Archive
06/02/2023 – Ephemeris – A South Pole adventure and a comet collision presentation – Tonight!
This is Bob Moler with Ephemeris for Friday, June 2nd. Today the Sun will be up for 15 hours and 22 minutes, setting at 9:22, and it will rise tomorrow at 5:59. The Moon, 1 day before full, will set at 5:14 tomorrow morning.
An Antarctic Odyssey: Winter-Over at South Pole Station will be the presentation by John W. Briggs, via Zoom, at tonight’s meeting of the Grand Traverse Astronomical Society at Northwestern Michigan College’s Rogers Observatory at 9 pm. John was a team member building a 24-inch infrared telescope and related experiments that were set up at the South Pole in time for him and colleagues to observe the July 1994, explosive crash of fragmented comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 into the planet Jupiter. There are two ways to attend: In person at the observatory, south of Traverse City on Birmley Road, or via Zoom with a link provided by the society’s website gtastro.org just prior to the meeting.
The astronomical event times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (EDT, UT –4 hours). They may be different for your location.
Addendum
About the Program
An Antarctic Odyssey: Winter-Over at South Pole Station
A presentation via Zoom by John W. Briggs
Abstract:
In a lavishly illustrated presentation, John W. Briggs of New Mexico will describe his year-long experience living at the Geographic South Pole while working for the Center for Astrophysical Research in Antarctica. In preparation for this at Yerkes Observatory of the University of Chicago, John was a team member building a 24-inch infrared telescope and related experiments that were set up at the Pole in time for him and colleagues to observe the July 1994, explosive crash of fragmented comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 into the planet Jupiter.
John weathered the “winter-over” with 26 other members of the U.S. Antarctic Program in an experience that many believe approximates what life will be like someday at a lunar or Martian outpost. Once begun, South Pole winter-over is an irreversible commitment, since the Program’s special LC-130 ski planes can’t land in the winter temperatures — in 1994, sometimes as low as 107 degrees F. below zero (with windchill, as low as -180 degrees). John will delight the audience with his perspective on the total South Pole experience — the strange natural environment, the odd social atmosphere, and the challenging, ongoing science.
01/27/2023 – Ephemeris – Where is comet ZTF this weekend?
This is Ephemeris for Friday, January 27th. Today the Sun will be up for 9 hours and 36 minutes, setting at 5:44, and it will rise tomorrow at 8:06. The Moon, 1 day before first quarter, will set at 1:08 tomorrow morning. | Comet ZTF is now passing the star Kochab in the Little Dipper and is heading out to the barren wastes of Camelopardalis, the giraffe, which I’m sure not very many people have heard of because there’s no bright stars in it. The big question people have is why this comet was supposedly green. It is not particularly rare, even though the news reports I’ve seen of it and in social and main media seem to have intimated this. And they also say it comes around every 50,000 years or that it’s the only green comet and it comes every 50,000 years which is incorrect. There’s a certain amount of hype that comes with comets. They can be spectacular and they can be duds. I remember back in 1973 a large new comet was supposed to zip around the sun and be super bright called comet Kohoutek people my age might remember that. It was a pretty much dustless comet. I it’s the dust tail it really makes comets bright, not the ion tail of ionized gasses.
The astronomical event times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (EST, UT –5 hours). They may be different for your location.
01/26/2023 – Ephemeris – Where’s Comet ZTF tonight?
This is Bob Moler with Ephemeris for Friday, January 27th. Today the Sun will be up for 9 hours and 36 minutes, setting at 5:44, and it will rise tomorrow at 8:06. The Moon, 1 day before first quarter, will set at 1:08 tomorrow morning.
Comet ZTF is now passing the star Kochab in the Little Dipper and is heading out to the barren wastes of Camelopardalis, the giraffe, which I’m sure not very many people have heard of because there’s no bright stars in it. The big question people have is why this comet was supposedly green. It is not particularly rare, even though the news reports I’ve seen of it and in social and main media seem to have intimated this. And they also say it comes around every 50,000 years or that it’s the only green comet, which is incorrect. There’s a certain amount of hype that comes with comets. They can be spectacular, or they can be duds.
I remember back in 1973 a large new comet was supposed to zip around the sun and be super bright called Comet Kohoutek, people my age might remember that. It was a pretty much dustless comet. It’s the dust tail that really makes comets bright, not the ion tail of gasses. A few years later, Comet West came by for the Bicentennial in early 1976. As the comet came around the sun near perihelion, its solid nucleus started to break apart, liberating a vast dust tail. It was wonderful.
The astronomical event times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (EST, UT –5 hours). They may be different for your location.
This post is actually longer than I have time for the Ephemeris program (59 seconds). I created this speech to text, due to my current physical and mental problems, it’s more stream of consciousness than my normal writing. So if it still makes sense, I’ll leave it in.
01/23/2023 – Ephemeris – New “green” comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF)
This is Bob Moler with Ephemeris for Monday, January 23rd. Today the Sun will be up for 9 hours and 27 minutes, setting at 5:38, and it will rise tomorrow at 8:10. The Moon, 2 days past new, will set at 8:05 this evening.
I’m sure that many of us have now heard of a bright new comet that’s supposed to be visible in our sky that’s green. One, it is a newly discovered comet from 9 months ago. Two, it is green. Three, it won’t look green to the eye. And four, it isn’t really that bright. One of the rules of I have in mentioning objects to observe on this program is that it has to be found with the naked eye. This comet does not meet that criteria. One could find it with binoculars when it’s near a bright star which it’s not tonight, so that’s one thing but in order to see it, it will probably look like a little fuzzy blob in a pair of binoculars. I’m not sure that the tail that would be visible. The observer has to wait until after the moon sets, because moonlight washes out a comet, big time.
The astronomical event times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (EST, UT –5 hours). They may be different for your location.
Addendum
Comet ZTF finder chart for 1/24/23 through 1/29/23 at 9 pm. Plotted daily at 9 pm EST, though the best time to spot the comet will be after moonset which will advance by about an hour a night. The plot of the comet’s tail simply suggests a direction and not the appearance of the tail. Created using Cartes du Ciel. (Sky Charts). The plots are marked with the month-day and expected magnitude or brightness. Magnitudes are like golf scores. The larger the number, the poorer the golfer, and the dimmer the celestial object is.
12/10/2021 – Ephemeris – Our last look at Comet Leonard before it leaves forever*
This is Ephemeris for Friday, December 10th. Today the Sun will be up for 8 hours and 52 minutes, setting at 5:02, and it will rise tomorrow at 8:10. The Moon, at first quarter today, will set at 12:25 tomorrow morning.
This is the day of the earliest sunset of the year. It doesn’t coincide with the shortest day because the Earth is moving faster in its orbit than average and getting ahead of its rotation a bit. Comet Leonard’s last appearance in the morning sky is tomorrow or Sunday before twilight overwhelms it. At 6:30 am it will be just a bit south of due east at azimuth 93 degrees and an altitude of 9 degrees, a bit less than the width of a fist held at arm’s length. When it gets into the evening sky, its track will take will be along the horizon from the southwest to the south. It will come very close to Venus, and I suspect that is what will alter its orbit slightly, so it will never return and end up becoming an interstellar comet.
The astronomical event times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (EST, UT – 5 hours). They may be different for your location.
* After this weekend, the comet will enter the evening sky, but will hang quite low to the horizon in evening twilight as it passes Venus, heads southward and fades. It would best be viewed by observers in the Southern Hemisphere. It’s headed out of the solar system in a hyperbolic orbit.
Addendum
Comet Leonard (C/2021 A1) finder chart for 7:00 am, December 11, 2021. The comet’s tail may not be visible visually. The comet’s head, what astronomers call a coma, may appear as a large fuzzy spot. At that time it will be 22.1 million miles away, and will come within 21.7 million miles at its closest to us on the 12th. Created using Stellarium.
Comet Leonard’s positions at 7:15 am on the dates indicated. The labels are Month-Day Total Magnitude. The star’s position relative to the horizon and the position of Mars are for December 10th. The star field will be shifting to the upper right each morning at 7:15 from the December 10th date at 7:15. Comets always appear dimmer than their magnitude suggests because they are extended objects, not points like stars. Also, comet magnitudes can be unpredictable. Created using Cartes du Ciel (Sky Charts).
12/09/2021 – Ephemeris – Comet Leonard and the Oort Cloud
This is Ephemeris for Thursday, December 9th. Today the Sun will be up for 8 hours and 53 minutes, setting at 5:02, and it will rise tomorrow at 8:09. The Moon, 1 day before first quarter, will set at 11:14 this evening.
Comet Leonard will only be available to be spotted for the next two mornings. After that, it will be too close to the direction of the Sun to be spotted. It came in from hundreds of times the Earth’s distance from the Sun from a spherical area around the solar system call the Oort cloud. This area, proposed as a source of comets, was named after Dutch astronomer, Jan Oort, who hypothesized its existence. Near as we can tell, Comet Leonard had been falling toward the Sun for 40,000 years. Tomorrow morning the comet will be nearly 30 degrees below and a bit left of the bright star Arcturus from 6:00 to 7 am tomorrow morning. 30 degrees is three times the width of one’s fist held at arm’s length.
The astronomical event times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (EST, UT – 5 hours). They may be different for your location.
Addendum
Comet Leonard (C/2021 A1) finder chart for 6:00 am, December 10, 2021. The comet’s tail may not be visible visually. The comet’s head, what astronomers call a coma, may appear as a large fuzzy spot. At that time it will be 23.1 million miles away, and will come within 21.7 million miles at its closest to us on the 12th. Created using Stellarium.
Comet Leonard’s positions at 7:15 am on the dates indicated. The labels are Month-Day Total Magnitude. The star’s position relative to the horizon and the position of Mars are for December 10th. The star field will be shifting to the upper right each morning at 7:15 from the December 10th date at 7:15. Comets always appear dimmer than their magnitude suggests because they are extended objects, not points like stars. Also, comet magnitudes can be unpredictable. The tails shown here simply show the direction of the tail, which will be very short, if visible at all visually. Created using Cartes du Ciel (Sky Charts).
12/07/2021 – Ephemeris – This is the best week to view Comet Leonard
This is Bob Moler with Ephemeris for Tuesday, December 7th. Today the Sun will be up for 8 hours and 55 minutes, setting at 5:02, and it will rise tomorrow at 8:07. The Moon, halfway from new to first quarter, will set at 8:43 this evening.
The evening sky between 5:45 and 7 pm will feature Venus, the crescent Moon, with dim Saturn above it and Jupiter all in the southwestern sky. Saturn will appear dim, only in the early part of that period, due to bright twilight. Saturn is about midway between Venus and Jupiter. In the morning sky, Comet Leonard continues to fall inward toward the Sun. It’s passing relatively close to the Earth, now about 29 million miles. It will pass its closest to on Sunday at about 21 million miles, at which time we’ll have a hard time spotting it in morning twilight. Comet Leonard will stay barely bright enough to spot in dark skies by really sharp-eyed observers without binoculars or a telescope. The rest of us will need optical aid.
The astronomical event times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (EST, UT – 5 hours). They may be different for your location.
Addendum
Comet Leonard (C/2021 A1) finder chart for 6:30 am, December 8, 2021. The comet’s tail may not be visible visually. The comet’s head, what astronomers call a coma, may appear as a large fuzzy spot. At that time it will be 26.7 million miles away, and will come within 21.7 million miles at its closest to us on the 12th. Created using Stellarium.
Comet Leonard’s positions at 6:30 am on the dates indicated. The labels are Month-Day Total Magnitude. The star’s position relative to the horizon and the position of Mars are for November 27th. The star field will be shifting to the upper right each morning at 6:30 from the November 27th date at 6:30. Comets always appear dimmer than their magnitude suggests because they are extended objects, not points like stars. Also, comet magnitudes can be unpredictable. Created using Cartes du Ciel (Sky Charts). I’ve reversed the colors from previous printings of this image. Reprinted from my article in the Stellar Sentinel, the newsletter for the Grand Traverse Astronomical Society.
12/06/2021 – Ephemeris – A new comet is reaching naked-eye or binocular visibility
This is Ephemeris for Monday, December 6th. Today the Sun will be up for 8 hours and 56 minutes, setting at 5:02, and it will rise tomorrow at 8:06. The Moon, 2 days past new, will set at 7:27 this evening.
Comet 2021 A1, is also known as Comet Leonard, for its discoverer Gregory J. Leonard of the Mount Lemmon Survey, near Tuscon, Arizona. When it was found, on January 3rd this year, it was farther from the Sun than Jupiter. January 3rd of next year, less than a month from now, it will pass its closest to the Sun at a distance of around 57 million miles from the Sun. This is after falling in toward the Sun for the last 40,000 years. It will pass close to Venus, and its orbit will be tweaked to escape the solar system to eventually head out among the stars. Tomorrow morning it will be 7 ½ degrees or 3 fingers below left of Arcturus, the brightest star in the east before 6:30. It’s 5th magnitude, but still requires binoculars for most folks to be able to spot.
The astronomical event times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (EST, UT – 5 hours). They may be different for your location.
Addendum
Comet Leonard (C/2021 A1) finder chart for 6:30 am, December 7, 2021. The comet’s tail may not be visible visually. The comet’s head, what astronomers call a coma, may appear as a large fuzzy spot. At that time it will be 29 million miles away, and will come within 22 million miles at its closest to us on the 12th. Created using Stellarium.
Comet Leonard’s positions at 6:30 am on the dates indicated. The labels are Month-Day Total Magnitude. The star’s position relative to the horizon and the position of Mars are for November 27th. The star field will be shifting to the upper right each morning at 6:30 from the November 27th date at 6:30. Comets always appear dimmer than their magnitude suggests because they are extended objects, not points like stars. Also, comet magnitudes can be unpredictable. The comet tails shown show the direction of the tail, if visible, only. Created using Cartes du Ciel (Sky Charts). I’ve reversed the colors from previous printings of this image. Reprinted from my article in the Stellar Sentinel, the newsletter for the Grand Traverse Astronomical Society.
12/01/2021 – Ephemeris – Let’s search for the naked-eye planets and a comet for this week
This is Bob Moler with Ephemeris for Wednesday, December 1st. Today the Sun will be up for 9 hours and 3 minutes, setting at 5:03, and it will rise tomorrow at 8:01. The Moon, 3 days before new, will rise at 5:45 tomorrow morning.
Let’s search for the naked-eye planets for this week. Venus will be visible in the southwestern evening twilight by 5:30 tonight. It’s a crescent in telescopes. It is moving closer to us, and now appears a bit larger than Jupiter in telescopes. Venus will set at 7:47 pm. By 5:45 pm, both Jupiter and Saturn should be able to be spotted in the southern sky. Saturn will be dimmer, and to its right. It will set first at 9:30 pm, with Jupiter following at 10:56 pm. A new comet named Leonard can be spotted with binoculars about 14 degrees above the bright star Arcturus in the east before 6:30 or 7am tomorrow morning. The spread of your fingers at arm’s length is about 15 degrees. The comet will move lower each morning.
The astronomical event times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (EST, UT – 5 hours). They may be different for your location. That also applies to the times in the addendum below.
Addendum
The evening planets Venus, Saturn and Jupiter at 5:45 pm this evening, December 1, 2021. Created using Stellarium.
Comet Leonard, designation C/2021 A1, Finder chart looking East at 6:30 am. Arcturus is the brightest star in that direction. The handle of the Big Dipper is above and right of it. The comet is expected to be 7th magnitude, requiring binoculars or a telescope. It is expected to brighten to possibly be visible to the naked eye by the end of next week. No promises though. Created using Stellarium.
A closeup of the Moon and Mars at 7 am tomorrow morning, December 2, 2021. The star next to the Moon is Zubenelgenubi (south claw of the scorpion), in Libra. The Arabs, who named this star and most others, saw this star as part of Scorpius, to the left and yet to rise.
Telescopic views of the bright planets (north up) as they would be seen in a small telescope, with the same magnification, this evening at 7 pm, December 1, 2021. Apparent diameters: Venus, 39.41″, 27.9% illuminated; Saturn 15.99″, its rings 37.24″; Jupiter, 38.25″. The ” symbol means seconds of arc (1/3600th of a degree.) Jupiter’s other bright moons are behind the planet at 7 pm. Callisto will reappear on the eastern edge of Jupiter (Io’s side) at 9:13 pm. Created using Cartes du Ciel (Sky Charts).
The naked-eye planets and the Moon at sunset and sunrise on a single night, starting with sunset on the right on December 1, 2021. The night ends on the left with sunrise on the 2nd. Click on the image to enlarge it. Created using my LookingUp program.
11/30/2021 – Ephemeris – Previewing December skies
This is Ephemeris for Tuesday, November 30th. Today the Sun will be up for 9 hours and 4 minutes, setting at 5:03, and it will rise tomorrow at 8:00. The Moon, 3 days past last quarter, will rise at 4:24 tomorrow morning.
Let’s look ahead at the skies of December. We are now in the holiday season and about to celebrate the southernmost travel of the Sun in the sky and its return northward. The Sun will stop its travel south, the winter solstice on the 21st at 10:59 a.m. That will make that day the shortest day in terms of daylight hours. However, the earliest sunset and latest sunrise don’t coincide with that date. The reason is the Earth is closer to the Sun than average and is moving faster in its orbit than it normally does. It skews the sunrise and sunset times, making them later than they would be on average. We have a comet, C/2021 A1 (Leonard), that will be bright enough to be visible in binoculars coming into view in the morning later this week and into the next.
The astronomical event times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (EST, UT – 5 hours). They may be different for your location.
Addendum
December Evening Star Chart
Star Chart for December 2021 (9 p.m. EST December 15, 2021). Click on image to enlarge. Created using my LookingUp program. Click on image to enlarge.
The planets and stars are plotted for the 15th at 9 pm EST in the evening and 6 a.m. for the morning chart. These are the chart times. Note that Traverse City is located approximately 45 minutes behind our time meridian, West 75° longitude. (An hour 45 minutes behind our daylight saving time meridian during EDT).
December Morning Star Chart
Star Chart for December mornings, 2021 (6 a.m. EST December 15, 2021). Click on image to enlarge. Created using my LookingUp program.
For a list of constellation names to go with the abbreviations click here.
- Pointer stars at the front of the bowl of the Big Dipper point to Polaris, the North Star.
- The leaky bowl of the Big Dipper drips on Leo.
- Follow the arc of the handle of the Big Dipper to the star Arcturus, then
- Follow the spike to Spica.
- The Summer Triangle is in red.
- GemR on the star charts is the radiant of the Geminid meteor shower, which peaks on the morning of the 14th.
Twilight Limits, Nautical and Astronomical
| EST | |||||||
| Morning | Twilight | Evening | Twilight | Dark | Night | Moon | |
| Date | Astro. | Nautical | Nautical | Astro. | Start | End | Illum. |
| 2021-12-01 | 6h20m | 6h56m | 18h15m | 18h51m | 18h51m | 4h24m | 0.07 |
| 2021-12-02 | 6h21m | 6h57m | 18h15m | 18h50m | 18h50m | 5h45m | 0.02 |
| 2021-12-03 | 6h22m | 6h57m | 18h15m | 18h50m | 18h50m | 6h22m | 0 |
| 2021-12-04 | 6h23m | 6h58m | 18h15m | 18h50m | 18h50m | 6h23m | 0.01 |
| 2021-12-05 | 6h24m | 6h59m | 18h15m | 18h50m | 18h50m | 6h24m | 0.05 |
| 2021-12-06 | 6h25m | 7h00m | 18h15m | 18h50m | 19h27m | 6h25m | 0.12 |
| 2021-12-07 | 6h26m | 7h01m | 18h15m | 18h50m | 20h43m | 6h26m | 0.21 |
| 2021-12-08 | 6h27m | 7h02m | 18h15m | 18h50m | 22h00m | 6h27m | 0.31 |
| 2021-12-09 | 6h28m | 7h03m | 18h15m | 18h50m | 23h14m | 6h28m | 0.41 |
| 2021-12-10 | 6h28m | 7h04m | 18h15m | 18h50m | – | 6h28m | 0.52 |
| 2021-12-11 | 6h29m | 7h05m | 18h15m | 18h50m | 0h25m | 6h29m | 0.62 |
| 2021-12-12 | 6h30m | 7h05m | 18h15m | 18h51m | 1h32m | 6h30m | 0.71 |
| 2021-12-13 | 6h31m | 7h06m | 18h15m | 18h51m | 2h38m | 6h31m | 0.79 |
| 2021-12-14 | 6h31m | 7h07m | 18h16m | 18h51m | 3h42m | 6h31m | 0.87 |
| 2021-12-15 | 6h32m | 7h07m | 18h16m | 18h51m | 4h46m | 6h32m | 0.92 |
| 2021-12-16 | 6h33m | 7h08m | 18h16m | 18h52m | 5h50m | 6h33m | 0.97 |
| 2021-12-17 | 6h29m | 7h05m | 18h13m | 18h48m | – | – | 0.99 |
| 2021-12-18 | 6h30m | 7h05m | 18h13m | 18h48m | – | – | 1 |
| 2021-12-19 | 6h30m | 7h06m | 18h13m | 18h49m | – | – | 0.99 |
| 2021-12-20 | 6h31m | 7h07m | 18h14m | 18h49m | – | – | 0.96 |
| 2021-12-21 | 6h31m | 7h07m | 18h14m | 18h50m | 18h50m | 19h11m | 0.92 |
| 2021-12-22 | 6h32m | 7h07m | 18h15m | 18h50m | 18h50m | 20h16m | 0.86 |
| 2021-12-23 | 6h32m | 7h08m | 18h15m | 18h51m | 18h51m | 21h23m | 0.78 |
| 2021-12-24 | 6h33m | 7h08m | 18h16m | 18h51m | 18h51m | 22h31m | 0.7 |
| 2021-12-25 | 6h33m | 7h09m | 18h17m | 18h52m | 18h52m | 23h40m | 0.6 |
| 2021-12-26 | 6h34m | 7h09m | 18h17m | 18h53m | 18h53m | – | 0.49 |
| 2021-12-27 | 6h34m | 7h09m | 18h18m | 18h53m | 18h53m | 0h50m | 0.38 |
| 2021-12-28 | 6h34m | 7h10m | 18h19m | 18h54m | 18h54m | 2h02m | 0.27 |
| 2021-12-29 | 6h34m | 7h10m | 18h19m | 18h55m | 18h55m | 3h18m | 0.18 |
| 2021-12-30 | 6h35m | 7h10m | 18h20m | 18h55m | 18h55m | 4h38m | 0.1 |
| 2021-12-31 | 6h35m | 7h10m | 18h21m | 18h56m | 18h56m | 6h00m | 0.04 |
Twilight calendar was generated using Cartes du Ciel (Sky Charts).
See my blog post: Twilight Zone for the definitions of the different periods of twilight here: https://bobmoler.wordpress.com/2018/09/27/.
NASA Calendar of Planetary Events
Date Time Event
Dec 1 We Venus: 41.4° E
3 Fr 9:58 am Moon Descending Node
4 Sa 2:34 am Total Solar Eclipse (Antarctica, Southern Ocean)
4 Sa 2:43 am New Moon
4 Sa 5:01 am Moon Perigee: 356800 km
5 Su 9:25 pm Moon South Dec.: 26.3° S
6 Mo 7:48 pm Moon-Venus: 1.9° N
7 Tu 8:52 pm Moon-Saturn: 4.2° N
9 Th 1:07 am Moon-Jupiter: 4.6° N
10 Fr 8:36 pm First Quarter
14 Tu 1:44 am Geminid Shower: ZHR = 120
16 Th 7:12 pm Moon Ascending Node
17 Fr 9:16 pm Moon Apogee: 406300 km
18 Sa 11:36 pm Full Moon
19 Su 11:32 pm Moon North Dec.: 26.3° N
21 Tu 4:20 am Moon-Pollux: 2.9° N
21 Tu 10:59 am Winter Solstice
22 We 5:28 am Moon-Beehive: 3.6° S
22 We 10:00 am Ursid Shower: ZHR = 10
26 Su 9:24 pm Last Quarter
27 Mo 4:17 am Mars-Antares: 4.5° N
28 Tu 11:49 pm Mercury-Venus: 4.2° N
30 Th 8:07 pm Moon Descending Node
31 Fr 3:13 pm Moon-Mars: 0.9° N
All event times are given for UTC-5 Eastern Standard Time.
Sky Events Calendar by Fred Espenak and Sumit Dutta (NASA’s GSFC),
http://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/SKYCAL/SKYCAL.html.
If you go to the above site, you can print out a list like the above for the entire year or calendar pages for your time zone.
Sun and Moon Rising and Setting Events
LU Ephemeris of Sky Events for Interlochen/TC December, 2021 Local time zone: EST +-----------------------------------------------------------------------+ | DATE | SUN SUN DAYLIGHT| TWILIGHT* |MOON RISE OR ILLUM | | | RISE SET HOURS | END START |PHASE SET** TIME FRACTN| +=======================================================================+ |Wed 1| 08:00a 05:03p 09:03 | 06:12p 06:50a | Rise 05:45a 8%| |Thu 2| 08:01a 05:03p 09:01 | 06:12p 06:51a | Rise 07:09a 3%| |Fri 3| 08:02a 05:02p 09:00 | 06:12p 06:52a | Rise 08:33a 0%| |Sat 4| 08:03a 05:02p 08:59 | 06:12p 06:53a |New Set 05:18p 1%| +------+-----------------------+----------------+-----------------------+ |Sun 5| 08:04a 05:02p 08:57 | 06:12p 06:54a | Set 06:17p 4%| |Mon 6| 08:05a 05:02p 08:56 | 06:12p 06:55a | Set 07:27p 11%| |Tue 7| 08:06a 05:02p 08:55 | 06:12p 06:56a | Set 08:43p 19%| |Wed 8| 08:07a 05:02p 08:54 | 06:12p 06:57a | Set 10:00p 28%| |Thu 9| 08:08a 05:02p 08:53 | 06:12p 06:58a | Set 11:14p 39%| |Fri 10| 08:09a 05:02p 08:52 | 06:12p 06:59a |F Qtr Set 12:25a 49%| |Sat 11| 08:10a 05:02p 08:51 | 06:12p 06:59a | Set 01:32a 60%| +------+-----------------------+----------------+-----------------------+ |Sun 12| 08:11a 05:02p 08:51 | 06:12p 07:00a | Set 02:37a 69%| |Mon 13| 08:11a 05:02p 08:50 | 06:12p 07:01a | Set 03:41a 78%| |Tue 14| 08:12a 05:02p 08:49 | 06:13p 07:02a | Set 04:45a 85%| |Wed 15| 08:13a 05:02p 08:49 | 06:13p 07:02a | Set 05:50a 91%| |Thu 16| 08:14a 05:03p 08:49 | 06:13p 07:03a | Set 06:53a 96%| |Fri 17| 08:14a 05:03p 08:48 | 06:14p 07:04a | Set 07:56a 99%| |Sat 18| 08:15a 05:03p 08:48 | 06:14p 07:04a |Full Rise 04:34p 100%| +------+-----------------------+----------------+-----------------------+ |Sun 19| 08:16a 05:04p 08:48 | 06:14p 07:05a | Rise 05:19p 99%| |Mon 20| 08:16a 05:04p 08:48 | 06:15p 07:05a | Rise 06:12p 97%| |Tue 21| 08:17a 05:05p 08:48 | 06:15p 07:06a | Rise 07:11p 93%| |Wed 22| 08:17a 05:05p 08:48 | 06:16p 07:06a | Rise 08:16p 87%| |Thu 23| 08:18a 05:06p 08:48 | 06:16p 07:07a | Rise 09:23p 80%| |Fri 24| 08:18a 05:06p 08:48 | 06:17p 07:07a | Rise 10:31p 71%| |Sat 25| 08:18a 05:07p 08:48 | 06:18p 07:08a | Rise 11:40p 62%| +------+-----------------------+----------------+-----------------------+ |Sun 26| 08:19a 05:08p 08:49 | 06:18p 07:08a |L Qtr Rise 12:50a 51%| |Mon 27| 08:19a 05:08p 08:49 | 06:19p 07:08a | Rise 02:02a 40%| |Tue 28| 08:19a 05:09p 08:50 | 06:20p 07:09a | Rise 03:18a 30%| |Wed 29| 08:19a 05:10p 08:50 | 06:20p 07:09a | Rise 04:37a 20%| |Thu 30| 08:19a 05:11p 08:51 | 06:21p 07:09a | Rise 06:00a 11%| |Fri 31| 08:20a 05:12p 08:52 | 06:22p 07:09a | Rise 07:20a 5%| +-----------------------------------------------------------------------+ * Nautical Twilight ** Moonrise or moonset, whichever occurs between sunrise and sunset
Generated using my LookingUp for DOS program.
Comet Leonard
Comet Leonard’s positions at 6:30 am on the dates indicated. The labels are Month-Day Total Magnitude. The star’s position relative to the horizon and the position of Mars are for November 27th. The star field will be shifting to the upper right each morning at 6:30 from the November 27th date. Comets always appear dimmer than their magnitude suggests because they are extended objects, not points like stars. Also, comet magnitudes can be unpredictable. Plus, the comet tails will not appear as long. The tail may not actually be visible visually. Created using Cartes du Ciel (Sky Charts). Reprinted from my article in the December 2021 issue of the Stellar Sentinel, the newsletter for the Grand Traverse Astronomical Society.
This is our best shot at spotting the comet. After it passes the Sun and enters the evening sky, the comet will hug the southwest to southern horizon in twilight. I’ll have more on Comet Leonard in the rest of the programs this week.
Bob Moler's Ephemeris Blog 