You can leave the coats inside now that warmer weather is here!
The weather is getting warmer and people are spending more time outdoors. Spring and summer is a great time of year to enjoy evenings and nights outdoors under the stars. In this blog post I am going to talk about a few things that you can do to make your night adventures this summer more interesting!
What are you looking at?
Occasionally people will stop and ask me about a particular bright star they may have seen in the sky. Now thanks to a variety of websites, it’s easier than ever to figure out what you’re looking at in the night sky. One of the best tools that I use on a regular basis is the app “Google SkyMap.” You can simply install the app on your phone and move your phone toward the star or planet you are interested in. It is a great tool for scanning the sky to see what is available for viewing.
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.google.android.stardroid&hl=en
Light pollution on the horizon
Is it dark enough?
Light pollution from street lights and other lights in and around towns is the biggest obstacle to overcome when trying to view the night sky. Light from towns and cities shines into the atmosphere and is reflected back, creating a “hue” in the sky. Get away from the city lights for the best views.
What can you see?
There are some neat things to see in the sky that don’t require much more than a simple pair of binoculars. Depending on the time of year and position of the plants, you can see the moons of Jupiter. They look like tiny dots directly around and beside our solar systems largest planet. The Orion nebula is an area of glowing hot gas located in the constellation Orion. Another item that will come into view in the evening sky by late summer is the core of the Milky Way. In the spring it is located in the southern sky in the morning hours, but it will begin to rise earlier in the night as summer progresses.
The International Space Station is visible as sunlight is reflected off of its surface back toward the earth. You can track the space station and get tips to see when it will be available for viewing at: