Sunsets, Stars, West, Wind
Next week, as early as the night of the 13th, the Geminid meteor shower returns. A week later, and just in time for the longest night of the year, a total lunar eclipse is visible from four continents and the only total lunar eclipse for 2010.
Saturn and Venus are visible in the early morning hours (before dawn), and Saturn’s rings have returned from a two year hiatus hiding on edge.
I just hope the clouds stay far far away.
December Meteor Shower and Total Lunar Eclipse article from Space.com
I completely missed the annual Leonid meteor shower thanks to cloudy and cold conditions and a bout of insomnia that left me tossing and turning and eventually snoozing through my alarm. I might be able to catch a few strays and stragglers this evening (after midnight if I’m really ambitious), but I think I’ll take out the telescope and zoom in on the Moon and Jupiter (and its moons) this evening.
And speaking of the moon, Sunday will be our next Blue Moon (follow this link to an explanation, definition and debate regarding the definition of ‘Blue Moon’).
If I manage a good night’s sleep, I may even wake early to watch Venus rise before the sun and hope to spy Saturn as well.
This will be my last weekend for stargazing for the foreseeable future. It’s high time I contacted Meade for an RMA and shipped the telescope off for repairs (estimated to take five to six weeks to complete). Since the weather is quickly chilling and producing more cloud cover, this may be the best time to get that reconditioning work done.
Either way, with or without a telescope, keep looking up!