Does saturn get any higher?

[tyler_jrb]

just wondering does saturn get any higer. I live in the north and its still pretty low. would be nice if it does.

[Alastair Rae]

The table here indicates that it will get to +11 deg next year and was +15 deg in 2007.

[Adrian]

I think that's -11 deg declination next year And it doesn't reach its lowest pass (furthest south) until 2018; time to move south. It'll be great in 2032 from the northern hemisphere, though

[JamesF]

Yes, for those of us who don't live in the southern hemisphere Saturn is going to get progressively lower in the sky over the next few years unfortunately, though it has been much higher earlier this year than it is now. If only I'd known I'd have taken astronomy up years ago when it was looking really good. Still, if the weather doesn't improve soon I might have to migrate to the southern hemisphere anyhow

James

[Dunkster]

I think I'm going to have to plan ahead and go south in a couple of years, Saturn really whet my appetite on the few occasions I saw it this year (my first Saturn season)

[riklaunim]

In the upcoming years everything will go down for north hemisphere

[umadog]

Saturn, like all the planets, the sun, and the moon, travels along the ecliptic. Saturn will be highest in the sky when it's a winter object and lowest when it's a summer object. Right now it's a summer object and never gets up very high. Jupiter is a winter object right now, so it gets higher in the sky. Details about the moon here: http://www.aaa.org/membersarticle02

[kevrees]

Aww that sucks. One of the main reasons i've been looking at getting a telescope is to see saturn for myself.

So, does this mean that one wont get a decent view of this planet in the uk for quite some time then ?

Sorry for the dumb question, i have no idea how it all works, hence why im thinking of taking this casual pastime to the next level and educate myself a lot more

[JamesF]

Depends what you mean by "decent", I guess. Over the next few years it's certainly going to be harder to get a decent view unless you're in the southern hemisphere, yes, and the window of opportunity is shorter.

James

[riklaunim]

I played with pyEphem and Google Charts a bit. Altitude of everything will go down in the upcoming years... planetary imaging will have hard times here.

[Dunkster]

Still, looks like Jupiter will be nice and high for the next couple of years

[NGC 1502]

Aww that sucks. One of the main reasons i've been looking at getting a telescope is to see saturn for myself.

You will see it each year, but not at it's best from the northern hemisphere. But it will definitely be worth observing, so please don't give up on Saturn

And there is so much else to point a telescope at, while we wait all those years for Saturn to ride high in our winter skies again.

Regards, Ed.

[Sammyb]

Yes it'll still be a great sight. Just not quite at its best.

[tingting44]

bye bye satrurn if only i knew i would have taken a lot more pics only got crappy pics of when i saw her a few months ago (only just got into astro photography then )

gutting

[Sammyb]

Tingting - you should still be able to get some decent images. Just not quite Damian Peach standard!

[Admiral Crispy]

Keep going with Saturn, you still have a bit of time left. Jupiter is going to be extremely well placed this year, so that would make a superb target for the next few months. In the meantime, now is a great time to start exploring the deep sky and going for the outer planets (Uranus and Neptune) as both are going to reach opposition in either this month or next. Mercury should also be on show soon.