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SOUND OF SILENCE MAY 3, 2012 SKYVIEWS

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• published: 03 May 2012
• views: 998

CFHT CLOUD CAM TIME LAPSE SUNRISE MAY 3, 2012 The central event of the month, and one of the skywatching highlights of the year, takes place during the daytime: an annular eclipse of the Sun, which carves a narrow path across the western United States. An annular solar eclipse will dim the skies along a narrow path in the western United States on May 20, with a partial eclipse visible across most of the rest of the country. After dark, some of the signature star patterns of summer begin their climb to prominence, including the Summer Triangle, which rises in late evening, and sinuous Scorpius, the scorpion, which is in full view at midnight by month's end. In addition to our May eclipse coverage, we have information on the second half of a twice-in-a-lifetime event: the June 5 transit of Venus across the Sun. May 2, 2012 Venus, the "evening star," is lining up just below El Nath, the star that marks the tip of one of the horns of Taurus, the bull. The star is also a member of the adjoining constellation Auriga, the charioteer, giving it a dual identity. May 3, 2012 Look towards the southeast on Thursday night (May 3) about an hour after sunset, and you will behold a rare and beautiful sight, a triple conjunction, Saturn, the second-largest planet in the solar system, stands to the lower left of the Moon this evening. It looks like a bright golden star, with the true bright star Spica nearby, a bit closer to the Moon. The moon is set to get a lot bigger this weekend -- at least from our perspective on Earth. And the 'Supermoon' -- the nickname for a perigee full moon, closer to the Earth than usual -- could cause tides to rise around the world as the moon's close 'fly past' exerts 42% more tidal force. The moon will appear bigger and brighter -- sky-watchers promise this 'supermoon' will be 16% brighter than most when it begins on Saturday at 3.35pm GMT, 11.35am EDT. Another 'super moon' is due on Saturday. The perigee full Moon in May will be as much as 14% bigger and 30% brighter than other full moons of 2012 'To view this weekend's supermoon to best effect, look for it just after it rises or before it sets, when it is close to the horizon. There, you can catch a view of the moon behind buildings or trees, an effect which produces an optical illusion, making the moon seem even larger than it really is. The Moon looks extra-big when it is beaming through foreground objects--a.k.a. 'the Moon illusion.' Star gazing fans will get to enjoy the peek display of the annual Eta Aquarid meteor shower from Halley's Comet on the night of May 5 and into the morning of May 6. With ideal conditions, NASA is predicting meteor rates of about 40-60 meteors per hour. Traffic Report on 2 May '12 Four objects reported inside ten LD Four objects are reported inside ten lunar distances (LD) of Earth today. Within Earth's Hill sphere, 2012 HA34 comes its closest to Earth this time around, reaching 2.87 LD at 1104 UTC. Further away, risk-listed 2012 HE31 is outbound from 4.74 to 6.80 LD and radar target 2012 HM from 5.33 to 6.73 LD. And 1992 JD, which so far has not been reported observed, is calculated to come its closest to Earth on this passage -- 9.5 LD at 0450 UTC, with an uncertainty of +/- 4.60 hours. Approaching our neighborhood next, 2010 KK37 arrives inside ten LD on May 15th. This report was generated at 1819 UTC with follow-up in today's DOU MPEC for 2012 HG2. hohmanntransfer.com/news.htm, stardate.org, nasa.org, space.com, spaceweather.com, audio: Sound Of Silence by Tommy Fleming

SOUND OF SILENCE MAY 3, 2012 SKYVIEWS

• Report rights infringement
• published: 03 May 2012
• views: 998

CFHT CLOUD CAM TIME LAPSE SUNRISE MAY 3, 2012 The central event of the month, and one of the skywatching highlights of the year, takes place during the daytime: an annular eclipse of the Sun, which carves a narrow path across the western United States. An annular solar eclipse will dim the skies along a narrow path in the western United States on May 20, with a partial eclipse visible across most of the rest of the country. After dark, some of the signature star patterns of summer begin their climb to prominence, including the Summer Triangle, which rises in late evening, and sinuous Scorpius, the scorpion, which is in full view at midnight by month's end. In addition to our May eclipse coverage, we have information on the second half of a twice-in-a-lifetime event: the June 5 transit of Venus across the Sun. May 2, 2012 Venus, the "evening star," is lining up just below El Nath, the star that marks the tip of one of the horns of Taurus, the bull. The star is also a member of the adjoining constellation Auriga, the charioteer, giving it a dual identity. May 3, 2012 Look towards the southeast on Thursday night (May 3) about an hour after sunset, and you will behold a rare and beautiful sight, a triple conjunction, Saturn, the second-largest planet in the solar system, stands to the lower left of the Moon this evening. It looks like a bright golden star, with the true bright star Spica nearby, a bit closer to the Moon. The moon is set to get a lot bigger this weekend -- at least from our perspective on Earth. And the 'Supermoon' -- the nickname for a perigee full moon, closer to the Earth than usual -- could cause tides to rise around the world as the moon's close 'fly past' exerts 42% more tidal force. The moon will appear bigger and brighter -- sky-watchers promise this 'supermoon' will be 16% brighter than most when it begins on Saturday at 3.35pm GMT, 11.35am EDT. Another 'super moon' is due on Saturday. The perigee full Moon in May will be as much as 14% bigger and 30% brighter than other full moons of 2012 'To view this weekend's supermoon to best effect, look for it just after it rises or before it sets, when it is close to the horizon. There, you can catch a view of the moon behind buildings or trees, an effect which produces an optical illusion, making the moon seem even larger than it really is. The Moon looks extra-big when it is beaming through foreground objects--a.k.a. 'the Moon illusion.' Star gazing fans will get to enjoy the peek display of the annual Eta Aquarid meteor shower from Halley's Comet on the night of May 5 and into the morning of May 6. With ideal conditions, NASA is predicting meteor rates of about 40-60 meteors per hour. Traffic Report on 2 May '12 Four objects reported inside ten LD Four objects are reported inside ten lunar distances (LD) of Earth today. Within Earth's Hill sphere, 2012 HA34 comes its closest to Earth this time around, reaching 2.87 LD at 1104 UTC. Further away, risk-listed 2012 HE31 is outbound from 4.74 to 6.80 LD and radar target 2012 HM from 5.33 to 6.73 LD. And 1992 JD, which so far has not been reported observed, is calculated to come its closest to Earth on this passage -- 9.5 LD at 0450 UTC, with an uncertainty of +/- 4.60 hours. Approaching our neighborhood next, 2010 KK37 arrives inside ten LD on May 15th. This report was generated at 1819 UTC with follow-up in today's DOU MPEC for 2012 HG2. hohmanntransfer.com/news.htm, stardate.org, nasa.org, space.com, spaceweather.com, audio: Sound Of Silence by Tommy Fleming