Sea Lions on the Buoy
Author: Andrew
An electrical engineer, amateur astronomer, and diver, living and working on Mauna Kea, Hawai'i.
Vernal Equinox
The spring equinox will occur at 19:20HST today.
The equinox is defined as the time at which the Sun passes through the plane of the Earth’s equator. Until the fall equinox occurs on Sep 22nd, the Sun will be located in the northern hemisphere with a positive declination coordinate.
Today the length of the day and night will be very near equal, thus the term equinox. the Sun will rise and set nearly exactly due east and due west.
Today is considered the start of spring for most cultures in the northern hemisphere, or the start of fall for those in the southern hemisphere.
| 2019 Apsides and Seasons | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Event | Universal Time | Hawaii Standard Time | ||
| Perihelion | Jan 03 | 05:20UT | Jan 02 | 19:20HST |
| Spring Equinox | Mar 20 | 21:58UT | Mar 20 | 11:58HST |
| Summer Solstice | Jun 21 | 15:54UT | Jun 21 | 05:54HST |
| Aphelion | Jul 04 | 22:11UT | Jul 04 | 12:11HST |
| Fall Equinox | Sep 23 | 07:50UT | Sep 22 | 21:50HST |
| Winter Solstice | Dec 22 | 04:19UT | Dec 21 | 18:19HST |
| Data from US Naval Observatory Data Services | ||||
Full Moon
Full Moon will occur today at 15:43HST.
This evening look for the Moon rising in the east just as the Sun sets in the west. Across the Big Island this can often lead to moonbows as the low elevation moonlight interacts with fog and clouds.
Continue reading “Full Moon”Mercury at Inferior Conjunction
Today Mercury is passing through inferior conjunction, passing between the Sun and the Earth. This fast moving planet will reappear above the dawn in about a week, rising towards maximum elongation on April 11th.
This is the most favorable dawn apparition of the year, actually the best dawn or evening, with the planet reaching over 27° away from the Sun.
| Mercury Events for 2019 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Apparition | Date | Elongation | Magnitude |
| Evening | Feb 27 | 18.1°E | -0.2 |
| Morning | Apr 11 | 27.7°W | +0.6 |
| Evening | Jun 23 | 25.2°E | +0.7 |
| Morning | Aug 9 | 19.0°W | +0.3 |
| Evening | Oct 20 | 24.6°E | +0.1 |
| Morning | Nov 28 | 20.1°W | -0.3 |
| Data from the Mercury Chaser’s Calculator by John Walker | |||
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New Moon
New Moon will occur today at 16:04HST.
Both March 2nd and 9th offer good observing weekends this month. Get out and enjoy the dark!
Continue reading “New Moon”Red Light
New Moon at Kaʻohe
It was a very nice night, clear dark skies and bright stars.
A usual the club’s dark sky star party was held this month at Kaʻohe. After two months of poor weather I was ready for a good night out with a telescope. A few others were too, and joined the club out in the dark.
Arriving at the site there was a thin cloud deck overhead. With years of experience here I looked up and told Maureen that the clouds would be gone in an hour. It did not even take that long, the clouds dissolved right after sunset, leaving a clear skies before we were finished setting up.
Continue reading “New Moon at Kaʻohe”The Ruins of Namu
