Merry Christmas!

oooo
Whatever the skies bring,
may your heart be open to wonder.

Merry Christmas
from Derek



Posted in Homepage (Posts) | Comments Off on Merry Christmas!

Wednesday 24th December 2025

Titan transits Saturn all night

  • Saturn is visible from the UK with a telescope.
    o
  • The transit begins around sunset and continues into twilight, offering a rare and poetic view of Saturn’s largest moon crossing the planet’s disk.
    o

Posted in Homepage (Posts) | Comments Off on Wednesday 24th December 2025

Tuesday 23rd December 2025

Algol
o

  • The bright variable star Beta Persei (Algol) reaches its minimum brightness at 18:27pm in the early evening on Tuesday 23rd December and will be visible from the UK.
    o
  • Here’s a list of upcoming minimum brightness times for Algol – read more.
    o

Posted in Homepage (Posts) | Comments Off on Tuesday 23rd December 2025

Sun 21 thru Mon 22nd Dec 2025

  • The Ursid meteor shower will peak on the night of Sunday 21st thru Monday 22nd December 2025, with the best viewing hours from late evening through dawn.
    o
  • Look northward – Meteors can appear anywhere, but they radiate from near the Little Dipper in the constellation Ursa Minor.
    o

Posted in Homepage (Posts) | Comments Off on Sun 21 thru Mon 22nd Dec 2025

Saturday 21st December 2025

  • The 2025 winter solstice occurs on Sunday 21st December at 15:02 GMT (3:02 PM) in the UK ~ this marks the official start of astronomical winter and the shortest day of the year.
    o
  • The winter solstice happens when the Sun reaches its lowest point in the sky at noon, resulting in the shortest daylight period of the year.
    o

Posted in Homepage (Posts) | Comments Off on Saturday 21st December 2025

Saturday 20th December 2025

Algol Minima
o

  • The bright variable star Beta Persei (Algol) reaches its minimum brightness at 21:38 pm in the evening on Saturday 20th December and will be visible from the UK.
    o
  • Here’s a list of upcoming minimum brightness times for Algol – read more.
    o

Posted in Homepage (Posts) | Comments Off on Saturday 20th December 2025

Thursday 18th December 2025

Algol
o

  • The bright variable star Beta Persei (Algol) reaches its minimum brightness at 00:49 am in the early morning on Thursday 18th December and will be visible from the UK.
    o
  • Here’s a list of upcoming minimum brightness times for Algol – read more.
    o

Posted in Homepage (Posts) | Comments Off on Thursday 18th December 2025

Wednesday 17th December 2025

  • The Moon and Mercury will be in conjunction, sharing the same right ascension.
    o
  • However, they will not be easily visible from the UK due to low altitude and daylight timing.
    o

Posted in Homepage (Posts) | Comments Off on Wednesday 17th December 2025

Monday 15th December 2024

Algol Minima
o

  • The bright variable star Beta Persei (Algol) reaches its minimum brightness at 04:00 am in the early morning on Monday 15th December and will be visible from the UK.
    o
  • Here’s a list of upcoming minimum brightness times for Algol – read more.
    o

Posted in Homepage (Posts) | Comments Off on Monday 15th December 2024

Sun 14th – Tues 17th Dec 2025

  • NGC 2420 known as a “twinkling comet cluster” and is a rich open cluster in Gemini, about 8,200 light-years away.
    o
  • It’s not associated with comets, though its dense, glittering stars may poetically resemble a “twinkling comet cluster.”
    o
  • Between Sunday 14th – Tuesday 17th December 2025, Jupiter remains over 3° south of NGC 2420, too far for a conjunction or close visual pairing.
    o
  • This separation is significant – not close enough for binocular framing, though both are in Gemini.
    o

Posted in Homepage (Posts) | Comments Off on Sun 14th – Tues 17th Dec 2025