Moon-Mars-Uranus Conjunction

Posted on January 19, 2021 by Bob Riddle

Wednesday evening January 20^th the 8-day old first quarter Moon will be about 4^o from the outer planet Uranus and about 6^o from Mars. Over the next couple of days Mars and Uranus will be separated by about 1-2^o as the faster moving Mars passes by Uranus.
Earlier in the evening outer Planet Neptune and two Dwarf Planets, Eris and Ceres are also above the horizon. However with apparent magnitudes ranging from 8.0 to 19.0 none of these three would be visible without some sort of optical assistance,

Caution: Objects viewed with an optical aid are further than they appear.
Click here to go to the Qué tal in the Current Skies web site for monthly observing information, or here to return to bobs-spaces.

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January Moon at Apogee

Posted on January 1, 2020 by Bob Riddle

Our Moon reaches apogee, (greatest distance from Earth), for this orbit, on Thursday January 2^nd. At that time the Moon will be at a distance of 31.71 Earth diameters 251,394 miles (404,580 km) from the Earth.

On the day of the apogee Moon the 8-day old first quarter Moon rises around noon local time and sets around midnight. At around sunset the Moon will over the southern horizon.

Does our Moon actually go around the Earth as this graphic shows? From our perspective on the Earth the Moon appears to circle around the Earth. However, in reality, the Moon orbits the Sun together with the Earth^*

^*Click here to read my 2006 Scope on the Sky column “The Real Shape of the Moon’s Orbit”. (PDF)

Moon Near a Planet and a Dwarf Planet

Posted on September 4, 2019 by Bob Riddle

Thursday evening September 5^th the 6.6-day old first quarter Moon will be about midway between the outer ‘giant’ ringed planet Jupiter, and Ceres, as well as near the reddish Antares in Scorpius the Scorpion. This interesting grouping will not quite fit within a 7^o binocular field of view but nonetheless will be a striking grouping. And for the record, Ceres is the closest dwarf planet to Earth.

First Quarter Moon Near Pollux

Posted on April 11, 2019 by Bob Riddle

Friday April 12^th the first quarter Moon will be within 6-7^o from the star Pollux in the constellation of the Gemini Twins and will more or less fit within the field of view of 7X50 binoculars.

April Moon at Ascending Node and an Anniversary

Posted on April 10, 2019 by Bob Riddle

Friday April 12^th the 7-day old waxing gibbous Moon will be crossing the plane of the ecliptic moving north relative to the ecliptic. This is known as the ascending node, one of two intersections the Moon’s orbital path has with the ecliptic. The ecliptic is actually the Earth’s orbit and the Moon’s orbit is inclined about 6^o from the ecliptic. So there are two node intersections, the ascending and descending nodes.

On the day of the node crossing the 7-day old first quarter Moon rises around mid-day and sets the following day.

Does our Moon actually go around the Earth as many graphics show? From our perspective on the Earth the Moon appears to circle around the Earth. However, in reality, the Moon orbits the Sun together with the Earth^*

Happy Anniversary
This year is the 75^th anniversary for the NSTA (National Science Teachers Association), and this graphic helps to celebrate the event by highlighting Alphecca Gemma, the brightest star in the constellation Corona Borealis, the Northern Crown. This star is 75 light years distant and so the light you see coming from that star left Alphecca Gemma the year that NSTA started.
The date of April 12^th was chosen because during this week Science Teachers and other educators will gather in St. Louis, MO for our annual conference. See you there?

^*Click here to read my 2006 Scope on the Sky column “The Real Shape of the Moon’s Orbit”. (PDF)

Read this very informative article about the Earth-Moon system and their orbital motions, written by Joe Hanson. “Do We Orbit the Moon?”

First Quarter Moon Conjunction with Mars

Posted on November 14, 2018 by Bob Riddle

Over the next two evenings, November 15^th – 16^th, the first quarter Moon will pass by the planet Mars coming within about 1-2^o. The animated graphic is set for 5:30 pm CST on November 15^th – 16^th.

Moon Passes Saturn

Posted on September 15, 2018 by Bob Riddle

Sunday September 16^th the first quarter Moon will be about 8^o west from the outer planet Saturn. Then the following evening, Monday the 17^th, as the Moon continues orbiting eastward, the waxing gibbous Moon will be within 3-4^o from Saturn, but on the east side of Saturn.

Moon in Conjunction with Aldebaran

Posted on September 1, 2018 by Bob Riddle

Early Monday morning September 3^rd the first quarter Moon will be rising about 4^o from the reddish star Aldebaran in the open star cluster the Hyades. These stars in a v-shaped arrangement mark the face of Taurus the Bull, while Aldebaran, as a reddish color, represents the angry eye of the charging bull. By sunrise local time the Moon and the Hyades will be high over the southern horizon.
This conjunction will look good through binoculars or a low-power wide-field telescope eyepiece.

Venus and Moon Are In Conjunctions

Posted on May 20, 2018 by Bob Riddle

Monday evening May 21^st the first quarter Moon and the inner planet Venus will each be in their own respective conjunctions. Venus is within 1^o from the open star cluster, M-35, located near the foot of Castor, one of the Gemini Twins. Venus currently shines with an apparent magnitude of -3.96, and at that brightness will outshine the 5^th magnitude of M-35.

Nonetheless the two should be visible with binoculars, as this graphic simulates, as well as a couple of 3^rd magnitude stars nearby.

Further toward the east, and unmistakable is the first quarter Moon. During the night hours the Moon, as it orbits eastward, will pass within about 1.5^o from the star Regulus in Leo the Lion. Since Regulus is very close to the ecliptic there is a good chance that the Moon and Regulus will have a regular repetitive pattern or cycle of conjunctions. As in the months that Regulus is above the horizon, which include the next two months, June 18^th and July 15^th.

Click here to go to the Qué tal in the Current Skies web site for monthly observing information, or here to return to bobs-spaces.

March Perigee Moon

Posted on March 24, 2018 by Bob Riddle

The Moon reaches perigee, (minimum distance from Earth), this month on Monday March 26^th. At that time the Moon will more or less be at a distance of 28.90 Earth diameters (369,106 km or 229352 miles) from the Earth.
Does our Moon actually go around the Earth as this graphic shows? From our perspective on the Earth the Moon appears to circle around the Earth. However, in reality, the Moon orbits the Sun together with the Earth^*

On the day of perigee the 9.5-day old waxing gibbous Moon rises at mid-afternoon and is located between Procyon in Canis Minor and Regulus in Leo the Lion.

^*Click here to read my 2006 Scope on the Sky column “The Real Shape of the Moon’s Orbit”. (PDF)

Read this very informative article about the Earth-Moon system and their orbital motions, written by Joe Hanson. “Do We Orbit the Moon?”

Bob's Spaces

Earth and Space Sciences Education

Tag Archives: first quarter moon

Moon-Mars-Uranus Conjunction

January Moon at Apogee

Moon Near a Planet and a Dwarf Planet

First Quarter Moon Near Pollux

April Moon at Ascending Node and an Anniversary

First Quarter Moon Conjunction with Mars

Moon Passes Saturn

Moon in Conjunction with Aldebaran

Venus and Moon Are In Conjunctions

March Perigee Moon

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