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
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!
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!
Although the Clear Sky Chart shows only 20 to 40% cloud cover[1], the ClearOutside site predicts over 80% of the sky obscured by clouds.[2] WeatherUnderground says 39 to 70%[3] and AccuWeather says ~90% cloud cover.[4] Other paid weather-guessers predict partly or mostly cloudy and most give a five to fifteen percent chance of measurable precipitation. Not conditions suitable for star gazing.
Clear skies, dang it! Please?
Tree Greenwood
Crockett Park Site Coordinator
1 – http://www.cleardarksky.com/c/CrckttPrkVAkey.html
2 – https://clearoutside.com/forecast/38.60/-77.73?view=midday
3 – https://www.wunderground.com/hourly/us/va/midland/date/2019-04-06/22728
4 – https://www.accuweather.com/en/us/midland-va/22728/hourly-weather-forecast/2111280?hour=40
Please read the C.M. Crockett Page for park details.