Monthly Archives: August 2010

Researcher finds new meteor crater without leaving home

Posted on August 31, 2010 by astrobob

Imagine scanning through images in Google Earth and stumbling across a meteor crater made by a hunk of flying iron from the asteroid belt. That’s just what Vincenzo de Michele, former curator of the Natural History Museum in Milan, Italy … Continue reading →

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The sisters of fall meet the waning moon

Posted on August 30, 2010 by astrobob

Tomorrow morning the last quarter moon will be near the Seven Sisters star cluster also known as the Pleiades (PLEE-uh-deez). This true star cluster has a shape like a small dipper and is sometimes confused for the real Little Dipper … Continue reading →

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First feeling, then understanding

Posted on August 29, 2010 by astrobob

Mars continues to pester Venus in the west these late August evenings. It seems the two planets will never part. That’s good news for sky watchers who want to follow Mars as long as possible until it’s too close to … Continue reading →

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Got 38 seconds? Good. We’re go for orbit

Posted on August 28, 2010 by astrobob

I was poking around on the Internet and stumbled across this time lapse video made by astronaut Don Pettit from the windows of the International Space Station sometime during his stay there from late November 2002 to May 2003. I’ve … Continue reading →

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Venus proves that beauty can be elusive

Posted on August 27, 2010 by astrobob

Heck, it’s the brightest planet, and about as far as it gets from the sun in the evening sky, so how come Venus is hiding in the sunset glow? Checking the stats, I see Venus reached its greatest eastern elongation … Continue reading →

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Pull up a chair for tonight’s Jupiter-moon palooza

Posted on August 26, 2010 by astrobob

At least in the Duluth, Minnesota region, it’s been clear night after night, allowing us to watch the daily rising of the moon and its changing phase. Tonight the moon lines up for a wonderful conjunction with the planet Jupiter. … Continue reading →

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The space station cruises over a roof near you

Posted on August 25, 2010 by astrobob

The International Space Station (ISS) returns for evening viewing this week. When you go out to watch the craft silently glide across the sky, the astronauts aboard will be catching up on science experiments that were put on hold following … Continue reading →

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Full moon fun plus astronomers discover new solar system

Posted on August 24, 2010 by astrobob

Partly cloudy skies made for an interesting moonlit walk last night. I noticed that when the moon disappeared into clouds and then returned, the effect was more dramatic than when the sun does the same. Maybe it’s just me, but … Continue reading →

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Prettiest sight in the universe

Posted on August 23, 2010 by astrobob

I’ve seen a few pretty sights in this universe but few compare to the tub of tomatoes I took out of my garden yesterday afternoon. Man, look at those shiny beauties, each an edible red dwarf of the first magnitude. … Continue reading →

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News flash – Another Jupiter fireball!

Posted on August 22, 2010 by astrobob

Japanese amateur astronomer Masayuki Tachikawa, 52,  of Japan, captured video of a possible new impact on Jupiter at 3:32 a.m. local time (1:32 p.m. CDT) August 21. The small, 2-second duration brightening near the north edge of Jupiter’s Northern Equatorial … Continue reading →

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