![]() Tetrad: This eclipse is the last of the four consecutive total lunar eclipses (known as a tetrad ) (see ) The eclipse occurs Sunday Sept 27 starting after 9pm for our location.Properties of this eclipse as described in the media: Looking South on S, we will experience a Full moon at perigee (hence it appears about 15 % larger than at apogee) go into eclipse of the Earth’s shadow. When that pointer is vertical, you can read off the approximate time of night when you observe the Big Dipper in that orientation. On the back of the pendant, the pointer lies over the approximate date (late September) and the time of night (say, 9pm) when the Big Dipper of the pendant matches the orientation of the Big Dipper in the Sky. The little timekeeper pendant that you see superimposed on the diagram can be used to match the position of the Big Dipper to the image. For an animation of this concept see Ursa Major- the Big Dipper and Polaris Four Seasons show the circumpolar rotation of the Big Dipper As you can see in the annotated drawing of the Beginners Observers Handbook, the Autumn position of the Big Dipper points to Polaris from below the ‘pole’. ![]() You can see the 7 stars in the evening every clear night of the year at our latitude of 45 degrees. This means that its stars are above our horizon after sunset even at their lowest (below the pole star). far enough north of the celestial equator. It is never hidden by the glare of the Sun because it is located close enough to the pole of the Earth’s axis, i.e. Unlike other constellations like Orion, that are visible only in Winter, or Sagittarius that appears only in Summer during the observable part of the evening, say, 10pm to midnight, the Big Dipper (Ursa Major) can be seen after sunset every clear night. It is, in fact, the ‘course’ of the year, or shall we say the earth in its ‘course’ that allows us to see our orbital direction change by viewing the circumpolar constellation change ‘in due season’. I also noticed the prominently low position of the bowl of the Big Dipper, and many people are often surprised by the change in orientation of the Big Dipper over the course of the year. It is truly a joy to be able to see the Milky Way in Mississippi Mills. Looking North in Autumn – Big Dipper low in the SkyĬycling home in the early evening, I enjoyed watching the wisps of interstellar clouds (of stars and stardust) rise up overhead into the northern reaches of the constellation Cygnus.
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