Jupiter (Photo credit: jpstanley)
Erica, a wonderful WordPress tech support person, fixed my blog problem. Thank you Erica!
As we head into September, there are lots of interesting things going on.
The Sun is setting earlier each night now as we head into Autumn in the northern hemisphere, which occurs September 22 at 10:49 AM EDT. Sunrise for 40 degrees north on September 1 is 6:30. By the 30th it is 6:59. Sunset is progressively earlier; on the 1st it is 7:25. By the 30th, 6:37. I don’t know about you, but I am always sad to see Summer end, and am no fan of the longer nights.
The good news is, there is more time for stargazing!
Mars and Saturn are visible very low in the west-southwest just around sunset, in the constellation Virgo. Try locating the bright star Arcturus; both planets are below and to the left.
For the remainder of the year, Mars retains its position in relation to the Sun. It sets about two hours after sunset the rest of the year. Say farewell to Saturn after this month, as it will be gone from view.
Mercury is so close to the Sun that it can be seen only with a telescope.
Jupiter rises near midnight now. It is very bright all month. At dawn, it is crossing the meridian. If you have a telescope or binoculars, September is a great month to view Jupiter through them, as all its moons will cast long shadows, looking very dramatic!
Venus rises about 3 1/2 hours before sunrise all month, so by the time morning twilight occurs, it is well up in the eastern sky. No problem finding it – it is the brightest object, by far.
The Moon is very close to Jupiter on the 8th, at last quarter. The Harvest Moon (the full Moon closest to autumnal equinox) occurs on the evening of September 29th.
By then, we will be picking pumpkins and drinking cider.
