Ade Ashford – Page 29 – Astronomy Now

The brief Australasian total lunar eclipse of April 4th-5th

3 April 2015 Ade Ashford

Fifteen days after its crucial rôle in the total solar eclipse of March 20th, its the Moon’s turn to shine — or, rather, fade — as it passes into the shadow of the Earth on Saturday, 4th March, producing a total lunar eclipse best seen from Australasia.

Follow Comet Lovejoy into the high north during April

1 April 2015 Ade Ashford

Comet Lovejoy continues its northerly trek through Cassiopeia, en route to a close encounter with Polaris on May 27th. A circumpolar object of the high north, the comet never sets as seen from the British Isles this month — what’s more, it’s brighter than predicted.

Make the most of observing Jupiter and its moons during April

1 April 2015 Ade Ashford

Jupiter may be two months past opposition, but it’s still big, bright and high to the south before 9 pm from the centre of the British Isles. The Galilean moons, their shadows and the Great Red Spot are all on show — plus mutual phenomena of the moons.

The Moon’s two-night encounter with Jupiter

29 March 2015 Ade Ashford

The waxing gibbous Moon passes close by the Solar System’s largest planet, Jupiter, on the nights of March 29th and 30th. Jupiter was at opposition last month, but it’s still big, bright and offers much to see in a telescope.

See the crescent Moon glide through Taurus over two nights

24 March 2015 Ade Ashford

As twilight fades to dark on the evenings of March 24th and 25th, observers in the British Isles can see the waxing crescent Moon’s passage through Taurus, passing some of the constellation’s highlights.

A 2-day-old crescent Moon meets Venus in the evening sky

22 March 2015 Ade Ashford

Nearly 60 hours after its starring rôle in Friday morning’s spectacle, the crescent Moon has an attractive conjunction with planet Venus, the second brightest nighttime body, low to the west at dusk on Sunday, March 22nd.

When can I next see a solar eclipse from the British Isles?

21 March 2015 Ade Ashford

Did you know that there can be up to five solar eclipses in a year, or that there can be three eclipses (solar and lunar) in a single month? For those still on an eclipse-induced high, here’s your fact-filled guide to forthcoming eclipses visible from the British Isles.

Your minute-by-minute solar eclipse timeline for the British Isles

18 March 2015 Ade Ashford

If you wish to see in detail how the eclipse will appear from where you live and the exact times that the key stages will occur, we’ve prepared this specially illustrated minute-by-minute timeline to how Friday’s big event will roll out over the British Isles.

Bright nova in the heart of Sagittarius — still erratically variable

16 March 2015 Ade Ashford

Australian astronomer John Seach discovered a nova in Sagittarius on March 15th that’s still an easy binocular object for Southern Hemisphere observers and a challenge worth attempting in the dawn twilight of southern counties UK.

Boldly gone, but we can still see your asteroid, Mr. Spock

13 March 2015 Ade Ashford

As a nice way to celebrate the memory of the late Leonard Nimoy, over the coming week astrophotographers have a chance to image the 13-mile-wide minor planet named after Mr. Spock, the Star Trek character he shall always be most closely associated with.