32 inch Cassegrain Project

Planets of the Month: September 2021

By Erich Karkoschka

Mercury is visible about 15 degrees to the lower right of Venus until September 21st. It is so low that it remains close to the limit of visibility (use extreme caution to avoid looking at the Sun). It passes Spica on the 21st. However, Spica definitely requires binoculars since it is one magnitude fainter than Mercury.
Venus is the obvious evening star until it sets after 8 pm. It passes Spica on the 5th. Venus is slowly brightening towards its best in December.
The two giant gas planets shine in the southeast during dusk. Their distance slowly decreases from 18 degrees at the beginning of September to 15 degrees at the end. They transit around 10 pm, perfect for telescope or binocular viewing.
The Galilean satellites’ orbits are very close to edge-on this month, so that conjunctions of two satellites become very close. The best shadow transit occurs on the 5th starting at 7:45 pm when the dark disk of Ganymede is already close to the center of Jupiter’s disk, so that two dark spots will be visible. The same occurs 7 days later, although Ganymede’s transit does not start until 9:20 pm with its shadow joining at 11:47 pm. Also, on the 17th, Callisto’s shadow can be seen until 8:13 pm.
Neptune comes into opposition in the constellation Pisces on September 14th. Uranus is one constellation further east in Aries.
The Moon might be just barely visible on September 7th (one day past New Moon), 10 degrees to the right of Mercury. Even if Mercury is difficult to spot, you will see it before you see the Moon. The three day old Moon has a beautiful pairing with Venus on September 9th. Three days later it passes Antares.

International Observe the Moon

International Observe the Moon is October 16, 2021. If there are not any specific events scheduled, get out a pair of binoculars or just go out and observe the Moon with your eyes. The Moon will be a Waxing Gibbous, between First Quarter and Full.

We have several telescopes available to check out from the Pima County Library. This is a great use of the telescope, having fun observing the Moon with your family or friends. For more information on our Library Telescope program and how to check one out, visit our webpage at Library Telescope.

Chiricahua Astronomy Complex Observing

Come join us for an evening of observing at our Chiricahua Astronomy Complex (CAC), 100 miles southeast of Tucson near the Chiricahua Mountains. CAC is an incredibly dark site with several large telescopes. The number of telescopes used will depend on the number of participants. Cost is only $50/adult and $25/child under 15. For reservations and additional information, visit our Tucson Stargazing Adventures or select Star Parties, Tucson Stargazing Adventures, Observing at our very dark site.

Chiricahua Astronomy Complex Observing

Come join us for an evening of observing at our Chiricahua Astronomy Complex (CAC), 100 miles southeast of Tucson near the Chiricahua Mountains. CAC is an incredibly dark site with several large telescopes. The number of telescopes used will depend on the number of participants. Cost is only $50/adult and $25/child under 15. For reservations and additional information, visit our Tucson Stargazing Adventures or select Star Parties, Tucson Stargazing Adventures, Observing at our very dark site.

Chiricahua Astronomy Complex Observing

Come join us for an evening of observing at our Chiricahua Astronomy Complex (CAC), 100 miles southeast of Tucson near the Chiricahua Mountains. CAC is an incredibly dark site with several large telescopes. The number of telescopes used will depend on the number of participants. Cost is only $50/adult and $25/child under 15. For reservations and additional information, visit our Tucson Stargazing Adventures or select Star Parties, Tucson Stargazing Adventures, Observing at our very dark site.

ONLINE – Astronomy Fundamentals Meeting – November 2021

Constellation of the Month:  

Libra and Norma

Presenter:   Peter Hermes

Peter Hermes will be presenting Libra and Norma for the constellation of the month.

Main Presentation:  

None

Presenter:

We do not have a main topic presenter this month.

ONLINE – Astronomy Fundamentals Meeting – September 2021

Constellation of the Month:  

Hydrus

Presenter:  David Evans

David Evans will be highlighting the southern constellation Hydrus.

Main Presentation:  

Astronomer William Herschel

Presenter:  Connor Justice

Connor Justice will be providing the main topic on astronomer William Herschel, who discovered Uranus.

ONLINE – General Meeting – November 2021

TAAA’s next general member meeting will be held online, on Friday, November 5, 2021. The Main Presentation starts at 6:30 P.M. NON-MEMBERS may attend via Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/TucsonAstronomy/.                             MEMBERS should attend the meeting via Zoom.

6:30 pm – Main Presentation

Title:  David Levy’s two astronomy careers:  Rewards and Challenges

Presentation:  Over the course of the last 60 years, David Levy has followed two different paths to the night sky.  In his own words, “One is the observing, the search for comets, which includes the discoveries of 21 comets including Shoemaker-Levy 9.   The other relates the night sky to English Literature.  This lecture will cover the joys and the challenges of this double-pronged approach to the night sky, in which the first grabs my heart, and the second touches my soul.”

Presenter:  David Levy is arguably one of the most enthusiastic and famous amateur astronomers of our time.  Although he has never taken a class in astronomy, he has written over three dozen books, written for three astronomy magazines and appeared on television programs featured on the Discovery and the Science Channels.  Among David’s accomplishments are 23 comet discoveries, the most famous being Shoemaker-Levy 9 that collided with Jupiter in 1994, a few hundred shared asteroid discoveries, an Emmy for the documentary Three Minutes to Impact, five honorary doctorates in Science and a PhD which combines astronomy and English Literature.  Currently, he is the editor of the web magazine Sky’s Up!, and has a monthly column, Skyward, in the Vail Voice community newspaper. David continues to hunt for comets and asteroids, and lectures worldwide.