lumpy darkness

Observation notes (with equipment details), photos, sketches, reviews, software tips, random thoughts, by an amateur astronomer.

SUNDAY, AUGUST 6, 2011

what's up for the year

If you're like me, you need to see "the big picture." Usually over the winter months, I start sketching out my plans for the whole year. For example, I try to tie camping trips to good night skies.

I use a combination of technologies. I maintain a set of events in a Google Calendar layer called "astronomy" (surprise, surprise); I use a Rainmeter skin to monitor this calendar. For significant events, I make systems send me e-mail reminders!

Why not regularly view my shared read-only Google Calendar. It supports Week, Month, and Agenda (list) views.

 

 

The calendar is shown above in an "iFrame." I hope your browser supports this style.

The calendar is written primarily for the south-western Ontario locale.

 

TUESDAY, JANUARY 30, 2018

sources

Information about upcoming astronomical events is gathered from a variety of sources.

  • RASC Observer's Handbook (annual)
  • RASC calendar (annual)
  • Stan Shadick's Skywatchers calendar (annual)
  • The Evening Sky Map (monthly)
    http://skymaps.com
  • SkyNews magazine (bi-monthly)
  • Sky and Telescope magazine web site (weekly)
  • Eric Briggs of the RASC Toronto Centre
  • Gary Boyle of the RASC
  • Dave Mitsky's Celestial Calendar in StarryNights Yahoo!Group (also shared on the Cloudy Nights site)
    https://www.cloudynights.com/forum/55-celestial-events/
  • CalSky's customisable calendar
    https://www.calsky.com
  • SkyTools planning software
  • incredible JPL space calendar by Ron Baalke
    https://www2.jpl.nasa.gov/calendar/calendar.html
  • SkyCal Sky Events Calendar from NASA
    https://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/SKYCAL/SKYCAL.html
  • etc.

 

SUNDAY, JANUARY 12, 2014

solar system events

The list below notes the significant solar system events for the year of 2014. There are separate listings for the inner planets, the outer bodies, and known comets.

 

inner planets:

object and event date
Mercury  
   elongation east (evening) Jan 30
   inferior conjunction Feb 15
   elongation west (morning) Mar 13
   superior conjunction Apr 25
   east May 24
   inferior Jun 19
   west Jul 12
   superior Aug 8
   east Sep 21
   inferior Oct 16
   west Oct 31
   superior Dec 7
Venus  
   inferior conjunction Jan 11
   elongation west (morning) Mar 22
   superior conjunction Oct 24

outer planets (in relation to the Sun):

object in line   opposite
Mars -   Apr 8
asteroids      
   (1) Ceres Dec 10   Apr 17
   (2) Pallas Oct 25   Feb 15
   (3) Juno Apr 12   -
   (4) Vesta -   Apr 15
Jupiter Jul 24   Jan 5
Saturn Nov 17   May 10
Uranus Apr 1   Oct 7
Neptune Feb 23   Aug 28
Pluto Jan 1   Jul 3

comets:

object perihelion   notes
C/2013 R1 Lovejoy -   near alpha Oph Jan 11
C/2012 X1 (LINEAR) Feb 21   in Oph during Jan
17P/Holmes Mar 27    
209P/LINEAR May 6    
Faye May 29    
C/2012 K1 Pan-STARRS Aug 27   Hercules in Apr
C/2013 V5 Oukaimeden Aug-late   Monoceros in Aug-early
C/2013 A1 Siding Spring Oct 25   very near Mars Oct 19

 

 

 

 

links

    lumpy darkness sites:
    blog proper
    lists home
   
    telescopes:
    SP-C8 SCT
    GoToStar system
    Edmund 6" newt
    ETX90-RA MCT
    FirstScope 3" newt
    accessories
   
    life lists:
    planets, moons, etc.
    constellations
    notable stars
    double stars *
    Messier objects
    NGC objects
    other deep sky objects
  eclipses
  occultations
  photo gallery
  magnitude limit
  to do
   
    resources:
    SkyTools
    Stellarium
    TheSky
    NexStar 11
    Aladin quick query
   
    other lists:
    Greek alphabet in HTML
    judging angular size
    atlases, books, software
(*)   what's up for the year
    meteor showers
  with just your eyes
  assessing darkness
  observing preparation
  presentations
  articles
  tips and tricks
  wx dashboards
  
    web site links:
    magazines
  sky conditions
  predicting aurora
  science and research
  space telescopes
    double stars sites
    retail stores
    clubs and associations
    DIY observatories
    miscellaneous