Here are some things to look forward to in the low light pollution skies at CFT. We may be fighting with clouds and haze, but if things do clear up, we should get some nice views thanks to the new moon.
Sun: Sunset is just before 8:30 PM, and sunrise is just before 6:00 AM. This means the sky will be at its darkest between about 10:30 PM and 4:00 AM.
Moon: The moon will be new on August 4th, so expect very dark skies most nights. It will only rise slightly before dawn on the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd. On the 5th, it will only linger around briefly after sunset.
Clouds:
- Thursday night might start partially cloudy around sunset, but should be clear up after midnight or so
- Friday is likely to be completely overcast
- Saturday will be partially cloudy throughout the entire night
- Sunday will be partially cloudy close to dusk and dawn, but should be clearer closer to midnight
Planets:
- Mercury might be visible to the west just after sunset, but may be hard to see
- Venus will be visible to the west for about 45 minutes after sunset
- Mars will rise about 1:15 AM each night, and still be up at sunrise
- Jupiter will rise about 1:35 AM and follow Mars across the sky
- Saturn will rise about 10:00 PM each night, and still be up at sunrise
Meteor Showers: The Delta Aquariid meteor shower peaked on July 29th, but there should still be some meteors visible. They’ll streak across the sky, appearing to come from the SSE. The Perseid meteor shower peaks on August 11, but we should be seeing some meteors. The Perseids will appear to come from the NE.
Satellites: There should be lots of faint satellites visible throughout the night. They’ll be most visible closer to sunset and sunrise, when they can reflect sunlight toward us. We won’t see the International Space Station, but the Chinese space station should be bright as it passes west to east between 9:57 PM and 10:01 PM on Thursday evening.
Potential Nova: There’s a chance that a star in Corona Borealis will go nova (it’s predicted to happen sometime this year). This constellation will be visible in the west in the first half of the night. The star hasn’t gone nova yet, but maybe we’ll get lucky. If it does, you’ll see a bright star that wasn’t there before. It will last for many days.
