Look Up Friday! Green Comet and Snow Moon Eclipse Team Up for Skywatchers

[Judi Lynn]

Source: Live Science

Look Up Friday! Green Comet and Snow Moon Eclipse Team Up for Skywatchers
By Elizabeth Howell, Live Science Contributor | February 10, 2017 06:56am ET





Comet 45P/Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusáková captured in Kekaha, Hawaii on Dec. 23, 2016.
Credit: Jim Denny


Skywatchers this weekend will get two special, subtle treats: a penumbral lunar eclipse on Friday (Feb. 10) and a strange green comet reaching its peak viewing time the following morning.

First, February's full moon — the "snow moon" — will pass through the edge of the Earth's shadow, which is called the penumbra. During this "full snow moon eclipse," the moon will be completely shaded, making the change easier to see, although it won't stand out as much as a typical lunar eclipse when the moon passes deep into the heart of Earth's shadow, called the umbra, and turns a ruddy color.

Meanwhile, Comet 45P/Honda-Mrkos-Pajdusakova will be visible in the predawn hours by skywatchers using binoculars or small telescopes between Thursday and Sunday, in the constellation Hercules in the eastern sky. The comet's closest approach will come on Saturday, when the object will pass just 7.4 million miles (12 million kilometers) from Earth.

While that's 20 times the distance to the moon, the comet's approach is close by celestial standards. Comet 45P will appear blueish-green due to vaporizing diatomic carbon, which appears green in space's near-vacuum conditions.

Read more: http://www.livescience.com/57840-green-comet-snow-moon-eclipse-friday.html?utm_source=notification

[BumRushDaShow]

1. Supposed to be overcast here in Philly

for much of this time.

[eppur_se_muova]

2. Star charts at earthsky.org ...

http://earthsky.org/astronomy-essentials/comet-45phonda-mrkos-pajdusakova-new-years-eve





Vega (1st chart) is one of the brightest stars in the sky; Arcturus, also one of the brightest (at the sharp "tip" of Bootes, off the right edge of the 2nd chart), is a bright red supergiant which can be found by following the curve of the 'handle' of the Big Dipper ("arc to Arcturus, spike to Spica&quot . Look for the odd "lozenge" shape of Bootes and the trapezoidal "Keystone".

[2naSalit]

3. Cool! I didn't know about the comet!

Thanks!

[AllaN01Bear]

4. rats . wont be able to see it beause of clouds.