Tag: #ShootingStars

Full Moon -Tuesday, 1st August

According to the Royal Observatory, Greenwich, the Full Sturgeon Moon will be full at 19.31hrs. on Tuesday evening. It is also a Supermoon.

The Sturgeon Moon is also referred to as:

  • Full Green Corn Moon, signalling that the corn was nearly ready for harvest.
  • Grain Moon,
  • Fruit Moon,
  • Barley Moon
  • Wheat Cut Moon 
  • Blueberry Moon

August also brings us the most popular meteor shower of the year.  As our planet rotates the sun, every August, the Earth crashes into a cloud of debris left behind by the comet Swift-Tuttle. As the debris burns up in the Earth’s atmosphere, it produces the meteor shower that we call the Perseids.

This year, the Perseid meteor shower is active between 17th July and 24th August. The shower will peak 12-13 August and if skies are clear, it can be one of the most dramatic things to see in the summer sky.
Meteors can appear in any part of the sky so the more sky you can see the better…

  • Reduce the amount of light pollution in your field of view.
    Find an area with a clear view of the horizon and away from trees and buildings.
  • Binoculars and telescopes are not necessary as they will restrict the size of the sky that will be visible to you.

Look up and enjoy the show! 🙂

#Broadwindsor,#Burstock,#Blackdown,#Drimpton,#Hursey,#Kittwhistle,#Seaborough,#Village,#Community,#AONB,#WestDorset,#FullMoon,#SturgeonMoon,#Perseids,#ShootingStars,#LookUp,#BeKind,#BeSafe,#StaySafe

Full Moon – Friday, 12th August

August’s Full Moon is on Friday, 12th August at 02.36hrs so will appear slightly larger and brighter on Thursday evening. It is the final Supermoon of 2022.

This lunation is known as the Sturgeon Moon.  This is because the giant sturgeon of the Great Lakes and Lake Champlain were most readily caught during this part of summer.

The Sturgeon Moon is also referred to as:

  • Full Green Corn Moon, signalling that the corn was nearly ready for harvest.
  • Grain Moon,
  • Fruit Moon,
  • Barley Moon,
  • Wheat Cut Moon 
  • Blueberry Moon.

August also brings us the most popular meteor shower of the year.  As our planet rotates the sun, every August, the Earth crashes into a cloud of debris left behind by the comet Swift-Tuttle. As the debris burns up in the Earth’s atmosphere, it produces the meteor shower that we call the Perseids.

The Perseid meteor shower gets its name as it appears to come out of the constellation Perseus. They can appear from any part of the sky, so the more sky you can see the better.
They are active now and set to peak on 13th August. Enjoy!

#Broadwindsor,#Burstock,#Blackdown,#Drimpton,#Hursey,#Kittwhistle,#Seaborough,#Village,#Community,#WestDorset,#FullMoon,#SturgeonMoon,#Perseids,#ShootingStars,#LookUp,#BeKind,#BeSafe,#StaySafe

Comet Neowise & Perseids

It’s your last chance to catch Comet Neowise before it goes back into the outer solar system and doesn’t reappear until 6,800 years!
The comet is currently about as bright as Polaris, the North Star, and can be observed in dark skies without the aid of a telescope or binoculars. Look East. The comet will appear underneath the Plough constellation, and just above the horizon. By the weekend, the comet will have moved so that it is directly underneath the Plough, as it moves further westwards and slightly higher on our horizon every night.

The beautiful photograph shows Comet Neowise behind St. John the Baptist Church in Broadwindsor. Photo credit: Jamie Dawson.

In our dark sky, there’s the chance you’ll see shooting stars too. These are the Perseids and these will be increasing each night until their peak on 11th/12th/13th August.  The Perseids tend to be very bright, so you can still expect a good percentage to overcome the moonlit glare.
In ancient Greek star lore, Perseus is the son of the god Zeus and the mortal Danaë. It is said that the Perseid shower commemorates the time when Zeus visited Danaë, the mother of Perseus, in a shower of gold.

 

#Broadwindsor #Dorset #LookUp #ShootingStars #CometNeowise #Perseids #DarkSkies #StaySafe