Canton is the fellow who updates your astronomy calendar (full moons, equinoxes, meteor showers, etc.) from his laptop in Santa Fe, New Mexico. It’s his birthday today!
The astronomy calendar is an effort of love and no reciprocity is needed or expected, but if you’d like to learn more about the calendar or say thank you for his efforts (or even report an error!) then please visit:
https://cantonbecker.com/astronomy-calendar/credits.html
What’s that, a plane coming in for a landing just after sunset? No, that’s Venus blinding you from the western sky.
The planet Venus reaches greatest eastern elongation of 46.1 degrees from the Sun. This is the best time to view Venus since it will be at its highest point above the horizon in the evening sky.
AWESOME super dark night for a fairly average shower, usually producing about 20 meteors per hour at its peak. It is produced by dust particles left behind by comet C/1861 G1 Thatcher, which was discovered in 1861. The shower runs annually from April 16-25. It peaks this year on the night of the night of the 22nd and morning of the 23rd. These meteors can sometimes produce bright dust trails that last for several seconds. The nearly new moon will ensure dark skies for what should be a good show this year. Best viewing will be from a dark location after midnight. Meteors will radiate from the constellation Lyra, but can appear anywhere in the sky.
The nearly full moon will be a problem this year, blocking out all but the brightest meteors. But if you are patient, you should still should be able to catch a few good ones. Best viewing will be from a dark location after midnight.
The Eta Aquarids is an above average shower, capable of producing up to 60 meteors per hour at its peak. Most of the activity is seen in the Southern Hemisphere. In the Northern Hemisphere, the rate can reach about 30 meteors per hour. It is produced by dust particles left behind by comet Halley, which has known and observed since ancient times. The shower runs annually from April 19 to May 28. It peaks this year on the night of May 6 and the morning of the May 7. Meteors will radiate from the constellation Aquarius, but can appear anywhere in the sky.