THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 21, 2017.

SCARBOROUGH, NORTH YORKSHIRE, U.K. 

The photos, on either side of the SUN/MOON rise/set times and the TIDES, showing different aspects of SCARBOROUGH, are by Ian Atkinson, and are changed, and captioned by him, each day. Thanks Ian!

REMOTE PLANETS: RIGHT ASCENSION/DECLINATION CHARTS for  2017 have been updated. See MENU: REMOTE PLANETS 

Graphic showing the current appearance of SATURN with the northern surface of the rings well placed for observation. The graphic is to be found at the foot of this page. Also, there is a graphic showing Saturn and its fascinating moon ENCELADUS, a possible abode of life?

 Both OCTOBER, 2017 and NOVEMBER, 2017 SKYNOTES are available. DECEMBER SKYNOTES are being prepared,

If you wish to use any of the material in John's Skynotes (see MENU, above.) please feel free to do so; I would, however appreciate you please sharing the URL of my website, so that others may use it too --- Thank you !

 Added: Andrey Plekhanov's predictions for the occultations of brighter stars by Dwarf Planets (asteroids) in SEPTEMBER, 2017, possible for the Scarborough area of North Yorkshire. Use the MENU to go to the ASTEROIDAL EVENTS page for his table of these occultations.

Good MUSIC while browsing, and perhaps catching me talking about the sky, every now and again:

COAST AND COUNTY RADIO:

www.coastandcountyradio.co.uk 

- and for ambient space music try:

MOON PHASE RADIO:

www.moonphaseradio.com

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INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION & IRIDIUM FLARE SATELLITES' VISIBILITY

 For information about suitable times to see the ISS, other satellites, and interesting objects, and to download the application if you wish, go to the following admirable and authorative site :

www.heavens-above.com

ISS - Visible passes from SCARBOROUGH: The international Space Station has the appearance of a bright star moving across the sky from west to east. it is often around the same brightness of Jupiter, (the fourth brightest celestial object in the sky after the Sun, Moon, and Venus).

REMEMBER TO ADD ONE HOUR TO THE TIMES IN THE TABLE BELOW FOR LOCAL DAYLIGHT SAVINGS TIME.

IRIDIUM FLARE SATELLITES --- SCARBOROUGH UT times. (ADD 1 hour for local BS Time) 

Time Brightness Altitude Azimuth Satellite Distance to flare centre Brightness at flare centre Sun altitude Sep 21, 04:24:15 -1.4 55° 209° (SSW) Iridium 91 23 km (W) -8.3 -12°  Sep 21, 18:55:52 -2.4 43° 2° (N) Iridium 5 17 km (E) -7.7 -9°  Sep 22, 04:18:12 -2.8 56° 207° (SSW) Iridium 59 16 km (E) -8.3 -14°  Sep 22, 18:49:44 -7.8 45° 2° (N) Iridium 8 0 km (W) -7.8 -8°  Sep 23, 04:12:06 0.0 57° 208° (SSW) Iridium 95 39 km (E) -8.4 -15°  Sep 23, 04:12:17 -1.6 56° 210° (SSW) Iridium 55 23 km (E) -8.4 -15°  Sep 23, 05:48:47 -5.9 45° 150° (SSE) Iridium 19 6 km (E) -7.6 -1°  Sep 23, 18:43:35 -4.0 47° 3° (N) Iridium 61 10 km (E) -7.9 -8°  Sep 24, 18:37:26 -7.9 49° 2° (N) Iridium 35 0 km (E) -7.9 -7°  Sep 25, 18:31:19 -2.8 50° 4° (N) Iridium 6 15 km (E) -8.0 -6°  Sep 26, 03:59:12 -0.6 54° 217° (SW) Iridium 55 34 km (E) -8.4 -17°  Sep 27, 05:33:39 -3.8 47° 161° (SSE) Iridium 35 10 km (W) -7.8 -4°  Sep 27, 18:19:00 -6.2 53° 4° (N) Iridium 19 5 km (E) -8.1 -5°

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WELCOME to  JONVRAN.CO.UK, John's simple astronomy site where you will find information about what is happening in the night sky from the point of view of SCARBOROUGH in the United Kingdom, Latitude 54 deg. 17 minutes NORTH, Longitude 00 deg. 25 minutes WEST, (Situated on the East Coast, midway between LONDON and EDINBURGH, and Mainland Britain); as well as what I hope are other interesting bits and pieces, of use to everyone. You can contact me using the form in the CONTACT area, should you wish to do so.

Thank you so much for visiting this site.

Historically these 'Skynotes' are a direct cyber-descendent, of the paper skynotes I prepared by hand for members, at each meeting of the Scarborough Astronomical Society from the moment the Society began in 1976. In those days, I produced all the illustrations including the star charts by hand, but now, with the advent of excellent Astronomy software programs, I am able to use much better graphics, for which I thank the many programmers who have produced these wonderful software gems. In the CREDITS section you will find a list of these amazing sources that allow me to continue to produce my 'Skynotes', for the benefit of all.

It does not seem that they have been produced continuously for 40 years, but as the latin inscription tells us: TEMPVS FVGIT ! (Time Flies!)

There are many 'pages' in this new version of 'SKYNOTES'. They are listed in the MENU at the top of the page.  May you find within them something of interest, and may I, here, express my gratitude to the many people who have already visited, this, my small contribution towards the popularisation of Astronomy, which has been my lifelong aim.

I would also like to thank the various presenters, past and present, of BBC Radio York, for letting me have regular night sky slots since the Radio Station began, many moons ago. A 'thank you' also to the other local radio stations, who put up with me, paticularly when I forget what I was talking about, having gone off at a 'tangent' (= digression). These include: Yorkshire Coast Radio and Radio Scarborough, a good local Internet station, BBC Radio Leeds, Radio 5 Live, and Radio 4.

 It is my hope that you will enjoy these pages, and return here often to take what you will from this site, as the months change, the result of Earth's journey around the sun.

May you too, always follow safe paths, and have clear, and unclouded skies !

jonvran

John.

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ABOUT ME:

'MOON MAGIC' --- A poem by Pamela Tennant (I learned this, as a junior school child, at the Church of England Primary School in Normanton, West Yorkshire, England.

One day, when father and I had been

To sell our sheep at Berwick Green;

We reached the farm house, late at night,

A great moon rising, round and bright.

Her strange beams shed on all around,

 Bewitched the trees, and streams, and ground;

Changing the Willows, beyond the stacks,

To little old men with crouching backs!

Today, the Sun was shining plain,

They all were pollard willows again;

But at night, do you believe they're trees?

They're little old men with twisted knees !

My interest in Astronomy began as a child, when I saw the feature called 'The Man in the Moon', for the first time (so I am told!). Several years later my father bought me a book called 'The Starry Heavens' by Ellison Hawks F.R.A.S., followed a Christmas later by another book, 'Introducing Astronomy' by J.B Sidgewick F.R.A.S.. With this book and a torch, I went out at night and looked at the starry skies to identify the constellations, and learned, with delight, the stories of these 'Star Patterns'. Then on Tuesday nights, around 7.30pm , after rushing through my Normanton Grammar School homework, I listened with great excitement to the serial dramatisation of Charles Chilton's novel ' 'Journey Into Space --Operation Luna!' which launched me, well and truly, to the stars! My journey had begun!

After being a member of the Batley and Spenborough Astronomical Society for a number of years, during the time I had my first teaching post at The Cathedral City High School in Wakefield (West Yorkshire), I started the school's astronomical society.  Ten years later in 1975, I came to Scarborough, as Head of Religious Studies at Scalby School and founded the town's astronomical society, because I discovered that there wasn't one; although later, I found that in the past, the Scarborough Philosophical Society had an astronomy 'branch' for a while.

I am a Fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society, a member the British Astronomical Association and the Society for Popular Astronomy. These are the three main national astronomical societies. As a member of the  Society for Popular Astronomy, I became the Director of the Occultation Observing Section, and introduced the observing and timing of asteroidal occultations. When I gave up that post, because of optical problems, I was honoured by the S.P.A. who made me a honorary life member.

Now, as one of Pamela Tennant's 'little old men with twisted knees' I do my best to observe from my observatory in the 'back yard'. I try to give opportunities for people to look at the night sky when special events take place up there, beyond our atmosphere; and, of course, to produce these 'Skynotes' in the hope that they are of some use to those who like me, a long time ago,.... go out on clear nights to discover, as I did, the wonders of our night skies. In these ways I am able to say 'thank you' to my life long hobby of, in my opinion, the noblest of all the sciences, Astronomy.

Zodiac
Eleanor Farjeon

What are the signs of Zodiac,
Marked in stars in Heaven's track?

In March a horn-ed Ram doth run
Between the visits of the sun.

April rides upon a Bull
Vigorous and beautiful.

The Twins we call the Gemini
May-month cradles in the sky.

In June the Crab goes crawling o'er
The spaces of the heavenly shore.

Where the Crab no longer creeps,
In July the Lion leaps.

Through August nights, like daisy-laden
Meadows, walks a Vestal Maiden.

September though it blows big gales,
Holds aloft a pair of Scales.

On October's map is shown
A star-bespangled Scorpion.

In November, kneeling low,
See, the Archer bends his bow.

December's frolic is a Goat
Bleating in his starry throat.

The Water-Carrier bears on high,
His jar in January's sky.

February brings a pair
Of Fish to swim in dark blue air.

These are the Signs of Zodiac,
Marking time in Heaven's track.

Universe Eleanor Farjeon

The Universe is all the skies
Reaching far beyond your eyes.

The Universe is all the seas
Spreading in unseen degrees.

The Universe is all the earth
Besides the spot that gave you birth.

If you can with your small eye
Know one star in all the sky;

If, of all the seas there be,
From one beach you know the sea;

If, of all the land on earth,
You can know one meadow's worth;

You might do a great deal worse
To understand the Universe.

HYMN TO DIANA 

Queen and huntress, chaste and fair,

Now the Sun is laid to sleep,

Seated in thy silver chair,

State in wonted manner keep;

Earth let not thine envious shade

Dare itself to interpose:

Cynthia's shining orb was made

Heaven to cheer when day did close.

Lay thy bow of pearl apart,

And thy crystal shining quiver;

Give unto the flying hart

Space to breathe, how short soever;

Hesperus entreats thy light

Goddess excellently bright;

Bless us then with wish-ed sight

Thou who makes a day of night.

Ben Jonson

REMEMBER IT IS VERY UNWISE TO LOOK AT THE SUN unless you have the proper astronomical filters for the purpose, NOT the one often provided by the telescope manufacturer. IT IS SAFER TO PROJECT THE SUN'S IMAGE ONTO A SCREEN. Never look through view finders at the sun. instead look at the shadow of the instrument on a card. When the shadow is as small as it can be, it is pointing towards the sun, and you will see the safe image of the Sun on the card. NEVER LOOK DIRECTLY AT THE SUN------ IT CAN BLIND YOU !

ESCAPE AT BEDTIME

The lights from the parlour and kitchen shone out 
Through the blinds and the windows, and bars;
And high overhead and all moving about,
 
There were thousands of millions of stars.
There ne’er were such thousands of leaves on a tree,
Nor of people in church or the Park,
As the crowds of the stars that looked down upon me,
And that glittered and winked in the dark.
The Dog, and the Plough, and the Hunter, and all,
And the star of the sailor, and Mars,
These shone in the sky, and the pail by the wall
Would be half full of water and stars.
They saw me at last, and they chased me with cries,
And,
 they soon had me packed into bed;
But the glory kept shining and bright in my eyes,
And the stars going round in my head.

ROBERT LOUIS STEVENSON

SCARBOROUGH'S SUN/MOON RISE AND SET TIMES:  THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 21, 2017. 

SCARBOROUGH, NORTH YORKSHIRE, U.K.

SUNRISE:             06h 45  BST

SUNSET:              19h 03   BST

MOONRISE:         07h 54   BST      

MOONSET:          19h 52   BST        

HIGH AND LOW TIDES: THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 21.

SCARBOROUGH, U.K. (NORTH SEA).

LOW:                    23h 39    BST   (WED) 

HIGH:                   05h 31    BST  

LOW:                    12h 02    BST   

HIGH:                   17h 56    BST  

LOW:                    00h 15    BST   (FRI)

HIGH:                   06h 08    BST   (FRI) 

LOW:                    12h 37    BST   (FRI) 

HIGH:                   18h 32    BST   (FRI)

(Please note : the times given here are simply a guide to give an impression of the approximate time of HIGH and LOW water, in Scarborough's two bays and must not be relied upon to be completely accurate). This section is basically for people who like to walk on the beach and to inform whether the tide is in or out, visually.

THINGS TO LOOK FOR:

ALGOL (Beta Persei), the famous eclipsing variable star, which has a page dedicated to it, accessible via the MENU above, reaches its MINIMUM BRIGHTNESS on: SEPTEMBER 11 at 18h 02, SEPTEMBER 23 at 05h 16, SEPTEMBER 26 at 02h 05, and SEPTEMBER 28 at 22h 54 UT.