Jupiter - Moon Conjunction plus Io Transit later

[John]

According to Cartes du Ciel, Jupiter lies just over 1 degree away from the Moon at around 10:00 pm this evening. Might make a nice imaging target or widefield eyepiece visual treat.

Also Io and later it's shadow transits the Jovian disk starting with Io at 11:14 pm.

Hope this info is correct !

[Stu]

Thanks John. Cloudy here so likely to miss this one unfortunately. Looks like closest approach for Jupiter and the Moon is at 9.08pm, but obviously it will be just that bit higher at 10 or later, and still close.

[paulastro]

Hi John,  Many thanks. Not been outside yet but according to Sky Safari 6 pro it looks it's about two degrees separation, and probably at it's closest at the moment.

......just been out with binocs but some clouds over that way at them  moment.

Hoping to get a view at some time, the Aristarchus / Schroter Valley is well placed this evening.

Thanks again.

PS Yes, that is the time I have for the time of the shadow transit start.

[Stu]

A fraction under 1.5 degrees

[John]

I've got quite a lot of cloud cover here but I've managed to grab some nice views with the ED102SS F/6.5 refractor. The best view is probably with a 30mm Areo ED eyepiece. Just enough power to show Jupiter's disk and main belts plus the whole lunar disk. My Ethos 21 and Nagler 31 show more sky but they distort the lunar disk because of the tricks they use to get such a wide sharp view - an oval Moon is not doing if for me tonight !

When observing conjunctions like this with a scope I'm aware of the immense distance between these worlds that allows the huge Jupiter to look so small next to our Moon in the sky

 

 

[paulastro]

Thanks Stu, I'll settle for that  , Out at just past 10pm and had a few moments view with my 72ED and 17.5mm Morpheus, giving about 3.2 degree field and x25.  Now in cloud but should have a few gaps I think.

John, I was thinking the same thing,  it is really nice to see them in the same field and ponder such things.  Lovely.

[Stu]

Just saw that the skies were clearing so popped out with my 50mm Vixen spotting scope and caught them looking very nice. Just enough mag to see Jupiter as a disk and a couple of the moons. Thanks for the heads up John!

[John]

4 minutes ago, Stu said:

... Thanks for the heads up John!

No problem - I owe you a couple !

[paulastro]

Stu, there's nothing like a good little'n when you need to set up at a moments notice   Glad you saw it

I also realised that your setting on your phone was for 9.08pm while I didn't get my first look until nearly an hour this which accounts for the discrepancy in the distance between the two. 

Could you tell me where the distance indicator tool you used is on SF Stu?

[paulastro]

Stu, just found it!  👍

[Stu]

3 minutes ago, paulastro said:

Stu, just found it!  👍

Good stuff Paul, very useful function. It's very easy to forward the time to find when objects reach their closest point.

Just for other's info, in the Selection menu, there is the Measure from option. Select the first object, choose the Measure from option then click the second object and the measurement line will appear. You can drag from the second object to others to save time when measuring multiple objects.

[paulastro]

Thanks Stu, I was wandering - it would probably have taken me a year or two to figure out how to measure quickly to multiple objects!  🥴

I think SkySafari is a great observing tool, I think perhaps I need to explore it to find out all the other useful functions I am probably missing out on .

[John]

My method was similar but I used Cartes du Ciel. It also has a measuring tool but I hurried it and a) got the time of closest approach incorrect and b) measured the distance between the lunar and jovian limb rather than the centre of their disks.

Sorry about the lack of precision but at least I was in the right ball park !

 

[Stu]

20 minutes ago, John said:

Sorry about the lack of precision but at least I was in the right ball park !

I'm sure you don't need me to tell you, no apology needed! It was close enough, and allowed me to see it which is all that matters!

[MarsG76]

Cool... when will a Jupiter-Moon Occultation happen.. now that would be a great telescopic sight.

 

[pi_co100]

Hard to believe but the sky was clear here in Letchworth at 11pm when Jupiter and the Moon moved away from my neighbour's trees. It was also great just to see with the naked eye. I have taken a quick snapshot with my Canon 6D attached to the Takahashi FC100DF at f4.8. I over-saturated the colours - just personal taste.

No HDR used (stack of 20 images all at 1/200) however can clearly see the little disk. I think Jupiter is 1700 times further away from the Earth than the Moon at the moment... 

Piero

[Pete Presland]

Looked superb out of the spare bedroom window at that time as well.