Science Daily: Jupiter
- Heart of Jovian moon's volcanic rage December 13, 2024
- NASA's Hubble celebrates decade of tracking outer planets December 9, 2024
Year: 2007
Worlds in Comparison
The Astronomical Society of the Pacific has a wonderful program called Family Astro that has various activities you can do with groups (such as families) that are fun and impart some astronomical insight. One of them is called Worlds in Comparison and involves making a set of models of the planets to the correct relative …
PS102 Science Fair Post Mortem
I’ll put this in the better late than never category. The PS102 Science Fair has come and gone. Jonathan did a report on Mallard Ducks. He was quite proud of it in the end, but Maria was about ready to scream before it was done. Jonathan had to do all the illustrations and writing, but …
Northeast Astronomical Imaging Conference (NEAIC)
This will the be second year this event has been held, providing a venue for east coast imagers who can't make it to the west coast event. Last year's event was well worth the cost with the opportunity to meet other imagers, hear fascinating talks and techniques from people who have, in some cases, literally …
Northeast Astronomy Forum (NEAF)
This is the premier astronomy event on the east coast. Our family always goes to this one to see the displays, hear the talks, connect with friends and participate in the kids activities. If the weather permits, there is a solar observing party held outdoors with specialized telescopes using hydrogen-alpha and calcium filters to see …
Total Lunar Eclipse
Two total lunar eclipses in the same year! Well, this one is a tough sell here on the east coast because it starts shortly before moonset and becomes total a mere half hour before moonset. If you missed the event in March and can't wait until the next one in February, find a place with a low western horizon to watch as the moon slowly turns a deep orange and fades into the skyglow at sunrise.
If you live on the west coast or will be traveling there, this eclipse should be a darker one than the event in March since the moon will pass closer to the center of the Earth's shadow than it did in March.
The Rockland Astronomy Club is having a viewing party for this event.
Total Lunar Eclipse
The first total lunar eclipse visible from North America since 27 October 2004 will be in progress at moonrise (5:44pm) here in the northeast USA. In New York City, the moon will already be slightly past it's maximum penetration into the umbra and will only get brighter as the evening progresses. Due to buildings, you probably won't be able to see the moon until after 6:00pm (but that doesn't mean you can't try!).
Sometimes, you might see a deep orange moon at moonrise which quickly becomes white as the moon rises. This is usually due to dust in the atmosphere, but not this night. On March 3rd, the color is due to the sun's light passing through the Earth's atmosphere casting the color of a planet full of sunsets onto the moon.
Take the kids and get out someplace with a low eastern horizon to view the moon as it rises (right at sunset).
About the ending time: don't wait until then! At 6:58pm, the moon will start to emerge from the earth's central shadow (the umbra) and only be partially eclipsed. After that point, it will become increasingly difficult to tell that there is an eclipse at all.
The Rockland Astronomy Club will be hosting a viewing party.
Astronomy Week 2007
No activities planned locally yet, but stay tuned. See http://www.astroleague.org/al/astroday/astroday.html for more information.