Hello ...
Here's your Cosmic Pursuits newsletter for August 2024!
1. Jupiter and Mars play cat and mouse in Taurus in the morning sky before dawn. The Perseid meteor shower is underway now and peaks on August 11-12 with the Moon mostly out of the way. Venus hangs low and bright over the northwestern horizon after sunset. Later in the month, the Moon passes near (and in front of) brightening Saturn and faint Neptune. And the thickest part of the Milky Way shines overhead and
arcs down to the south. Here's what to see in the Night Sky This Month...
2. The Milky Way looks best this time of year, and where there’s Milky Way, there are star clouds. Grab your binoculars or small telescope and take
a tour of the best star clouds of northern summer (and southern winter) in my latest article for Sky & Telescope magazine (in PDF format).
3. The excellent Actual Astronomy podcast explains why you should (and shouldn't) buy that telescope.
4. In this video, Trevor Jones of AstroBackyard.com offers 14 tips for beginning astrophotographers.
5. Finally, in this photo essay, you see images from a camera developed by NASA to peer into Shackleton crater, one of the darkest places on the moon's surface, as scientists search for water and
whatever else they might find. (And sadly no, they did not find this).
And the astronomy quote of the month...
“If you thought that
science was certain - well, that is just an error on your part."
- Richard P. Feynman
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Wishing you clear skies!
Brian Ventrudo
Publisher
CosmicPursuits.com
