Sky Notes: October 2010

We were really lucky last month to have had not only the Autumnal equinox, the beginning of many peoples' favorite season, but the Harvest Moon happen within just a few hours of each other. This year the season of fall began at 11:09 p.m. Wednesday, September 22nd. This is one of two times in the year when the Sun, which has its own path in the sky, the ecliptic, intersected with the celestial equator, letting us watch the Sun rising exactly in the east, and setting perfectly in the western horizon. In September, as soon as the Sun crosses the celestial equator, it is working toward giving us our colder, wintry weather. Let us hope that doesn't start too soon.

And then, just a few hours later, the Moon became full. This full phase, the closest to the autumnal equinox- but after it - was a very important Moon to our ancestors, who depended on its light to be able to stay outside and harvest their crops a little longer after sunset. It's kind of sad that we don't really treat such celestial events as the important times they were during our early days.

Although the International Year of Astronomy occurred last year, there's a great book that came out later in 2009 to help celebrate the times. Eyes on the Skies: 400 Years of Telescopic Discovery, by Govert Schilling and Lars Lindberg Christensen is a great introduction to the wondrous world of telescope observing. It highlights the history of the instrument, all the way up to the under-study Thirty Meter Telescope. It also has incredible celestial images, in all wavelengths. Plus, it includes the Official IYA DVD, which is quite worth watching. Enjoy.