Astronomers Discover New Cluster

Sunday, March 25th, 2007 - A team of astronomers has discovered a closely-packed group of about 100,000 stars 30,000 light years away in the inner parts of our galaxy. This previously unknown cluster, that detected using the European Southern Observatory's New Technology Telescope at La Silla, Chile, is about seven light years wide but contains approximately 100,000 stars for a total estimated mass of 65,000 times the mass of the Sun. Check out the ESO press release for more information.

The Moon and Pleiades

Sunday, March 25th, 2007 - The waxing crescent Moon and the open cluster Pleiades shared a small part of the night sky last Thursday as they came within 3 degrees of each other in the western sky. While close to the eyes of an observer on Earth, the two celestial objects are actually separated by more than 400 light-years. These alignments, also known as conjunctions, are visually stunning and occur throughout the year as the Earth, the Moon, and the planets speed through their respective orbits against the background of the wonders of the Milky Way.

Io's Tvashtar volcano

Friday, March 9th, 2007 - The New Horizons spacecraft returned what is arguably the most amazing volcanic image ever taken, that of the Tvashtar volcano on Jupiter's moon Io. Seen here is Io, caught in mid-eruption, with a volcanic plume that is larger and far more detailed than any previously imaged. Checkout Science@NASA for more details.

Globe At Night

Thursday, March 8th, 2007 - The annual Globe at Night star count begins tonight and runs through March 21st. The purpose of the exercise is to get a global view of the problem of light pollution. By comparing the night sky that a person sees to a number of pre-defined images, researchers can get a better perspective on this truly global problem. Last years event saw over 18,000 people from 96 countries on all continents (except Antarctica) report more than 45000 nighttime observations. Event planners are hoping to exceed those totals this year. That's where you come in. Your participation is critical to the success of this effort. Participation is free and no special equipment is required. All you need to do is step outside on a clear night during the two weeks that the event runs, compare what you see to the models displayed on the Globe At Night website, and then submit your results. What could be easier. This is your chance to help fight light pollution.

Missed the Eclipse? A Second Chance Aug 28

Monday, March 5th, 2007 - Did you miss Saturday's lunar eclipse? Many observers along the Wasatch Front did due to eastern cloudiness. Take heart. Another eclipse is coming - and this time Utah will get a great view. On August 28th the moon will be high in the Utah sky as the show begins and will be visible through totality, setting just before the moon returns to full brightness.

Lunar Eclipse on March 3rd

Monday, February 26th, 2007 - A total Lunar eclipse will occur just before sunset on March 3rd. Unfortunately for Utahns, the full eclipse will have ended before the moon gets above the horizon. Luckily, we won't miss out completely. The moon will rise having already exited totality, but will still be darkened by the Earth's penumbra. As the evening progresses it will leave the shadow completely and return to full brightness. Click here for more details.

New Nova, Early

Tuesday, February 20th, 2007 - In the constellation Scorpio, now rising in the pre-dawn sky, a new nova is currently visible with the unaided eye. Having reached magnitude 2.0 and now fading quickly, your chance to see this uncommon event is estimated to only last a few more days. Read here for more details.

Martian Water - More Evidence

Friday, February 16th, 2007 - The Mars Reconnisance Orbiter is already giving glimpses of its potential - some of the first images show scarring and deposits in rock formations indicative of flowing water in the past. The scarring is visible on the surface though likely formed deep underground, appearing only after millenia of erosion. Check out this New York Times article for more details. Want even more details? Get it straight from NASA.

Saturn Dancing

Friday, February 9th, 2007 - The ringed planet, Saturn will be at its closest to Earth this weekend, a mere 762 million miles away. It seems closer, doesn't it? Saturn is always a treat to observe. Even in the most modest of telescopes, its spectacular ring system is easy to see. Using finer optics and under steady skies, the dark Cassini Division comes into view. Pictured here is Saturn showing variations in the angle of its rings. This was compiled from a number of images taken by Alan Friedman of Buffalo, New York. Nice work. Over the last couple of years, the rings have gone from being tipped way up (showing the planet's south pole) to their current position. In September of 2009, they'll have dropped far enough that the rings will be precisely edge on... and out of view ot Earthbound observers. In the meantime, enjoy the improving view of the planets north pole. Saturn can be found rising in the east shortly after dark and is well placed for viewing by around 10:00pm. As a general rule, you should checkout Saturn at any given opportunity. You never know... you just might catch it on an especially good night.

Jupiter And The Scorpion

Monday, February 5th, 2007 - The planet Jupiter snuck up on the scorpion recently. Pictured here is the giant planet Jupiter sitting right behind Antares and the head of Scorpius. Jupiter had better be careful though as the scorpion's stinger is just below the moon lit mountain. Jupiter is now well placed for viewing in the morning, sitting almost due south around 6:30am.

Aurora Watch

Tuesday, January 30th, 2007 - Skywatchers should keep an eye on the northern horizon tonight. Earth has entered a high speed solar wind stream. Its arrival yesterday triggered the geomagnetic storm captured in this sweet shot by Petter Hamnes of Mo i Rana, Norway. The timing of the event could hardly be worse as a large waxing gibbous moon will make much of the fainter lights hard to see. Nevertheless, an intense outburst can easily rise to the occasion. Checkout the Spaceweather.com Aurora Gallery for more incredible images.

Spectacular Comet!

Monday, January 22nd, 2007 - Comet McNaught is clearly the comet of a lifetime. It's spectacular tail can be seen here crossing a huge swatch of sky. Southern hemisphere skywatchers are definitely being treated. Northerners will have to live vicariously through their photos. This incredible shot was taken by Gordon Garradd of the Siding Spring Observatory in Australia

Carpe Astrum

Thursday, January 18th, 2007 - The moon is new, the forecast for Utah is favorable and it gets dark early! This will be a great weekend to catch gems like a thin crecent moon, the nebulae in Orion, the Andromeda Galaxy and Saturn - and still get to bed at a civilized hour. Put on a warm coat, grab some hot cocoa and get out there.

Sweet Views Overhead

Wednesday, January 17th, 2007 - We have a big, fat high pressure system sitting over the area. No chance of snow for an eternity it seems. On a positive note, skies were clear and steady last night and every bodys favorite, Saturn had finally climbed high enough to get some sweet views at a reasonably early time. I braved the cold and was rewarded with some absolutely stunning views (up to 400x on occasion). If you're a skywatcher, be sure to point your scope to the east in the coming days and weeks and checkout the ringed planet. If you're an early riser, the planet Jupiter can be found high and towards the southeast before sunrise. Finally, for those couch potatoes out there (you know who you are), point your web browser to Cosmotions.com for some incredible time-lapse images of the heavens.

International Dark Sky Association - 19th Annual General Meeting

Tuesday, January 16th, 2007 - Mark your calendar... The International Dark Sky Association (IDA) will be hosting its 19th annual meeting March 4-6 in Tucson, AZ. The focus of this years event will be energy savings, sustainability and urban planning... themes that line up perfectly with Americas growing awareness of global warming and rising energy costs.

Good Morning Moon, Good Morning Jupiter

Monday, January 15th, 2007 - Early morning skywatchers were treated to a beautiful site today as a waning crescent Moon posed alongside the planet Jupiter for a beautiful conjunction. Frigid (-10*) temperatures didn't keep this skywatcher from snagging at least a few images before retreating inside to defrost. Look for an even tinier crescent Moon on the other side of Jupiter tomorrow morning. Click here for an annotated version of the shot

Comet McNaught Brightens To Daytime Visibility

Sunday, January 14th, 2007 - Comet McNaught is now between mag -4 and mag -5 (brighter than even Venus) making it the brightest comet if over 40 years. Unfortunately, the comet is very, very close to the sun requiring us to look for it in the day time. Today (1/14), Comet McNaught was about 5* away from the Sun... around the width of your fist. McNaught will disappear behind the Sun and reappear is a position that favors folks in the southern hemisphere :( This sweet shot was taken by Thorsten Boeckel of Bavaria, Germany.

Thumbs Up, Back Up

Sunday, January 14th, 2007 - Utah Skies is back online! Due to a rather pernicious attack to our site and the subsequent repair and hardening, it had been rendered unavailable for quite some time. Through work with our provider to overcome the issue, we managed to clear this cloud from over Utah Skies. One could say that having only one such outage over the course of our six years of serving astronomy and astronomy-related content to the public is not that bad, but we would have preferred THOUSANDS smaller problems if it meant we could have stayed up and running! Your continued support over the years has been a great motivator to us, and that we continue to receive your support remains of paramount importance, so please feel free to contact us with any questions or concerns you might have. Thank you for your patience through all of this, and enjoy the site!

An Evening Comet

Tuesday, October 10th, 2006 - Skywatchers are in for a treat as a beautiful comet is now visible in the northwestern sky. Just beyond naked-eye visibility, Comet Swan is an easy target for binocular or telescope observers. If you can get away from local sources of light pollution and find yourself a location with a flat horizon to the northwest, this should be a pretty easy find. Look for the comet just above the bright star Cor Caroli in the constellation Canes Venatici. Checkout this skymap to help you track it down.

Day and Night

Wednesday, September 20th, 2006 - Night and day will come in equal parts this Saturday (9/23). That's because Earth crosses the celestial equator on that day kicking off the beginning of fall. The autumnal equinox also marks the beginning of aurora season. Let's hope its a strong one. Early indications are that it will be since the Sun is at the beginning of a new solar cycle. Saturday also marks the next event in the Utah Skies / Basin Recreation 2006 Star Party Series. All are invited to attend the event which will be held at Park City's Trailside Park. Hope to see you there!

Hubble Snaps Image of Rare Uranus Moon Transit

Thursday, August 31st, 2006 - NASA's Hubble Space Telescope has captured a never-before-seen transit of a moon and its shadow across the face of Uranus. The beautiful image shows what, to an observer on Uranus, would be a solar eclipse where the moon Ariel is blocking the light of the sun. While such events are commonplace for other planets like Jupiter, the satellites of Uranus orbit the planet in such a way that they rarely cast shadows on the planet's surface. Uranus is tilted so that its spin axis lies nearly in its orbital plane - the planet is basically tipped on its side - while the moons of Uranus orbit the planet above the equator, so their paths align edge-on to the Sun only every 42 years! Check out the full story on HubbleSite.

NASA Sets Launch Date for STS-115

Thursday, August 31st, 2006 - (NASA) Following a detailed inspection of NASA's Space Shuttle Atlantis at the Kennedy Space Center, Fla., the six-member crew has a new launch date to begin the STS-115 mission to the International Space Station. The lift-off from Kennedy is set for 12:29 p.m. EDT Wednesday, Sept. 6. Shuttle managers decided on the launch date after assessing conditions at Kennedy following Tropical Depression Ernesto. The center's facilities and Atlantis, which sits on Launch Pad 39-B, sustained no damage during the storm.

Star Party and a Special Event

Wednesday, August 30th, 2006 - Saturday night, September 2nd is another Utah Skies star party at Park City's Trailside Park, and coincidentally, European astronomers have planned a special event for the same time. The SMART-1 spacecraft is approaching the end of its very successful mission and is low on fuel, so its scientists are going to bring it down -- by crashing it on the Moon! What's more, amateur astronomers may be able to view the event from earth! The crash on the moon is planned for 11:41 MDT on the 2nd, so we'll be set up on the basketball courts of the park with scopes trained on earth's natural satellite hoping to see a flash of the crash. Bring your optics - binoculars, telescopes, cameras - and join us for the fun! Read more about the SMART-1 crash at NASA's Science@Nasa website.

Off-Again, On-Again

Tuesday, August 29th, 2006 - Tropical storm Ernesto threatened the shuttle with high winds yesterday, so NASA decided to move the 4.5 million pound launcher/orbiter back to the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB). Today, however, with Ernesto now forecast to veer more westerly in its track and to subject the shuttle to lesser winds, Launch Director Mike Leinbach and his team made the determination at 2:40 p.m. EDT to move back to Pad 39B. Check out the continuing coverage of STS-115 at NASA's site for more info.

Pluto Demoted - Solar System Has 8 Planets

Thursday, August 24th, 2006 - The International Astronomical Union (IAU) has decided on a definition of planet that doesn't include Pluto; what was the ninth planet in our solar system is now defined as a dwarf planet, as are the large asteroid Ceres and recently discovered 2003 UB313. The new definition, adopted today at the IAU's 26th General Assembly, states that an object is a planet if it 1) is in orbit around the Sun, 2) has sufficient mass for its self-gravity to overcome rigid body forces so that it assumes a hydrostatic equilibrium (nearly round) shape, and 3) has cleared the neighborhood around its orbit. Pluto has not "cleared its neighborhood" as it shares its distant orbit with many other smaller objects. Check out the IAU press release for more info on this revolutionary decision. So, officially (according to the IAU) the solar system has eight planets: Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune, and three dwarf planets: Ceres, Pluto and 2003 UB313.

Morning Star, Moon and Planets Rise Together

Tuesday, August 22nd, 2006 - Conjunctions are always a treat, and this event was no exception. As the morning sky began to lighten, Venus rose beacon-bright followed shortly by the razor-thin, 1.5% waning-crescent Moon. Without the camera, Saturn was invisible and Mercury was barely apparent over the morning's glow. Check out this mouse-over, labeled version of the morning's beauty. Venus was magnitude -3.9, Saturn was mag 0.2, and Mercury was mag -1.4. This means that Venus was more than 10 times as bright as Mercury and more than 40 times as bright as Saturn! It's no wonder there were nearly impossible to see with the unaided eye! Keep looking west in the morning as Venus and Saturn will move close on August 27th in another conjunction where they'll rise separated by just more than half-a-degree.

NASA Finds Direct Proof of Dark Matter

Monday, August 21st, 2006 - Dark matter and normal matter have been wrenched apart by the tremendous collision of two large clusters of galaxies. The discovery, using NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory and other telescopes, gives direct evidence for the existence of dark matter. "This is the most energetic cosmic event, besides the Big Bang, which we know about," said team member Maxim Markevitch of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics in Cambridge, Mass. These observations provide the strongest evidence yet that most of the matter in the universe is dark. Despite considerable evidence for dark matter, some scientists have proposed alternative theories for gravity where it is stronger on intergalactic scales than predicted by Newton and Einstein, removing the need for dark matter. However, such theories cannot explain the observed effects of this collision. "A universe that's dominated by dark stuff seems preposterous, so we wanted to test whether there were any basic flaws in our thinking," said Doug Clowe of the University of Arizona at Tucson, and leader of the study. "These results are direct proof that dark matter exists." Check out the complete NASA press release for more info on this fascinating discovery.

A Beautiful Conjunction of 3 Planets, a Cluster, and the Moon

Friday, August 18th, 2006 - Next Monday and Tuesday morning (August 21st and 22nd) just before sunrise, the lightening eastern sky will host a beautiful conjunction of shallow- and deep-sky objects. Monday morning has the slender crescent of a 5% waning crescent moon rising first, followed by the Beehive Cluster - M44, then Venus, followed by Saturn, and then Mercury, all visible within a 15-degree patch of sky (15 degrees is about the distance spanned by one's little finger to index finger at arms length when spread - like showing the count of four). Tuesday morning has the moon rising later - and a razor-thin 1.5% - after M44 and Venus. Then, from moon to Mercury will be less than a scant 8 degrees! Picking faint Saturn out of the glow of the rising sun will be a challenge, but well worth it as it is not often that conjunctions like this occur.

Hubble Sees Faintest Stars In Globular Cluster

Thursday, August 17th, 2006 - (STScI) NASA's Hubble Space Telescope has uncovered what astronomers are reporting as the dimmest stars ever seen in any globular star cluster. Globular clusters are spherical concentrations of hundreds of thousands of stars. These clusters formed early in the 13.7-billion-year-old universe. The cluster NGC 6397 is one of the closest globular star clusters to Earth. Seeing the whole range of stars in this area will yield insights into the age, origin and evolution of the cluster. Here is the Space Telescope Science Institute's press release with all the info.

Aurora Watch -- Friday & Saturday

Thursday, August 17th, 2006 - The SOHO spacecraft has detected a coronal mass ejection from sunspot 904 headed for the earth. This could trigger geomagnetic storms and aurora in the northern latitudes this Friday and Saturday nights. Look north around midnight for the reds and greens of the northern lights, and if you have a camera, take some long (10-to-60 second) exposures to capture otherwise invisible color. Check out Spaceweather for more info.

Does Pluto Remain A Planet?

Wednesday, August 16th, 2006 - A proposed new definition of a planet, if the definition is approved by the astronomers gathered 14-25 August 2006 at the IAU General Assembly in Prague, will bring the count of planets in our solar system to twelve. The resolution to be voted upon on the 24th of August by the IAU Assembly defines a planet as "... a celestial body that (a) has sufficient mass for its self-gravity to overcome rigid body forces so that it assumes a hydrostatic equilibrium (nearly round) shape, and (b) is in orbit around a star, and is neither a star nor a satellite of a planet." Check out the IAU press release for more details, and stay tuned for the results of the fateful vote.

Perseid Meteors Tonight

Saturday, August 12th, 2006 - The annual Perseid Meteor Shower is upon us. Head outside tonight as Earth passes through the remnants of Comet Swift-Tuttle. Due to the large phase of the moon, highest meteor counts will be early (between sunset and about 11:00pm. Skies are clear here in Park City as well as other locations around the country. Thad V'Soske snagged this beautiful shot last night in Colorado.

Physicist James A. Van Allen, Dead at 91

Thursday, August 10th, 2006 - Physicist James A. Van Allen, a leader in space exploration who discovered the radiation belts surrounding the Earth that now bear his name, died Wednesday. He was 91. The University of Iowa, where he taught for years, announced his death in a statement on its website.

Mercury And Venus Reach Conjunction Tomorrow

Wednesday, August 9th, 2006 - The innermost planets, Mercury and Venus will reach conjunction tomorrow morning. Look for the two to rise in the east around 5:00am, separated by about 2*, or just more than the width of your finger held at arms length.

Sun Rays And A Moon

Tuesday, August 8th, 2006 - Saturday the 5th of August offered a beautiful sunset and an equally beautify and interesting view to the east. In this image, the near-full, 85% moon has risen and is south of subtle anti-crepuscular rays converging on a point in the east opposite the sun. According to Les Cowley, atmospheric optics expert, "Rays and shadows are most visible near to the sun. There the shadows [rays] are darkest [lightest] because the eye is looking along their length...Another direction where the eye looks along the shadows is in the opposite direction to the sun. There the shadows again darken and the contrast with the sunlit sky increases. Rays converging towards the antisolar point are called anti-crepuscular."

Comet P/177 Captured Again

Monday, August 7th, 2006 - Comet 177P/Barnard 2 (2006) was imaged again the other by amateur astronomer John Chumack of Galactic Images. The comet has faded considerably since we last covered it, but it is still visible to amateurs with large telescopes under dark skies. It is currently cruising through the constellation Hercules.

Venus: The Morning Star

Friday, August 4th, 2006 - The planet Venus can now be found high above the eastern horizon before sunrise, marking its return as the morning star. Venus is currently a blistering mag-3.9, many times brighter than the nearest star. Check it out the next chance you get.

Atlantis Readies For Launch

Thursday, August 3rd, 2006 - The Space Shuttle Atlantis made the four mile trip from the Vehicle Assembly Building to the launch pad at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. It is gearing up for a launch window that's open from August 27 until September 13. During the 11-day mission to the International Space Station (ISS), Atlantis' six astronauts are scheduled to conduct three spacewalks and deliver and install a 35,000-pound addition with giant solar arrays that power the space station. Checkout CNN.com/SPACE for more details,

Star Party Tonight

Saturday, July 29th, 2006 - The 6th-Annual Utah Skies Star Party Series, co-sponsored with the Snyderville Basin Special Recreation District, continues tonight. Young and old can experience astronomy in a casual atmosphere under some of Park City's darkest skies. The event takes place tonight!!! Saturday night July 29th from 8:30pm until 1:00am. We'll have some nice views of the crescent Moon and Jupiter, along with many wonderful deep sky objects. Learn about stars, black holes, comets, galaxies, star clusters, nebulae, and meteors, as well as the significant and growing problem of light pollution, its affect on the environment, man, and the night sky, as well as the simple steps that can be taken to overcome the threat to our heritage of dark skies. The venue at Park City's Trailside Park basketball courts provides some of the best viewing conditions in Park City, so come see what's up! Dress warmly, and please, bring your telescopes and binoculars! For more information, call 435-647-0190 or browse to www.utahskies.org.

Cassini Finds Lakes On Titan

Wednesday, July 26th, 2006 - The orbiting Cassini Spacecraft has discovered what appear to be lakes on Saturn's moon Titan. Scientists had speculated that they might find lakes of liquid methane in the moons colder northern regions, and recent data captured by Cassini seems to back this. Checkout Science@NASA for more details.

Hubble, Chandra and Spitzer Combine Images to Reveal Quasar Jet

Tuesday, July 25th, 2006 - (NASA) This new false-colored image from NASA's Hubble, Chandra and Spitzer space telescopes shows a giant jet of particles that has been shot out from the vicinity of a type of supermassive black hole called a quasar. The jet is enormous, stretching across more than 100,000 light-years of space . a size comparable to our own Milky Way galaxy! Check out Spitzer's press release for more information.

Meteor Shower Peaks Friday Morning

Tuesday, July 25th, 2006 - The annual Delta Aquarid Meteor Shower peaks in the wee hours this coming Friday morning. Skywatchers under clear, dark skies can see as many as 10-15 meteors per hour. Checkout Spaceweather.com for more details.

Powerful Solar Eruption

Friday, July 21st, 2006 - A powerful solar eruption was recorded yesterday. The event triggered a Coronal Mass Ejection (CME) that, while not perfectly Earth-directed, will likely deliver a glancing blow this weekend. Skywatchers are encouraged to keep an eye on the northern horizon. Checkout Spaceweather.com for more details.

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