In The Sky This Month
September 1997

Date  Time  Event

2/9      02h    NEW MOON. Eclipse not visible from S.A.
5/9      14h    Venus 3 deg S of Moon. You should be able to see Venus with the naked eye during the day.
13/9    03h    Neptune 4 deg S of Moon.
13/9    16h    Uranus 4 deg S of Moon
16/9    21h    FULL MOON.  Eclipse - See below for more details.
16/9    17h    Moon at perigee. Being so close to Full moon this means that
                    the spring tides will be a little higher and lower than usual.
23/9    02h    Equinox.  The sun crosses over into the southern hemisphere.

Lunar Eclipse September 16th 1997.

Moonrise is at 17h50m from Johannesburg.

Moon enters penumbra   18h 11.0m
Moon enters umbra        19h 08.0m
Moon enters totality        20h 15.4m
Middle of eclipse            20h 46.6m
Moon leaves totality        21h 17.9m
Moon leaves umbra        22h 25.2m
Moon leaves penumbra  23h 22.2m

  October 1997

Date  Time  Event

1/10    19h     NEW MOON.
8/10    20h 11m  Occultation of mag 6.0 star by the moon.
10/10   06h    Saturn at Opposition.
11/10   00h    Uranus 4 deg S of Moon.
11/10   13h    Jupiter 4 deg S of Moon. You should be able to see Jupiter with
......................small binoculars at lunch time!  Maybe even without optical aid?
15/10   20h    Saturn 0.4 deg S of Moon.
16/10   06h    FULL MOON.
31/10   12h    NEW MOON. Two new moons in one month.
                     ( Isn’t that what gave rise to the expression “once in a blue moon”? )

Date  Moon rise  Moon set   Sun rise   Sun set

1/10       05h 38        18h 01         05h 50     18h 08
11/10     13h 20         01h 51        05h 39     18h 12
21/10     23h 40         09h 56        05h 27     18h 17
 

Brian Fraser