Key information for official sites with agreements:
- Camp High Road is open unless specified on Camp High Road specific page
- C.M. Crockett is open only during periods specified on the Crockett specific page
- Meadowkirk observing requires explicit permission. See Meadowkirk page for details
- Sky Meadows State Park is open for vetted volunteers only unless posted on the Sky Meadows specific page
- Spruce Knob Mountain Center: See site specific page or contact site coordinator for availability
see http://cantonbecker.com/retrograde for details…
All of the weather forecasts agree that cloud cover will increase after 15:00 to ‘mostly cloudy’ (or worse). Transparency “too cloudy to forecast” and seeing poor to impossible won’t allow us to show the public wonders of the night sky.
Hoping for better conditions in 2019,
R J ‘Tree’ Greenwood
Crockett Park Site Coordinator
Please read the C.M. Crockett Page for park details.
Our meetings on the second Sunday of the Month, The events are normally held evening at 7:00 pm in Research Hall Room 163 on the campus of George Mason University.
Our meetings web page, has directions and additional details.
We look forward to seeing you on Sunday evenings!
Our meetings on the second Sunday of the month, online.
Our meetings web page, has additional details.
We look forward to seeing you on Sunday evenings!
Planning on staying up late (or waking up early) for this one. The Geminids is the “king” of the meteor showers. It is considered by many to be the best shower in the heavens, producing up to 120 multicolored meteors per hour at its peak. It is produced by debris left behind by an asteroid known as 3200 Phaethon, which was discovered in 1982. The shower runs annually from December 7-17. It peaks this year on the night of the 13th and morning of the 14th. The first quarter moon will set shortly after midnight leaving dark skies for what should be an excellent early morning show. Best viewing will be from a dark location after midnight. Meteors will radiate from the constellation Gemini, but can appear anywhere in the sky
The Ursids is a minor meteor shower producing about 5-10 meteors per hour. It is produced by dust grains left behind by comet Tuttle, which was first discovered in 1790. The shower runs annually from December 17-25. It peaks this year on the the night of the 21st and morning of the 22nd. This year the glare from the full moon will hide all but the brightest meteors. If you are extremely patient, you might still be able to catch a few good ones. Best viewing will be just after midnight from a dark location far away from city lights. Meteors will radiate from the constellation Ursa Minor, but can appear anywhere in the sky.
The winter solstice is the shortest day of the year, respectively, in the sense that the length of time elapsed between sunrise and sunset on this day is a minimum for the year. Of course, daylight saving time means that the first Sunday in April has 23 hours and the last Sunday in October has 25 hours, but these human meddlings with the calendar and do not correspond to the actual number of daylight hours.
If you life in the southern hemisphere, this is your Summer Solstice, celebrating the longest day of the year.
http://scienceworld.wolfram.com/astronomy/WinterSolstice.html