Hi,
Welcome to GoOutLookUp.net!
This website aims to help new astronomers ("observers", actually) enjoy the night sky. We talk sky, skills, and equipment Sky, Skills, and Equipment.
I'm Jeff; each letter in this site has been typed by me - no AI. And, clearly, insufficient spelling and grammar checks.
I have a YouTube channel where I share similar info by yapping and gesturing rather than typing: YouTube Channel: Go Out Look Up
The Big News:
Mars 2025
Mars Opposition occurs January 15-16, 2025. This is a big deal because Mars's apparent size is normally very tiny, but every 26 months we pass between it and the Sun. We get really close. It gets really big.
Mars is the only planet where we can make out Surface features (particularly when we're close to it). Mercury doesn't really show any detail (solar glare). The other planets are atmosphere (Jupiter's cloud bands are pretty fascinating.
Read about it here: Mars Opposition - January 2025
Quick Reference Shortcuts:
- I want to Learn about the Sky
- I want to learn about how to be "an Observer"
- I have a new scope at home. Now what? click here: New Scope at Home
- What about the sun? Solar Observing!
- I want to Learn about Equipment
Somewhat New:
a new musing: Boring Annoying Miracles and one from 1995 Nothingness? (beware, it's a "poem" (you'll never see another from me).
"Garbage" Scopes - Any value at all?
I am fortunate to have a nice view of launches out of Vandenberg (which is a complete surprise to boy who group up near Kennedy (which, by the way, launches rockets straight out to sea - directly away from people. Weird to see rockets coming closer to you!)). This video got about 165,000 views, which YouTube points out is 164,000 more views than my normal videos).
New: When to "Go Dark" (planning when to "head to the dark skies")
New: a collection of SpaceX Vandenberg launch videos I took: Rocket Launches
Lunar and Planetary Viewing: easy beginner targets, anywhere
The Four Awesome Solar System Objects - and Mars
Always
Just like most of the stars and most of the "Deep Sky Objects" (DSOs, aka, "Faint Fuzzies"), the Moon, Jupiter and Saturn are (almost) always visible on any given night. Unlike "Faint Fuzzies", the Moon, Jupiter, and Saturn are visible anywhere on the globe - including bright city skies. Faint Fuzzies are typically washed out in bright city skies (and around a bright moon). The only real variable in observing the moon and bright planets is: are they visible in the evening sky or the morning sky? If you're willing to get up or stay up, almost the entire sky is visible on any given night.*
(*full technical disclosure: in the northern hemisphere the southern horizon limits how much of the Southern Sky you can see, you can see the full Northern Sky. In the Southern hemisphere you are limited by your northern horizon. Other than this "Latitude Limitation" only a narrow longitudinal band of sky (north to south) the sun straddles will be not visible (the sun washes out the sky after sunrise and before sunset),. he nearly the entire sky is "up" over the course of every night).
The Moon is so bright that it washes out a lot of the "Faint Fuzzies" even in a dark sky. Consider how the Sun washes out the stars (they're all still there, just not visible in the Sun's glare). But Jupiter and Saturn are bright enough where the moonlight doesn't bother them.
Here are your planetary targets to scale in a single shot summary:
The Moon, Jupiter and Saturn, are always good targets, they're big and bright.
Mars is iffy. It's so small that we can only see it well when we're close to it - a couple months before after Opposition every 26 months.
Now
Saturn and Jupiter are really good targets right now.
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Now is a good time to look at Saturn Hurry, the "rings are disappearing"!!!! Here's the info: Saturn - Life's most Certain Thrill |
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Jupiter is always excellent to view, but now we're really close to it (bigger, brighter, more detailed!)
Jupiter rotates in 10 hours, the Great Red Spot will be visible in any 5 hour interval!
Eyepieces? Why are some so expensive ($700 and up)? Why? Which should I buy?
- Answers (in text and video) are here: Eyepieces
Past "Headlines"
The Eclipse of October 14
Info about the: Annular Eclipse October 14, 2023
- San Diego: begins 8:09am PDT, maxes 9:26am, ends 10:52am
- Orlando: begins 11:52am EDT, maxes 1:26pm, ends 3:02pm
- Get your eye protection: Looking at the Sun - Precautions
- The Eclipse Experience - Partial vs Total
- While this is an annular/partial eclipse, it's a good warmup for the Great Total Eclipse of April 2024!
- What's it's like experiencing a total eclipse? Here's the 2017 Total Eclipse in 360 degrees
- While this is an annular/partial eclipse, it's a good warmup for the Great Total Eclipse of April 2024!
- The Joys of Solar Observing! Note that while eclipses are rare, observing the sun - safely - can be an everyday activity. The sun actually has visible "weather" that changes from day to day.
Use the Search. It should work pretty well.
My astronomy videos are on this YouTube Channel: Go Out Look Up.
Thanks and Enjoy!
-jeff martin