Stargazing Night

Stargazing Night

Where:
Frosty Drew Observatory
When:
Friday October 23, 2015 7:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m.
Cost:
$1 Suggested Donation per Person

Tonight is Stargazing Night at Frosty Drew Observatory and the forecast is looking fabulous! We can expect mostly clear to clear skies all night with a light 7mph wind. The 85% waxing gibbous Moon will be with us for most of the night, setting at 3:22 a.m. and will significantly brighten up the sky making observation of most deep sky objects difficult. If the Moon is your digs, tonight will make for an excellent night for lunar observing.

The Observatory will open 7:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m. tonight. The primary Observatory telescope will remain closed for maintenance, but the Observatory lawn will have telescopes available showcasing the Moon and binary stars. The Sky Theatre will also remain closed tonight. On Friday, October 30, 2015 we will open the primary telescopes and Sky Theatre again for our Spooky Views event.

Overall, tonight looks to be an excellent night for anybody that digs the Moon. The waxing gibbous phase will offer excellent views of most notable ray craters, lunar maria, and the overall lunar terrain. Though we will have a partial Stargazing Nights event tonight, the skies will still rock. So make a stop in at Frosty Drew Observatory tonight and catch a glance of Earth's only natural satellite, the Moon!

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Weekly Happenings
Scott MacNeill

On Saturday, October 31, 2015, a Halloween treat is in store for us as Asteroid 2015 TB145, a rather large Near Earth Asteroid (NEA), passes Earth at a distance of 301,205 miles. This is the closest pass of an object this large since mid 2006 with the next (known) similar event happening in August 2027. An event certainly not to miss!

Discovered on October 10, 2015 by the Panoramic Survey Telescope and Rapid Response System (Pan-STARRS), 2015 TB145 has a diameter of around 1,540 feet and is moving at speeds near 22 miles per second. The orbit of 2015 TB145 is rather oblong, completing a full orbit around Sun every three years. These characteristics and orbital velocity raise the question if the asteroid may be a comet in disguise. Radar observations of the asteroid will happen during the close pass and will help determine, among others, if this asteroid is actually a comet.

Asteroid 2015 TB145 will begin its close Halloween pass by Earth with a cruise past the Moon at 10:31 a.m. at a distance of 176,766 miles. Its closest point to Earth will occur at 12:57 p.m. on Halloween afternoon. Though these passes happen during the daytime for US sky watchers, we will be able to catch a view of the object in the Frosty Drew telescope overnight on October 30-31, which is during Frosty Drew's annual Spooky Views event. Since the asteroid passes on Halloween, it has garnered the name “Spooky”. We certainly will have “Spooky Views” at Frosty Drew Observatory that night.

Now I know this is all fodder for the masses of doomsday prophets and doomsayer dramatics, though this asteroid does not hail pending doom for planet Earth. 301,205 miles is quite a distance from Earth. The Moon, on average, resides at 230,000 miles distant. This places the asteroid a comfortably safe distance from Earth, but close enough for the curious of us to sneak a peek.

Viewing the asteroid will require a relatively large telescope. At magnitude 10; naked eye, binocular, and small telescope viewers will not be able to see the asteroid, though the 16” telescope at Frosty Drew should be able to resolve the asteroid as a small dim star slowly moving among background stars. So grab your your best Halloween garb and set out for a spooky night at Frosty Drew Observatory and catch a view of the “Spooky” asteroid as it approaches Earth in a fabulous NEA passing!

Early Sunday morning, October 25th, another fabulous conjunction of Venus, Jupiter, and Mars is taking place. Starting around 4:30 a.m. and continuing until dawn, Venus and Jupiter will appear 1° apart in the Eastern sky with Mars sitting about 3° below the pair. This is yet another fabulous conjunction among the series of conjunctions that will continue into November. These conjunctions also offer excellent photo opportunities! So grab your camera or just a warm cup of comfy and set out for a stunning morning view of the Solar System putting on a fabulous autumn dance.

Save the Date! Frosty Drew Observatory will put on our annual Spooky Views event on Friday, October 30th starting at 6:30 p.m. The Observatory, Sky Theatre, and Nature Center will be dressed up in spooky props to celebrate Halloween. Observatory telescopes will showcase the bright waning gibbous Moon, Uranus, Neptune, and Asteroid 2015 TB145. In the Nature Center, Frosty Drew Naturalists will be on hand showcasing nocturnal animals. So grab your spookiest garb and continue your Halloween ramp up with the stars and an asteroid at Frosty Drew Observatory.

-Scott