Astronomical sightings thread

[UnkNuk]

This may have already been mentioned in this thread but if you're interested in satellite sightings a good site is "See a Satellite Tonight" :

 

https://james.darpinian.com/satellites/

 

You can zoom in on your exact location and see where and when various satellites will be flying over head in the night sky.  Not something that I want to do too often but it's kind of cool seeing the International Space Station passing by.

[Kragar]

12 hours ago, UnkNuk said:

This may have already been mentioned in this thread but if you're interested in satellite sightings a good site is "See a Satellite Tonight" :

 

https://james.darpinian.com/satellites/

 

You can zoom in on your exact location and see where and when various satellites will be flying over head in the night sky.  Not something that I want to do too often but it's kind of cool seeing the International Space Station passing by.

That looks cool.  Thanks!

 

FYI, there is a site for the ISS, and you can get notifications on when it will pass overhead.  https://spotthestation.nasa.gov/

[RUPERTKBD]

Comet incoming this month:

 

https://www.msn.com/en-ca/lifestyle/travel/article/a-surprise-comet-is-coming-to-put-on-a-spectacular-sky-show-and-it-won-t-be-visible-agai/vi-BB16pw0V

 

I'm hoping we get a clear night here in PR sometime around mid-July. Don't get many of those.....

[bishopshodan]

45 minutes ago, RUPERTKBD said:

Comet incoming this month:

 

https://www.msn.com/en-ca/lifestyle/travel/article/a-surprise-comet-is-coming-to-put-on-a-spectacular-sky-show-and-it-won-t-be-visible-agai/vi-BB16pw0V

 

I'm hoping we get a clear night here in PR sometime around mid-July. Don't get many of those.....

Umm.

I don't like that it is a 'surprise' comet.

I hope for a day when they don't surprise us.

 

I'd love to view it though. 

[RUPERTKBD]

55 minutes ago, bishopshodan said:

Umm.

I don't like that it is a 'surprise' comet.

I hope for a day when they don't surprise us.

 

I'd love to view it though. 

TBH, I think the surprise was that it will be viewable from earth after it's trip around the sun.

[bishopshodan]

8 minutes ago, RUPERTKBD said:

TBH, I think the surprise was that it will be viewable from earth after it's trip around the sun.

oh, haha thank you.

 

[RUPERTKBD]

Apparently, we've been overestimating the age of the Moon:

 

https://www.cnn.com/2020/07/16/world/moon-85-million-years-younger-scn-trnd/index.html

 

Quote

 

The moon is a constant in our lives. It causes Earth's ocean tides to ebb and flow, it stabilizes the planet's axial tilt and, until recently, it was assumed to have accompanied the Earth for over 4.5 billion years.

A new study has posited that previous estimates of the moon's age were millions of years off.

Scientists from the German Aerospace Center calculated how long it took the moon's magma ocean -- it's a widely held belief that the lunar surface was once molten -- to cool, and they estimated that the moon is actually almost 100 million years younger than previously thought -- about 85 million years younger, to be exact.

So the moon, they say, was actually born at the tail-end of the Earth's formation.

 

So........that makes it roughly the same age as @smithers joe  

[Sharpshooter]

On 7/6/2020 at 4:08 PM, bishopshodan said:

Umm.

I don't like that it is a 'surprise' comet.

I hope for a day when they don't surprise us.

 

I'd love to view it though. 

I saw it twice last week low in the eastern sky around 4am. 
 

Looks amazing. Once in a lifetime thing and I’m glad I saw it. 

[Gurn]

33 minutes ago, Sharpshooter said:

I saw it twice last week

 

33 minutes ago, Sharpshooter said:

. Once in a lifetime thing

[UnkNuk]

6 hours ago, RUPERTKBD said:

Apparently, we've been overestimating the age of the Moon:

 

https://www.cnn.com/2020/07/16/world/moon-85-million-years-younger-scn-trnd/index.html

 

So........that makes it roughly the same age as @smithers joe  

From the article:

 

"Many scientists agree on the moon's origin story: Around 4.51 billion years ago, the Earth was still heating up and changing rapidly. During that time, it collided with a protoplanet called Theia, which sent rock shooting off Earth and into space."

 

Something I don't understand:  if a protoplanet collided with Earth, should the Earth be somewhat lopsided?

[Kragar]

19 hours ago, UnkNuk said:

From the article:

 

"Many scientists agree on the moon's origin story: Around 4.51 billion years ago, the Earth was still heating up and changing rapidly. During that time, it collided with a protoplanet called Theia, which sent rock shooting off Earth and into space."

 

Something I don't understand:  if a protoplanet collided with Earth, should the Earth be somewhat lopsided?

I believe some call that lopsidedness the Pacific Ocean.  No idea how sound the theory is, though.

[Kragar]

21 hours ago, Sharpshooter said:

I saw it twice last week low in the eastern sky around 4am. 
 

Looks amazing. Once in a lifetime thing and I’m glad I saw it. 

Should be visible in the night sky now, under the big dipper, about an hour after sunset.  might not be as bright as it was in the mornings, so binoculars or a camera might be of some help.  Gonna go see it tonight hopefully.  LA light polution doesn't always help :| 

[bishopshodan]

11 minutes ago, Kragar said:

I believe some call that lopsidedness the Pacific Ocean.  No idea how sound the theory is, though.

Yes. I have heard that too.

 

I have always thought the earth was lopsided. I have also read that the core is too. We're on a wibbly wobbly rock. 

[Kragar]

Saw the comet last night. Was pretty cool.  efforts to take a picture of it didnt turn out well, once I transferred the pic to the computer.  I need to learn to use it better.  will try again next weekend, from a darker place and after a little research on how to take space pics

[Gurn]

23 minutes ago, Kragar said:

Saw the comet last night. Was pretty cool.  efforts to take a picture of it didnt turn out well, once I transferred the pic to the computer.  I need to learn to use it better.  will try again next weekend, from a darker place and after a little research on how to take space pics

There is a thread on CDC devoted to photography.

iirc @Warhippy or @RUPERTKBD      are contributors.

You may find the info you are looking for there.

[RUPERTKBD]

32 minutes ago, gurn said:

There is a thread on CDC devoted to photography.

iirc @Warhippy or @RUPERTKBD      are contributors.

You may find the info you are looking for there.

Hip is the photographer. I have a camera on my phone and I'm not particularly good with it....

Edited July 20, 2020 by RUPERTKBD

[Kragar]

11 hours ago, gurn said:

There is a thread on CDC devoted to photography.

iirc @Warhippy or @RUPERTKBD      are contributors.

You may find the info you are looking for there.

@RUPERTKBD

 

Thanks.  I've posted there before too, and know Hip is our resident expert.  I'll ask if it comes to it, but I think learning those basic settings is just that... basic, and I've just been too dependent on the camera auto-settings for that kinda stuff.  I don't want to take up his time just cuz I was lazy  

[RUPERTKBD]

3 minutes ago, Kragar said:

@RUPERTKBD

 

Thanks.  I've posted there before too, and know Hip is our resident expert.  I'll ask if it comes to it, but I think learning those basic settings is just that... basic, and I've just been too dependent on the camera auto-settings for that kinda stuff.  I don't want to take up his time just cuz I was lazy  

It's never too late to learn a new skill and photography is definitely great one.

 

@Warhippy actually earns income from it, but just having the ability is something to be proud of. My dad was a professional photographer. (although it was a side hustle from his job as a welding instructor) He used one of these (or something very much like it) old school babies:

 

[Kragar]

23 minutes ago, RUPERTKBD said:

It's never too late to learn a new skill and photography is definitely great one.

 

@Warhippy actually earns income from it, but just having the ability is something to be proud of. My dad was a professional photographer. (although it was a side hustle from his job as a welding instructor) He used one of these (or something very much like it) old school babies:

 

Absolutely.  I've had a lot of fun with my camera, and had a DSLR for over a decade.  Had less fun with Best Buy and their BS warranty policies, but that's another story (and who knows if that BS policy is used in Canada, too).  In any case, I refuse to return there.

 

Modern technology has made it so easy on us now.  My brother-in-law refused to use the pre-set features on his camera, and only using the fundamental settings.  No idea whether he carried through with the plan.  I thought it was a good idea, but I'm just too eager to go out and take nice shots.  I don't have a good excuse for not learning how those fundamental settings affect the results.

 

At least with astronomical pics, you generally have a lot of time to try things out to get the right shot, so that will make it easier to be patient.

[Kragar]

Nothing new to see out there, aside from a nice conjunction with Saturn, Jupiter and the moon tonight, but I saw this solar system model that was interesting.  Good thing it is a Friday to experience it all

 

https://joshworth.com/dev/pixelspace/pixelspace_solarsystem.html