Astro Advisories

Notices of upcoming Astronomical Events

COMET TO BE VISIBLE IN MARCH

(February 6, 2013) – Astronomers at the Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute in Rosman, NC, along with the rest of the astronomical world, are anxiously awaiting the appearance of a bright comet in early March. Comet PanSTARRS is named for the Panoramic Survey and Rapid Response System telescope on Mount Haleakala in Hawaii with which it was discovered in June 2011.

DAYLIGHT SAVING TIME BEGINS

(February 13, 2013) – Astronomers at the Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute (PARI) in Rosman remind the public that at 2 a.m. on Sunday, March 10 Daylight Saving Time (DST) in the United States begins and we set our clocks forward one hour.

THE VERNAL EQUINOX

(February 27, 2013) – Astronomers at the Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute point out that at 7:02 a.m. EDT on March 20 the Sun will cross the celestial equator in the sky heading north. This will be the first moment of Spring.

THE DATE OF EASTER

(March 13, 2013) – Astronomers at the Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute point out that at 7:02 a.m. EDT on Tuesday, March 20 the Sun, in its annual path around the sky, crosses the celestial equator on its way north for the spring. Of course, we realize it is not really the Sun that is moving but rather the Earth as it orbits the Sun each year. But from our vantage point on the Earth it appears to us that the Sun is moving along a path through the zodiac constellations. This path, called the ecliptic, crosses the celestial equator at two points on opposite sides of the sky. The point at which the Sun crosses heading north for the spring is called the spring or vernal equinox.

LYRID METEORS TO BE VISIBLE AFTER MOONSET

(March 27, 2013) – Astronomers at the Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute (PARI) remind the public of the annual Lyrid Meteor Shower in April.

WESTERN CAROLINAS TO MISS PARTIAL ECLIPSE OF THE MOON

(April 3, 2013) – Astronomers at the Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute announce that on April 25 there will be a very slight partial eclipse of the Moon visible from Africa, the Middle East and the Indian Ocean. Unfortunately, viewers in North Carolina will not see this event at all. At maximum only about 1.5% of the Moon will be in the umbra, the dark part of Earth’s shadow, so, while astronomers make note of the event, it is basically a non-event for the casual viewer.

TRAVELERS MAY OBSERVE ANNULAR SOLAR ECLIPSE

(April 17, 2013) – Astronomers at the Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute announce that on Friday, May 10, observers in northern Australia and the South Pacific Ocean will have the opportunity to observe a rare annular solar eclipse. (As a bit of trivia, this eclipse starts on May 10 in northern Australia and ends on May 9 in the eastern South Pacific since the shadow of the Moon crosses the International Date Line while the eclipse is in progress!)

AN UNDETECTABLE PENUMBRAL ECLIPSE OF THE MOON

(May 1, 2013) – Astronomers at the Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute announce that around midnight on the night of May 24-25 there will be a very, very subtle penumbral eclipse of the Moon. This eclipse is so minor that it is of academic interest only and will basically be undetectable even though, technically, it occurs in the skies over the Carolinas.

VENUS PASSES JUPITER IN EVENING TWILIGHT

(May 1, 2013) – Astronomers at the Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute note that throughout the month of May three planets and the Moon perform a bit of a dance in the evening skies with the brightest planet of them all, Venus, and the second brightest, Jupiter, appearing to approach each other in the twilight.

AN UNDETECTABLE PENUMBRAL ECLIPSE OF THE MOON

(May 1, 2013) – Astronomers at the Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute announce that around midnight on the night of May 24-25 there will be a very, very subtle penumbral eclipse of the Moon. This eclipse is so minor that it is of academic interest only and will basically be undetectable even though, technically, it occurs in the skies over the Carolinas.

VENUS PASSES JUPITER IN EVENING TWILIGHT

(May 1, 2013) – Astronomers at the Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute note that throughout the month of May three planets and the Moon perform a bit of a dance in the evening skies with the brightest planet of them all, Venus, and the second brightest, Jupiter, appearing to approach each other in the twilight.

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