For many years I have wanted to see the Aurora, or Northern Lights. I have tried numerous times from Ireland, however, luck never went my way. On a few occasions, I managed to capture a photo of the green glow over the horizon but never with the naked eye. It is possible to see the … Continue reading My trip to see the Northern Lights
As we head into the second month of 2023 and the last month of winter, we will start to see the days get noticeably longer. The sun sets at 18:00 by the end of the month, which still leaves plenty of time to get out and look at the sky without staying up late. Clear … Continue reading What Can I See in the Sky in February 2023?
JUICE (Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer) The moons of Jupiter have been at the forefront of astronomy since Galileo discovered them in 1610. At the time, using his primitive homemade telescope, he could see nothing more than four "stars" moving oddly around the planet. Little did he know that those fours stars, would turn out to … Continue reading 4 things to watch in space and astronomy in 2023
We have now passed the winter solstice and although we won't really notice it yet, the days are starting to get longer. Despite this, we are still in the depths of winter and January is one of the coldest months of the year. You would expect that the coldest days of the year would coincide … Continue reading What Can I See in the Sky in January 2023?
The month of December sees the winter solstice, the shortest day of the year. One could argue that for this reason, December is one of the best months in the year for stargazing. Although it gets very cold at night, so wrapping up warm is essential. This year the winter solstice occurs on the 21st … Continue reading What Can I See in the Sky in December 2021?
Washington D.C., capital of the US, home of the Lincoln Memorial, Jefferson Memorial and the White House but also the location of the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum. I was lucky enough to be in Washington D.C. recently and took the opportunity to pay a visit. The museum is actually split into two different … Continue reading My Visit to the Smtihsonian Air and Space Museums – Washington D.C.
Now that the clocks have gone back it is dark early and you don't have to stay up late to go out and observe the sky. Given that it is November, it will be cold and you will need to wrap up warm or your night outside will quickly become very unpleasant. Mars is approaching … Continue reading What Can I See in the Sky in November 2022?
It's autumn and the Sun is now setting before 7pm which means more time for observing. This is exaggerated even more at the end of the month on the 30th of October as summer time ends and the clocks go back 1 hour. October nights can get very chilly so it's time to start taking … Continue reading What Can I See in the Sky in October 2022?
Now that September is here, the nights are getting noticeably longer again. On 1st September, sunset is 20:16 and by 22:25 it is completely dark. The weather in September is usually still mild enough so that you can go out and observe comfortably, although the nights can get chilly so it's time to start taking … Continue reading What Can I See in the Sky in September 2022?
August is the month that darkness returns. For the sky to be completely dark, the Sun must get at least 18 degrees below the horizon. On 1st August this happens at 00:46 and lasts until 02:24, giving 1 hour 42 mins of darkness. By the end of August this has stretched to 5 hours 48 … Continue reading What Can I See in the Sky in August 2022?
Paul Smith 