Bootleg Astronomers

Pre-registration deadline is Saturday, September 9th!!! So hurry and get your forms in the mail!

All forms must be postmarked no later than September 9th to qualify for early registration.

2	Moon near Antares (evening sky) at 9h UT. • Antares (Wikipedia)
2	Venus 2.4° S of M35 cluster (morning sky) at 15h UT. Mag. −4.0.
2	Moon at apogee (farthest from Earth) at 18h UT (distance 405,025 km; angular size 29.5').
3	Moon near Saturn (evening sky) at 8h UT. Mag. 0.3. • Saturn (Wikipedia)
7	Partial Eclipse of the Moon from 17:23 to 19:18 UT, mid-eclipse at 18:20 UT. Visible from the Eastern Hemisphere including Australia, Indonesia and India. • NASA Lunar Eclipse Page (NASA) • Partial Lunar Eclipse of 2017 August 7 (PDF) (NASA)
7	Full Moon at 18:12 UT.
12	Perseid meteor shower peak lasts about 10 hours from 14h UT. Active from July 17 to August 24. Produces swift, bright meteors (50 to 100 per hour) many with persistent trains. Best viewing conditions occur after midnight. Moonlight interferes. • Observing the Perseids (Gary Kronk) • Meteor Shower Calendar PDF (IMO)
15	Last Quarter Moon at 1:16 UT.
15	Moon near the Pleiades (morning sky) at 15h UT. • The Pleiades (Wikipedia)
16	Moon near Aldebaran (74° from Sun, morning sky) at 7h UT. Occultation visible from the Caribbean. • Occultation of Aldebaran (IOTA)
18	Moon at perigee (closest to Earth) at 13:16 UT (366,121 km; angular size 32.6').
19	Moon near Venus (morning sky) at 4h UT. Mag. −4.0.
20	Moon near Beehive cluster (morning sky) at 7h UT. • Beehive Cluster (Wikipedia) • M44: The Beehive Cluster (APOD)
21	Total Solar Eclipse from 16:49 to 20:03 UT, greatest eclipse at 18:25 UT (duration 2m 40s). Totality visible along narrow, coast-to-coast path across USA. Partial eclipse in North America and northern South America. • Official NASA Eclipse Website (NASA) • Total Solar Eclipse of 2017 August 21 (NASA)
21	New Moon at 18:30 UT. Start of lunation 1171. • Lunation Number (Wikipedia)
25	Moon near Jupiter (evening sky) at 15h UT. Mag. −1.8. • Jupiter (Wikipedia)
25	Moon near Spica (evening sky) at 21h UT. • Spica (Wikipedia)
29	First Quarter Moon at 8:13 UT.
30	Moon at apogee (farthest from Earth) at 11h UT (distance 404,308 km; angular size 29.6').
30	Moon near Saturn (evening sky) at 15h UT. Mag. 0.4.

>>> All times Universal Time (UT). USA Central Standard Time = UT-6 hours. (DST = UT-5 hrs,)

Zodiacal Light is caused by sunlight reflected off meteoric dust in the plane of the solar system. Choose a clear, moonless night, about 1-2 hours after sunset, and look for a large triangular-shaped glow extending up from the horizon (along the ecliptic). The best months to view the Zodiacal Light is when the ecliptic is almost vertical at the horizon: March and April (evening) and October-November (morning); times reversed for the southern hemisphere.
• Zodiacal Light (Wikipedia)
• Astronomy Picture of the Day (APOD)
• Photographing the Zodiacal Light (Weatherscapes)