Boston

Astronomy
   
Welcome to the Boston Astronomy website!


This website has been created by and is supported by John Sheff, a Boston, MA - area amateur astronomer and informal astronomy educator. You can contact me at jsheff@bostonastronomy.net.  My intention in creating this site is to provide a convenient resource for access to news and information about astronomy and space-related activities of interest to the community and the public.
     














   


            

                                                                     

Upcoming Astronomy-Related Events in the Boston Area  

                                                           

     

Thursday, March 14, 2024, 8:00 PM - 10 PM

Amateur Telescope Makers of Boston (ATMoB) Monthly Meeting

Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics

60 Garden St.

Cambridge, MA 02138

http://www.atmob.org

Speaker and Topic: Miranda Eiben,  A Tale of Two Telescopes

 TolTEC camera assembly. Image courtesy UMASS Amherst. How do you design large complex engineering projects like today's modern telescopes? With systems engineering, which provides a framework to conceptualize, categorize, and subdivide major projects systematically. Our guest speaker, Miranda Eiben, will explore these practices by comparing two instruments that she has personally worked on, which may seem similar at their surface. The first is TolTEC, a millimeter survey camera for the Large Millimeter Telescope Alfonso Serrano. The second is the Background Imaging of Cosmic Extragalactic Polarization (BICEP) array, a series of millimeter refractors at the South Pole. By comparing these projects we will see how the high level goals impact design choices at the smallest levels. Miranda Eiben is a 5th year PhD student in the Harvard University's Astronomy Department. She works on millimeter optics materials research and development for the BICEP Array to study the Cosmic Microwave Background at the South Pole. Editor: “ “TolTEC” is not an acronym, but the name adopted for the instrument in honor of the Toltec ancient civilization of what is now central Mexico;(sic) it is where TolTEC will be ultimately installed.”

    

   


   

Accomodations Available for the April Eclipse in Burlington, VT!
  
Rooms Available for Rent in Burlington, VT for April 8, 2024 Total Solar Eclipse

 

Burlington is in the path of totality and viewers will enjoy about 3 minutes and 15 seconds of totality.

 

To accommodate solar eclipse enthusiasts, the First Unitarian Universalist Society of Burlington (Vermont) announces a Homestay Rental Program.
  
Members are making available one or more spare rooms in their homes; in some cases entire apartments are available for April 6,7 and/or April 8. 

 

An online purchasing platform, Auctria, can be viewed to see photos and descriptions of all available accommodations, at: 

 

Auctriaevent.auctria.com

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With over 100 restaurants, cafes, clubs and local shops, Burlington is a dynamic, arts-oriented city on the shore of Lake Champlain and will be a popular destination for 2024 eclipse viewers.

 

Questions can be referred to: eclipse@uusociety.org
 

         

                        

 

The sky as seen from Boston on March 16, 2024, at 8:00 PM EDT 

     


       
                   

Major Astronomical Events

    

March / April 2024

    
 
Mar. 3 Sun. 10:24 AM EST Last Quarter Moon
Mar. 7 Thur.   Juno perijove # 59
Mar. 8 Fri. 3:00 AM EST Moon 3.3° SE of Mars, 30° from Sun in morning sky
Mar. 8 Fri. 3:00 PM EST Moon 3° SE of Venus, 22° from Sun in morning sky
Mar. 9 Sat. 2:00 PM EST Moon 1.4° SE of Saturn, 9° from Sun in morning sky
 

Mar. 10

Sun.

2:00 AM EST / 3:00 AM EDT

Daylight Saving Time begins

Mar. 10 Sun. 2:57 AM EDT Moon @ perigee (356,521 km / 221,532 mi / 55.96 Earth radii)
Mar. 10 Sun. 4:02 AM EDT New Moon
Mar. 11 Mon. 12:00 AM EDT Moon 1° SE of Mercury, 11° from Sun in evening sky
Mar. 11 Mon. 2:00 PM EDT Sun enters Pisces
Mar. 13 Wed. 8:00 PM EDT Moon 3.4° NNW of Jupiter, 50° from Sun in evening sky
Mar. 14 Thur. 6:00 AM EDT Moon 3.2° NNW of Uranus, 56° from Sun in evening sky
 

Mar. 17

Sun.

6:53 AM EDT - 6:53 PM EDT

Equilux (day and night of equal length)

Mar. 17 Sun. 12:11 AM EDT First Quarter Moon
Mar. 17 Sun. 7:13 AM EDT Neptune @ solar conjunction
Mar. 19 Tue. 8:21 PM EDT - 10:16 PM EDT China launches Queqiao 2 lunar farside relay satellite

Mar. 19

Tue.

11:06 PM EDT

March (Spring) Equinox

Mar. 21 Thur. 8:00 PM EDT Venus 0.32° NNW of Saturn, 19° from Sun in morning sky
Mar. 23 Sat. 12:00 PM EDT Moon @ apogee (405,833 km / 252,173 mi / 63.70 Earth radii)
 
Mar. 24 Sun. 1:55 PM EDT Mercury @ greatest eastern elongation (19.5° E of Sun)
Mar. 25 Mon. 3:00 AM EDT Full Moon ("Full Worm Moon")
Mar. 25 Mon. 12:53 AM EDT - 5:32 AM EDT Penumbral lunar eclipse (max. @ 3:13 AM EDT)
Mar. 30 Sat.     Parker Solar Probe perihelion # 19
Apr. 1 Mon 11:15 PM EDT Last Quarter Moon
Apr. 5 Fri. 12:00 AM EDT Moon 2° S of Mars, 35° from Sun in morning sky
Apr. 6 Sat. 5:00 AM EDT Moon, Mars, and Saturn within circle 3.04° in diameter
Apr. 6 Sat. 5:00 AM EDT Moon 1.2° S of Saturn, 33° from Sun in moring sky
 
Apr. 7 Sun. 4:00 AM EDT Moon 0.4° S of Neptune, 20° from Sun in morning sky
Apr. 7 Sun. 12:44 PM EDT - 1:57 PM EDT Moon occults Venus (daylight), 15° from Sun in morning sky
Apr. 7 Sun. 1:51 PM EDT Moon @ perigee (358,850 km / 222,979 mi / 56.33 Earth radii)
Apr. 8 Mon. 2:16 PM EDT Partial solar eclipse begins
Apr. 8 Mon. 2:20PM EDT New Moon
Apr. 8 Mon. 3:29 PM EDT Maximum partial solar eclipse
Apr. 8 Mon. 4:39 PM EDT Partial solar eclipse ends
Apr. 9 Sat.     Juno perijove # 60
 
Apr. 10 Wed. 4:00 PM EDT Moon, Jupiter, and Uranus within circle 3.84° in diameter
Apr. 10 Wed. 5:00 PM EDT Moon 4° N of Jupiter, 28° from Sun in evening sky
Apr. 10 Wed. 8:00 PM EDT Moon 4° N of Uranus, 30° from Sun in evening sky
Apr. 10 Wed. 11:00 PM EDT Mars 0.5° N of Saturn, 37° from Sun in morning sky
 
Apr. 14 Sun.   Boeing Starliner launches to ISS
Apr. 15 Mon. 3:13 PM EDT First Quarter Moon
Apr. 18 Thur. 1:00 PM EDT Sun enters Aries
Apr. 18 Thur. 7:00 PM EDT Mercury 2° N of Venus, 12° from Sun in morning sky
Apr. 19 Fri. 10:10 PM EDT Moon @ apogee (405,624 km / 252,043 mi / 63.67 Earth radii)
Apr. 20 Sat. 4:00 AM EDT Jupiter 0.5° S of Uranus, 20° from Sun in evening sky
 
Apr. 22 Mon. 2:55 AM EDT Lyrid meteors peak (poor)
Apr. 23 Tue. 7:49 PM EDT Full Moon (Full Pink Moon")
 
Apr. 28 Sun. 12:00 AM EDT Mars 0.04° S of Neptune, 40° from Sun in morning sky

Bold = cool or important
* = not visible from Boston

   


             


An Overview of Major Astronomical Events in 2024

Jan. 2 Tue. 7:38 PM EST Earth @ perihelion (0.9833 AU / 147,093,163 km / 91,399,454 mi)
Jan. 3 Tue. 7:13:46 AM EST Latest sunrise of the year (7:13:46 AM EST)
Jan. 4 Thur. 5:00 AM EST Quadrantid meteors peak (fair)
Jan. 8 Mon. 2:18 AM EST Astrobotic Peregrine launched to Moon on ULA Vulcan
Jan. 8 Mon.   Autumn begins in Northern Hemisphere of Mars
Jan. 8 Mon. 9:46 AM EST - AM 10:55 EST Moon occults Antares (daylight)
Jan. 12 Fri. 2:18 PM EST Mercury @ greatest western elongation (25° W of Sun)
Jan. 19 Fri. 5:20 AM EDT Japanese SLIM mission lands near Shioli crater
Feb. 3 Sat.   Juno perijove # 58; Io flyby (1,500 km / 930 mi)
Feb. 15 Thur.   Intuitive Machiine's NOVA--C launched to Maalpert A
Feb. 28 Wed. 4:16 PM EST Saturn @ solar conjunction
Mar. 7 Thur.   Juno perijove # 59

Mar. 10

Sun.

2:00 AM EST / 3:00 AM EDT

Daylight Saving Time begins

Mar. 17

Thur.

6:53 AM EDT - 6:53 PM EDT

Equilux (day and night of equal length)

Mar. 17 Sun. 7:13 AM EDT Neptune @ solar conjunction
Mar. 19 Tue. 8:21 PM EDT - 10:16 PM EDT China launches Queqiao 2 lunar farside relay satellite

Mar. 19

Tue.

11:01 PM EDT

March (Spring) Equinox

Mar. 24 Sun. 1:55 PM EDT Mercury @ greatest eastern elongation (19.5° E of Sun)
Mar. 25 Mon. 12:53 AM EDT - 5:32 AM EDT Penumbral lunar eclipse (max. @ 3:13 AM EDT)
Mar. 30 Sat.     Parker Solar Probe perihelion # 19
Apr. 7 Sun. 12:44 PM EDT - 1:57 PM EDT Moon occults Venus (daylight)
Apr. 8 Mon.   Total solar eclipse
Apr. 9 Sat.     Juno perijove # 60
Apr. 14 Sun.   Boeing Starliner launches to ISS
Apr. 22 Mon. 2:55 AM EDT Lyrid meteors peak (poor)
May 9 Thur. 3:44 AM EDT Mercury @ greatest western elongation (26° W of Sun)
May 12 Sun.       Juno perijove # 61
May 13 Mon. 5:04 AM EDT Uranus @ solar conjunction
May 18 Sat. 2:343 PM EDT Jupiter @ solar conjunction
Jun. 4 Tue. 12:03 PM EDT Venus @ superior conjunction
Jun. 7 Fri.   Winter solstice in Northern Hemisphere of Mars
Jun. 14 Fri. 5:07 AM EDT Earliest sunrise of year (5:07:00 AM EDT)
Jun. 20 Thur. 4:49 PM EDT June (Summer) Solstice
Jun. 22 Sat.   Juno perijove # 62
Jun. 27 Thur. 8:25 PM EDT Latest sunset of year (8:25:23 PM)
Jun. 30 Sun.   Parker Solar Probe perihelion # 20

Jul. 5

Fri. 1:06 AM EDT Earth @ aphelion (1.017 AU / 152.1 milion km / 94,510,886 miles)
Jul. 13 Sat./Sun. 11:22 PM EDT - 12:11 PM EDT Moon occults Spica
Jul. 17 Wed. 4:06 AM EDT Juno perijove # 63
Jul. 21 Sun. 11:37 PM EDT Mercury @ greatest eastern elongation (26°  E of Sun)
Aug. 6     ESCAPADE Smallsats launched on New Glenn to orbit Mars
Aug. 12 Mon. 10:00 AM EDT Perseid meteors peak (fair)
Aug. 18 Sun.   Juno perijove # 6
Aug. 23 Fri.   JUICE Mission Moon (750 km / 466 mi)-Earth (6,800 km / 4,225 mi) flyby
Sept. 4 Wed. 10:24 PM EDT Mercury @ greatest western elongation (18° W of Sun)
Sept. 5 Thur.         Bepi-Comobo Mercury flyby # 4
Sept. 6 Fri. 11:31 AM EDT - 12:44 PM EDT Moon occults Spica (daytime)
Sept. 8 Sun. 12:27 AM EDT Saturn @ opposition
Sept. 17 Tue. 8:41 PM EDT - 12:47 AM EDT Partial lunar eclipse
Sept. 18 Wed. 4:10 AM EDT - 4:35 AM EDT Moon occults Neptune
Sept. 20 Fri.   Juno perijove # 65 
Sept. 20 Fri. 8:08 PM EDT Neptune @ opposition
Sept. 22 Sun. 8:43 AM EDT September (Fall) Equinox
Sept. 27 Fri.    Comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS) @ perihelion
Sept. 30 Mon.    Parker Solar Probe perihelion # 21
Oct. 2 Wed. 11:44 PM  EDT - 5:46 PM EDT Annular solar eclipse (E. Pacific, Patagonia, S. Atlantic)
Oct. 8 Tue. 9:08 AM EDT Draconid meteors peak (fair)
Oct. 10 Thur.   Europa Clipper launch to Jupiter
Oct. 12 Sat.   Comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS) @ closest approach
Oct. 23 Wed.    Juno perijove # 66
Oct. 21 Sat. 8:00 PM EDT Orionid meteors peak (excellent)

Oct. 28

Sat.

5:40 PM EDT

Partial lunar eclipse

Nov. 3

Sun.

1:00 AM EST / 2:00 AM EDT

Daylight Saving Time ends

Nov. 6 Wed.   Parker Solar Probe Venus flyby # 7
Nov. 11 Mon. 9:19 PM EDT - 10:28 PM EDT Moon occults Neptune
Nov. 12 Tue.   Spring begins in Northern Hemisphere of Mars
Nov. 16 Sat. 4:18 AM EST Mercury @ greatest eastern elongation (22° E of Sun)
Nov. 16 Sat. 9:37 PM EST Uranus @ opposition

Nov. 17

Sun.

7:00 PM EST

Leonid meteors peak. (poor)

Nov. 25 Mon.    Juno perijove # 67
Nov. 27 Wed. 5:39 AM EST - 6:55 AM EST Moon occults Spica
Dec. 2 Mon.   BepiColombo Mercury flyby # 5
Dec. 7 Sat. 3:51 PM EST Jupiter @ opposition

Dec. 8

Sun.

4:11 PM EST

Earliest sunset of year (4:11:40 PM EST)

Dec. 13 Fri.   Lucy Earth flyby # 2

Dec. 14

Thur.

2:00 PM EST

Geminid meteors peak. (poor)

Dec. 21

Sat.

4:20 AM EST

December (Winter) Solstice

Dec. 22

Thur. 5:00 AM EST Ursid meteors peak (fair)
Dec. 24 Tue.    Parker Solar Probe perihelion # 22 (6.1 million km / 3.8 million mi / .04 AU
Dec. 25 Wed. 2:10 AM EST Mercury @ greatest western elongation (22° W of Sun)
Dec. 28 Sat.    Juno perijove # 68
Dec. 30 Mon.   Rocket Labs Venus Life Finder launch
   
Dates to be announced:
   
Apr.     Sierra Space's Dream Chaser launched to ISS
May     Chang'e 6 launched for farside sample return
Oct.     ESA Hera mission launched to asteroid Didymos/Dimorphos
Nov.     NASA VIPER lunar rover launches to Moon's South Pole
3Q - 4Q     Firefly's Blue Ghost lunar lander launched to Mare Crisium

Bold = cool or important
* = not visible from Boston