SCDVA Southern California Desert Video Astronomers

Southern California Desert Video Astronomers

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Our Mission.............................
" To share our abilities with astronomy in order to preserve dark starry night skies and a vibrant healthy environment in the California Desert and everywhere else on our Planet for future generations! "

SCDVA, moving the line for dark skies and environmental awareness.

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The World's First & Only Live Astronomy Theater.

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WELCOME

FRIENDS AROUND THE WORLD!Let's explore our wonderful Universe together!

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Clear Sky Chart for The Joshua Tree Astronomy Arts Theater

Moon Phases for October 2018

January moon, February moon, March moon, April moon, May moon, June moon, July moon, August moon, September moon, October moon, November moon, December Moon

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SCDVA, Official IDA Chapter Serving The High Desert Region
of
San Bernardino County

IDA International Dark Sky Association

"Ask not what dark skies can do for you, rather,
Ask what you can do for dark skies."

Inspired by a quote from JFK

Click the above image to see amazing live views of our earth
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Book Your Fun Events Now Under the Beautiful Joshua Tree Night Skies
JTAATinfo@gmail.com

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For our next Star Party or Event,
Why Not Make it an All Nighter Under the Starry Nights of the Joshua Tree Desert Skies.

Make your camping reservations early
At the Joshua Tree Lake RV & Campground




Questions?
Contact us at:
scdvainfo@gmail.com

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Click Here to go to Roberts Web Page

October Skies

Venus — As our Fall sky viewing begins, this month,

Venus reaches its maximum possible brightness at magnitude -4.8, but, appears much dimmer because it sits low in bright dusk of the evening sky . It will be setting about an hour after the sun in the southwest horizon. By October 9th, it is barely above the horizon in very bright twilight 20 minutes after sunset. Then Venus is lost from view for several weeks until about October 30th, when it rises as dawn approaches just above the horizon.

Rising even earlier and brighter each day, becoming what is commonly referred to as our Morning Star in early November.

Saturn — is in the south-southwest after dusk and this is probably getting close to the last opportunity to get a good view of Saturn's rings and moons. Saturn will still remain visible almost to the end of the year, but, being near the horizon the atmospheric effect worsens the view.

Mars — The Ruby in the sky is still in the south-southeast when twilight ends, and remains there at nightfall for the month.

Jupiter — Shining at magnitude -1.8, Jupiter is still easily seen as October begins. Look for it low in the west-southwest in early twilight. During the final days of the month it will be in the vicinity of Mercury and by October 31st the king of the planets is so low that you’ll probably need binoculars to help you find it. Three days past new phase and just 10-percent illuminated, a slender waxing crescent moon passes a little over 3 degrees north of Jupiter on October 11th.

October 4th & 7th - A Double Stream of Solar Wind

According to spaceweather.com; "Two holes in the sun's atmosphere are turning to face Earth, each spewing a stream of solar wind toward our planet. Estimated times of arrival: Oct. 4th and Oct 7th. NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory took this false-color UV picture of the gaseous fire-hoses on Oct. 1st

These are "coronal holes"--places in the sun's atmosphere where magnetic fields open up and allow solar wind to escape. They are dark because the glowing-hot plasma normally contained there is missing, now en route to Earth.

Solar wind spewing from the smaller hole (right) will arrive first, causing polar geomagnetic unrest but probably not a full-fledged geomagnetic storm. Solar wind escaping from the second, larger hole (left) will follow days later bringing a chance of G1-class storms. In both cases, equinox cracks in Earth's magnetic field will permit the solar wind to spark Arctic auroras."

October 8th - Draconids Meteor Shower.
The Draconids is a minor meteor shower producing only about 10 meteors per hour. It is produced by dust grains left behind by comet 21P Giacobini-Zinner, which was first discovered in 1900.

The Draconids is different than most meteor showers because the best viewing is in the early evening instead of late evening and early morning. The Draconids go annually from October 6-10 and peaks this year on the the night of the 8th. This will be an excellent year to observe as there will be no moonlight to block out the shooting meteors.

Viewing will be in the early evening. As with all meteor showers, the best viewing is from a dark location far away from city lights. Meteors will radiate from the constellation Draco, but can appear anywhere in the sky.

October 9th - New Moon.

The Moon will be located on the same side of the Earth as the Sun and will not be visible in the night sky. This phase occurs at 03:47 UTC (8:47 pm PDT.) This works out to be the perfect time of the month to observe Meteors, Planets and faint objects with or without a telescope as there is no moonlight to interfere.

October 11th - The Moon and Jupiter

The waxing Crescent Moon & Jupiter will make a close approach, passing within 3°56' of each other.

From Joshua Tree, the pair will be difficult to observe as they will appear low above the horizon. They will become visible at around 06:31 pm (PDT) as the dusk sky fades, above the south-western horizon. They will then sink towards the horizon, setting 1 hour and 47 minutes after the Sun sets.

October 14th - The Moon and Saturn

They will be making a close approach to each other. From Joshua Tree, the pair will become visible at around 06:28 (PDT) as the dusk sky fades, above the southern horizon.

They will then sink towards the horizon, setting 4 hours and 12 minutes after the Sun at 10:23 pm PDT. The pair will be too widely separated to fit within the field of view of a telescope, but will be visible to the naked eye or through a pair of binoculars.

October 21, 22 - Orionids Meteor Shower.

The Orionids is an average shower producing up to 20 meteors per hour at its peak. It is produced by dust grains left behind by comet Halley, which has been known and observed since ancient times. The shower runs annually from October 2 to November 7. It peaks this year on the night of October 21 and the morning of October 22.

Sadly, the nearly full moon will block some of the fainter meteors this year, but the good news is, the Orionids tend to be fairly bright so it could still be a good show. Best viewing will be from a dark location after midnight. Meteors will radiate from the constellation Orion, but can appear anywhere in the sky.

October 24 - Full Moon.

According to the Farmers Almanac, this full Moon is also referred to as the "Full Hunter’s Moon, Blood Moon, or Sanguine Moon. Many moons ago, Native Americans named this bright moon for obvious reasons. The leaves are falling from trees, the deer are fattened, and it’s time to begin storing up meat for the long winter ahead.

Because the fields were traditionally reaped in late September or early October, hunters could easily see fox and other animals that come out to glean from the fallen grains. Probably because of the threat of winter looming close, the Hunter’s Moon is generally accorded with special honor, historically serving as an important feast day in both Western Europe and among many Native American tribes." Corn, pumpkins, squash, beans, and wild rice the chief Indian staples are now ready for gathering.

October 31st - HAPPY HALLOWEEN

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Check out the
Joshua Tree Astronomy Arts Theater

Meetup site
for further & future details
on
Upcoming Events

Follow Us On

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Check out the JTAAT Movie by Leonard Holmberg,

Showing some of the Happenings and Fun

Click below to take a journey.

Take a trip to our Astronomy Theater, live images captured and displayed on our giant screen. JTAAT a magical place for Concerts, Star Parties, Art Exhibits, Weddings and Special Events. Special thanks to SCDVA.org and Nasa.

Click for more info. On Astronomy Camping at Joshua Tree Lake
RV & Campground

Go to Photos & Events Link
to see pictures of what we've been up to.
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Please Help Support our efforts. To contribute, click the link below.

Or mail your Contributions to

JTAAT
P.O. Box 425
Joshua Tree Ca. 92252

Thank you for your support

Note: non tax deductible

Last updated October 01, 2018