Longest night of the year is here. You can also see the conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn tonight from almost everywhere.
Winter Solstice in Surat
Sunrise at 7:11 am
Sunset at 6:02 pm
Day hours 10h 50mins
Night hours 13h 10 mins
Great Conjunction 2020
Jupiter and Saturn will be visible as one planet. They will come into position in their orbit such that when viewed from Earth, they will be visible as one behind the another. In case you have a binoculars or telescope, you will be able to see them in the same field of view.
Enjoy the night with cool winds and beautiful sky with planets like Jupiter, Saturn and Mars visible clearly.
SpaceX successfully launched its twelfth Starlink mission, which launched 60 Starlink satellites to orbit on September 3, 2020. Falcon 9 lifted off from Launch Complex 39A (LC-39A) at Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
Falcon 9’s first stage previously supported launch of the GPS III Space Vehicle 03 mission in June 2020. Following stage separation, SpaceX will land Falcon 9’s first stage on the “Of Course I Still Love You” droneship, which will be stationed in the Atlantic Ocean.
Project – Starlink
Rocket – Falcon 9
Location – Kennedy space center, Florida
Company – SpaceX
Droneship – OCISLY
Fuel – Rocket grade kerosone & liquid oxygen
Altitude – 550km and dispersed into orbits by ion-thruster propellers after 2 days
Stages – 2 stage separation
Computer controlled launch sequence
Live coverage – until T+15 mins
A total of over 700 satellites have been launched till now. Beta testing is being carried out by the employees and beta users to test the latency and download speeds. Till now testing has been seen with good results enough for playing online games and downloading hd quality videos. This is an ongoing project and updates are available at starlink.com
Mercury is visible after Sunset for first week of June and then it gets close enough to Sun in the sky making it difficult to spot. It will rise in the morning near to end of June but difficult to spot until early July.
Venus is close to Sun in sky as seen from Earth. It will be visible as morning star before sunrise after mid of June.
Mars is visible after midnight in early June. Later part of June it rises after 9PM.
Jupiter is visible entire night rising from East after 10PM
Saturn is following Jupiter. It rises after an hour or so in the East. It is visible entire night. It rises early by end of June to be visible in the East right after Sunset.
Planets follow the Elliptical path in the sky.
Scorpius rises in South sky after Sunset and visible for major part of night. Sagittarius is following behind. Great bear rises in the north sky and visible for major part of night.
Skygazing is going to get a break in Surat as the clouds take over the city slowly.
Clouds arrive in Surat
Here is the Timelapse showing they bring the message of Monsoon.
Cloud Timelapse in Surat
Could only spot Antares amidst the white bright clouds covered in the night sky. Jupiter was hiding behind the clouds and appeared once in a while. It was a hide and seek game. Sagittarius and Scorpius constellation are up in the sky but clear view is not visible. Once in a while few stars are seen before clouds cover them up.
Antares visible bright in skyJupiter in night skyJupiter shining bright like a urban street light
It’s time to focus on Monsoon and wait for the migratory water birds to make their entry. Sky gazing may become difficult with clouds covered during the day and night for the next two three months. Whenever there is a chance, we will try to check out the sky and bring some updates.
SPICA shines bright in the Virgo constellation. It appears high in the east sky. Other stars of Virgo are not yet visible. The sky is light violet blue and turning dark slowly.
PROCYON in the Canis Minor constellation is visible bright at this time. It is high in the west sky and slowly going down.
Wind is blowing at speed of around 20km/h. The coolness it carries is signalling the onset of Monsoon somewhere around the corner. Enjoy the experience of looking at stars on this dark night with the company of cool breeze.
8:05 PM Surat
Algorab, Gieneh Gurab, Kraz and Minkar are visible now beside Spica now. Spica has company of its partner Porrima.
Towards the south Menkent is visible. Beside it Centaurus constellation is visible and it will go around a semicircular path in the sky not rising high up in sky, staying close to horizon.
8:45 PM Surat
Great Bear constellation is shining bright in the sky. It looks like a kite.
GREAT BEAR IN SKY FROM SURAT
While looking at Great Bear, I spotted Hubble Space Telescope flying over head. It was beautiful view. It was visible for 30 minutes or so.
Pollax and Castor are shining together in pair as always. Arcturus is visible in east sky bright and shine. It will be visible all night.
Clouds took over after 5 minutes. Then the game of hide and seek started. The indication of monsoon is around the corner becomes more and more evident.
Clouds overtook the sky. Monsoon is near by.
Let your eyes adjust to darkness for best experience. It will take 30-45 mins.
Look at the beauty of Crescent Moon and fall in love with skygazing. First glimpse of Crescent Moon marks the end of fasting month – Ramadan.
WHERE In Surat, India Co-ordinates are 21.1 ° N latitude 72.8° E longitude
WHEN 21st May 2020 to 25th May 2020
WHAT YOU CAN SEE
Crescent Moon
WHAT YOU NEED Sense of Direction, Observation Skills & Patience a lot of it.
DATE
MOONRISE
MOONSET
21-May
5:02 am 78° E
6:05 pm 285° W
22-May
5:39 am 73° E
6:57 pm 289° W
23-May
6:24 am 69° E
7:52 pm 292° W
24-May
7:05 am 66° E
8:48 pm 295° W
MOON RISE n SET TIME IN SURAT 22 MAY is a New Moon Day (Amavasya)
Moon rises almost an hour late than the previous night. On Fullmoon day, Moon rises after sunset while on newmoon day it rises along with the Sun.
DATE
SUNRISE
SUNSET
21-May
5:58 am 72° E
7:12 pm 288° W
22-May
5:58 am 72° E
7:12 pm 289° W
23-May
5:58 am 72° E
7:13 pm 289° W
24-May
5:58 am 72° E
7:13 pm 289° W
SUN RISE & SET TIME IN SURAT
Day length is over 13 hrs.
22 May is the New Moon day. There will be no moon on that day or night. A day before that is tonight it will be visible faintly in the west before the Sunset. It will be difficult to see in most areas. To be able to enjoy a perfect crescent moon, you will have to wait after Sunset on 23 May or 24 May.
Never look at the Sun directly at any point of time. It is harmful to eyes. Follow proper guidance and precautions.
On 23rd May, Moon will be visible only 1-2% so it will be very faint in the night sky and near to horizon. Places where you have flat clear unpolluted sky, you may be able to see it. Possibility of seeing is only 5% but once you see young Moon, you will never forget it. Often the sky behind turns pink, blue or orangish during first day because of it’s close timing with the Sunset.
SKY FROM FLYOVER IN SURAT
On 24th May, early in the morning just right after Sunrise there is a possibility to see crescent Moon but it will be dimly light near by the Sun so it cannot be seen. Never look at Sun directly. Follow proper care and precautions. It can damage your eyes.
On 24th May evening is the best time to see Crescent Moon. After sunset, slowly darkness falls upon us. Moon will be lit 3-5% in the night and best possible time to catch a glimpse of it. First view of Crescent Moon marks the end of Ramadan month. So it also as religious attachment for some.
Crescent Moon in Surat
Patience is the key.
Moon isn’t visible right away. Even though Moon is above the horizon, it is not visible to us due to pollution in city as well as the luminance is not at it’s maximum. If you are lucky to be in the right place and have keen observation, you may be able to see it below that point as well.
Moon is magic. Once you see the first glimpse of Moon rising behind the trees or dark clouds or some far off houses, you will be captivated in the magic. It takes around 15-20 mins for the Moon to be clearly visible. So in this case it will be around 7:30 PM you can be sure to get a clear glimpse. To be able to see before that luck is needed.
Feel spiritual vibes while skygazing at Crescent Moon marking the end of Ramadan.
Look for planets and stars as well. As you wait while Crescent Moon is visible or once it has been seen until your heart is filled with joy, happiness and serenity, you can look for VENUS which will be visible in the West as well. Also you can look a bit towards the South-East near the horizon or a bit high up by 9pm to be able to see ANTARES.
Wonderful experience. Looking at the sky on any given day or night is a beautiful experience but when you have a lot happening on a single night within a span of hours then it’s the best experience. Enjoy sky gazing with your friends or young children.
NEW MOON
On 22 May Moon will not be visible. It is the darkest phase of Moon. Locally it is called as “Amavasya“.
Let us know how your experience was in the comments section below. Feel free to ask any questions related to Crescent Moon or sky-gazing in general. Share your view and share it with your friends.
