The Local Weekly The heart and soul of our communities with news and information about the Sunshine Coast
Mercury will be low in the east in the morning twilight in October but will be lost near mid-month. Venus is very low in the evening twilight. Mars will be low in the SSW after dark and sets in the SW near 11pm. Jupiter is very low in the east in the morning twilight. Saturn will be very low in the SW after sunset and sets after dusk.
The Sunshine Coast Astronomy Club is delighted to welcome Dr. Julio Navarro as our guest speaker on October 14. Dr. Navarro is from the University of Victoria and his topic will be “Dark Matter and Dark Energy, the puzzling forces that shape our Universe”. Growing up in a small town in Northern
Argentina it was not unusual on warm summer evenings for Dr. Navarro to sleep outdoors on the family patio so as to study the night sky.
A Neutron Star is a compressed core of an exploded star made up almost entirely of neutrons. Neutron Stars have a strong gravitational field and some emit pulses of energy along their axis. These are known as pulsars.
A Nebula is a cloud of gas or dust in space, usually illuminated by one or more stars. Nebulae represent the raw material the stars are made of.
The fall period presents us with some excellent Constellation viewing. Pegasus is visible from August through December and the globular star cluster M45 will be keenly watched by telescope viewers. The Constellation Aquarius is visible in the fall in the Northern Hemisphere. This ancient constellation has its roots in many cultures and represents a number of excellent viewing opportunities. The Open Star Cluster M 73 will be clearly visible as will the Globular Star Clusters M2 and M72.
The full moon on October 16 is known as the Hunters Moon. The hunters moon is generally accorded with special honour, historically serving as an important feast day in both Western Europe and among native American Tribes.
For up to date Astronomy info go to coastastropnomy.ca
