it never appears very high above the horizon from our regions and, for those further North, the entire constellation may not be visible. This year it’s visited by two major planets, Saturn and Mars, which both provide a nice compliment to the constellation’s brightest star, Antares. The constellation also harbours a wealth of deep sky objects, such as star clusters, that are favourites with amateur astronomers throughout the summer months. One, Messier 4 (M4) lies between Antares and Alniyat and appears as a small, fuzzy ball of light through binoculars. Keen-sighted observers may even be able to glimpse it without optical aid under clear, dark skies. You will need a small telescope or a steady binocular to observe these deep sky objects.
ISS appears at 9.34 pm in the South West. Culmination is at 9.39 pm in the South South East at an altitude of 24°. ISS disappears at 9.44 pm in the East.
At 9.49 pm a rather bright Iridium flare appears in the North North West at an altitude of 19° in the constellation Perseus.
The red planet Mars is at its closest approach at 10.44 pm. The distance to the Earth is 0.503 AU. One Astronomical Unit (AU) is the average distance Moon to the Sun.
Another flare appears at 11.00 pm in the West North West at an altitude of 12° and in the constellation Gemini. And at 11.06 pm another flare appears in the North North East at an altitude of 29° in the constellation Cassiopeia.
ISS appears at 11.09 pm in the West South West. Culmination at 11.15 pm in the South at an altitude of 60°. ISS disappears at 11.20 pm in the East. Another pass of ISS in the West at 0.46 am. Culmination is at 0.51 am in the South at 62° above the horizon. ISS passes the bright star Altair with about 2 lunar diameter at 0.53 am and ISS disappears at 0.56 am in the East South East.
At 0.57 am the Jupiter Moon Ganymede reappears from its occultation behind the giant planet.
ISS appears again at 2.22 am in the West. Culmination is at 2.27 am in the South South West at an altitude of 26°. ISS disappears at 2.29 am in the South South East in the Earth shadow at 17° above the horizon.
A bright Iridium flare appears in the North West at 2.42 am at an altitude of 37° in the constellation Ursa Major.
The Earthshine is visible on the Moon at 4 am.
Tuesday 31 May
At 9.43 pm an Iridium flare is visible in the North North West at an altitude of 20° in the constellation Perseus.
ISS appears at 10.17 pm in the West South West. Culmination is at 10.22 pm in the South South East at an altitude of 48°. ISS disappears at 10.27 pm in the Eastern horizon.
The Jupiter Moon Io begins its transit at 11.04 pm.
A bright Iridium flare appears at 11.13 pm in the North West at an altitude of 9° in the constellation Gemini. Another flare is visible at 11.22 pm in the North West at only 7° above the horizon in the constellation Gemini.
ISS appears again at 11.53 pm in the West. Culmination is at 11.58 pm in the South at an altitude of 69°. ISS passes the bright star Altair with about 2 lunar diameters at midnight. ISS disappears at 0.03 am in the East.
Time to get your telescope out or use a steady binocular. At 0.20 am the Jupiter Moon Io begins its shadow. The Great Red Spot is in transit on Jupiter at 0.45 am and at 1.19 am the Jupiter Moon Io ends its transit.
ISS time again. The satellite appears at 1.29 am in the West. Culmination is at 1.35 am in the South South West at an altitude of 36°. ISS disappears at 1.36 am in the Earth shadow in the South South East at an altitude of 28°.
A brighter Iridium flare appears at 2.36 am in the North West at an altitude of 35° in the constellation Ursa Major.
Wednesday 1 June
Today in 1946 television licences were first issued in Britain costing £2 and included radio (radio-only licences then cost £1) and were sold at Post Offices. Television services had been suspended during WW II. A Mickey Mouse cartoon was being shown when TV service was suddenly blacked out for defence reasons on 1 September 1939. That same cartoon was shown on 8 June 1946 when television re-opened to cover the Victory Parade. The first radio licence fee began in November 1922 and cost 10 shillings (50p).
The planet Venus is close to the bright star Aldebaran at 10.48 am. It is daytime and not visible. They are 5° separated and only 1.5° away from the Sun.
The International Spaces Station (called ISS) is visible as a satellite and can be seen with the naked eye as a bright star moving between all other stars. Satellites, and also ISS, moves as a bright star or dot in between the stars. We have several appearances of ISS tonight. First one is at 9.24 pm in the South West. Culmination or highest point ISS reaches is at 9.29 pm in the South South East at an altitude of 36°. ISS disappears at 9.34 pm in the Eastern horizon. An orbit or one rotation of ISS around the Earth takes about 90 minutes. ISS appears again at 11.00 pm in the West. Culmination is at 11.05 pm in the South at an altitude of 69°. The International Space Station passes the bright star Altair very close at 11.08 pm. ISS disappears at 11.11 pm in the East. One more orbit and ISS appears at 0.36 am in the West. Culmination at 0.42 am in the South South West at an altitude of 48°. ISS disappears at 0.44 am in the Earth shadow in the South East and 22° above the horizon. Another ISS pass is at 2.13 am in the West and disappears already after 3 minutes at 2.16 am in the West South West at an altitude of 12°.
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