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| This web site is a joint venture of the
Fairbanks Museum & Planetarium and
Vermont Public Radio with support from the Partnership
for a Nation of Learners, a Corporation for Public Broadcasting and Institute of Museum and Library
Services leadership initiative. |
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How Are You Beating The Heat? |
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Summer features warm and occasionally hot weather, like the heat wave of July 5-8. Share your ideas and ingenious ways that you "beat the heat" when the thermometer soars.... |
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EYE ON THE NIGHT SKY |
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The planets Venus - brightest and to the right, Mars - much fainter to the upper left, and Saturn - slightly brighter than Mars and farther left - will slowly merge closer together, low in the western skies through early August.
Questions about the cosmos? Post your comment on the Night Sky blog. |
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ALMANAC |
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September 4th begins the daylight hours with a sunrise at 6:17, and will finish up with a sunset at 7:21, the length of the day 13 hours and 4 minutes.
Moon:
The Moon shrinks through its waning Crescent phase through the weekend in the morning sky.
Planets:
Evening:
Saturn – The ringed planet will require binoculars and a level western horizon, as it heads into the Sun’s glare by mid-month. It is just a hand-width above the level horizon at 7:50 PM, and sets at 8:15 PM EDT. This will be the last practical week to see it. It will return to the morning skies later this fall.
Mars – Mars is challengingly low in the west-southwest, higher but much dimmer than Venus, Mars will slide above the star Spica next weekend. Look for it above and right of Venus, with the star Spica between them, 8:00 and 8:15 PM EDT, setting near 8:45 PM EDT.
Venus - Venus is bright but very low, seen between 7:30 and 7:45, settling to a position only one hand-width above the level horizon in the west-southwest by 8 o’clock. Above and to the right is the star Spica, and then Mars to the upper right of that. Venus sets at 8:35 PM EDT.
Evening and Morning:
Jupiter – The “king” of the planets straddles the evening and morning skies, and will reach opposition on September 21st, at which point it will be out all night long. Jupiter rises this week near 8:05 PM EDT, is high in the southeast at midnight, and will be due south at 2:00 AM EDT, sliding into the southwest as twilight brightens.
Morning:
Mercury - The nearest planet will pass between the Sun and the Earth this week, a position known as inferior conjunction, on Friday the 3rd. Mercury will remain in the Sun's glare until it returns to the morning skies in mid-September, with some fairly good viewing.
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