Published by Sydney Observatory on May 27, 2013
To help you learn about the southern night sky, Sydney Observatory provides an audio guide/podcast, transcript of that audio, and a sky map or chart each month. This month’s guide is presented by Geoffrey Wyatt, Astronomy Educator at Sydney Observatory.
Among topics Geoff ranges through this month is ‘the irreversible process of spaghettification’ – Geoff’s inimitable way of describing what would happen should you chance into a black hole. Geoff’s enthusiasm and humour are captivating but based on sound science, and enriched with stories of historical and cultural aspects of astronomy, including Indigenous and Greek myths.
His highlights for the month include a conjunction in the west immediately after sunset of the planets Jupiter, Venus and Mercury. You also have the chance to see the Theta Ophiuchid meteor shower (from late May through to mid June). The peak is typically around the 10th to 11th June, early in the morning. For this and much more, listen to the audio, or read the transcript below for more details.
HEAR THE AUDIO
You can subscribe with iTunes or upload the (54 mins) audio to your iPod or mp3 player, or listen to it on your computer.
SEE THE SKY CHART
We provide an embedded sky map (below) and a June 2013 night sky chart (PDF) which shows the stars, constellations and planets visible in the night sky from anywhere in Australia. To view PDF star charts you will need to download and install Adobe Acrobat Reader if it’s not on your computer already.
June 2013 night sky chart
BUY THE BOOK
Our annual book, ‘The 2013 Australasian sky guide’, by Dr Nick Lomb has more information and star maps for months from December 2012 until December 2013 inclusive, plus information about the Sun, twilight, the Moon and tides, and a host of other fascinating astronomical information. You can purchase it ($16.95) at Sydney Observatory and Powerhouse Museum shops or other good bookshops, or online through Powerhouse Publishing (additional packing/postage costs apply).
READ THE TRANSCRIPT (after the jump)
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Published by irma on April 21, 2013
To help you learn about the southern night sky, Sydney Observatory provides an audio guide/podcast, transcript of that audio, and a sky map or chart each month. This month’s guide is presented by Melissa Hulbert, one of Sydney Observatory’s Astronomy Educators.
Mel guides you to find the constellations, Orion, Scorpius and Crux (the Southern Cross), along with related ancient Greek and Australian Indigenous astronomical mythologies. She also helps you find some star clusters, including the Jewel Box.
May 2013 is pretty special with a meteor shower and a solar eclipse! The Eta Aquarids meteor shower takes place for most of May with the peak on the 6th. The solar eclipse will occur on 10th May this year. It will only be seen as a total eclipse along a narrow pathway across Australia but it will be visible as a partial eclipse from capital cities. Included in the transcript below is information about when the partial eclipse is visible from major cities around Australia. This fact sheet about the eclipse is produced by the Astronomical Society of Australia.
Path of the 10 May 2013 eclipse across Australia. The map is drawn by Andy Chong and is taken, with permission, from the 2013 Australasian Sky Guide.
There’s a lot happening in our sky this month, so listen to the audio, or read the transcript below for more details.
HEAR THE AUDIO
You can subscribe with iTunes or upload the (15 mins 50 secs) audio to your iPod or mp3 player, or listen to it on your computer.
SEE THE SKY CHART
We provide an embedded sky map (below) and a May 2013 night sky chart (PDF) which shows the stars, constellations and planets visible in the night sky from anywhere in Australia. To view PDF star charts you will need to download and install Adobe Acrobat Reader if it’s not on your computer already.
BUY THE BOOK
Our annual book, ‘The 2013 Australasian sky guide’, by Dr Nick Lomb has more information and star maps for months from December 2012 until December 2013 inclusive, plus information about the Sun, twilight, the Moon and tides, and a host of other fascinating astronomical information. You can purchase it ($16.95) at Sydney Observatory and Powerhouse Museum shops or other good bookshops, or online through Powerhouse Publishing (additional packing/postage costs apply).
READ THE TRANSCRIPT (after the jump)
(more…)
Published by irma on March 27, 2013
To help you learn about the southern night sky, Sydney Observatory provides an audio guide/podcast, transcript of that audio, and a sky map or chart each month. This month’s guide is presented by Dr Nick Lomb, Sydney Observatory’s Curator of Astronomy.
Did you know that some of the stars that look like single stars are actually multiple stars? That is, more than one star circling each other closely so that they appear from Earth like one star. In fact, sometimes there are more than two stars in the group. For example, the star we think of as Castor – one of the two most prominent stars, Castor and Pollux, in the constellation of Gemini the Twins – is actually six stars!
Other constellations Nick tells us about this month are Orion, Leo the Lion, and Crux – also known as the Southern Cross. And he tells us that 14th April is a good date to look for Jupiter because it will be near the crescent Moon in the evening.
For this and much more, listen to the audio, or read the transcript below for more details.
HEAR THE AUDIO
You can subscribe with iTunes or upload the (26 mins 25 secs) audio to your iPod or mp3 player, or listen to it on your computer.
SEE THE SKY CHART
We provide an embedded sky map (below) and an April 2013 night sky chart (PDF) which shows the stars, constellations and planets visible in the night sky from anywhere in Australia. To view PDF star charts you will need to download and install Adobe Acrobat Reader if it’s not on your computer already.
BUY THE BOOK
Our annual book, ‘The 2013 Australasian sky guide’, by Dr Nick Lomb has more information and star maps for months from December 2012 until December 2013 inclusive, plus information about the Sun, twilight, the Moon and tides, and a host of other fascinating astronomical information. You can purchase it ($16.95) at Sydney Observatory and Powerhouse Museum shops or other good bookshops, or online through Powerhouse Publishing (additional packing/postage costs apply).
READ THE TRANSCRIPT (after the jump)
(more…)
Published by irma on February 26, 2013
To help you learn about the southern night sky, Sydney Observatory provides an audio guide/podcast, transcript of that audio, and a sky map or chart each month. This month’s guide is presented by Geoffrey Wyatt, Sydney Observatory’s Senior Astronomy Education Officer.
If you’re not sure how to find your way around the night sky, Geoff presents some easy tips for how you can find angles above the horizon just using your fist, fingers and arm – and it doesn’t matter how old or big you are as the sizes of your fist, fingers and arms are proportional with the rest of you – so it works for everyone!
Geoff takes us on a tour of the stars and constellations prominent in the March sky, including the bright star Aldebaran in the constellation of Taurus, and the bright star Betelgeuse in the constellation of Orion.
Geoff’s fascinating talk is enriched with historical and mythological astronomical references – ranging across cultues including Indigenous Australian, Arabic and ancient Greek.
For this and more, listen to the March 2013 night sky guide audio, or read the transcript below.
HEAR THE AUDIO
You can subscribe with iTunes or upload the (45 mins 57 secs) audio to your iPod or mp3 player, or listen to it on your computer.
SEE THE SKY CHART
We provide an embedded sky map (below – please be patient as it can take a little while for it to load) and a March 2013 night sky chart (PDF) which shows the stars, constellations and planets visible in the night sky from anywhere in Australia. To view PDF star charts you will need to download and install Adobe Acrobat Reader if it’s not on your computer already.
READ THE TRANSCRIPT (after the jump)
(more…)
Published by irma on January 30, 2013
To help you learn about the southern night sky, Sydney Observatory provides an audio guide/podcast, transcript of that audio, and a sky map or chart each month. This month’s guide is presented by Melissa Hulbert, Sydney Observatory’s Astronomy Education Officer.
Mel takes us on a tour of the stars and constellations prominent in the February sky, including letting us know about a very close encounter between the Moon and Jupiter on the night of 18th February, as well as when to see Venus in the morning sky. Mel also tells us about Comet PanSTARRS, discovered in June 2011, and which will hopefully be visible again in February, with best viewing likely in the dawn sky for Southern Hemisphere observers.
For this and more, listen to the February 2013 night sky guide audio, or read the transcript below.
HEAR THE AUDIO
You can subscribe with iTunes or upload the (11 mins 47 secs) audio to your iPod or mp3 player, or listen to it on your computer.
SEE THE SKY CHART
We provide an embedded sky map (below – please be patient as it can take a little while for it to load) and a February 2013 night sky chart (PDF) which shows the stars, constellations and planets visible in the night sky from anywhere in Australia. To view PDF star charts you will need to download and install Adobe Acrobat Reader if it’s not on your computer already.
BUY THE BOOK
Our annual book, ‘The 2013 Australasian sky guide’ by Dr Nick Lomb has more information and star maps for months from December 2012 until December 2013 inclusive, plus information about the Sun, twilight, the Moon and tides, and a host of other fascinating astronomical information. You can purchase it ($16.95) at Sydney Observatory and Powerhouse Museum shops or other good bookshops, or online through Powerhouse Publishing (additional packing/postage costs apply).
READ THE TRANSCRIPT (after the jump)
(more…)
Published by irma on December 26, 2012
To help you learn about the southern night sky, Sydney Observatory provides an audio guide/podcast, transcript of that audio, and a sky map or chart each month. This month’s guide is presented by Dr Nick Lomb, Sydney Observatory’s Curator of Astronomy.
Nick takes us on a tour of the stars and constellations prominent in the January sky, including Betelgeuse and Rigel in Orion, Aldebaran in Taurus, and Sirius, the brightest star in the night sky, in the constellation Canis Major. He also tells us which planets are visible in the evening and morning sky in January.
For this and more, listen to the January 2013 night sky guide audio, or read the transcript below.
HEAR THE AUDIO
You can subscribe with iTunes or upload the (19 mins 48 secs) audio to your iPod or mp3 player, or listen to it on your computer.
SEE THE SKY CHART
We provide an embedded sky map (below) and a January 2013 night sky chart (PDF) which shows the stars, constellations and planets visible in the night sky from anywhere in Australia. To view PDF star charts you will need to download and install Adobe Acrobat Reader if it’s not on your computer already.
January 2013 night sky chart
BUY THE BOOK
Our annual book, ‘The 2013 Australasian sky guide’ by Dr Nick Lomb has more information and star maps for months from December 2012 until December 2013 inclusive, plus information about the Sun, twilight, the Moon and tides, and a host of other fascinating astronomical information. You can purchase it ($16.95) at Sydney Observatory and Powerhouse Museum shops or other good bookshops, or online through Powerhouse Publishing (additional packing/postage costs apply).
READ THE TRANSCRIPT (after the jump)
(more…)
Published by irma on November 28, 2012
To help you learn about the southern night sky, Sydney Observatory provides an audio guide/podcast, transcript of that audio, and a sky map or chart each month. This month’s guide is presented by Geoffrey Wyatt, Senior Astronomy Educator at Sydney Observatory.
In the December sky guide, Geoff tells us how the ancients of Mesopotamia used the stars to help them as a form of calendar markers, and how Indigenous Australians incorporated the stars into their Dreamtime stories. As well as guiding you to find the two brightest stars in the night sky, Sirius and Canopus, Geoff tells us our best chance in December to see the Geminid meteor shower is on the morning of 14 December, and that on Christmas Day, there is an opportunity to see a lovely grouping of the Pleiades, the Moon and Jupiter.
For this and more, listen to the December 2012 night sky guide audio, or read the transcript below.
HEAR THE AUDIO
You can subscribe with iTunes or upload the (49 mins 25 secs) audio to your iPod or mp3 player, or listen to it on your computer.
SEE THE SKY CHART
We provide an embedded sky map (below) and a December 2012 night sky chart (PDF) which shows the stars, constellations and planets visible in the night sky from anywhere in Australia. To view PDF star charts you will need to download and install Adobe Acrobat Reader if it’s not on your computer already.
December 2012 night sky chart
BUY THE BOOK
Our annual book, ‘The 2013 Australasian sky guide’ by Dr Nick Lomb has more information and star maps for months from December 2012 until December 2013 inclusive, plus information about the Sun, twilight, the Moon and tides, and a host of other fascinating astronomical information. You can purchase it ($16.95) at Sydney Observatory and Powerhouse Museum shops or other good bookshops, or online through Powerhouse Publishing (additional packing/postage costs apply).
READ THE TRANSCRIPT (after the jump)
(more…)
Published by irma on October 29, 2012
To help you learn about the southern night sky, Sydney Observatory provides an audio guide/podcast, transcript of that audio, and a sky map or chart each month. This month’s guide is presented by Melissa Hulbert, Sydney Observatory Astronomy Educator.
In the November sky guide, as well as showing us where to find the constellations Pegasus, Orion and Taurus, and the star clusters, Hyades and Pleiades, Mel tells us to look out for the close view of Mars and the crescent Moon on 16 November. For this and more, listen to the November 2012 night sky guide audio, or read the transcript below.
HEAR THE AUDIO
You can subscribe with iTunes or upload the (21 mins 10 secs) audio to your iPod or mp3 player, or listen to it on your computer.
SEE THE SKY CHART
We provide an embedded sky map (below) and a November 2012 night sky chart (PDF) which shows the stars, constellations and planets visible in the night sky from anywhere in Australia. To view PDF star charts you will need to download and install Adobe Acrobat Reader if it’s not on your computer already.
November 2012 night sky chart
BUY THE BOOK
Our annual book, ‘The 2013 Australasian sky guide’ by Dr Nick Lomb has more information and star maps for months from December 2012 until December 2013 inclusive, plus information about the Sun, twilight, the Moon and tides, and a host of other fascinating astronomical information. You can purchase it ($16.95) at Sydney Observatory and Powerhouse Museum shops or other good bookshops, or online through Powerhouse Publishing (additional packing/postage costs apply). The 2013 edition is expected to be available from November 2012.
READ THE TRANSCRIPT (after the jump)
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Published by irma on September 26, 2012
To help you learn about the southern night sky, Sydney Observatory provides an audio guide/podcast, transcript of that audio, and a sky map or chart each month. This month’s guide is presented by Katrina Sealey, Acting Assistant Curator of Astronomy at Sydney Observatory.
Katrina’s tour of the sky this month includes the Southern Cross and the Pointers, the bright stars, Achernar and Antares, in the constellation of Eridanus (the River) and Scorpius, respectively; the Magellanic Clouds; and she tells us when we can be on the lookout for the Orionids meteor shower.
Listen to the October 2012 night sky guide audio, or read the transcript below.
HEAR THE AUDIO
You can subscribe with iTunes or upload the (18 mins 47 secs) audio to your iPod or mp3 player, or listen to it on your computer.
SEE THE SKY CHART
We provide an embedded sky map (below) and a October 2012 night sky chart (PDF) which shows the stars, constellations and planets visible in the night sky from anywhere in Australia. To view PDF star charts you will need to download and install Adobe Acrobat Reader if it’s not on your computer already.
October 2012 night sky chart
BUY THE BOOK
Our annual book, ‘The 2012 Australasian sky guide’, by Dr Nick Lomb has more information and star maps for months from December 2011 until December 2012 inclusive, plus information about the Sun, twilight, the Moon and tides, and a host of other fascinating astronomical information. You can purchase it ($16.95) at Sydney Observatory and Powerhouse Museum shops or other good bookshops, or online through Powerhouse Publishing (additional packing/postage costs apply). At this stage, you may prefer to wait until the 2013 book is available – expected to be in November.
READ THE TRANSCRIPT (after the jump)
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Published by irma on August 31, 2012
To help you learn about the southern night sky, Sydney Observatory provides an audio guide/podcast, transcript of that audio, and a sky map or chart each month. This month’s guide is presented by Geoffrey Wyatt, Sydney Observatory’s Senior Astronomy Educator.
Geoff fascinates us with his guide to the stars and constellations to look out for in September and also with insight into how astronomy was important to the ancient people of Mesopotamia, Greece and Rome. And you’ll find out what ‘Zuben Elgenubi’, ‘Zuben Eschamali’ and ‘Zuben Elakrab’ mean in Arabic….
Listen to the September 2012 night sky guide audio, or read the transcript below.
HEAR THE AUDIO
You can subscribe with iTunes or upload the (38 mins 03 secs) audio to your iPod or mp3 player, or listen to it on your computer.
SEE THE SKY CHART
We provide an embedded sky map (below) and a September 2012 night sky chart (PDF) which shows the stars, constellations and planets visible in the night sky from anywhere in Australia. To view PDF star charts you will need to download and install Adobe Acrobat Reader if it’s not on your computer already.
BUY THE BOOK
Our annual book, ‘The 2012 Australasian sky guide’, by Dr Nick Lomb has more information and star maps for months from December 2011 until December 2012 inclusive (or wait till November when you can purchase the 2013 book), plus information about the Sun, twilight, the Moon and tides, and a host of other fascinating astronomical information. You can purchase it ($16.95) at Sydney Observatory and Powerhouse Museum shops or other good bookshops, or online through Powerhouse Publishing (additional packing/postage costs apply). ‘The 2013 Australasian sky guide’ is expected to be available in November.
READ THE TRANSCRIPT (after the jump)
(more…)
