See Dragon’s Eyes on summer evenings

Tonight, find the Dragon’s Eyes. For years, I’ve glanced up in the north at this time of year and spied the two stars marked on today’s chart, Rastaban and Eltanin in the constellation Draco. They’re noticeable because they’re relatively bright and near each other. There’s always that split-second when I ask myself with some excitement what two stars are those? It’s then that my eyes drift to blue-white Vega nearby … and I know, by Vega’s nearness, that they are the stars Rastaban and Eltanin.

These two stars represent the fiery Eyes of the constellation Draco the Dragon. Moreover, these stars nearly mark the radiant point for the annual October Draconid meteor shower.

Because the stars stay fixed relative to each other, Vega is always near these stars. Vega, by the way, lodges at the apex of the Summer Triangle, a famous pattern consisting of three bright stars in three separate constellations, also prominent at this time of year.

Antique drawing of snake-like dragon with bright red tongue.

Draco the Dragon. Image via Old Book Image Art Gallery.

From tropical and subtropical latitudes in the Southern Hemisphere, the stars Rastaban and Eltanin shine quite low in the northern sky (below Vega). In either hemisphere, at all time zones, the Dragon’s eyes climb highest up in the sky around midnight (1 a.m. daylight saving time) in mid-June, 11 p.m. (midnight daylight saving time) in early July, and 9 p.m. (10 p.m. daylight saving time) in early August. But from temperate latitudes in the Southern Hemisphere (southern Australia and New Zealand), the Dragon’s eyes never climb above your horizon. However, you can catch the star Vega way low in your northern sky.

People at mid-northern latitudes get to view the Dragon’s eyes all night long!

Speaking of Rastaban and Eltanin, one of you asked:

What are constellations?

The answer is that they’re just patterns of stars on the sky’s dome. The Greeks and Romans, for example, named them for their gods and goddesses, and also for many sorts of animals. In the 20th century, the International Astronomical Union (IAU) formalized the names and boundaries of the constellations. Now every star in the sky belongs to one or another constellation.

The stars within constellations aren’t connected, except in the mind’s eye of stargazers. The stars in general lie at vastly different distances from Earth. It’s by finding juxtaposed patterns on the sky’s dome that you’ll come to know the constellations – much as I identify Rastaban and Eltanin at this time of year by looking for the star Vega.

Read more: A Dragon and a former pole star

Bottom line: Look in the northeast on these June evenings – near the star Vega. You’ll see Rastaban and Eltanin, two stars that are bright and close together.

EarthSky astronomy kits are perfect for beginners. Order today from the EarthSky store

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Tonight, find the Dragon’s Eyes. For years, I’ve glanced up in the north at this time of year and spied the two stars marked on today’s chart, Rastaban and Eltanin in the constellation Draco. They’re noticeable because they’re relatively bright and near each other. There’s always that split-second when I ask myself with some excitement what two stars are those? It’s then that my eyes drift to blue-white Vega nearby … and I know, by Vega’s nearness, that they are the stars Rastaban and Eltanin.

These two stars represent the fiery Eyes of the constellation Draco the Dragon. Moreover, these stars nearly mark the radiant point for the annual October Draconid meteor shower.

Because the stars stay fixed relative to each other, Vega is always near these stars. Vega, by the way, lodges at the apex of the Summer Triangle, a famous pattern consisting of three bright stars in three separate constellations, also prominent at this time of year.

Antique drawing of snake-like dragon with bright red tongue.

Draco the Dragon. Image via Old Book Image Art Gallery.

From tropical and subtropical latitudes in the Southern Hemisphere, the stars Rastaban and Eltanin shine quite low in the northern sky (below Vega). In either hemisphere, at all time zones, the Dragon’s eyes climb highest up in the sky around midnight (1 a.m. daylight saving time) in mid-June, 11 p.m. (midnight daylight saving time) in early July, and 9 p.m. (10 p.m. daylight saving time) in early August. But from temperate latitudes in the Southern Hemisphere (southern Australia and New Zealand), the Dragon’s eyes never climb above your horizon. However, you can catch the star Vega way low in your northern sky.

People at mid-northern latitudes get to view the Dragon’s eyes all night long!

Speaking of Rastaban and Eltanin, one of you asked:

What are constellations?

The answer is that they’re just patterns of stars on the sky’s dome. The Greeks and Romans, for example, named them for their gods and goddesses, and also for many sorts of animals. In the 20th century, the International Astronomical Union (IAU) formalized the names and boundaries of the constellations. Now every star in the sky belongs to one or another constellation.

The stars within constellations aren’t connected, except in the mind’s eye of stargazers. The stars in general lie at vastly different distances from Earth. It’s by finding juxtaposed patterns on the sky’s dome that you’ll come to know the constellations – much as I identify Rastaban and Eltanin at this time of year by looking for the star Vega.

Read more: A Dragon and a former pole star

Bottom line: Look in the northeast on these June evenings – near the star Vega. You’ll see Rastaban and Eltanin, two stars that are bright and close together.

EarthSky astronomy kits are perfect for beginners. Order today from the EarthSky store

Enjoying EarthSky so far? Sign up for our free daily newsletter today!



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New exoplanet system is ‘mirror image’ of Earth and sun

Yellow circles and partial rings, blue crescent and thermometer shape on black background.

Diagram depicting how KOI-456.04 orbits in the habitable zone of its star, Kepler-160, at about the same distance Earth is from the sun. The planet, less than twice the size of Earth, therefore receives about the same amount of solar energy as Earth does. This is the closest Earth-sun analog discovered so far among exoplanets. Image via MPS/ René Heller.

The number of potentially habitable exoplanets keeps growing, as more and more worlds orbiting distant stars are discovered. So far, most of those planets have been found orbiting red dwarf stars, since they are dimmer, and planets are easier to detect around them (and also are the most common stars in our galaxy). But now, researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research (MPS) in Göttingen, Germany, and others from the U.S., have announced that they have found a new exoworld, less than twice the size of Earth, which orbits a sunlike star, Kepler-160, just over 3,000 light-years from our solar system.

What makes this discovery of particular interest is that the planet appears to be orbiting its star at a similar distance as Earth’s from the sun, and receives almost the same amount of energy from its star as Earth does. This would make it the most similar to the Earth-sun system of any exoplanetary system discovered so far, almost a mirror image.

The peer-reviewed findings were published in Astronomy & Astrophysics, Vol. 638, id. A10 and submitted to arXiv on June 3, 2020. The research also includes scientists from the Sonneberg Observatory, the University of Göttingen, the University of California in Santa Cruz and NASA.

Yellow and orange circles and partial rings, blue and orange crescents and thermometer shapes on black background.

Fuller diagram showing how the KOI-456.04 system compares to that of Earth-sun, other stars from the Kepler mission and red dwarf stars. Image via MPS/ René Heller.

While the new planet – provisionally named KOI-456.04 – hasn’t been fully confirmed yet, the paper states that the probability of it being a real planet and not a false alarm is 85%. By far, most planetary candidates found do end up being confirmed later with more observations. From the paper:

The vespa software predicts that this signal has an astrophysical false-positive probability of FPP_3 = 1.8e-3 when the multiplicity of the system is taken into account. Kepler vetting diagnostics yield a multiple event statistic of MES = 10.7, which corresponds to an ~85 % reliability against false alarms due to instrumental artifacts such as rolling bands.

So what is this probable new world like?

From what we know so far, it transits its star as seen from Earth. It is estimated to have a radius of 1.9 Earth radii, making it a super-Earth, and orbits its star in 378 days. Since the star is similar to our sun, the planet receives a similar amount of energy and radiation as Earth does, about 93%. This also means that the planet resides in a similar spot in the habitable zone around the star – where temperatures could allow liquid water to exist – as Earth does in the habitable zone around our sun. The lead author of the new study, René Heller, said in a statement:

KOI-456.01 is relatively large compared to many other planets that are considered potentially habitable. But it’s the combination of this less-than-double the size of the Earth planet and its solar type host star that make it so special and familiar.

Graph with slanted green area and many small rings representing various sizes of planets, with text annotations.

Comparison of the amount of planetary illumination – solar energy – that KOI-456.04 receives from its star as compared to Earth and the sun. Image via René Heller et al./ Astronomy & Astrophysics/ arXiv.

If KOI-456.01’s atmosphere isn’t too dense or non-Earth-like, then there’s a good chance it could have similar surface conditions to Earth. The researchers calculated that if the planet’s atmosphere is moderate, like Earth’s, then the average temperature should be about 41 degrees Fahrenheit (5 degrees Celsius). Not too bad! There are, of course, still a lot of unknowns, such as the composition of the atmosphere and the planet itself and whether there is any surface water.

Kepler-160 was already known to have at least two planets, Kepler-160 b and Kepler-160 c. KOI-456.04, would be the newest, and it turns out there may actually be four planets in total. Heller said:

Our analysis suggests that Kepler-160 is orbited not by two but by a total of four planets.

The other two already known planets, Kepler-160 b and Kepler-160 c, are both larger than Earth and orbit much closer to the star. This makes them a lot less likely to be habitable. Kepler-160 c has an oddly distorted orbit, leading some scientists to theorize that another third planet, Kepler-160 d, was waiting to be discovered. Heller and his colleagues found evidence for its existence indirectly, since it doesn’t transit in front of the star as seen from Earth.

Heller and his co-author, Michael Hippke, developed a new technique for searching for exoplanets in old data from the Kepler Space Telescope (the mission ended in 2017). They decided to use a detailed physical model of stellar brightness variation instead of just looking for a step-like jump-to-dimming and then jump-back-to-normal brightness pattern in stellar light curves, as had been done previously for almost two decades. Heller explained:

Our improvement is particularly important in the search for small, Earth-sized planets. The planetary signal is so faint that it’s almost entirely hidden in the noise of the data. Our new search mask is slightly better in separating a true exoplanetary signal from the noise in the critical cases.

Small sun in distance, foreground planet with clouds, against a background of stars and nebulae.

Artist’s concept of Kepler-160b, another world in the Kepler-160 system. It has a radius about 1.54 times that of Earth, but orbits very close to the star, making it unlikely to be habitable. Image via NASA.

If KOI-456.01 is any indication, then the process seems to be working. Heller and his colleagues had also been able to find 18 other new exoplanets, so far, in the old Kepler data.

Kepler-160 was observed continuously by Kepler from 2009 to 2013. It is very similar to our sun, with a radius of 1.1 solar radii, a surface temperature of 9,392 degrees Fahrenheit (5200 degrees Celsius, only 300 degrees C less than the sun), and a sun-like stellar luminosity.

While KOI-456.01 is still regarded as a planetary candidate, the odds are very good that it is the real deal. But of course, scientists want to know for certain, and it’s possible that one of the more powerful ground-based telescopes will be able to fully confirm it, since it transits its star and is therefore easier to detect than with some other planet-hunting methods. Also, the European Space Agency’s (ESA’s) upcoming PLATO space telescope will be able to do that as well. One of PLATO’s primary goals is to search for Earth-sized exoplanets around sun-like stars, and is scheduled to launch in 2026. PLATO would be able to study KOI-456.01 a bit more closely, and, hopefully, reveal more about what this tantalizing world is really like.

Smiling man with mustache and blue shirt on white background.

René Heller at the Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research (MPS), lead author of the new study. Image via MPS.

Although red dwarfs are the most common type of star, the discovery of KOI-456.01 bodes well for the possibility that many rocky worlds like Earth also orbit sun-like stars. That in turn increases the chances of eventually finding habitable exoworlds around stars just like our own sun.

Bottom line: Researchers have discovered a new exoplanet orbiting the sun-like star Kepler-160. It is less than twice the size of Earth and orbits at about the same distance as Earth does from the sun.

Source: Transit least-squares survey — III. A 1.9 R+ transit candidate in the habitable zone of Kepler-160 and a nontransiting planet characterized by transit-timing variations

Via Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research

 



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Yellow circles and partial rings, blue crescent and thermometer shape on black background.

Diagram depicting how KOI-456.04 orbits in the habitable zone of its star, Kepler-160, at about the same distance Earth is from the sun. The planet, less than twice the size of Earth, therefore receives about the same amount of solar energy as Earth does. This is the closest Earth-sun analog discovered so far among exoplanets. Image via MPS/ René Heller.

The number of potentially habitable exoplanets keeps growing, as more and more worlds orbiting distant stars are discovered. So far, most of those planets have been found orbiting red dwarf stars, since they are dimmer, and planets are easier to detect around them (and also are the most common stars in our galaxy). But now, researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research (MPS) in Göttingen, Germany, and others from the U.S., have announced that they have found a new exoworld, less than twice the size of Earth, which orbits a sunlike star, Kepler-160, just over 3,000 light-years from our solar system.

What makes this discovery of particular interest is that the planet appears to be orbiting its star at a similar distance as Earth’s from the sun, and receives almost the same amount of energy from its star as Earth does. This would make it the most similar to the Earth-sun system of any exoplanetary system discovered so far, almost a mirror image.

The peer-reviewed findings were published in Astronomy & Astrophysics, Vol. 638, id. A10 and submitted to arXiv on June 3, 2020. The research also includes scientists from the Sonneberg Observatory, the University of Göttingen, the University of California in Santa Cruz and NASA.

Yellow and orange circles and partial rings, blue and orange crescents and thermometer shapes on black background.

Fuller diagram showing how the KOI-456.04 system compares to that of Earth-sun, other stars from the Kepler mission and red dwarf stars. Image via MPS/ René Heller.

While the new planet – provisionally named KOI-456.04 – hasn’t been fully confirmed yet, the paper states that the probability of it being a real planet and not a false alarm is 85%. By far, most planetary candidates found do end up being confirmed later with more observations. From the paper:

The vespa software predicts that this signal has an astrophysical false-positive probability of FPP_3 = 1.8e-3 when the multiplicity of the system is taken into account. Kepler vetting diagnostics yield a multiple event statistic of MES = 10.7, which corresponds to an ~85 % reliability against false alarms due to instrumental artifacts such as rolling bands.

So what is this probable new world like?

From what we know so far, it transits its star as seen from Earth. It is estimated to have a radius of 1.9 Earth radii, making it a super-Earth, and orbits its star in 378 days. Since the star is similar to our sun, the planet receives a similar amount of energy and radiation as Earth does, about 93%. This also means that the planet resides in a similar spot in the habitable zone around the star – where temperatures could allow liquid water to exist – as Earth does in the habitable zone around our sun. The lead author of the new study, René Heller, said in a statement:

KOI-456.01 is relatively large compared to many other planets that are considered potentially habitable. But it’s the combination of this less-than-double the size of the Earth planet and its solar type host star that make it so special and familiar.

Graph with slanted green area and many small rings representing various sizes of planets, with text annotations.

Comparison of the amount of planetary illumination – solar energy – that KOI-456.04 receives from its star as compared to Earth and the sun. Image via René Heller et al./ Astronomy & Astrophysics/ arXiv.

If KOI-456.01’s atmosphere isn’t too dense or non-Earth-like, then there’s a good chance it could have similar surface conditions to Earth. The researchers calculated that if the planet’s atmosphere is moderate, like Earth’s, then the average temperature should be about 41 degrees Fahrenheit (5 degrees Celsius). Not too bad! There are, of course, still a lot of unknowns, such as the composition of the atmosphere and the planet itself and whether there is any surface water.

Kepler-160 was already known to have at least two planets, Kepler-160 b and Kepler-160 c. KOI-456.04, would be the newest, and it turns out there may actually be four planets in total. Heller said:

Our analysis suggests that Kepler-160 is orbited not by two but by a total of four planets.

The other two already known planets, Kepler-160 b and Kepler-160 c, are both larger than Earth and orbit much closer to the star. This makes them a lot less likely to be habitable. Kepler-160 c has an oddly distorted orbit, leading some scientists to theorize that another third planet, Kepler-160 d, was waiting to be discovered. Heller and his colleagues found evidence for its existence indirectly, since it doesn’t transit in front of the star as seen from Earth.

Heller and his co-author, Michael Hippke, developed a new technique for searching for exoplanets in old data from the Kepler Space Telescope (the mission ended in 2017). They decided to use a detailed physical model of stellar brightness variation instead of just looking for a step-like jump-to-dimming and then jump-back-to-normal brightness pattern in stellar light curves, as had been done previously for almost two decades. Heller explained:

Our improvement is particularly important in the search for small, Earth-sized planets. The planetary signal is so faint that it’s almost entirely hidden in the noise of the data. Our new search mask is slightly better in separating a true exoplanetary signal from the noise in the critical cases.

Small sun in distance, foreground planet with clouds, against a background of stars and nebulae.

Artist’s concept of Kepler-160b, another world in the Kepler-160 system. It has a radius about 1.54 times that of Earth, but orbits very close to the star, making it unlikely to be habitable. Image via NASA.

If KOI-456.01 is any indication, then the process seems to be working. Heller and his colleagues had also been able to find 18 other new exoplanets, so far, in the old Kepler data.

Kepler-160 was observed continuously by Kepler from 2009 to 2013. It is very similar to our sun, with a radius of 1.1 solar radii, a surface temperature of 9,392 degrees Fahrenheit (5200 degrees Celsius, only 300 degrees C less than the sun), and a sun-like stellar luminosity.

While KOI-456.01 is still regarded as a planetary candidate, the odds are very good that it is the real deal. But of course, scientists want to know for certain, and it’s possible that one of the more powerful ground-based telescopes will be able to fully confirm it, since it transits its star and is therefore easier to detect than with some other planet-hunting methods. Also, the European Space Agency’s (ESA’s) upcoming PLATO space telescope will be able to do that as well. One of PLATO’s primary goals is to search for Earth-sized exoplanets around sun-like stars, and is scheduled to launch in 2026. PLATO would be able to study KOI-456.01 a bit more closely, and, hopefully, reveal more about what this tantalizing world is really like.

Smiling man with mustache and blue shirt on white background.

René Heller at the Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research (MPS), lead author of the new study. Image via MPS.

Although red dwarfs are the most common type of star, the discovery of KOI-456.01 bodes well for the possibility that many rocky worlds like Earth also orbit sun-like stars. That in turn increases the chances of eventually finding habitable exoworlds around stars just like our own sun.

Bottom line: Researchers have discovered a new exoplanet orbiting the sun-like star Kepler-160. It is less than twice the size of Earth and orbits at about the same distance as Earth does from the sun.

Source: Transit least-squares survey — III. A 1.9 R+ transit candidate in the habitable zone of Kepler-160 and a nontransiting planet characterized by transit-timing variations

Via Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research

 



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Come to know the Summer Triangle

We in the Northern Hemisphere can see the Summer Triangle for part of the night at any time of the year. But seeing it in summer is the most fun! As suggested by its name, the Summer Triangle is most prominent in northern summer. Seeing it again and again on summer nights is a deep pleasure that adds to the enjoyment of this season. So, as dusk deepens into night on a warm June or July night, look eastward for this great star pattern. It’s not a constellation, but instead an asterism made of three bright stars – Vega, Deneb and Altair – in three different constellations.

It’s difficult to convey the huge size of the Summer Triangle. At nightfall in northern summer, look for the brightest star in your eastern sky. That’s Vega, the brightest star in the constellation Lyra the Harp.

Look to the lower left of Vega for another bright star – Deneb, the brightest in the constellation Cygnus the Swan and the third brightest in the Summer Triangle. An outstretched hand at arm’s length approximates the distance from Vega to Deneb.

Look to the lower right of Vega to locate the Summer Triangle’s second brightest star. That’s Altair, the brightest star in the constellation Aquila the Eagle. A ruler held at arm’s length fills the gap between these two stars.

Photo of Suymmer Triangle stars, and their constellations, annotated.

The Summer Triangle, as captured and composed by our friend Susan Gies Jensen in Odessa, Washington.

Summer Triangle as a road map to the Milky Way. If you’re lucky enough to be under a dark starry sky on a moonless night, you’ll see the great swath of stars known as the Milky Way passing in between the Summer Triangle stars Vega and Altair. The star Deneb bobs in the middle of this river of stars that passes through the Summer Triangle, and arcs across the sky. Although every star that you see with the unaided eye is actually a member of our Milky Way galaxy, often the term Milky Way refers to the cross-sectional view of the galactic disk, whereby innumerable far-off suns congregate into a cloudy trail of stars.

Once you master the Summer Triangle, you can always locate the Milky Way on a clear, dark night. How about making the most of a dark summer night to explore this band of stars – this starlit boulevard abounding with celestial delights? Use binoculars to reel in the gossamer beauty of it all, the haunting nebulae and star clusters of a midsummer night’s dream!

Some see the Summer Triangle as a great big “V” for vacation, with Altair marking the point of the “V.” In summer, the Summer Triangle appears in the east at nightfall, high overhead after midnight and in the west at dawn. All night long on a summer night, the stars of the Summer Triangle – as if school kids on vacation – waltz amidst the streetlights of the Milky Way galaxy.

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Panoramic view of Milky Way, with Summer Triangle marked.

View larger. | Great Rift of Milky Way passes through the constellation Cassiopeia and the Summer Triangle.

Summer Triangle as nature’s seasonal calendar. The Summer Triangle serves as a stellar calendar, marking the seasons. When the stars of the Summer Triangle light up the eastern twilight dusk in middle to late June, it’s a sure sign of the change of seasons, of spring giving way to summer. However, when the Summer Triangle is seen high in the south to overhead at dusk and early evening, the Summer Triangle’s change of position indicates that summer has ebbed into fall.

Bottom line: How to find the Summer Triangle – an asterism, or noticeble pattern of stars – consisting of the three bright stars Vega, Deneb and Altair.

EarthSky astronomy kits are perfect for beginners. Order today from the EarthSky store

Donate: Your support means the world to us



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We in the Northern Hemisphere can see the Summer Triangle for part of the night at any time of the year. But seeing it in summer is the most fun! As suggested by its name, the Summer Triangle is most prominent in northern summer. Seeing it again and again on summer nights is a deep pleasure that adds to the enjoyment of this season. So, as dusk deepens into night on a warm June or July night, look eastward for this great star pattern. It’s not a constellation, but instead an asterism made of three bright stars – Vega, Deneb and Altair – in three different constellations.

It’s difficult to convey the huge size of the Summer Triangle. At nightfall in northern summer, look for the brightest star in your eastern sky. That’s Vega, the brightest star in the constellation Lyra the Harp.

Look to the lower left of Vega for another bright star – Deneb, the brightest in the constellation Cygnus the Swan and the third brightest in the Summer Triangle. An outstretched hand at arm’s length approximates the distance from Vega to Deneb.

Look to the lower right of Vega to locate the Summer Triangle’s second brightest star. That’s Altair, the brightest star in the constellation Aquila the Eagle. A ruler held at arm’s length fills the gap between these two stars.

Photo of Suymmer Triangle stars, and their constellations, annotated.

The Summer Triangle, as captured and composed by our friend Susan Gies Jensen in Odessa, Washington.

Summer Triangle as a road map to the Milky Way. If you’re lucky enough to be under a dark starry sky on a moonless night, you’ll see the great swath of stars known as the Milky Way passing in between the Summer Triangle stars Vega and Altair. The star Deneb bobs in the middle of this river of stars that passes through the Summer Triangle, and arcs across the sky. Although every star that you see with the unaided eye is actually a member of our Milky Way galaxy, often the term Milky Way refers to the cross-sectional view of the galactic disk, whereby innumerable far-off suns congregate into a cloudy trail of stars.

Once you master the Summer Triangle, you can always locate the Milky Way on a clear, dark night. How about making the most of a dark summer night to explore this band of stars – this starlit boulevard abounding with celestial delights? Use binoculars to reel in the gossamer beauty of it all, the haunting nebulae and star clusters of a midsummer night’s dream!

Some see the Summer Triangle as a great big “V” for vacation, with Altair marking the point of the “V.” In summer, the Summer Triangle appears in the east at nightfall, high overhead after midnight and in the west at dawn. All night long on a summer night, the stars of the Summer Triangle – as if school kids on vacation – waltz amidst the streetlights of the Milky Way galaxy.

Enjoying EarthSky so far? Sign up for our free daily newsletter today!

Panoramic view of Milky Way, with Summer Triangle marked.

View larger. | Great Rift of Milky Way passes through the constellation Cassiopeia and the Summer Triangle.

Summer Triangle as nature’s seasonal calendar. The Summer Triangle serves as a stellar calendar, marking the seasons. When the stars of the Summer Triangle light up the eastern twilight dusk in middle to late June, it’s a sure sign of the change of seasons, of spring giving way to summer. However, when the Summer Triangle is seen high in the south to overhead at dusk and early evening, the Summer Triangle’s change of position indicates that summer has ebbed into fall.

Bottom line: How to find the Summer Triangle – an asterism, or noticeble pattern of stars – consisting of the three bright stars Vega, Deneb and Altair.

EarthSky astronomy kits are perfect for beginners. Order today from the EarthSky store

Donate: Your support means the world to us



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The fire and the fireball

A circular field of view, a bright streak of light, and, off to one side, clouds of smoke.

View at EarthSky Community Photos. | Eliot Herman captured this image on June 9, 2020. The bright streak is a fireball, or particularly bright meteor: a bit of space debris entering Earth’s atmosphere and vaporizing as it falls. The “clouds” are smoke from the Bighorn fire, which is still raging.

Eliot Herman wrote:

The fire and the fireball! Bright Earth-grazing fireball in Tucson, Arizona during Bighorn forest fire.

The ‘clouds’ to the north are really smoke form the Bighorn fire that was lit by lightning on June 5 and is still underway. The gap in the middle is the click of the camera which is under 0.5 seconds; a calculation of line flight makes this at least a 6-second transit across the field of view. This is a stack of 2 images. 2:11 a.m. A bright moon lights the smoke.

Thank you, Eliot!

See more about this meteor via the American Meteor Society

Check out the Bighorn fire images.

Read about the Bighorn fire on Inciweb.

Botton line: A bright meteor – also known as a fireball – captured in Tucson, Arizona on June 5. The “clouds” are smoke from the Bighorn fire.



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A circular field of view, a bright streak of light, and, off to one side, clouds of smoke.

View at EarthSky Community Photos. | Eliot Herman captured this image on June 9, 2020. The bright streak is a fireball, or particularly bright meteor: a bit of space debris entering Earth’s atmosphere and vaporizing as it falls. The “clouds” are smoke from the Bighorn fire, which is still raging.

Eliot Herman wrote:

The fire and the fireball! Bright Earth-grazing fireball in Tucson, Arizona during Bighorn forest fire.

The ‘clouds’ to the north are really smoke form the Bighorn fire that was lit by lightning on June 5 and is still underway. The gap in the middle is the click of the camera which is under 0.5 seconds; a calculation of line flight makes this at least a 6-second transit across the field of view. This is a stack of 2 images. 2:11 a.m. A bright moon lights the smoke.

Thank you, Eliot!

See more about this meteor via the American Meteor Society

Check out the Bighorn fire images.

Read about the Bighorn fire on Inciweb.

Botton line: A bright meteor – also known as a fireball – captured in Tucson, Arizona on June 5. The “clouds” are smoke from the Bighorn fire.



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News digest – SABR, ‘chemo buses’, junk food marketing and 3D printed pills

Radiotherapy

With news about the coronavirus pandemic developing daily, we want to make sure everyone affected by cancer gets the information they need during this time. 

We’re pulling together the latest government and NHS health updates from across the UK in a separate blog post, which we’re updating regularly. 

Innovative radiotherapy treatment rolled out in England  

Sky News reports on an innovative type of radiotherapy being rolled out to all cancer centres across England in the next year. Stereotactic ablative radiotherapy (SABR) treatment is a more precise form of radiotherapy that uses higher doses to offer patients a faster treatment period with fewer hospital visits. NHS England has also announced it will be ramping up the use of ‘chemo buses’ in London and Yorkshire to help deal with the backlog of people waiting for treatment due to COVID-19. The Telegraph has more.  

Scientists developing 3D printed magnetic pills to help drug delivery 

Researchers in the UK and US are developing 3D printed magnetic pills that could provide a new way to target treatments to cancer cells. The technology could enable treatment to be delivered directly into the required area of the body, by using external magnets to trigger the release of cancer drugs. Read more on this at The Engineer.  

And finally 

A new bill to restrict the promotion of junk food in Scotland has been temporarily paused by Scottish Government. As a direct result of our Scale Down Cancer campaign, the Scottish Government had committed to introduce legislation that would restrict how brands and stores could promote junk food products, including measures to ban multi-buy offers on foods high fat, salt and sugar, as well as their promotion at checkouts. The Scottish Government has now said that it will pause to consider if a more wide-ranging plan is needed in light of the coronavirus pandemic. Find the full story at BBC News.

Scarlett Sangster is a writer for PA Media Group



from Cancer Research UK – Science blog https://ift.tt/3cYHthd
Radiotherapy

With news about the coronavirus pandemic developing daily, we want to make sure everyone affected by cancer gets the information they need during this time. 

We’re pulling together the latest government and NHS health updates from across the UK in a separate blog post, which we’re updating regularly. 

Innovative radiotherapy treatment rolled out in England  

Sky News reports on an innovative type of radiotherapy being rolled out to all cancer centres across England in the next year. Stereotactic ablative radiotherapy (SABR) treatment is a more precise form of radiotherapy that uses higher doses to offer patients a faster treatment period with fewer hospital visits. NHS England has also announced it will be ramping up the use of ‘chemo buses’ in London and Yorkshire to help deal with the backlog of people waiting for treatment due to COVID-19. The Telegraph has more.  

Scientists developing 3D printed magnetic pills to help drug delivery 

Researchers in the UK and US are developing 3D printed magnetic pills that could provide a new way to target treatments to cancer cells. The technology could enable treatment to be delivered directly into the required area of the body, by using external magnets to trigger the release of cancer drugs. Read more on this at The Engineer.  

And finally 

A new bill to restrict the promotion of junk food in Scotland has been temporarily paused by Scottish Government. As a direct result of our Scale Down Cancer campaign, the Scottish Government had committed to introduce legislation that would restrict how brands and stores could promote junk food products, including measures to ban multi-buy offers on foods high fat, salt and sugar, as well as their promotion at checkouts. The Scottish Government has now said that it will pause to consider if a more wide-ranging plan is needed in light of the coronavirus pandemic. Find the full story at BBC News.

Scarlett Sangster is a writer for PA Media Group



from Cancer Research UK – Science blog https://ift.tt/3cYHthd

Our work saves lives – that must mean Black lives too

Michelle Mitchell chief executive Cancer Research UK

Like so many of us right now, I’ve been thinking hard about how to be a better ally, and how the charity can better represent and serve Black and other ethnic minority communities.

We know that we can and will continue to improve. I want our supporters and the wider public to know that I – and all my colleagues on the charity’s leadership team – am fully committed to making that change happen.

The outrage and protests following the death of George Floyd, and the disproportionate impact of COVID-19 on BAME communities has, of course, brought issues of racism, inequality and inequity of access – particularly those faced by Black communities – into sharper focus around the world. But even though they are in the news, they are not new. They are long-standing, historic, structural problems hidden, for too many, in plain sight.

Cancer Research UK exists to improve things for people with cancer – and that must mean, and has always meant, all people with cancer. Because cancer can affect anyone, regardless of their ethnicity, or their age, gender identity, religion or sexual orientation.

Unfortunately, we know that cancer doesn’t affect everyone equally. The evidence shows that some groups in society are hit harder than others. The reasons why are complex, and deeply woven into the structural and socio-economic inequalities in our society. And these effects can be seen across the board – for example, Black women are more likely to be diagnosed at later stages of breast cancer, and Black men are at greater risk of prostate cancer than other ethnic groups as well as being more likely to die of the disease.

So as a charity, we will strive to work with and influence our partners to make sure that cancer services and care are available to all, equally. That means striving for screening services appropriate and accessible for all communities. For action on obesity and smoking – the two biggest causes of cancer – to make healthier choices easier for everyone. For research whose rewards offer progress across the board. And for information on cancer and treatment that helps inform and raise awareness equitably. Our work has the power and potential to save all lives in every community.

But to create progress for everyone, we also need to look at how Cancer Research UK itself operates. As a large charity, with thousands of staff and volunteers, which funds more than 50% of the UK’s cancer research, we have always realised we carry a huge responsibility.

We achieve our goals when we reflect all of the communities we serve. We know we still need to improve the diversity of our workforce, including our senior team. And we will renew our efforts to change that.

We have made mistakes in the past in not representing diversity in our communications, marketing and campaigns. We will keep learning from that, and ensure we don’t make these mistakes again. We know that we can and will have a stronger voice on health inequalities. We are conscious that there are racial and other biases in academic research. We will continue to strive to address them. However, we know that we can improve how we can engage with the Black community. We are listening.

So our leadership team and I have committed to draw up a short-, medium- and long-term plan, for how to make Cancer Research UK the best charity it can be, where we reflect the communities we serve, and for whom people are proud to work and volunteer for. We continue our work with a renewed focus.

I know as leader of this incredible charity, that has a century-long track record of progress for people with cancer, that we can do this. I want Cancer Research UK to be regarded as a leader diversity and inclusion – not an organisation that drags its feet or ducks these issues. And although we want to take care to get this right, I recognise that this vital, urgent work must start right now.

Michelle Mitchell is our chief executive officer

Our commitments

  • To be an organisation committed to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion.
  • To work with our partners to ensure research progress is shared among all groups in society.
  • To make Cancer Research UK more representative of the communities we serve.
  • To find ways to address bias in research and make it more inclusive for Black people and other ethnic minority groups.
  • To draw up a short-, medium- and long-term plan of change for how we will get there.
  • To listen to all of our staff – including our Black staff, and to make sure we act on what they tell us.


from Cancer Research UK – Science blog https://ift.tt/3cVR6NE
Michelle Mitchell chief executive Cancer Research UK

Like so many of us right now, I’ve been thinking hard about how to be a better ally, and how the charity can better represent and serve Black and other ethnic minority communities.

We know that we can and will continue to improve. I want our supporters and the wider public to know that I – and all my colleagues on the charity’s leadership team – am fully committed to making that change happen.

The outrage and protests following the death of George Floyd, and the disproportionate impact of COVID-19 on BAME communities has, of course, brought issues of racism, inequality and inequity of access – particularly those faced by Black communities – into sharper focus around the world. But even though they are in the news, they are not new. They are long-standing, historic, structural problems hidden, for too many, in plain sight.

Cancer Research UK exists to improve things for people with cancer – and that must mean, and has always meant, all people with cancer. Because cancer can affect anyone, regardless of their ethnicity, or their age, gender identity, religion or sexual orientation.

Unfortunately, we know that cancer doesn’t affect everyone equally. The evidence shows that some groups in society are hit harder than others. The reasons why are complex, and deeply woven into the structural and socio-economic inequalities in our society. And these effects can be seen across the board – for example, Black women are more likely to be diagnosed at later stages of breast cancer, and Black men are at greater risk of prostate cancer than other ethnic groups as well as being more likely to die of the disease.

So as a charity, we will strive to work with and influence our partners to make sure that cancer services and care are available to all, equally. That means striving for screening services appropriate and accessible for all communities. For action on obesity and smoking – the two biggest causes of cancer – to make healthier choices easier for everyone. For research whose rewards offer progress across the board. And for information on cancer and treatment that helps inform and raise awareness equitably. Our work has the power and potential to save all lives in every community.

But to create progress for everyone, we also need to look at how Cancer Research UK itself operates. As a large charity, with thousands of staff and volunteers, which funds more than 50% of the UK’s cancer research, we have always realised we carry a huge responsibility.

We achieve our goals when we reflect all of the communities we serve. We know we still need to improve the diversity of our workforce, including our senior team. And we will renew our efforts to change that.

We have made mistakes in the past in not representing diversity in our communications, marketing and campaigns. We will keep learning from that, and ensure we don’t make these mistakes again. We know that we can and will have a stronger voice on health inequalities. We are conscious that there are racial and other biases in academic research. We will continue to strive to address them. However, we know that we can improve how we can engage with the Black community. We are listening.

So our leadership team and I have committed to draw up a short-, medium- and long-term plan, for how to make Cancer Research UK the best charity it can be, where we reflect the communities we serve, and for whom people are proud to work and volunteer for. We continue our work with a renewed focus.

I know as leader of this incredible charity, that has a century-long track record of progress for people with cancer, that we can do this. I want Cancer Research UK to be regarded as a leader diversity and inclusion – not an organisation that drags its feet or ducks these issues. And although we want to take care to get this right, I recognise that this vital, urgent work must start right now.

Michelle Mitchell is our chief executive officer

Our commitments

  • To be an organisation committed to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion.
  • To work with our partners to ensure research progress is shared among all groups in society.
  • To make Cancer Research UK more representative of the communities we serve.
  • To find ways to address bias in research and make it more inclusive for Black people and other ethnic minority groups.
  • To draw up a short-, medium- and long-term plan of change for how we will get there.
  • To listen to all of our staff – including our Black staff, and to make sure we act on what they tell us.


from Cancer Research UK – Science blog https://ift.tt/3cVR6NE

Now is the time to start watching Mars

Several small white dots on black background with one big glowing red dot labeled Mars.

Dennis Chabot of POSNE NightSky captured this photo of Mars on July 21, 2018. Mars was very bright and very red for several months around then! And it’ll be very bright and very red again … soon.

In the year 2018, Mars was brighter than all the stars. It was even brighter than the second-brightest planet, Jupiter. It was a blazing red dot of flame in our night sky for several months. In 2019, Mars was mostly faint. It was barely noticeable in our sky. Why? Why is Mars bright in some years, but faint in others? And why is Mars expected to brighten dramatically again in 2020? Keep reading to learn why the appearance of Mars varies so widely in our sky, making Mars one of the most interesting planets to watch!

June 2020 is a wonderful time to start watching Mars. It’s in our predawn sky now, but will soon be visible late at night … and then at sunset. See the chart below to learn to find Mars this week. Want to see Mars in the coming months? Bookmark EarthSky’s planet guide.

Chart: moon's positions on 3 days, Mars, location of Neptune, and star Fomalhaut.

At mid-northern latitudes, you’ll have to get up mighty early to catch the moon and the red planet Mars in the predawn sky in June 2020. Read more.

More than any other bright planet, the appearance of Mars in our night sky changes from year to year. Its dramatic swings in brightness are part of the reason the early stargazers named Mars for their god of war; sometimes, the war god rests, and sometimes he grows fierce! Mars was faint throughout 2017, bright in 2018, and was faint again for most of 2019. Right now – in June 2020 – Mars is brighter than it was a few months ago, growing noticeably redder.

Why? Why does Mars sometimes appear very bright, and sometimes very faint?

The first thing to realize is that Mars isn’t a very big world. It’s only 4,219 miles (6,790 km) in diameter, making it only slightly more than half Earth’s size (7,922 miles or 12,750 km in diameter).

The small size of Mars is your first clue to its varying brightness. The small size means that, when Mars is bright, its brightness isn’t due to bigness, as is the case with the largest planet in our solar system, Jupiter.

Double photo with large Earth on left and smaller Mars on right, to scale.

Mars isn’t very big, so its brightness – when it is bright – isn’t due to its bigness, as is true of Jupiter. Mars’ brightness, or lack of brightness, is all about how close it is to us. Image via Lunar and Planetary Institute.

Long exposure with big dot of Mars and its reflection in a lake, and Milky Way soaring above.

Matt Pollack captured Mars from Little Tupper Lake in the Adirondacks of upstate New York in July 2018. Read more about this photo.

Instead, the main reason for Mars’ extremes in brightness has to do with its nearness (or lack of nearness) to Earth.

Mars orbits the sun one step outward from Earth. The distances between Earth and Mars change as both worlds orbit around the sun. Sometimes Earth and Mars are on the same side of the solar system, and hence near one another. At other times, as it was for much of 2017 and was again for much of 2019, Mars was moving on the opposite side of the solar system from Earth.

Look at the diagrams below, which show Earth and Mars in their respective orbits around the sun in mid-2018 and this month, June 2020 … and then in October 2020, when Earth and Mars will be closest for this two-year period.

Chart: concentric circles of planetary orbits with positions of planets, Earth and Mars very close.

Earth (blue) last passed between between the sun and Mars (red) on July 27, 2018. This was Mars’ opposition. It comes to opposition about every 2 years, and, at such times, Mars is always at its best for that 2-year period. There’s also a 15-year cycle of Mars, whereby the red planet is brighter and fainter at opposition. In July 2018, we were at the peak of the 2-year cycle – and the peak of the 15-year cycle – and Mars was very, very bright! Image via Fourmilab.

Concentric circular orbits showing relative position of planets in the inner solar system around June 11, 2020.

Mars passed most directly behind the sun from Earth in September 2019, and, for many months, the planet has been far across the solar system from Earth. But now Earth (blue) is beginning to catch up to Mars (red). This chart shows June 2020. See the chart below. Image via Fourmilab.

Large heliocentric chart showing concentric planetary orbits with positions of planets October 13, 2020.

This chart shows the relative positions of Earth (blue) and Mars (red) at the time of Mars’ coming opposition on October 13, 2020. Around that time, Mars will appear bright in our sky again – and in the sky all night long – but it won’t be as bright as it was in 2018. Image via Fourmilab.

Earth takes a year to orbit the sun once. Mars takes about two years to orbit once. Opposition for Mars – when Earth passes between Mars and the sun – happens every two years and 50 days.

So Mars’ brightness waxes and wanes in our sky about every two years. Because of this, 2018 was a very, very special year for Mars, when the planet was brighter than it had been since 2003. Astronomers called it a perihelic opposition (or perihelic apparition) of Mars. In other words, in 2018, we went between Mars and the sun – bringing Mars to opposition in our sky – around the same time Mars came closest to the sun. The word perihelion refers to Mars’ closest point to the sun in orbit.

Maybe you can see that – in years when we pass between Mars and the sun, when Mars is also closest to the sun – Earth and Mars are closest. That’s what happened in 2018.

2003 was the previous perihelic opposition for Mars. The red planet came within 34.6 million miles (55.7 million km) of Earth, closer than at any time in over nearly 60,000 years! That was really something.

Earth's and Mars' orbit with Mars in different sizes at different points around its orbit.

Diagram by Roy L. Bishop. Copyright Royal Astronomical Society of Canada. Used with permission. Visit the RASC estore to purchase the Observer’s Handbook, a necessary tool for all skywatchers. Read more about this image.

And now? Earth will pass between Mars and the sun next on October 13, 2020. The red planet will appear brightest in our sky – very bright indeed and fiery red – around that time.

And thus Mars alternates years in being bright in our sky, or faint. 2019 was a dull year, but 2020 will be an exciting one, for Mars!

Now is the time to start watching Mars. When you spot it, keep your eye on its, and enjoy its growing brightness. And think what’s causing the brightness change: our own Earth, rushing along in our smaller, faster orbit, trying to catch up.

Watch for Mars!

Sun, Earth, Mars lined up with orbits shown.

Artist’s concept of Earth (3rd planet from the sun) passing between the sun and Mars (4th planet from the sun). Not to scale. This is Mars’ opposition, when it appears opposite the sun in our sky. Image via NASA.

Bottom line: Mars alternates years in appearing bright and faint in our night sky. In 2018, we had a grand view of Mars … best since 2003! In 2019, we were in one of Mars’ faint years. But 2020 will – once again – be a bright year for Mars. June 2020 is a great time to notice Mars so that you can watch it get brighter in the coming months.

Photos of bright Mars in 2018, from the EarthSky community



from EarthSky https://ift.tt/2Puo0em
Several small white dots on black background with one big glowing red dot labeled Mars.

Dennis Chabot of POSNE NightSky captured this photo of Mars on July 21, 2018. Mars was very bright and very red for several months around then! And it’ll be very bright and very red again … soon.

In the year 2018, Mars was brighter than all the stars. It was even brighter than the second-brightest planet, Jupiter. It was a blazing red dot of flame in our night sky for several months. In 2019, Mars was mostly faint. It was barely noticeable in our sky. Why? Why is Mars bright in some years, but faint in others? And why is Mars expected to brighten dramatically again in 2020? Keep reading to learn why the appearance of Mars varies so widely in our sky, making Mars one of the most interesting planets to watch!

June 2020 is a wonderful time to start watching Mars. It’s in our predawn sky now, but will soon be visible late at night … and then at sunset. See the chart below to learn to find Mars this week. Want to see Mars in the coming months? Bookmark EarthSky’s planet guide.

Chart: moon's positions on 3 days, Mars, location of Neptune, and star Fomalhaut.

At mid-northern latitudes, you’ll have to get up mighty early to catch the moon and the red planet Mars in the predawn sky in June 2020. Read more.

More than any other bright planet, the appearance of Mars in our night sky changes from year to year. Its dramatic swings in brightness are part of the reason the early stargazers named Mars for their god of war; sometimes, the war god rests, and sometimes he grows fierce! Mars was faint throughout 2017, bright in 2018, and was faint again for most of 2019. Right now – in June 2020 – Mars is brighter than it was a few months ago, growing noticeably redder.

Why? Why does Mars sometimes appear very bright, and sometimes very faint?

The first thing to realize is that Mars isn’t a very big world. It’s only 4,219 miles (6,790 km) in diameter, making it only slightly more than half Earth’s size (7,922 miles or 12,750 km in diameter).

The small size of Mars is your first clue to its varying brightness. The small size means that, when Mars is bright, its brightness isn’t due to bigness, as is the case with the largest planet in our solar system, Jupiter.

Double photo with large Earth on left and smaller Mars on right, to scale.

Mars isn’t very big, so its brightness – when it is bright – isn’t due to its bigness, as is true of Jupiter. Mars’ brightness, or lack of brightness, is all about how close it is to us. Image via Lunar and Planetary Institute.

Long exposure with big dot of Mars and its reflection in a lake, and Milky Way soaring above.

Matt Pollack captured Mars from Little Tupper Lake in the Adirondacks of upstate New York in July 2018. Read more about this photo.

Instead, the main reason for Mars’ extremes in brightness has to do with its nearness (or lack of nearness) to Earth.

Mars orbits the sun one step outward from Earth. The distances between Earth and Mars change as both worlds orbit around the sun. Sometimes Earth and Mars are on the same side of the solar system, and hence near one another. At other times, as it was for much of 2017 and was again for much of 2019, Mars was moving on the opposite side of the solar system from Earth.

Look at the diagrams below, which show Earth and Mars in their respective orbits around the sun in mid-2018 and this month, June 2020 … and then in October 2020, when Earth and Mars will be closest for this two-year period.

Chart: concentric circles of planetary orbits with positions of planets, Earth and Mars very close.

Earth (blue) last passed between between the sun and Mars (red) on July 27, 2018. This was Mars’ opposition. It comes to opposition about every 2 years, and, at such times, Mars is always at its best for that 2-year period. There’s also a 15-year cycle of Mars, whereby the red planet is brighter and fainter at opposition. In July 2018, we were at the peak of the 2-year cycle – and the peak of the 15-year cycle – and Mars was very, very bright! Image via Fourmilab.

Concentric circular orbits showing relative position of planets in the inner solar system around June 11, 2020.

Mars passed most directly behind the sun from Earth in September 2019, and, for many months, the planet has been far across the solar system from Earth. But now Earth (blue) is beginning to catch up to Mars (red). This chart shows June 2020. See the chart below. Image via Fourmilab.

Large heliocentric chart showing concentric planetary orbits with positions of planets October 13, 2020.

This chart shows the relative positions of Earth (blue) and Mars (red) at the time of Mars’ coming opposition on October 13, 2020. Around that time, Mars will appear bright in our sky again – and in the sky all night long – but it won’t be as bright as it was in 2018. Image via Fourmilab.

Earth takes a year to orbit the sun once. Mars takes about two years to orbit once. Opposition for Mars – when Earth passes between Mars and the sun – happens every two years and 50 days.

So Mars’ brightness waxes and wanes in our sky about every two years. Because of this, 2018 was a very, very special year for Mars, when the planet was brighter than it had been since 2003. Astronomers called it a perihelic opposition (or perihelic apparition) of Mars. In other words, in 2018, we went between Mars and the sun – bringing Mars to opposition in our sky – around the same time Mars came closest to the sun. The word perihelion refers to Mars’ closest point to the sun in orbit.

Maybe you can see that – in years when we pass between Mars and the sun, when Mars is also closest to the sun – Earth and Mars are closest. That’s what happened in 2018.

2003 was the previous perihelic opposition for Mars. The red planet came within 34.6 million miles (55.7 million km) of Earth, closer than at any time in over nearly 60,000 years! That was really something.

Earth's and Mars' orbit with Mars in different sizes at different points around its orbit.

Diagram by Roy L. Bishop. Copyright Royal Astronomical Society of Canada. Used with permission. Visit the RASC estore to purchase the Observer’s Handbook, a necessary tool for all skywatchers. Read more about this image.

And now? Earth will pass between Mars and the sun next on October 13, 2020. The red planet will appear brightest in our sky – very bright indeed and fiery red – around that time.

And thus Mars alternates years in being bright in our sky, or faint. 2019 was a dull year, but 2020 will be an exciting one, for Mars!

Now is the time to start watching Mars. When you spot it, keep your eye on its, and enjoy its growing brightness. And think what’s causing the brightness change: our own Earth, rushing along in our smaller, faster orbit, trying to catch up.

Watch for Mars!

Sun, Earth, Mars lined up with orbits shown.

Artist’s concept of Earth (3rd planet from the sun) passing between the sun and Mars (4th planet from the sun). Not to scale. This is Mars’ opposition, when it appears opposite the sun in our sky. Image via NASA.

Bottom line: Mars alternates years in appearing bright and faint in our night sky. In 2018, we had a grand view of Mars … best since 2003! In 2019, we were in one of Mars’ faint years. But 2020 will – once again – be a bright year for Mars. June 2020 is a great time to notice Mars so that you can watch it get brighter in the coming months.

Photos of bright Mars in 2018, from the EarthSky community



from EarthSky https://ift.tt/2Puo0em