Stargazer
July 2024
Compiled by John Panek
Last month was fairly quiet, unless your house in Naples, FL was hit by space debris! On June 21 a lawsuit was filed against NASA for $80k of damage from a 3/4 kg piece of ISS battery rack. No injuries were reported. NASA has 6 months to reply, and are looking at ways to deorbit Dragon capsules more safely, such as separating the trunk after the deorbit burn instead of before.
Keep your eyes on Corona Borealis, as the Blaze Star, T CorB is getting ready to blow. It is one of 10 recurrent novae known in the Miky Way. It is the brightest, with a peak magnitude of 2.0. Will the Crown have a new jewel in July?
SCAS CELEBRATES
HONOR THE NIGHT
Ancient cultures measured time by the Moon's phases, the days of each cycle counted out. They knew when the Moon would wax and wane. Who today is aware whether the Moon is crescent, full or gibbous? We no longer honor the night sky. On a retreat with preteen students, far enough from city lights to see the cosmos, on a night when bright Venus cast a shadow, we asked them to turn off their flashlights, let their eyes adjust, Trust their steps in starlight. We honored the night sky.
Juliane Mc Adam, retired middle school language teacher, CA
BILL SADOWSKI PARK
The observing pad is open for public OBSERVATION
D’AURIA OBSERVATORY
The D'Auria Observatory is open for public OBSERVATION AND ASTROPHOTOGRAPHY
Lunar Timetable
Last Quarter June 28th @ 5:53 pm
New Moon July 5th @ 6:57 pm
First Quarter July 13th @ 6:48m
Full Moon July 21, 6:17mSOUTHERN CROSS OBSERVATION PAD
The popular free SOUTHERN CROSS OBSERVATION PAD HAS RE-OPENED in MIAMI-DADE BILL SADOWSKI Park! Come visit with us 7:30-10 p.m. Saturday's weather permitting. Bring `scopes & binocs, chairs, family, friends, colleagues, students, and bug repellent. Our SCAS Astros have introduced thousands to the awesome beauty of our seasonal night skies since 1986. Please dim headlights at the Park entrance SW 176 St./SW 79 Ave. 1/2 mile west of Old Cutler Road, Palmetto Bay 33157. The small parking lot is near the deck. Face masks are optional. Check the SCAS Facebook for weather/Holiday cancellations.
For astrophotography instruction visit our free D'AURIA outdoor observatory, Saturdays from dusk -10 P.M. 23325 SW 217 Avenue, Homestead 33031. Park outside the gate. No white lights, lanterns, lasers. litter, alcohol, or pets at both sites. For membership open www.scas.org
ENJOY SCAS PUBLIC STAR PARTIES: Weather permitting!
Saturday evenings dusk- 10 p.m.
SCAS Observation Pad in Miami-Dade Bill Sadowski Park SW 176 St./SW 79 Ave. Palmetto Bay 33157 free
D'Auria Observatory 23325 SW 217 Ave.dusk-10 p.m. astrophotograqphy information free No white lights, lanterns, lasers, litter, alcohol, or pets at either location.
METEOR SHOWERS THIS MONTH
Southern delta Aquariids July 29-30
ZHR = 25/hour, but waning crescent moon will interfere in the early morning hours
Open the link: News and Information about Meteor Showers
Here are some tips on how to maximize your time looking for meteors and fireballs during any meteor shower:
- Get out of the city to a place where the city and artificial lights do not impede your viewing
- If you are out viewing the shower during its peak, you will not need any special equipment. You should be able to see the shower with your naked eyes.
- Carry a blanket or a comfortable chair with you - viewing meteors, just like any other kind of stargazing is a waiting game, and you need to be comfortable. Plus, you may not want to leave until you can't see the majestic celestial fireworks anymore.
In case you missed it......
October 2022 Sky & Telescope p. 62 features photos of our two famous SCAS astronomers. The late Don Parker, M.D., renowned Mars astrophotographer, and the late Tippy D'Auria, founder of our annual Winter Star Party were in a group of professional astronomers, editors, and photographers who drove to the Florida Keys in June 2001 to hopefully capture Martian flares of light. All were members of the Assoc. of Lunar & Planetary Observers. The intriguing article begins on P. 59.
BRIGHT COMETS THIS MONTH
13P/Olbers
Will reach perihelion in late June. Begins the month in Lynx at magnitude 6.8. Look for a 3' coma with diffuse condensation in the center. It should dim ~1 magnitude by month's end, moving into Ursa Major. Visible in binoculars but fading as the month progresses.
Open the link: News and information about Bright Comets
SCAS EVENTS
SATURDAY EVENINGS
When night skies gradually improve in clarity as the Monsoon season winds down, our SCAS Observing sites will open to members and the public.
D`AURIA OBSERVATORY- 23325 SW 217 Ave. Homestead 33031 opens 7:30 -10 p.m. for astrophotography assistance and general observing.
S. CROSS OBSERVATORY, MiamiDade Bill Sadowski Park 8-10 p.m. SW 176 St./SW 79 Ave..
Palmetto Bay 33157 for equipment assistance. and grand tour of the night sky if weather permits.
In our 37th year at the Park offering successful astronomy education for the public.
No white lights, lasers, flashlights, lanterns, litter, alcohol or pets at both sites Free.
We operate by starlight !
SCAS HAM RADIO
Recently, member Dan Zuckerman replaced and upgraded his ham equipment. He was chatting with folks in Europe.
Do we have some retired, or new SCAS ham operators who would like to establish a SCAS radio dept?
It could become very convenient, or necessary in certain future conditions. Consider the astronomy information shared and maybe international SCAS members!
Contact me (Barb) if you wish to link up with Dan. barbyager@aol.com.
SOLAR VIEWING
Weather permitting SCAS needs solar telescopes at the "front door" to ZooMiami 12400 SW 152nd st, starting this month
There will be large crowds of families. Please CONTACT ME ASAP if you can bring equipment, We are restoring our popular solarviewing events at ZooMiami.
Plans need to be made in advance. Updates will be sent out to members soon.
Interested to join our new solar team? Contact me: barbyager@aol.com . If you have solar equipment or want to help, please send an email to Dr. Lester Shalloway with
your information: drlester3@aol.com.
IN THE SKY
July 7 evening the crescent Moon and Mercury are close, sharing the same field in a binocular view
July 13 evening the Moon occults Spica (at 3 UTC on July 14)
July 15 Mars and Uranus are 1/2 a degree apart in the Eastern morning sky
July 22 Mercury is at greatest elongation, 27 degrees from the Sun, it's best evening apparition in 2024
July 29 and 30 mornings in the East the crescent moon passes by the Pleiades and Jupiter
NASA/SPACE NEWS
Boeing's Starliner took a
The Chinese space agency Chang'e-6 returned lunar samples to Earth on June 25 - almost 2 kg of drilled and scooped material from the far side of our nearest neighbor.
ISS - Miami Track
ISS Passes for Miami – 19 good ones in July, 5 of them in the mornings in the second week of the month and 14 in the evenings of the second and fourth weeks of the month
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Open the Link: News and Information about ISS passes over Miami.
Contribute
Have something interesting and astronomy related you would like to contribute? Send a brief 1-2 paragrapharticle to our Stargazer editor: 350.john@gmail.com
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