Current Solar X-rays: Current Geomagnetic Field: |
Current Moon Phase |
The stars of autumn are in full swing rising in the east, with Cassiopeia, Perseus, Andromeda, and Pegasus taking center stage, while the stars of summer exit into the west. This map is set for first week in November at 7:30 p.m., local time. Graphics by Gary A. Becker using Software Bisques', The Sky... |
Comet ISON will be seen about two weeks earlier in the morning sky around dawn than by observers who choose to try and view the comet in the evening. See the map below this one for an evening view. Make sure that your eastern horizon is unobstructed and free from lights shining directly into the eye. ISON’s tail may very well be seen projected up from the ESE horizon as a gossamer shaft of light as early as the morning of November 29. Map by Gary A. Becker using Software Bisque's, The Sky... |
Although Comet ISON will be seen two weeks earlier in the morning sky around dawn, most people will probably catch it in the early evening sky, about an hour after sunset, as a fuzzy, faint, naked eye object. Comet ISON will look much better through binoculars. If evening is your only option for viewing ISON, start looking for the comet in the WNW shortly after mid-December. Map by Gary A. Becker using Software Bisque's, The Sky... |
The buzz is all about Comet ISON, but at present there are three other comets in the morning sky. Early in the first week of December, Comet Lovejoy may steal the show before Comet ISON becomes fully visible in the dawn sky. Use binoculars to spot it first, and then try seeing Comet Lovejoy with just the unaided eye. The representation of Lovejoy on the map is much brighter than the comet will appear to the unaided eye. Map by Gary A. Becker using Software Bisque's, The Sky... |