Special to CosmicTribune.com, September 29, 2024 Excerpts from weekly Sky&Telescope report. SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 29 ■ Face south and look high these evenings after dark. The brightest star there is Altair, the southernmost point of the Summer Triangle. The other two are Deneb and Vega more nearly overhead. MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 30 ■ The starry W of Cassiopeia stands high […]
Special to CosmicTribune.com, September 22, 2024 Excerpts from weekly Sky&Telescope report. SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 22 ■ Goodbye to summer — at last! Today is equinox day. Earth passes the September equinox point in its orbit at 8:44 a.m. EDT (12:44 UT). This is when the Sun, in its six-month journey south, crosses the celestial equator — and equivalently, […]
Special to CosmicTribune.com, August 19, 2024 Excerpts from weekly Sky&Telescope report. SUNDAY, AUGUST 18 ■ Whenever bright Vega shines nearest your zenith, as it does right after dark now. Two hours later, when Deneb passes the zenith, it’s the turn of little Delphinus and boat-shaped Capricornus down below it to stand at their highest due south. After […]
Special to CosmicTribune.com, August 5, 2024 Excerpts from weekly Sky&Telescope report. SUNDAY, AUGUST 4 ■ New Moon (exact at 7:13 a.m. on this date EDT). ■ The T Cor Bor Watch continues. Have you been checking Corona Borealis overhead these clear evenings? The recurrent nova T Coronae Borealis could erupt to 2nd magnitude anytime this summer. Or fall. […]
Special to CosmicTribune.com, July 15, 2024 Excerpts from weekly Sky&Telescope report. SUNDAY, JULY 14 ■ Uranus is in conjunction with Mars fairly low in the east before dawn on Monday morning July 15th. The two planets are magnitudes 5.8 and 0.9, respectively. Just before dawn Monday morning, use binoculars or a telescope to spot Uranus 0.6° to the north […]
Special to CosmicTribune.com, June 30, 2024 Excerpts from weekly Sky&Telescope report. SATURDAY, JUNE 29 ■ Right at nightfall, look for the Big Dipper hanging straight down in the northwest. Its bottom two stars, the Pointers, point to the right toward modest Polaris, the end of the Little Dipper’s handle, due north. SUNDAY, JUNE 30 If you […]
Special to CosmicTribune.com, June 24, 2024 Excerpts from weekly Sky&Telescope report. MONDAY, JUNE 24 ■ After dark look south for orange Antares, “the Betelgeuse of summer,” nearing the meridian. (Both are 1st-magnitude “red” supergiants). Around and upper right of Antares are the other, whiter stars of upper Scorpius, forming their distinctive pattern. ■ Also right after dark, spot […]
Special to CosmicTribune.com, June 9, 2024 Excerpts from weekly Sky&Telescope report. SUNDAY, JUNE 9 ■ The Big Dipper has now swung around to hang down by its handle high in the northwest after dark. The middle star of its handle is Mizar, with tiny little Alcor right next to it. On which side of Mizar should you […]
Special to CosmicTribune.com, May 19, 2024 Excerpts from weekly Sky&Telescope report. SUNDAY, MAY 19 ■ The Moon continues to illuminate Virgo’s part of the sky. Early this evening look about 3° or 4° lower left of the Moon for Spica, Virgo’s brightest star. By midnight the Moon moves closer to Spica, which then will be directly to […]
Special to CosmicTribune.com, May 15, 2024 Geostrategy-Direct By Richard Fisher Despite its many self-inflicted crises and its increasing political-economic subordination to China, Russia is still striving for a superpower level space program with ambitions to compete with the United States and China on the Moon. But in addition, Russia’s space program is growing less transparent […]
