The 365 Days of Astronomy Last Minute Astronomer - May Episode
I’m Rob, your Last Minute Astronomer, bringing astronomy to normies and nerds, with little time to spare. We’ll start by talking about this month’s big events, then highlight the naked eye planets, and finish up with the lunar phases, so you can plan ahead better than me.
5th – ETA AQUARID METEOR SHOWER – Around 10-20 meteors per hour if we’re lucky, the Eta Aquarids are a minor shower that favors those in the southern hemisphere. The best time this year is after midnight (when the Moon sets) and before dawn. Just remember each meteor is a piece of debris left over from Halley’s comet, and we’re crashing into it at over 100,000 miles per hour, which crushes the atmosphere it hits, heating it up and causing the bright flash. You never know when you’ll see something awesome!
Some advice for watching:
Find a dark location and lie down in a reclining chair or something that insulates you from the ground.
Check the weather to see if the skies will be clear
Adapt your eyes to the dark by staying away from light sources or using a red light if you need to look at a star chart or not trip over something.
Naked-eye PLANETS
Sunset:
Jupiter - About 30˚ up the sky in the W after sunset, above Taurus’ head, in between its horns, setting around 11pm. Later in the month, Jupiter is lower in the sky and sets around sunset.
Mars - Almost straight above us after sunset, but toward the SW, between Gemini and Leo (in Cancer), setting by 2am. Throughout the month, Mars will move away from Cancer and toward Leo, a little lower in the sky, setting around 1am.
Music was produced by Deep Sky Dude and used with permission.
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