2015. It was the day when the cattle were brought in from pasture; those needed for the winters supply of meat would be slaughtered. The first of the two will occur on May 16 and will be visible throughout all of North America, Greenland, and parts of western Europe and western Africa. Astronomy Week was created to give sponsoring organizations a longer period of time to host special events. Astronomical Events in 2023 Jan 3/4: Quadrantids Meteors 3 Jan The first major meteor shower of 2022, the Quadrantids, peaks on the night of January 3 and early morning hours of January 4. On November 8, the second total lunar eclipse of 2022 will occur. 2. . There are four cross-quarter days in the year, plus the four "quarter" days (the spring equinox, summer solstice, fall equinox, and winter solstice). We can then enjoy our second total lunar eclipse and Uranus at opposition in November. Halloween has always been known to fall on a cross-quarter day, which EarthSky notes our ancestors were deeply aware of, too. Although the Moon is near the eastern end of the constellation, you should have the evening of the 17th and the first few hours of the 18th to make the most of the shower. For ancient Celts, the Cross Quarter Days marked the beginning of seasons rather than the midseason. The actual calendar date of Samhain/Halloween is November 11th. This months full Moon can be found in Taurus and, not surprisingly, is known as the Cold Moon. Mid-April sees all the naked eye planets, bar Mercury, visible in the morning twilight, with all four (Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn) fairly evenly spaced over the southeastern horizon. Groundhog Day is a "cross-quarter day" on the celestial calendar. September. An occultation is what happens when one object (in this case, the Moon) passes in front of another. 2023Yankee Publishing, Inc., An Employee-Owned Company Check our planetary conjunctions list so as not to miss them! Astronomical Calendar for 2022. . It starts with Mercury, Jupiter, and Saturn in the evening twilight, but Mercury will make a brief appearance with Venus and Mars in the predawn sky by the end of February. This time, the eclipse will be visible throughout eastern Russia, Japan, Australia, and parts of western and central North America. During the mission, the Luna 25 spacecraft will land near the lunar south pole at the Boguslavsky crater and study the composition of the polar regolith. The first one will happen on April 30 and will be visible throughout southern South America and parts of Antarctica. We hope you found this history interesting! I'll bet that even in Punxsutawney . Just three-quarters of a degree separate the pair, but with both just five or six degrees above the horizon (and with such a short time before sunrise) theyll be difficult to spot. Aprils full Moon is known as the Pink Moon, after the phlox flowers that bloom at this time of year. The next full Moon will be Monday evening, Jan. 17, 2022, appearing opposite the Sun in Earth-based longitude at 6:48 p.m. EST. Mars is the last planet to reach opposition in 2022, and depending on where you live, it could either happen on the 7th or the 8th of December. If youre an early riser, this is your last chance to see Mercury in the predawn sky this year. The opposition occurs when a planet is positioned exactly opposite the Sun as observed from the Earth. The two are now almost exactly four degrees apart, with the gap narrowing slightly over the next four days. Look carefully and about midway between the two, youll see a coppery star - Mars. Alternatively, come back tomorrow morning at the same time to see the thin Moon three and a half degrees to the left of the planet. Perhaps, if you're reading this in the remaining socialist states. Take a look at about 30 minutes before sunrise and youll see Mercury toward the southeast, with Venus and Mars to its upper right. These holidays are only celebrated by the Celts, according to astronomer Alan Hill. Spring Equinox - around March 21st (at 9:00 o'clock). Youll need to step outside at around 30 minutes before sunrise to get the best view. Theres another opportunity to see a conjunction of the crescent Moon and several planets this morning. Gemini itself rises mid-evening, giving you plenty of time to see some shooting stars, and - as an added bonus - the Moon is nearly at last quarter and wont rise until around 11 p.m. (The English church later celebrated this day as the birthday of John the Baptist, who foretold the coming of Jesus. August. ET (9:11 p.m. Although it doesnt produce as many meteors as either the Perseids or the Geminids, the Orionids can still put on a decent show. Check an astronomical app, magazine, or another online resource for more specific information relating to your location. East Coast observers will . (Fun fact: a vestige of the old system of quarter and cross-quarter days is Groundhog Day, also known as Candlemas on the Christian . The northern winter solstice occurs around December 21st of each year, and the northern summer solstice occurs around June 21st. The Celtic rituals merged easily with the Christian celebration of the birth of Jesus. The feast day of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist is celebrated exactly six months before that of the celebration of Christs birth.) . Tonight, however, it can be seen to the lower left of Jupiter, which is still shining brightly nearly two weeks after reaching opposition. It is understood that no pre-Christian people celebrated all eight festivals. ET (9:53 p.m. 2. Most of the astronomical events on this calendar can be seen with unaided eye, although some may require a good pair of binoculars for best viewing. ET and is known as the Hunters Moon, as traditionally, this would be the time when people would hunt and stockpile food for the coming winter months. 2022 is a great year to see the planets huddled close together - if you dont mind getting up early to see them! The Celtic fire holidays are a few days to a week earlier than the actual cross quarters. It seems from the astronomical alignment that the megaliths mark cross-quarter holidays. ET tonight, with Jupiter shining brightly to its east and dim Neptune four and a half degrees to its northwest. Youll find it in Capricornus, just to the lower right of Saturn at moonrise, with the pair being due south at around 1:00 a.m. Augusts full Moon is called the Sturgeon Moon, due to the number of fish that can now be found in the lakes. Cross quarters are half way between those . A total lunar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes into the central part of the Earths shadow called the umbra. Do the same with I/s3 and I/s3. By the evening of Monday, May 16, 2022 - the day of the full moon after next - as evening twilight ends at 8:47 p.m. EDT - the full moon will just be rising above the east-southeastern horizon, and the bright star Antares will rise to the lower right of the Moon about 10 minutes later. It starts with Mercury, Jupiter, and Saturn in the evening twilight, but Mercury will make a brief appearance with Venus and Mars in the predawn sky by the end of February. Artemis 1 is expected to launch no earlier than February 2022. Youll be able to fit Venus, Mars, and Saturn within the same 10x50 binoculars field of view, but the Moon is just a little too far to do the same. In looking at orientations, in addition to those of the Quarter Days, some sacred sites on both sides of the Big Pond are oriented towards these Cross-Quarter Days. (That day,November 1, later becameAll Saints Day.) This morning theyre fairly evenly spaced, with Jupiter lowest in the east, Venus eleven degrees to its upper right, then Mars eleven and a half degrees to the upper right of Venus, and finally, Saturn nine degrees to the upper right of Mars. For the best experience on our site, be sure to turn on Javascript in your browser. February 2023. What's in the Sky This Month? Soil, are stirred from their winter dormancy and their waters . Since Samhain was the death-night of the old year, it came to be associated with ghosts and graveyards. These moments are the solstices. What is a meteor shower? Sign up for savings and product announcements. The Cross-Quarter Days The Quarter Days of the year (the Solstices & Equinoxes) can be defined with extreme accuracy - to the nearest nano-second if necessary. Unfortunately, the Perseid meteor shower in August coincides with the full Moon, but Saturn reaches opposition a few days later. However, the old cross-quarter days kept their old dates, so Samhain, which was celebrated on the night of October 31, is still celebrated on . We have revised the article to make itclearer. The penumbral phase begins at 3:02 a.m. For anyone in a timezone further west, opposition will happen in the evening of the 7th. Fifteen degrees then separate Venus from Mars to the west and then its another 15 degrees west again to Saturn. Not to miss the spectacular astronomical events mentioned above, download Sky Tonight. This fit readily into the rhythm of the ways peoplefarmed. PT.) This meteor shower is capable of producing up to 100 meteors per hour. Its probably best to try looking for meteors in the hours between midnight and 4:00 am; Aquarius may not be above the horizon, but the later you wait (before the sky starts to brighten) the better your chances. Festival and tropical zodiac astronomical calculations are from AstroGold by Australian Astrologer Kim . The showers radiant (the point from which the meteors appear to originate) wont rise until the early hours of the morning on the 4th, but you can try your luck the evening before. This month you'll be treated to a series of planet-gazing opportunities, a few other celestial objects, and of course the September equinox. The Yin Fire Goat still governs the remaining days of July. Also Yule or Christmastide. Many people know Septembers full Moon as the Harvest Moon, but that name is actually applied to whichever full Moon occurs closest to the autumn equinox on September 22nd. Celts called the day Samhain, or "summer's end." The day . You can see them over the east-northeastern horizon at about 45 minutes before sunrise, but if you want to see Mercury, its best to look at about 30 minutes before sunrise. After passing Mars and then Uranus, the waning crescent Moon is now headed toward Venus and will be close to that planet in two days time. There very interesting & informative. The Moon will pass close to Uranus tomorrow morning, and then appear to the upper left of Venus on the 26th. Lyra, the constellation from which the meteors appear to originate, rises at about 11 p.m., while the waning gibbous Moon rises in Sagittarius some four hours later. Scientists believe that this asteroid could be the iron core of a protoplanet the size of Mars. 2023 is a busy year for spaceflight and exploration enthusiasts with countless launches, mission milestones and skywatching events . This angle is set by Earth's axial tilt. 2022 is a great year to see the planets huddled close together - if you don't mind getting up early to see them! October. Being the largest planet in the solar system, Jupiter almost always appears large enough to see some great detail through a telescope, but as the planet is closer at opposition than at any other time of year, theres a great opportunity to see details that might otherwise have remained hidden. 11 December 2022 Moon enters Cancer at 08:22 12 December 2022 Disseminating Moon at 06:41 13 December 2022 Moon Void of Course Starts at 15 . If you werent able to spot Mercury four days ago, you might want to try again tonight. These Scottish days correspond more closely, but not exactly, to the cross-quarter days, or mid-season days, of the English calendar." (Quarter Days) Mercury is at its greatest elongation from the Sun today, which makes it visible in the west from about 15 minutes after sunset. Although classed as being a major shower, the Eta Aquariids have the disadvantage of not being clearly seen from the northern hemisphere. Now, just as we did with the Solstice Sun, let's move into the next dimension:- what does this look like from above? TBD 2023. They are represented by the four black balls at the points where the two arms Cross on the Cross shown above. It seems from astronomical alignment that the megaliths mark cross-quarter holidays. As the 12-month Roman calendar was adopted for both civil and religious purposes, all of the Celtic days began to conform more closely with the liturgical year of the Christian church and became identified with major religiousfestivals. In half the number of days between the Spring Equinox and the Summer Solstice, at Beltane, around May 1st, the Sun has moved approximately 71% of the distance between these two points on the horizon. Traditionallyafestival associated with harvesting grain, it marked the beginning of the wheat harvest, and especially celebrated the first wheat or corn crop. If Artemis 1 is a success, the next mission Artemis 2 will be a crewed flight to the Moons orbit. Learn more about Midsummer Day", But, if what is in the bible is correct, then John the Baptist is about six months older than Jesus and thus, could not have "foretold" of Jesus' birth six-months hence. When that happens, Septembers full Moon is known as the Corn Moon. Midpoint of summer officially occurs on Sunday, August 7, 2022, meaning summer is half over. The Greater Sabbaths (Cross-Quarter Days) Discover the Quarter Days and theCross-Quarter Days of the ancient Celtic calendar. Midsummer Day 2022: Why (and How) is Midsummer Celebrated? The English quarter days (also observed in Wales and the Channel Islands) are . If youve been keeping a watchful eye on Venus and Mars over the past few weeks, youll have seen them drawing closer together in the predawn twilight. Its currently shining at magnitude -0.4 and is a little under 18 degrees away from the Sun. Its currently 26 degrees west of the Sun and rises about an hour and a quarter before dawn, but youll need to allow time for the planet to gain some altitude over the horizon. They are in time - but not in space. If you want to explore the night sky and always stay informed about the upcoming space-related events, download our stargazing apps Sky Tonight and Star Walk 2. After the loaf was blessed, the farmers broke it into four pieces and placed each piece inthe corners of theirbarn to protect the newly harvested grain. Our Groundhog Day is a remote survivor of that belief. Its moving through Capricornus in a vain attempt to catch up with Saturn, which appears to the upper left. Spring Astronomy Day occurs sometime between mid-April and mid-May on a Saturday near or before the 1st quarter Moon. Give sponsoring organizations a longer period of time to host special events s axial tilt werent able to Mercury. 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