Astronomy
Virginia Skylines
Virginia Skylines is a weekly radio program written and narrated by Leslie Bochenski, astronomer at the Science Museum of Virginia, and broadcast every Saturday night on WCVE. It explores the cosmos from distant galaxies to stars and constellations you can see from your own backyard here in Virginia. If there's an eclipse, a bright comet, or a major meteor shower coming soon to Virginia skies, you'll hear about it on Virginia Skylines.
"Old Timers" of Mars
The Mars Exploration Rovers Spirit and Opportunity are 4.5 years into their primary missions which were slated to last a mere 3 months.
| Enhanced (broadband connection) MP3, 1.3 MB | subscribe | listen |
| Regular (dial-up connection) MP3, 336 KB | subscribe | listen |
| Transcript | ||
Sky Happenings for August 2008
Virginia area star map for August 2008 (PDF 220 kB)
Planets This Month
Mercury is visible from the middle to end of the month, near Venus in the evening twilight.
Venus will be the brightest star-like object low in the evening twilight. The planet will be near the northwest horizon, and will slowly move higher in the sky throughout the month. During the middle of the month, Venus is near Saturn and Mercury. By the end of August, it will be near Mars and Mercury. (See August 13 and 22 events below).
Mars is about 12° above the west horizon at 9:00 pm during the first week of August, and sets in the west before 10:00 pm. By the third week of August, Mars will be only 10° above the west horizon at 8:30 pm, and set in the west at about 9:00 pm. Mars looks like a bright red star.
Jupiter stands about 24° above the southeast horizon after sunset, moves west throughout the night, and sets in the southwest before 3:00 am. Jupiter is the brightest star-like object low in the south.
Saturn is very low in the west after sunset, and sets just after 9:00 pm during the first week of August. By mid-month, Saturn will no longer be visible.
Celestial Events
| August 1 | Total Solar Eclipse, visible in the Arctic, Northern Canada, Greenland, Northern Europe, and Northern Asia. |
|---|---|
| August 2 | Venus 2° north of the Waxing Crescent Moon, low in the west just after sunset. |
| August 5 | Venus 1.1° north of the bright star Regulus. |
| August 10 | Waxing Gibbous Moon west of the bright star Antares. |
| August 12–13 | Persieid Meteor Shower, up to 90 meteors per hour as seen from dark skies, away from city lights. Bright moonlight will also interfere with your ability to see the meteors, so watch the shower after the moon sets at 2:55 am (August 13). |
| August 13 | Venus 0.2° south of Saturn, very low in the west just after sunset. Mercury is less than 2° below Venus. |
| August 16 | Partial Lunar Eclipse, visible from every continent EXCEPT North America. |
| August 22 | Mercury 1.3° south of Venus low in the west just after sunset. |
Moon Phases
| New Moon | August 1 |
|---|---|
| First Quarter | August 8 |
| Full Moon | August 16 |
| Last Quarter | August 23 |
| New Moon | August 30 |
Sky Happenings for September 2008
Planets this month
Mercury Reaches greatest elongation (the point in its orbit where it is farthest from the Sun as seen from Earth) on September 10, 27° from the Sun. However, Mercury will remain very low in the sky, only about 10° above the west horizon at sunset, and it sets in the west at about 8:00 pm. After September 11, Mercury will be lower in the sky each evening, and disappear from view before the end of the month.
Venus will be the brightest star-like object low in the evening twilight. It is near Mercury and Mars for most of the month, however, Venus is easier to see in the evening twilight because it is much brighter than the other two planets. (See September 11 below)
Mars is about 10° above the west horizon at 8:00 pm during the first week of September, and sets in the west before 9:00 pm. By the third week of September, Mars will be disappearing low in the western evening twilight. Mars looks like a bright red star.
Jupiter stands about 25° above the south horizon after sunset, moves west throughout the night, and sets in the southwest at about 1:00 am. Jupiter is the brightest star-like object low in the south/southwest.
Saturn is not visible until the last week of September, when it rises just north of east at about 5:45 am. By September 30, Saturn will be 12° above the east horizon before sunrise.
Uranus is not usually visible without a telescope, but may be seen this month from a dark location with the unaided eye. On September 13, Uranus is at opposition (the point in its orbit when it is closest to Earth) so it can be seen as a faint star-like object in the constellation Aquarius.
Celestial Events
| September 1 | Very slim Waxing Crescent Moon near Venus, Mercury and Mars low in the west just after sunset. |
|---|---|
| September 6 | First Quarter Moon 0.3° south of the bright star Antares in the constellation Scorpius. |
| September 9 | Waxing Gibbous Moon 3° south of Jupiter. |
| September 10 | Mercury at greatest elongation, 27° east of the Sun as seen from Earth. |
| September 11 | Venus 0.3° north of Mars and 4° north of Mercury low in the west just after sunset. |
| September 19 | Waning Gibbous Moon 1° north of Pleiades star cluster in the northeast after 10:00 pm. |
| September 22 | Autumnal Equinox at 11:45 am Eastern Daylight Time (EDT). As the Sun crosses the Celestial Equator, this day marks the official start of Autumn in the Northern Hemisphere, an the start of Spring in the Southern Hemisphere. |
| September 27 | Waning Crescent Moon 5° north of Saturn in the east before sunrise. |
Moon Phases
| First Quarter | September 6 |
|---|---|
| Full Moon | September 15 |
| Last Quarter | September 22 |
| New Moon | September 29 |
Astronomy Resources
Stargazers' forecast (visibility and transparency) for Richmond, VA
