On November 16, 17, 18 and 19, 2020, enjoy the beautiful presence of a waxing crescent moon covered over in earthshine in the west after sunset. Then, after midnight, watch for meteors in the annual Leonid meteor shower. Source: https://earthsky.org/tonight/young-moon-at-dusk-meteors-at-night…
Tag: calendar
Why not an eclipse at every full and new moon?
In 2020, there are 12 new moons and 13 full moons, but only 6 eclipses – 2 solar and 4 lunar. Source: https://earthsky.org/astronomy-essentials/why-isnt-there-an-eclipse-every-full-moon…
Why is November the 11th, not 9th month?
It was either because New Year’s Day used to be March 1 or because the Romans used to have a 10-month calendar. Source: https://www.livescience.com/november-months-roman-calendar.html
Leonid meteor shower is building to a peak
The peak of the Leonids is likely to be before sunup on November 17, 2020. But people already catching some Leonids. Keep an eye out this weekend. Source: https://earthsky.org/tonight/leonid-meteors-before-dawn-november-17…
Where to watch the historic SpaceX Crew-1 launch this Saturday
SpaceX is targeting Saturday, November 14, 2020, for the historic launch of Crew-1, the 1st operational, contracted mission to launch as part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. Here’s how to watch the launch. If all goes according to plan, the crew will dock with the International Space Station on Sunday. Source: https://earthsky.org/space/historic-spacex-crew-1-launch-dock-iss-nov-2020…
Moon, Venus, Mercury before daybreak
These next several days, watch as the waning crescent moon joins up with the planets Mercury and Venus, plus the star Spica, in the eastern predawn/dawn sky. Source: https://earthsky.org/tonight/moon-venus-mercury-before-daybreak…
Watch for Mercury, below Venus, during the week of November 10
For northerly latitudes, the coming week presents a golden opportunity to spot the most elusive bright planet – Mercury – in the east before sunup. The waning crescent moon, and dazzling Venus, can help you find it. Source: https://earthsky.org/tonight/mercury-beneath-venus-before-dawn…
Tips for watching N. Taurid meteors
The nominal peak of the North Taurid meteor shower is on the night of November 11-12, 2020. Source: https://earthsky.org/sky-archive/peak-night-for-n-taurid-meteor-shower-on-november-1112…
What is the Common Era?
If you encounter a date in the CE (Common Era) or BCE (Before Common Era) format, don’t fret. They mean exactly the same thing as AD (anno Domini) and BC (before Christ). Source: https://earthsky.org/human-world/definition-common-era-bce-ce-bc-ad…
iCloud Outage Now Affecting 14 Different Apple Services
Apple’s “System Status” page indicates 14 current issues, some of which began nearly five hours ago. CNET reports the services affected “include Find My, iCloud Account & Sign In, iCloud Backup, iCloud Bookmarks & Tabs, iCloud Calendar, iCloud Contacts, iCloud Drive, iCloud Keychain, iCloud Mail, iCloud Storage Upgrades, Photos and Screen Time.” Engadget writes “the timing is less than ideal, even…