This Week's Amazing Sky
September 13, 2018
It’s storm season. You finish dinner at a restaurant and it’s suddenly pouring. You gaze at your car parked not so far away. Is it better to walk or run in the rain?
Believe it or not, scientists have debated this for years. If you run you get there faster, so less rain hits you. But meanwhile you’re slamming more frontwise into the droplets, making them preferentially strike your chest and legs. If you’d walked, they’d mostly hit your head and shoulders, which offer less surface.
Is this... more
August 30, 2018
Want to be amazed? Look skyward on the next clear night. With your own eyes, you’ll be able to see which way you, Earth, the Sun, and the entire galaxy are moving in space.
You don’t need dark country skies for this. Being in a city is okay. But you do need an open swath of sky, so get out in the open somewhere, and do this at 9 p.m.
Nothing is Stationary in Space
When we look up at the night sky, we tend to think of it as a flat surface that the stars and planets move around on. But in reality... more
August 16, 2018
Mars remains blazingly brilliant in the night sky. The real draw now is that it’s part of a rare display above our heads. In mid-August, 2018, four planets and two famous stars have formed a rainbow of gemstones. Look for Venus, Jupiter, Saturn, and Mars in a line!
Planet Viewing Tips
It’s easy to see this for yourself if you can get to a place with an unobstructed view of the sky to the southwest, south, and southeast. The four planets get closer little by little and they can be seen... more
August 7, 2018
An unusually good meteor shower is happening. The reliable summer Perseid meteor shower is unfolding under ideal conditions: A new moon will keep skies ideally black, plus there’s a rare insurance day this time around.
A Weekend Shower
The display usually peaks on a single night, but this year, the spectacle will unfold on both Saturday and Sunday night (August 11 and 12). Of course, those whose location gets buried under clouds won’t see a thing, while the perfect setup would be a Montana-like... more
July 26, 2018
We’re about to see one of the truly great sky events of 2018. First, Mars’ best opposition in 15 years happens July 26–27. Second, Mars comes closest to Earth on July 30–31. And finding it requires no sky knowledge. It’s extremely bright and very red!
Mars Opposition
In the Martian opposition, Mars is aligned with the Sun with Earth right in the middle. This alignment causes Mars to be very close to us, and to rise in the east just as the sun sets, climb to its highest point at midnight, and... more
July 22, 2018
Discover 10 amazing facts about planet Venus, our neighbor! We call her sister planet, goddess of love, “morning star,” and—apparently—UFO! Read on …
Venus will not be visible in Earth’s sky in early July, 2019. Like Earth, it orbits the Sun but it’s racing ahead of us and will soon be behind the Sun. We’ll see her again as a “morning star” in September.
By September, Venus will have twice the brilliance it has now. When the Evening Star reaches its maximum brightness, well, that’s when Venus... more
July 6, 2018
Everyone loves shooting stars and meteor showers. The Perseid meteor shower of August 11 to 13 is traditionally the best meteor shower of the year.
The famous Perseid meteors peak over two nights, which provides some cloud insurance. Between August 11 and August 13 is usually the best time to see this meteor shower. Check out our main Perseid Meteor Shower page for more information on this shower, then see our Meteor Shower Calendar to find out when other prominent showers will occur!
Some... more
July 4, 2018
On Independence Day, the same scene will be repeated around the country. Crowds will gather as twilight deepens, awaiting darkness and the start of the fireworks. It’s the annual occasion when the maximum number of people are gazing idly up at the sky. This year it brings a special opportunity.
In most places, figure enough darkness will have fallen for the fireworks to start at around 9:30, though some communities wait until 10. Either way, you can do some fascinating sky watching beginning at... more
June 26, 2018
It’s a truly extraordinary conjunction. Saturn reaches opposition—shining at its biggest and brightest for the whole year—next to the Full Strawberry Moon on Wednesday night. It’s cool, it’s amazing, it’s in-your-face, and it happens Wednesday, June 27.
The Honey Moon of June
First, let’s talk about June’s full Moon. You’ll note that many calendars list the full Moon as the next night, June 28. Yes, technically, it’s true, but it crests just after midnight if you’re in the Eastern time zone... more
June 11, 2018
Keep your eye on Venus tonight! Our wonderful Evening Star Apparition is at its best in years. Here’s how to enjoy Venus through the summer! Get started this weekend (June 15–16, 2018), as Venus hovers near the crescent Moon in the beautiful twilight sky.
Venus will shine brilliantly in the northwest the first few hours after sunset. It’s not high up, but it’s not too low, either, so it easily shines above houses and hills. Beautiful! The brightest of planets will periodically meet the Moon... more
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Welcome to “This Week’s Amazing Sky,” the Almanac’s hub for everything stargazing and astronomy. Bob Berman, longtime and famous astronomer for The Old Farmer’s Almanac, will help bring alive the wonders of our universe. From the beautiful stars and planets to magical auroras and eclipses, he covers everything under the Sun (and Moon)! Bob, the world’s mostly widely read astronomer, also has a new weekly podcast, Astounding Universe!
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