Astronomers Discover New Cluster

Sunday, March 25th, 2007 - A team of astronomers has discovered a closely-packed group of about 100,000 stars 30,000 light years away in the inner parts of our galaxy. This previously unknown cluster, that detected using the European Southern Observatory's New Technology Telescope at La Silla, Chile, is about seven light years wide but contains approximately 100,000 stars for a total estimated mass of 65,000 times the mass of the Sun. Check out the ESO press release for more information.

The Moon and Pleiades

Sunday, March 25th, 2007 - The waxing crescent Moon and the open cluster Pleiades shared a small part of the night sky last Thursday as they came within 3 degrees of each other in the western sky. While close to the eyes of an observer on Earth, the two celestial objects are actually separated by more than 400 light-years. These alignments, also known as conjunctions, are visually stunning and occur throughout the year as the Earth, the Moon, and the planets speed through their respective orbits against the background of the wonders of the Milky Way.

Io's Tvashtar volcano

Friday, March 9th, 2007 - The New Horizons spacecraft returned what is arguably the most amazing volcanic image ever taken, that of the Tvashtar volcano on Jupiter's moon Io. Seen here is Io, caught in mid-eruption, with a volcanic plume that is larger and far more detailed than any previously imaged. Checkout Science@NASA for more details.

Globe At Night

Thursday, March 8th, 2007 - The annual Globe at Night star count begins tonight and runs through March 21st. The purpose of the exercise is to get a global view of the problem of light pollution. By comparing the night sky that a person sees to a number of pre-defined images, researchers can get a better perspective on this truly global problem. Last years event saw over 18,000 people from 96 countries on all continents (except Antarctica) report more than 45000 nighttime observations. Event planners are hoping to exceed those totals this year. That's where you come in. Your participation is critical to the success of this effort. Participation is free and no special equipment is required. All you need to do is step outside on a clear night during the two weeks that the event runs, compare what you see to the models displayed on the Globe At Night website, and then submit your results. What could be easier. This is your chance to help fight light pollution.

Missed the Eclipse? A Second Chance Aug 28

Monday, March 5th, 2007 - Did you miss Saturday's lunar eclipse? Many observers along the Wasatch Front did due to eastern cloudiness. Take heart. Another eclipse is coming - and this time Utah will get a great view. On August 28th the moon will be high in the Utah sky as the show begins and will be visible through totality, setting just before the moon returns to full brightness.

Lunar Eclipse on March 3rd

Monday, February 26th, 2007 - A total Lunar eclipse will occur just before sunset on March 3rd. Unfortunately for Utahns, the full eclipse will have ended before the moon gets above the horizon. Luckily, we won't miss out completely. The moon will rise having already exited totality, but will still be darkened by the Earth's penumbra. As the evening progresses it will leave the shadow completely and return to full brightness. Click here for more details.

New Nova, Early

Tuesday, February 20th, 2007 - In the constellation Scorpio, now rising in the pre-dawn sky, a new nova is currently visible with the unaided eye. Having reached magnitude 2.0 and now fading quickly, your chance to see this uncommon event is estimated to only last a few more days. Read here for more details.

Martian Water - More Evidence

Friday, February 16th, 2007 - The Mars Reconnisance Orbiter is already giving glimpses of its potential - some of the first images show scarring and deposits in rock formations indicative of flowing water in the past. The scarring is visible on the surface though likely formed deep underground, appearing only after millenia of erosion. Check out this New York Times article for more details. Want even more details? Get it straight from NASA.

Saturn Dancing

Friday, February 9th, 2007 - The ringed planet, Saturn will be at its closest to Earth this weekend, a mere 762 million miles away. It seems closer, doesn't it? Saturn is always a treat to observe. Even in the most modest of telescopes, its spectacular ring system is easy to see. Using finer optics and under steady skies, the dark Cassini Division comes into view. Pictured here is Saturn showing variations in the angle of its rings. This was compiled from a number of images taken by Alan Friedman of Buffalo, New York. Nice work. Over the last couple of years, the rings have gone from being tipped way up (showing the planet's south pole) to their current position. In September of 2009, they'll have dropped far enough that the rings will be precisely edge on... and out of view ot Earthbound observers. In the meantime, enjoy the improving view of the planets north pole. Saturn can be found rising in the east shortly after dark and is well placed for viewing by around 10:00pm. As a general rule, you should checkout Saturn at any given opportunity. You never know... you just might catch it on an especially good night.

Jupiter And The Scorpion

Monday, February 5th, 2007 - The planet Jupiter snuck up on the scorpion recently. Pictured here is the giant planet Jupiter sitting right behind Antares and the head of Scorpius. Jupiter had better be careful though as the scorpion's stinger is just below the moon lit mountain. Jupiter is now well placed for viewing in the morning, sitting almost due south around 6:30am.

Aurora Watch

Tuesday, January 30th, 2007 - Skywatchers should keep an eye on the northern horizon tonight. Earth has entered a high speed solar wind stream. Its arrival yesterday triggered the geomagnetic storm captured in this sweet shot by Petter Hamnes of Mo i Rana, Norway. The timing of the event could hardly be worse as a large waxing gibbous moon will make much of the fainter lights hard to see. Nevertheless, an intense outburst can easily rise to the occasion. Checkout the Spaceweather.com Aurora Gallery for more incredible images.

Spectacular Comet!

Monday, January 22nd, 2007 - Comet McNaught is clearly the comet of a lifetime. It's spectacular tail can be seen here crossing a huge swatch of sky. Southern hemisphere skywatchers are definitely being treated. Northerners will have to live vicariously through their photos. This incredible shot was taken by Gordon Garradd of the Siding Spring Observatory in Australia

Carpe Astrum

Thursday, January 18th, 2007 - The moon is new, the forecast for Utah is favorable and it gets dark early! This will be a great weekend to catch gems like a thin crecent moon, the nebulae in Orion, the Andromeda Galaxy and Saturn - and still get to bed at a civilized hour. Put on a warm coat, grab some hot cocoa and get out there.

Sweet Views Overhead

Wednesday, January 17th, 2007 - We have a big, fat high pressure system sitting over the area. No chance of snow for an eternity it seems. On a positive note, skies were clear and steady last night and every bodys favorite, Saturn had finally climbed high enough to get some sweet views at a reasonably early time. I braved the cold and was rewarded with some absolutely stunning views (up to 400x on occasion). If you're a skywatcher, be sure to point your scope to the east in the coming days and weeks and checkout the ringed planet. If you're an early riser, the planet Jupiter can be found high and towards the southeast before sunrise. Finally, for those couch potatoes out there (you know who you are), point your web browser to Cosmotions.com for some incredible time-lapse images of the heavens.

International Dark Sky Association - 19th Annual General Meeting

Tuesday, January 16th, 2007 - Mark your calendar... The International Dark Sky Association (IDA) will be hosting its 19th annual meeting March 4-6 in Tucson, AZ. The focus of this years event will be energy savings, sustainability and urban planning... themes that line up perfectly with Americas growing awareness of global warming and rising energy costs.

Good Morning Moon, Good Morning Jupiter

Monday, January 15th, 2007 - Early morning skywatchers were treated to a beautiful site today as a waning crescent Moon posed alongside the planet Jupiter for a beautiful conjunction. Frigid (-10*) temperatures didn't keep this skywatcher from snagging at least a few images before retreating inside to defrost. Look for an even tinier crescent Moon on the other side of Jupiter tomorrow morning. Click here for an annotated version of the shot

Comet McNaught Brightens To Daytime Visibility

Sunday, January 14th, 2007 - Comet McNaught is now between mag -4 and mag -5 (brighter than even Venus) making it the brightest comet if over 40 years. Unfortunately, the comet is very, very close to the sun requiring us to look for it in the day time. Today (1/14), Comet McNaught was about 5* away from the Sun... around the width of your fist. McNaught will disappear behind the Sun and reappear is a position that favors folks in the southern hemisphere :( This sweet shot was taken by Thorsten Boeckel of Bavaria, Germany.

Thumbs Up, Back Up

Sunday, January 14th, 2007 - Utah Skies is back online! Due to a rather pernicious attack to our site and the subsequent repair and hardening, it had been rendered unavailable for quite some time. Through work with our provider to overcome the issue, we managed to clear this cloud from over Utah Skies. One could say that having only one such outage over the course of our six years of serving astronomy and astronomy-related content to the public is not that bad, but we would have preferred THOUSANDS smaller problems if it meant we could have stayed up and running! Your continued support over the years has been a great motivator to us, and that we continue to receive your support remains of paramount importance, so please feel free to contact us with any questions or concerns you might have. Thank you for your patience through all of this, and enjoy the site!

An Evening Comet

Tuesday, October 10th, 2006 - Skywatchers are in for a treat as a beautiful comet is now visible in the northwestern sky. Just beyond naked-eye visibility, Comet Swan is an easy target for binocular or telescope observers. If you can get away from local sources of light pollution and find yourself a location with a flat horizon to the northwest, this should be a pretty easy find. Look for the comet just above the bright star Cor Caroli in the constellation Canes Venatici. Checkout this skymap to help you track it down.

Day and Night

Wednesday, September 20th, 2006 - Night and day will come in equal parts this Saturday (9/23). That's because Earth crosses the celestial equator on that day kicking off the beginning of fall. The autumnal equinox also marks the beginning of aurora season. Let's hope its a strong one. Early indications are that it will be since the Sun is at the beginning of a new solar cycle. Saturday also marks the next event in the Utah Skies / Basin Recreation 2006 Star Party Series. All are invited to attend the event which will be held at Park City's Trailside Park. Hope to see you there!

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