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Saturn closest, brightest, opposite the sun April 28

 
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User ID: 38994554
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04/28/2013 04:46 AM
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Saturn closest, brightest, opposite the sun April 28
The best time of 2013 to see Saturn is now, as our planet Earth flies between the sun and Saturn today, Sunday, April 28, 2013

Our fast movement in orbit brings us between Saturn and the sun every year. The event is called opposition by astronomers. In other words, Saturn is now opposite the sun in Earth’s sky. At opposition, Saturn rises in the east at sunset and sets in the west at sunrise. So Saturn is up all night, well placed for viewing. Opposition also brings Saturn closest to Earth for all of 2013. As a result, Saturn is now shining most brilliantly in our sky for the year. It’ll be in a good place to observe, shining brightly, throughout April and May 2013. If you recognize it now, you’ll also enjoy it throughout the Northern Hemisphere summer.

Give me five minutes, I’ll give you Saturn in 2013

If you had a bird’s-eye view of the solar system today, you’d see our planet Earth passing in between the sun and Saturn. You’d see the sun, Earth, and Saturn lining up in space. But not for long. Earth moves in orbit at 18 miles per second in contrast to about 6 miles per second for Saturn. Soon, we’ll be pulling ahead of Saturn in the race of the planets.

The inner planets – Mercury and Venus – can never be at opposition, because they orbit the sun inside Earth’s orbit. Only the planets that orbit the sun beyond Earth’s orbit – Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune – can ever reach opposition, that is, appear opposite the sun in Earth’s sky.

All the planets farther from the sun reach opposition every time our swifter-moving planet sweeps between the sun and them. That happens about once a year, since Earth takes a year to orbit the sun once, and since these outer worlds move more slowly than we do.

Saturn, the 6th planet outward from the sun, is the most distant world that’s easily visible to the unaided eye. The ringed planet returns to opposition about 2 weeks later every year. Telescopes revealed its rings in the 17th century. Spacecraft in the 20th century revealed that what we thought of as three rings around Saturn is actually thousands of thin, finely detailed rings – made of tiny chunks of ice. Saturn also has 62 moons with confirmed orbits. Only 53 of Saturn’s moons have names, and only 13 have diameters larger than 50 kilometers (about 30 miles). Saturn is truly a wondrous world of rings and moons. It’s everyone’s favorite thing to see through a small telescope, so if there’s a public astronomy night near you this month – go!

Drive a spike to the star Spica and find Saturn in spring and summer 2013

How can you find Saturn in 2013? It’s not hard to find the ringed planet this year. The planet appears to the east of the blue-white star Spica on the sky’s dome. Saturn itself is golden in color, so you should be able to tell the planet from the star. How can you find Spica? Use a phrase familiar to stargazers: follow the arc to Arcturus and drive a spike to Spica. In other words, first locate the Big Dipper in the northeast now in the evening. Follow the curve in its handle until you come to the orange star Arcturus in the constellation Bootes. Extend that line until you the star Spica. The planet Saturn will be lower in the sky, about 15o below Spica. For reference, a fist at an arm legth approximates 10o of sky.

Bottom line: Look for Saturn at opposition tonight, April 28, 2013. It will be shining in the east at nightfall, below the bright star Spica. To the eye, the ringed planet looks like a respectably bright steady star. Saturn follows Spica across the sky tonight and reaches its highest point around midnight. When Saturn climbs high in the sky, where Earth’s turbulent atmosphere thins out and settles down, Saturn is a treat for telescope users, who can view the planet’s glorious rings.

Stunning new images of Saturn’s moons Dione and Enceladus

[link to earthsky.org]
Anonymous Coward
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04/28/2013 04:49 AM
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Re: Saturn closest, brightest, opposite the sun April 28
Yep.

And look about 12-degrees toward the left of Saturn to find Nibiru (around 24-degrees Scorpio)


Saturn
8-degrees 13' Scorpio (geocentric), and retrograde
8-degrees 13' Scorpio (heliocentric)

alienship
Anonymous Coward
User ID: 6253502
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04/28/2013 04:50 AM
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Re: Saturn closest, brightest, opposite the sun April 28
16, not 12
Anonymous Coward (OP)
User ID: 38994554
India
04/28/2013 04:53 AM
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Re: Saturn closest, brightest, opposite the sun April 28
Yep.

And look about 12-degrees toward the left of Saturn to find Nibiru (around 24-degrees Scorpio)


Saturn
8-degrees 13' Scorpio (geocentric), and retrograde
8-degrees 13' Scorpio (heliocentric)

alienship
 Quoting: Anonymous Coward 6253502


where in this image ?
[link to news.yahoo.com]





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