THURSDAY,  MAY 24, 2018.

SCARBOROUGH, NORTH YORKSHIRE, U.K.

REMOTE PLANETS: RIGHT ASCENSION/DECLINATION CHARTS for 2018 are in place. See MENU: REMOTE PLANETS 

 The graphic, at the foot of this page shows Saturn and its fascinating moon ENCELADUS, thought to be a possible abode of life, as is Jupiter's satellite Europa!

CONFIGURATION OF THE GALILEAN SATELLITES OF JUPITER may be seen, for early morning, towards the bottom of this page also

SKYNOTES are available. Use The MENU above for APRIL, MAY and JUNE  2018 SKYNOTES. 

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: THE PATH OF DWARF PLANET CERES (1) February to May 2018 The location chart may be found on the ASTEROID Page,  accessible via the MENU above.

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).

Clicking on the time of the flare will give more details about the flare, including a sky chart. IRIDIUM FLARE SATELLITES --- SCARBOROUGH UT times.  When and where to look and what you will see:

Time	Brightness	Altitude	Azimuth	Satellite	Distance to flare centre	Brightness at flare centre	Sun altitude
May 19, 02:04:26	-7.8	46°	298° (WNW)	Iridium 62	3 km (W)	-7.9	-11°
May 19, 23:01:11	0.4	43°	241° (WSW)	Iridium 83	51 km (W)	-7.9	-15°
May 20, 02:04:03	0.9	42°	299° (WNW)	Iridium 14	60 km (W)	-7.8	-11°
May 20, 21:51:21	-6.2	20°	287° (WNW)	Iridium 61	4 km (E)	-6.2	-11°
May 20, 21:59:32	-0.8	18°	289° (WNW)	Iridium 7	82 km (W)	-6.1	-11°
May 20, 22:00:15	0.7	17°	290° (WNW)	Iridium 35	131 km (W)	-6.0	-11°
May 20, 22:55:05	-7.9	45°	240° (WSW)	Iridium 56	3 km (E)	-8.0	-14°
May 21, 21:17:41	-3.1	12°	348° (NNW)	Iridium 61	31 km (E)	-5.3	-8°
May 21, 22:49:06	-5.4	45°	243° (WSW)	Iridium 84	9 km (E)	-7.9	-14°
May 22, 01:51:01	-7.4	42°	302° (WNW)	Iridium 62	4 km (W)	-7.8	-12°
May 23, 01:45:40	-0.7	42°	304° (NW)	Iridium 70	38 km (E)	-7.7	-12°
May 23, 21:47:31	-0.3	16°	295° (WNW)	Iridium 35	120 km (E)	-5.8	-10°
May 23, 22:00:10	-5.4	14°	298° (WNW)	Iridium 7	23 km (W)	-5.6	-11°
May 23, 22:46:06	0.2	41°	249° (WSW)	Iridium 50	51 km (W)	-7.8	-13°
May 23, 23:58:35	-4.4	56°	204° (SSW)	Iridium 39	9 km (W)	-8.5	-15°
May 24, 00:12:58	0.7	57°	186° (S)	Iridium 41	44 km (E)	-8.4	-15°
May 24, 22:40:05	-3.5	42°	250° (WSW)	Iridium 53	16 km (W)	-7.8	-13°
May 25, 01:37:34	-7.5	38°	307° (NW)	Iridium 62	1 km (W)	-7.6	-12°

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.

PLEASE FEEL FREE TO DOWNLOAD AND USE ANY OF THE MATERIAL FROM MY WEBSITE, WHICH YOU FIND USEFUL. THAT IS WHAT IT IS HERE FOR ! 

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. A special thanks to Trish,the producer and Paul Hudson for giving me a seasonal 'slot' on Paul's Weather Show which is broadcast over a number of neighbouring local BBC radio stations. My thanks to you all!

I reserve a special thanks for the late Senior English Master, at Normanton Grammar School, Mr T Hewson, who made me stand up in class during English on Tuesday afternoons, and read aloud several pages of Gulliver's Travels, despite the difficulties I had in reading words.Thanks to him, I can now read properly and he taught me confidence to share my love of Astronomy with all to whom I am invited to speak  .   

 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 Harper. F.R.A.S.

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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!', Around the same time, on BBC's Children's Hour, there was the dramatisation of 'The Lost Planet' series of books, written by Angus McVicar, which told of an expedition to Hesikos, the peaceful planet,where the flowers known as 'Charity', boomed in profusion. these two 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

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

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 !

SCARBOROUGH'S SUN/MOON RISE AND SET TIMES:  THURSDAY, MAY 24, 2018. 

SCARBOROUGH, NORTH YORKSHIRE, U.K.

SUNRISE:             04h 43   BST  (= UT + 1h)

SUNSET:              21h 13   BST  (= UT + 1h)

MOONRISE:         15h 02   BST  (= UT + 1h)

MOONSET:          03h 16   BST  (= UT + 1h)    

HIGH AND LOW TIDES: THURSDAY, MAY 24

SCARBOROUGH, U.K. (NORTH SEA).

HIGH:                   00h 43    BST   (= UT + 1h)

LOW:                    06h 57    BST   (= UT + 1h) 

HIGH:                   12h 54    BST   (= UT + 1h) 

LOW:                    19h 41    BST   (= UT + 1h)

HIGH:                   01h 51    BST   (FRI) 

LOW:                    08h 05    BST   (FRI) 

HIGH:                   13h 59   BST   (FRI)

LOW:                    20h 41    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.

The images of Scarborough on this page are produced by Scarborough residents, who have given me their permission to use, so that you may see how beautiful our town is, through all the changing seasons of the year. My grateful thanks to them all.

THINGS TO LOOK FOR:

JUPITER AT OPPOSITION AND NEAREST TO EARTH - Wednesday, MAY 09, 2018

THE PATH OF DWARF PLANET CERES (1) February to May 2018, may be found on the ASTEROID Page,  accessible via the MENU above.

The times when ALGOL (Beta Persei), the famous eclipsing variable star reaches its MINIMUM brightness may be found in the monthly SKYNOTES summary for each month. The star has a page dedicated to itself also, accessible via the MENU above.

JUPITER'S GALILEAN SATELLITES. Their daily changing configuration in relation to Jupiter. The planet can be seen low in the southern sky around 02h.UT during APRIL

(see below)