January 2015 - Utah-Astronomy - mailman.xmission.com

15P/Finlay
by Stephen Peterson 26 Jan '15

26 Jan '15

Got a very marginal photo of it last night. Seeing with the moon and moisture was bad. Small and some hint of a relatively wide tail but almost wishful thinking. Steve Peterson, Hurricane

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Flyby this time tomorrow
by Wiggins Patrick 26 Jan '15

26 Jan '15

A reminder that minor planet 2004 BL86 will be making a flyby of Earth tomorrow (Monday) and, at mag 9, could be pretty easily seen from here in Utah with just binoculars if under dark skies. For details on when and where to look go to: http://www.minorplanetcenter.org/iau/MPEph/MPEph.html In the large box at the top enter 2004 BL86 . You can enter your longitude, latitude and altitude or if you're in northern Utah you could just enter my observatory code, 718, in the "Observatory code" box. patrick

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Excellent ISS pass Monday morning
by Wiggins Patrick 25 Jan '15

25 Jan '15

This per CalSky for early risers here in northern Utah. Note that it will not become visible until nearly at the zenith. At mag -4.3 and straight overhead it ought to be quite a site. patrick ISS Appears 6h00m39s -4.3mag az:316.2° NW h:74.9° Culmination 6h00m54s -4.2mag az: 36.8° NE h:87.5° distance: 412.6km height above Earth: 413.5km elevation of Sun: -20° Disappears 6h06m16s 1.8mag az:127.2° SE horizon

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Has anyone seen 15P/Finlay?
by Dave Gary 25 Jan '15

25 Jan '15

I may try to photograph 15P/Finlay early this evening. If it's too low on the western horizon I won't be able to catch it. The driveway observatory has a house to the west of it that blocks a lot of the western horizon. I'd like to move the house, but it would problematic since I live there. Have any of you caught a glimpse of Findlay in a telescope or binoculars? Dave Sent from my iPad

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Jupiter's moon shadows
by Dave Gary 24 Jan '15

24 Jan '15

I think the time stamp for these photos was around 23:50. Maybe just a few minutes earlier. I can't see a third shadow. If the photos had been taken by someone who knew what they were doing it may have been better. It couldn't have been much worse. I've looked forward in time through my photos and back to as early as 23:15. I can't pick out three shadows in any of them. Sorry, no cigar. Dave https://www.flickr.com/photos/78046474@N06/sets/72157650443203962/

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Jupiter Event
by Dave Gary 24 Jan '15

24 Jan '15

So far, down here in St. George, it looks as if the weather is going to cooperate for the upcoming Jupiter event. The forecast for the Salt Lake area doesn’t look too bad either. I’m still trying to decide what camera setup would be the best. Hopefully, you guys that know what you’re doing will get some great shots you can share with the rest of us. Dave

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Brent scores another EPOD!
by Wiggins Patrick 23 Jan '15

23 Jan '15

Bear River Meanders http://epod.usra.edu/blog/2015/01/bear-river-meanders.html patrick

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Love joy naked eye
by Wiggins Patrick 23 Jan '15

23 Jan '15

Was just out looking at the comet with 10x50s and it seemed bright enough that it might be visible naked eye. So I lay down on my observatory floor for several minutes waiting for my eyes to dark adapt. Funny but during that time I saw two airplanes fly right through the Pleiades. Once adapted I used the binocs to find the comet again so I'd know right where to look. No luck looking straight at it but with averted vision there was definitely something there and the longer I looked the more obvious it became. So, my first (barely) naked eye comet in quite some time. patrick Sent from my iPad

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ISS Friday morning
by Wiggins Patrick 22 Jan '15

22 Jan '15

This from CalSky for northern Utah. patrick Appears 6h56m29s -2.0mag az:311.1° NW h:11.2° Culmination 6h59m37s -3.8mag az: 34.7° NE h:67.7° distance: 443.7km height above Earth: 413.8km elevation of Sun: -9° Disappears 7h04m59s 3.4mag az:121.7° ESE horizon

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Reminder: Bright Asteroid Flyby
by Wiggins Patrick 22 Jan '15

22 Jan '15

This from Space Weather News Early next week, a large asteroid named 2004 BL86 will fly past the Earth-Moon system. There's no danger of a collision, but NASA radars will be monitoring the mountain-sized space rock as it passes by only 745,000 miles away. Amateur astronomers can watch the flyby, too. Glowing like a 9th magnitude star, 2004 BL86 will be an easy target for backyard telescopes on the night of closest approach, Jan. 26-27. Check http://spaceweather.com for observing tips and more information. patrick

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