WEATHER ALERT
Don’t be fooled: Here’s the real deal of how six planets will appear in the sky June 3
Read full article: Don’t be fooled: Here’s the real deal of how six planets will appear in the sky June 3While the parade of planets on June 3 might sound enticing, here's why the actual experience is likely to be underwhelming for casual stargazers.
Clear skies and chilly temperatures tonight for viewing the Great Conjunction
Read full article: Clear skies and chilly temperatures tonight for viewing the Great ConjunctionTonight will be chilly and good for viewing the once in a lifetime Great Conjunction- when the two largest planets in our solar system, Jupiter and Saturn, will nearly overlap from our view and form a brighter sight, also being referred to as the “Christmas Star.” Unfortunately, it won’t be incredibly bright- Mars and Venus are often brighter to us in the night sky than this will be, but enjoy it because the next time these two planets will be this close will be on March 15th of 2080. Temperatures should be around 50° at 9pm with mostly clear skies. Tuesday we wake up in the chilly low 40s and warm up into the mid 60s under mostly sunny skies. Wednesday starts out in the chilly low 40s but warms up into the mild low 70s as warm, moist air from south of us moves across our area. We could see dense sea fog forming and creeping on land Wednesday night into Thursday morning.
Jupiter, Saturn merging in night sky, closest in centuries
Read full article: Jupiter, Saturn merging in night sky, closest in centuries(Bill Ingalls/NASA via AP)CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – Jupiter and Saturn will merge in the night sky Monday, appearing closer to one another than they have since Galileo’s time in the 17th century. Jupiter passes its neighbor Saturn in their respective laps around the sun every 20 years. Saturn and Jupiter have been drawing closer in the south-southwest sky for weeks. Despite appearances, Jupiter and Saturn will actually be more than 450 million miles (730 million kilometers) apart. A telescope will not only capture Jupiter and Saturn in the same field of view, but even some of their brightest moons.
Could the ‘Star of Bethlehem’ appear this Christmas?
Read full article: Could the ‘Star of Bethlehem’ appear this Christmas?The brightest light in the heavens shines on the first night of winter this year just days before Christmas. Both of the solar system’s giant planets will be gone from the night sky by Christmas. This event will be the last time most people alive will ever see Jupiter and Saturn so close to each other. The Bible mentions the Star of Bethlehem only a few times in the second chapter of the Gospel of Matthew without enough details to determine what actually was in the sky. Some astronomers say the Magi in the Nativity story may have witnessed a comet, supernova or the triple conjunction between Jupiter, Saturn and Venus.
23-year-old killed in crash on I-95 near Fuller Warren Bridge
Read full article: 23-year-old killed in crash on I-95 near Fuller Warren BridgeJACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A 23-year-old was killed in a crash Monday afternoon on Interstate 95 near the Fuller Warren Bridge, according to Florida Highway Patrol. FHP said two vehicles were involved in the crash that happened on I-95 southbound just after 1 p.m. A Chevrolet Tahoe traveling directly behind the Saturn did not slow down and collided with the rear end of the Saturn. Thomas died in the crash and a passenger in the Saturn suffered minor injuries. Fatima Thomas' friends set up a GoFundMe campaign to help her family fund the funeral and miscellaneous costs of her sudden death.
Hubble snaps new portrait of Saturn
Read full article: Hubble snaps new portrait of Saturn(CNN) - When Saturn was approaching closest to Earth this year on June 20, the Hubble Space Telescope captured the view. Some features come and go, like a large storm by the north pole spotted by Hubble last year. Hubble spotted Saturn during its summer. Each year, the Hubble Space Telescope spends some time looking at the outer planets of our solar system. In late June, during one of these observation periods, Hubble also took a stunning detailed portrait of Jupiter.
30 years ago: Voyager 2 snaps photo of Neptune
Read full article: 30 years ago: Voyager 2 snaps photo of NeptunePASADENA, Calif. - Thirty years ago, NASA's Voyager 2 mission flew by Neptune, capturing the first close-up images of the blue gas giant. Trina Ray was working at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory for the Neptune flyby of the Voyager 2 mission. "Its been a wonderful experience because there was so much to be learned," Stone said, reflecting on his time with the Voyager mission. Those who worked on the Voyager mission and now assist with Europa Clipper's development know they may not be able to see the mission through. "You only send a robot emissary that exits the solar system for the first time once, and that's Voyager," Ray said.
Jupiter, Saturn and moon to line up in night sky this week
Read full article: Jupiter, Saturn and moon to line up in night sky this weekVenus and Mars are currently blocked from our view by the sun, but this week is a great chance to catch Jupiter and Saturn in conjunction with the moon. The nearly full moon will appear very close to Jupiter on the night of August 9. Like Jupiter, Saturn will also appear in the sky once night falls and be visible until dawn, east of Jupiter. On the evening of August 11, the moon will appear to the right of Saturn and then on its left on August 12. Other tribes also called it the "moon when all things ripen" the "blueberry moon" or the "wheat cut moon."
See Saturn's rings as it begins its closest pass by Earth
Read full article: See Saturn's rings as it begins its closest pass by EarthDuring opposition, Saturn, the sun and Earth are in a straight line, with Earth in the middle. Beginning Tuesday, Saturn will be at opposition, meaning it will rise opposite the sun in the Earth's sky. When we pass between the sun and a planet outside our own orbit, the other planet "is generally closest to Earth and brightest for that year," EarthSky notes notes. During this time Saturn, Earth and the sun will be in a straight line, with Earth in the center. On July 15 and 16, a full moon "scrapes by the ringed planet," according to NASA.
NASA's new mission, Dragonfly, will explore Saturn's moon Titan
Read full article: NASA's new mission, Dragonfly, will explore Saturn's moon TitanNASA via Wikimedia CommonsNASA announced the latest mission in its New Frontiers program, called Dragonfly, which will explore Saturn's largest moon, Titan. Before it ended in 2017, the Cassini mission flew by Titan while studying Saturn. The data provided by the Hyugens probe, which was part of the Cassini mission, suggested that Titan was the perfect candidate for further exploration. We will launch Dragonfly to explore the frontiers of human knowledge for the benefit of all humanity." They want to explore sand dunes on Titan to determine if they're made of the same organic discovered in the atmosphere.