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Looks like a nice clear sky tonight -for some of us at least. Some items to look for in the Canada Day night sky: With late sunset (9:07p.m. in Avonport) It is after 10 p.m. before the sky is dark enough to show anything ....except for VENUS ! Venus is a BRILLIANT jewel above the western horizon just now. Certainly by 9:45 it can be seen well up in west; by 10:15 -10:30 it is dazzling in the darkening twilight. Around that time, one should begin to see Regulus (the main star of LEO), Mars, and Saturn, (in that order) forming a straight LINE diagonally up to the left from Venus, all about evenly spaced. Over July Venus and Mars converge on Saturn. First week in August these 3 planets form a binocular-field-huddle above the LOW western horizon. On clear summer evenings It will be neat to watch this huddle of planetary arrangement take place. The one challenge is the lingering twilight; that part of the sky gradually gets flooded with the advance of the Sun as it moves into that part of the sky (mid August Sun is located near Regulus, just left to where Venus is tonight). Venus is about 8 light-minutes (l-min) distant, Mars is about 14 l- min, and Saturn is about 79 l-min, Regulus is 77 light years (l-y) distant. (If you could travel at the speed of a cell phone call, which travels at light speed, the light year or the light minute is how long it would take to reach the object referred to) The Space Station makes some late evening (night) passes that are visible. One at 10:40 p.m 25 deg to the north and one at 12:16 a.m. 35 deg to the NNE. (The space Station at its 370km altitude is much less than one second away using the speed of light) Arcturus (36 light years away) is the bright star up toward overhead in the southward. You'll notice that the Big Dipper has at a lofty perch as well. Hope you all enjoyed your Canada Day ! Sherman
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