Your membership – Bath Astronomers

What are we up to?

Jan22

Getting to Grips with the Night Sky: Introduction to astronomy

22 JanHerschel Museum of Astronomy

A talk on the night sky, how to get more involved in stargazing and ideas for enjoying astronomy. All are welcome from beginners upwards. It is intended to show you the simple science of the night skies above your head and how that knowledge can help you observe. The event is full and so no further bookings are being taken at present. There'll be a further session in March. Credit: NASA, Juno

Jan25

Telescope Workshop - BYO and have a chat

25 JanTunley Recreation Centre

A session for telescope owners who are new to the hobby or have got frustrated and need some help to get the best out of their telescopes. Please register your interest so we can manage numbers. Numbers are limited and so registration is required. Small charge to cover cost of the venue :)

Jan29

Member's Night; Short talks on your own projects and activities

29 JanHerschel Museum of Astronomy

Wednesday 29th Apr – Monthly meeting. Bath Astronomers monthly meeting for all members and new comers to meet up, enjoy perhaps a new topic and a cup of tea and a biscuit. Held on the last Wednesday of every month at the Herschel Museum of Astronomy, 19 New King Street. The format is open and comprises an update for the month and a talk on an astronomy topic within the reach of amateurs. All visitors welcome and there is a charge of £5 which helps cover the cost of the venue. Reduced to £2 for juniors, students or Bath Astronomers members. Picture: Simon Holbeche

Jan31

Stargazing at Wellow for all

31 JanPublic Car Park, Wellow, Somerset

Public stargazing session at Wellow, south of Bath. These events involve Bath Astronomers bringing along a telescope and helping visitors see objects of interest in the sky that evening. It's all about sharing. If you have your own kit, bring it along and we might be able to help you use it more effectively or give you some hints/tips. Start time is 6:30pm. Subject to clear skies - weather dependent. You can find out more about the Wellow site by visiting https://bathastronomers.org.uk/observing/sites-wellow/ We'll check the weather is suitable and issue guidance on whether things are going ahead by 4pm on the day. Guidance will be issued on Facebook and Bath Astronomers website. Do no travel until you see confirmation in this Facebook event or on Bath Astronomers website. If you register for the event on our web site, we'll email you to confirm the event is happening i.e. registration is a good idea. You should dress warmly and arrive as close to the start time as possible to avoid car lights ruining people's night vision too frequently. Wear stout, warm, waterproof footwear and consider a thermos of your favourite warm drink. If you are not a member of Bath Astronomers/William Herschel Society, you can get on our mailing list by emailing stargazing-join@bathastronomers.org.uk

Feb15

Stargazing at Wellow for all

15 FebPublic Car Park, Wellow, Somerset

Public stargazing session at Wellow, south of Bath. These events involve Bath Astronomers bringing along a telescope and helping visitors see objects of interest in the sky that evening. It's all about sharing. If you have your own kit, bring it along and we might be able to help you use it more effectively or give you some hints/tips. Start time is 7pm. Subject to clear skies - weather dependent. You can find out more about the Wellow site by visiting https://bathastronomers.org.uk/observing/sites-wellow/ We'll check the weather is suitable and issue guidance on whether things are going ahead by 4pm on the day. Guidance will be issued on Facebook and Bath Astronomers website. Do no travel until you see confirmation in this Facebook event or on Bath Astronomers website. If you register for the event on our web site, we'll email you to confirm the event is happening i.e. registration is a good idea. You should dress warmly and arrive as close to the start time as possible to avoid car lights ruining people's night vision too frequently. Wear stout, warm, waterproof footwear and consider a thermos of your favourite warm drink. If you are not a member of Bath Astronomers/William Herschel Society, you can get on our mailing list by emailing stargazing-join@bathastronomers.org.uk

Feb23

Stargazing at Wellow for all

23 FebPublic Car Park, Wellow, Somerset

Public stargazing session at Wellow, south of Bath. These events involve Bath Astronomers bringing along a telescope and helping visitors see objects of interest in the sky that evening. It's all about sharing. If you have your own kit, bring it along and we might be able to help you use it more effectively or give you some hints/tips. Start time is 7pm. Subject to clear skies - weather dependent. You can find out more about the Wellow site by visiting https://bathastronomers.org.uk/observing/sites-wellow/ We'll check the weather is suitable and issue guidance on whether things are going ahead by 4pm on the day. Guidance will be issued on Facebook and Bath Astronomers website. Do no travel until you see confirmation in this Facebook event or on Bath Astronomers website. If you register for the event on our web site, we'll email you to confirm the event is happening i.e. registration is a good idea. You should dress warmly and arrive as close to the start time as possible to avoid car lights ruining people's night vision too frequently. Wear stout, warm, waterproof footwear and consider a thermos of your favourite warm drink. If you are not a member of Bath Astronomers/William Herschel Society, you can get on our mailing list by emailing stargazing-join@bathastronomers.org.uk

Feb26

Talk by Owen Brazell

26 FebHerschel Museum of Astronomy

Wednesday 26th Feb – Monthly meeting. Bath Astronomers monthly meeting for all members and new comers to meet up, enjoy perhaps a new topic and a cup of tea and a biscuit. Held on the last Wednesday of every month at the Herschel Museum of Astronomy, 19 New King Street. The format is open and comprises an update for the month and a talk on an astronomy topic within the reach of amateurs. All visitors welcome and there is a charge of £5 which helps cover the cost of the venue. Reduced to £2 for juniors, students or Bath Astronomers members. Picture: Simon Holbeche

Feb29

Stargazing at Wellow for all

29 FebPublic Car Park, Wellow, Somerset

Public stargazing session at Wellow, south of Bath. These events involve Bath Astronomers bringing along a telescope and helping visitors see objects of interest in the sky that evening. It's all about sharing. If you have your own kit, bring it along and we might be able to help you use it more effectively or give you some hints/tips. Start time is 7:30pm. Subject to clear skies - weather dependent. You can find out more about the Wellow site by visiting https://bathastronomers.org.uk/observing/sites-wellow/ We'll check the weather is suitable and issue guidance on whether things are going ahead by 4pm on the day. Guidance will be issued on Facebook and Bath Astronomers website. Do no travel until you see confirmation in this Facebook event or on Bath Astronomers website. If you register for the event on our web site, we'll email you to confirm the event is happening i.e. registration is a good idea. You should dress warmly and arrive as close to the start time as possible to avoid car lights ruining people's night vision too frequently. Wear stout, warm, waterproof footwear and consider a thermos of your favourite warm drink. If you are not a member of Bath Astronomers/William Herschel Society, you can get on our mailing list by emailing stargazing-join@bathastronomers.org.uk

Mar13

Stargazing at Wellow for all

13 MarPublic Car Park, Wellow, Somerset

Public stargazing session at Wellow, south of Bath. These events involve Bath Astronomers bringing along a telescope and helping visitors see objects of interest in the sky that evening. It's all about sharing. If you have your own kit, bring it along and we might be able to help you use it more effectively or give you some hints/tips. Start time is 7:30pm. Subject to clear skies - weather dependent. You can find out more about the Wellow site by visiting https://bathastronomers.org.uk/observing/sites-wellow/ We'll check the weather is suitable and issue guidance on whether things are going ahead by 4pm on the day. Guidance will be issued on Facebook and Bath Astronomers website. Do no travel until you see confirmation in this Facebook event or on Bath Astronomers website. If you register for the event on our web site, we'll email you to confirm the event is happening i.e. registration is a good idea. You should dress warmly and arrive as close to the start time as possible to avoid car lights ruining people's night vision too frequently. Wear stout, warm, waterproof footwear and consider a thermos of your favourite warm drink. If you are not a member of Bath Astronomers/William Herschel Society, you can get on our mailing list by emailing stargazing-join@bathastronomers.org.uk

Mar18

Getting to Grips with the Night Sky: Introduction to astronomy

18 MarHerschel Museum of Astronomy

A talk on the night sky, how to get more involved in stargazing and ideas for enjoying astronomy. All are welcome from beginners upwards. It is intended to show you the simple science of the night skies above your head and how that knowledge can help you observe. Please register your interest so we can manage numbers. Numbers are limited and so registration is required. Credit: NASA, Juno

Mar21

Wells & Mendip Astronomers Messier Marathon

21 MarCharterhouse Outdoor Activity Centre

Wells & Mendip Astronomers are having their Messier Night on Saturday 21st March 20120 The event is open to the public and to Bath Astronomers. Discover Charles Messier’s deep-sky wonders in an almost moonless sky and listen to a Introductory talk.

Mar25

Talk by Bud Martin, A Life on Mars

25 MarHerschel Museum of Astronomy

Wednesday 25th Mar – Monthly meeting. Bath Astronomers monthly meeting for all members and new comers to meet up, enjoy perhaps a new topic and a cup of tea and a biscuit. Held on the last Wednesday of every month at the Herschel Museum of Astronomy, 19 New King Street. The format is open and comprises an update for the month and a talk on an astronomy topic within the reach of amateurs. All visitors welcome and there is a charge of £5 which helps cover the cost of the venue. Reduced to £2 for juniors, students or Bath Astronomers members. Picture: Simon Holbeche

Mar27

Stargazing at Wellow for all

27 MarPublic Car Park, Wellow, Somerset

Public stargazing session at Wellow, south of Bath. These events involve Bath Astronomers bringing along a telescope and helping visitors see objects of interest in the sky that evening. It's all about sharing. If you have your own kit, bring it along and we might be able to help you use it more effectively or give you some hints/tips. Start time is 8pm. Subject to clear skies - weather dependent. You can find out more about the Wellow site by visiting https://bathastronomers.org.uk/observing/sites-wellow/ We'll check the weather is suitable and issue guidance on whether things are going ahead by 4pm on the day. Guidance will be issued on Facebook and Bath Astronomers website. Do no travel until you see confirmation in this Facebook event or on Bath Astronomers website. If you register for the event on our web site, we'll email you to confirm the event is happening i.e. registration is a good idea. You should dress warmly and arrive as close to the start time as possible to avoid car lights ruining people's night vision too frequently. Wear stout, warm, waterproof footwear and consider a thermos of your favourite warm drink. If you are not a member of Bath Astronomers/William Herschel Society, you can get on our mailing list by emailing stargazing-join@bathastronomers.org.uk

Apr29

Talk by Chris Starr, Cassini and Saturn

29 AprHerschel Museum of Astronomy

NASA APOD

M1: The Incredible Expanding Crab Nebula

Detlef Hartmann

Are your eyes good enough to see the Crab Nebula expand? The Crab Nebula is cataloged as M1, the first on Charles Messier's famous list of things which are not comets. In fact, the Crab is now known to be a supernova remnant, an expanding cloud of debris from the explosion of a massive star. The violent birth of the Crab was witnessed by astronomers in the year 1054. Roughly 10 light-years across today, the nebula is still expanding at a rate of over 1,000 kilometers per second. Over the past decade, its expansion has been documented in this stunning time-lapse movie. In each year from 2008 to 2017, an image was produced with the same telescope and camera from a remote observatory in Austria. Combined in the time-lapse movie, the 10 images represent 32 hours of total integration time. The sharp, processed frames even reveal the dynamic energetic emission within the incredible expanding Crab. The Crab Nebula lies about 6,500 light-years away in the constellation Taurus. Teachers: APOD in the Classroom

The Moon

Waning Crescent (Illumination: 30.6%)
Age: 24.02 days (Phase: 81.3%)
Size: 32.2' (Distance: 370,850km)
Moon rise: 02:37
Moon set: 12:26

New Moon	First Quarter	Full Moon	Last Quarter
Thu 26 Dec	Fri 3 Jan	Fri 10 Jan	Fri 17 Jan
Fri 24 Jan	Sun 2 Feb	Sun 9 Feb	Sat 15 Feb
Sun 23 Feb	Mon 2 Mar	Mon 9 Mar	Mon 16 Mar
Tue 24 Mar	Wed 1 Apr	Wed 8 Apr	Tue 14 Apr

The Sun

Sunset: 16:36
End twilight: 18:34
Begin twilight: 06:04
Sunrise: 08:03

Current Meteor Showers

Shower	Start	Peak	End	ZHR
Gamma Ursae Minorids	10 Jan	18 Jan	22 Jan	3

The Planets

Planet	Rises	Sets	Constellation	Disk Size	Sun separation
Mercury	Sunday 08:39:08	Sunday 16:54:01	Cap	4.9" (37%)	5.8°
Venus	Sunday 09:43:22	Sunday 20:03:29	Aqr	14.2" (23%)	38.0°
Mars	Sunday 04:51:45	Sunday 12:55:00	Oph	4.6" (18%)	47.8°
Jupiter	Sunday 07:09:14	Sunday 14:57:53	Sgr	31.3" (64%)	17.6°
Saturn	Sunday 07:52:57	Sunday 16:02:40	Sgr	14.6" (73%)	4.8°
Uranus	Sunday 11:15:04	Monday 01:20:10	Ari	3.5" (87%)	93.3°
Neptune	Sunday 09:58:04	Sunday 20:58:14	Aqr	2.2" (99%)	48.3°

Rise and Set times are with respect to Bath, UK. (%) indicates size compared to maximum possible. As Separation with the Sun approaches 0°, we have Conjunction. As it approaches 180°, we have Opposition. Planets will not be visible between Sunrise(08:00) and Sunset(16:38)

Messier objects due South now

Messier	Name	Type	Magnitude	Constellation
M4	NGC6121	Globular Cluster	5.9	Scorpius
M5	NGC5904	Globular Cluster	5.8	Serpens
M12	NGC6218	Globular Cluster	6.6	Ophiuchus
M13	Hercules Cluster	Globular Cluster	5.9	Hercules
M80	NGC6093	Globular Cluster	7.2	Scorpius
M102	NGC5866	Multiple Star System	10	Draco
M107	NGC6171	Globular Cluster	8.1	Ophiuchus

Click on the Messier number for the finders guide for the deep sky object.

Spot the Space Station from Bath

Date	Mag	Start	Max	End
Tue 21 Jan	-0.3	18:13:26 look SSE alt 10°	11°	18:14:05 look SE alt 11°
Wed 22 Jan	-1.3	18:59:26 look SSW alt 11°	25°	19:01:16 look S alt 25°
Thu 23 Jan	-1.2	18:11:57 look SSW alt 11°	22°	18:15:14 look SE alt 20°
Thu 23 Jan	-0.4	19:47:37 look WSW alt 11°	15°	19:48:10 look WSW alt 15°
Fri 24 Jan	-0.8	17:24:47 look S alt 11°	16°	17:28:35 look ESE alt 11°
Fri 24 Jan	-2.3	18:59:41 look WSW alt 10°	48°	19:02:24 look SSW alt 48°
Sat 25 Jan	-2.2	18:12:05 look SW alt 12°	41°	18:16:22 look ESE alt 27°
Sat 25 Jan	-0.8	19:48:23 look W alt 11°	20°	19:49:29 look W alt 20°
Sun 26 Jan	-1.8	17:24:47 look SSW alt 14°	30°	17:30:01 look E alt 11°
Sun 26 Jan	-2.8	19:00:24 look WSW alt 11°	73°	19:03:24 look WSW alt 73°
Mon 27 Jan	-2.9	18:12:26 look WSW alt 11°	70°	18:17:20 look E alt 27°
Mon 27 Jan	-0.8	19:49:12 look W alt 11°	20°	19:50:17 look W alt 20°
Tue 28 Jan	-2.6	17:28:01 look SE alt 52°	52°	17:31:00 look E alt 10°
Tue 28 Jan	-2.8	19:01:11 look W alt 11°	73°	19:04:12 look WNW alt 73°

Starlink satellites rise and set times

Date	Satellite	Rise	Max	Set
Sun 19 Jan	STARLINK-1066	18:12:23 look SW alt 11°	44°	18:15:46 look ESE alt 34°
Mon 20 Jan	STARLINK-1066	18:37:43 look WSW alt 12°	86°	18:40:26 look SSE alt 86°
Tue 21 Jan	STARLINK-1066	17:29:53 look SW alt 11°	48°	17:35:04 look E alt 13°
Tue 21 Jan	STARLINK-1066	19:05:09 look W alt 12°	36°	19:06:54 look WNW alt 36°
Wed 22 Jan	STARLINK-1066	17:58:52 look WSW alt 12°	87°	18:03:09 look ENE alt 26°
Wed 22 Jan	STARLINK-1066	19:34:27 look WNW alt 12°	16°	19:34:57 look WNW alt 16°
Thu 23 Jan	STARLINK-1066	18:29:40 look W alt 12°	62°	18:32:58 look NE alt 51°
Fri 24 Jan	STARLINK-1066	17:25:57 look W alt 10°	78°	17:32:05 look ENE alt 10°
Fri 24 Jan	STARLINK-1066	19:01:59 look WNW alt 12°	44°	19:04:02 look WNW alt 44°
Sat 25 Jan	STARLINK-1066	17:59:44 look W alt 12°	61°	18:04:20 look ENE alt 22°
Sat 25 Jan	STARLINK-1066	19:35:17 look WNW alt 10°	19°	19:36:18 look WNW alt 19°
Sun 26 Jan	STARLINK-1066	18:34:03 look WNW alt 10°	73°	18:37:39 look ENE alt 56°
Mon 27 Jan	STARLINK-1066	17:33:26 look W alt 10°	62°	17:39:37 look E alt 10°
Mon 27 Jan	STARLINK-1066	19:09:32 look WNW alt 12°	43°	19:11:36 look W alt 43°
Tue 28 Jan	STARLINK-1066	18:09:03 look WNW alt 10°	85°	18:13:57 look ESE alt 23°
Tue 28 Jan	STARLINK-1066	19:45:17 look W alt 11°	18°	19:46:15 look WSW alt 18°

This is the lead satellite from the 3rd batch of 60 of the Starlink constellation