Norm wrote to ask:
> So, does anyone know what the planet is just below the moon tonight?
> It’s small but obvious.
That's Mars. Go have a look, it's a nice combination.
Tomorrow the Moon should be on the other side of Mars, below it in the
early evening.
They're in the west right now (early evening). If you turn almost all
the way around to your right and look to the southeast, you might still
be able to catch brilliant white Venus before it sets.
Mojo
--
Morris Jones
Monrovia, CA
http://www.whiteoaks.com
Old Town Astronomers: http://www.otastro.org
No telescope viewing of moon and Mars tonight in Pasadena after all.
The clouds did not dissipate. We arrived at 6:00 p.m. and found a
parking spot near Pasadena Avenue, but after an hour and a half of
looking up, walking and sipping a latte/extra foam we gave up and came
home. We saw the moon peek out just a few times, but never long enough
to actually set up the telescopes. Hopefully, Monrovia will be better
tomorrow night.
Jane and Mojo
--
Jane Houston Jones
Monrovia, CA
34.2048N 118.1732W, 637.0 feet
http://www.whiteoaks.com
Old Town Astronomers: http://www.otastro.org
Jane and I plan to be on the sidewalks in Pasadena and Monrovia this
weekend, and it looks like the weather is cooperating -- for the most part!
This week our weather was influenced by a pesky system called a "cutoff
low" over the Pacific -- so-called because it is cut off from the jet
stream, and its motion is difficult to predict. As we saw in last
year's record rainy season, a cutoff low can sit stationary off the
coast for days sucking tropical moisture into the LA basin.
That low has now moved southeast over northern Mexico, which causes our
winds to shift to offshore. That should bring us drier desert air and
clearer skies for several days. Early next week they're forecasting
very warm temperatures with the expected Santa Ana wind conditions.
When that dry air flows down the mountain slopes into the basin, it
heats up and gives us those indian summer conditions in November.
Tonight the conditions are not perfect -- we're still sitting in some
cool moist air from this week's weather system. Here in the San Gabriel
Valley we have some lingering marine layer clouds. We'll be able to see
the Moon and Mars okay, but the early part of the evening we'll be
looking up through layers of air at very different temperatures and
moisture content. Each of those layer boundaries give a slight
refraction to the light passing through, and makes for a shimmery view
obscuring much of the subtle detail on difficult objects like Mars.
So the moral of my rambling story -- the best views for Mars will be
Saturday evening in Monrovia. Join us there at Myrtle & Lime in Library
Park, from 6:00 'til 9:00 p.m.
But even with less than perfect conditions, we'll be in Old Town
Pasadena this evening from about 6:30 'til 9:30, on Colorado Blvd. near
Delacey, somewhere on the two-block stretch from Fair Oaks to Pasadena Ave.
Hope to see you there!
Best regards,
Mojo
--
Morris Jones
Monrovia, CA
http://www.whiteoaks.com
Old Town Astronomers: http://www.otastro.org
