Video Source During the early evening hours of July and August, an assembly of stars arches across the sky.  During the evening it slowly marches westward.  Even from dark skies, it appears as a cloudy ribbon of light stretching from south to north.  When your eyes are well-adjusted you can see brighter sections and apparent gaps. … Continue reading July 2014 Skywatching

The daylight reaches its maximum this month.  On June 1, the sun is in the sky for 15 hours, 1 minute.  At the summer solstice on June 21, the sun is in the sky for 15 hours, 13 minutes.  The chart above shows the daylight hours (the blue bar) compared to the number of daylight … Continue reading Sky Watching June 2014

Sun May brings about a strong rebirth of plant and human activity in the mid-northern latitudes.  With the brutal winter of 2013-2014, plant emergence is slow at the time of this writing as it is about two weeks behind typical years. During the month, daylight increases by nearly one hour.  The chart above, made from … Continue reading May 2014 Skywatching

Sun There is a solar eclipse at new moon on April 29.  A ring eclipse is visible from parts of Antarctica and a partial eclipse in Australia and the southern Indian Ocean. Throughout the month, the sun rises earlier each day as indicated in the table below. Date Sunrise Sunset April 1 6:34 a.m. 7:16 … Continue reading SkyWatching April 2014