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From Concordia to the Moon


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Concordia is a research station in Antarctica that places you farther away from humankind than even the International Space Station. Every year, ESA sponsors a medical doctor to spend a year, or "winterover," at Concordia station. This year, our medical doctor is Jessica Kehala Studer, who is seen in this picture gazing at the Moon and the vast expanse of Antarctica. Around May, the Sun dips below the horizon for the last time, and the crew experiences four months of total darkness, with temperatures dropping to –80°C in winter. 

The station serves as an analogue for space, mirroring the challenges and conditions faced by astronauts such as isolation, extreme cold and darkness, along with their impact on  health. Concordia is a unique platform for research in human physiology and psychology, as well as astronomy, meteorology, glaciology and other fields. 

Last Saturday, we celebrated Moon Day: 55 years ago on 20 July 1969, humankind stepped on the Moon for the first time during the Apollo 11 mission. Today, ESA is a key part of NASA's Artemis programme which aims to return humans to the Moon. The insights gained from ESA's experience in analogue facilities such as Concordia will be invaluable for this mission. 

Find out more about Concordia on our blog

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    • By NASA
      Skywatching Skywatching Home Eclipses What’s Up Explore the Night Sky Night Sky Network More Tips and Guides FAQ 24 Min Read The Next Full Moon Will Be the Last of Four Consecutive Supermoons
      Guardians of Traffic statue in Cleveland, Ohio, in front of the supermoon that was visible on Sept. 17, 2024. On this day, the full moon was a partial lunar eclipse; a supermoon; and a harvest moon. Credits:
      NASA/GRC/Sara Lowthian-Hanna The Next Full Moon is a Supermoon; the Beaver, Frost, Frosty, or Snow Moon; Kartik Purnima; Loy Krathong; the Bon Om Touk (”Boat Racing Festival”) Moon, the Tazaungdaing Festival Moon; and Ill Poya.
      The next full Moon will be Friday afternoon, November 15, 2024, at 4:29 PM EST. This will be early Saturday morning from Kamchatka and Fiji Time eastwards to the International Date Line. The Pleiades star cluster will appear near the full Moon. The Moon will appear full for about 3 days around this time, from a few hours before sunrise on Thursday morning to a few hours before sunrise on Sunday morning.
      This full Moon will be the last of four consecutive supermoons, slightly closer and brighter than the first of the four in mid-August.
      The Maine Farmers’ Almanac began publishing Native American names for full Moons in the 1930s. Over time these names have become widely known and used. According to this almanac, as the full Moon in November this is the Beaver Moon, the Frost or Frosty Moon, or the Snow Moon. For the Beaver Moon, one interpretation is that mid-Fall was the time to set beaver traps before the swamps freeze to ensure a supply of warm winter furs. Another interpretation suggests that the name Beaver Moon came from how active the beavers are in this season as they prepare for winter. The Frost, Frosty, or Snow Moon names come from the frosts and early snows that begin this time of year, particularly in northeastern North America.
      This is Kartik Purnima (the full Moon of the Hindu lunar month of Kartik) and is celebrated by Hindus, Jains, and Sikhs (each for different reasons).
      In Thailand and nearby countries this full Moon is Loy Krathong, a festival that includes decorating baskets and floating them on a river.
      In Cambodia this full Moon corresponds with the 3-day Bon Om Touk (“Boat Racing Festival”), the Cambodian Water Festival featuring dragon boat races.
      In Myanmar this is the Tazaungdaing Festival, a festival that predates the introduction of Buddhism and includes the launching of hot air balloons (sometimes flaming or laden with fireworks).
      In Sri Lanka this is Ill (or Il) Poya, commemorating the Buddha’s ordination of sixty disciples as the first Buddhist missionaries.
      In many traditional Moon-based calendars the full Moons fall on or near the middle of each month. This full Moon is near the middle of the tenth month of the Chinese year of the Dragon, Marcheshvan in the Hebrew calendar, a name often shortened to Cheshvan or Heshvan, and Jumādā al-ʾŪlā, the fifth month of the Islamic year.
      As usual, the wearing of suitably celebratory celestial attire is encouraged in honor of the full Moon. Get ready for winter, visit a local river (particularly if there are any festivals or boat races), but please don’t launch flaming hot air balloons filled with fireworks (some online videos make it quite clear why this is a bad idea), especially in areas subject to wildfires!
      The next month or two should be a great time for Jupiter and Saturn watching. Both will continue to shift westward each night, gradually making them easier to see earlier in the evening sky.
      Gordon Johnston
      Retired NASA Program Executive
      As for other celestial events between now and the full Moon after next (with specific times and angles based on the location of NASA Headquarters in Washington, DC):
      As Autumn continues the daily periods of sunlight continue shortening.
      On Friday, November 15, (the day of the full Moon), morning twilight will begin at 5:51 AM EST, sunrise will be at 6:51 AM, solar noon will be at 11:53 AM when the Sun will reach its maximum altitude of 32.4 degrees, sunset will be at 4:54 PM, and evening twilight will end at 5:55 PM.
      Our 24-hour clock is based on the average length of the solar day. The day of the winter solstice is sometimes called the “shortest day of the year” (because it has the shortest period of sunlight). But it could also be called the “longest day of the year” because the longest solar day is on or just after the solstice. Because the solar days are longer, the earliest sunset of the year occurs before the solstice and the latest sunrise of the year (ignoring Daylight Savings Time) occurs after the solstice. For the Washington, DC area, the sunsets on Friday and Saturday, December 6 and 7, 2024, are tied for the earliest sunsets. On Friday, morning twilight will begin at 6:10 AM EST, sunrise will be at 7:13 AM, solar noon will be at 11:59 AM when the Sun will reach its maximum altitude of 28.5 degrees, sunset will be at 4:45:50 PM, and evening twilight will end at 5:49 PM. On Saturday, morning twilight will begin at 6:11 AM EST, sunrise will be at 7:14 AM, solar noon will actually be at noon (12:00 PM) when the Sun will reach its maximum altitude of 28.4 degrees, sunset will be at 4:45:50 PM, and evening twilight will end at 5:49 PM.
      By Sunday, December 15, (the day of the full Moon after next), morning twilight will begin at 6:16 AM EST, sunrise will be at 7:20 AM, solar noon will be at 12:04 PM when the Sun will reach its maximum altitude of 27.8 degrees, sunset will be at 4:47 PM, and evening twilight will end at 5:51 PM.
      The next month or two should be a great time for Jupiter and Saturn watching, especially with a backyard telescope. Saturn was at its closest and brightest on September 7 and is high in the southern sky as evening twilight ends. Jupiter will be shifting into the evening sky during this lunar cycle. On November 15 Jupiter will be rising about a half hour after evening twilight ends. Jupiter will be at its closest and brightest on December 7, rising around sunset and setting around sunrise. By the full Moon after next on December 15, Jupiter will be 19 degrees above the horizon as evening twilight ends. Both Jupiter and Saturn will continue to shift westward each night, gradually making them easier to see earlier in the evening sky (and friendlier for backyard stargazing, especially if you have young ones with earlier bedtimes). With clear skies and a telescope you should be able to see Jupiter’s four bright moons, Ganymede, Callisto, Europa, and Io, noticeably shifting positions in the course of an evening. For Saturn, you should be able to see Saturn’s rings and its bright moon Titan. The rings are appearing thinner and will be edge-on to the Earth in March 2025. We won’t get the “classic” view of Saturn showing off its rings until 2026.
      Comets
      Of the two comets described in my last Moon Missive, one remains visible through large binoculars or a telescope during this lunar cycle. The sungrazing Comet C/2024 S1 (ATLAS) disintegrated during its very close pass by the Sun and is no longer visible. Comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS) will be in the evening sky, fading from visual magnitude 8 to 10.3 as it moves away from the Earth and Sun.
      In addition, comet 33P/LINEAR should be visible with large binoculars or a telescope in November and December, shining at about magnitude 10 around its perihelion on November 29 and closest approach to Earth on December 9. The next comet that we anticipate might be visible to the unaided eye is C/2024 G3 (ATLAS), which will reach its closest to the Sun and Earth in mid January 2025. It is another sungrazing comet that might put on a good show or might break apart and vanish.
      Meteor Showers
      Unfortunately, one of the three major meteor showers of the year, the Geminids (004 GEM), will peak the morning of December 14, with the light of the nearly full Moon interfering. According to the International Meteor Organization, observers south of about 30 degrees north might be able to see these meteors for an hour or so between moonset and the first light of dawn (although the radiant for this meteor shower is at 33 degrees north latitude, so observers too far south of the equator will also have limited visibility). In a good year, this shower can produce 150 visible meteors per hour under ideal conditions, but this will not be a good year. For the Washington, DC area the MeteorActive app predicts that at about 2 AM EST on the morning of December 14, under bright suburban sky conditions, the peak rate from the Geminids and all other background sources might reach 20 meteors per hour.
      If the weather cooperates by being clear with no clouds or hazes and you do go looking for meteors, try to find a place as far as possible from light sources that has a clear view of a wide expanse of the sky. Give your eyes plenty of time to adapt to the dark. Your color vision (cone cells), concentrated in the center of your field of view, will adapt to darkness in about 10 minutes. Your more sensitive night vision rod cells will continue to improve for an hour or more (with most of the improvement in the first 35 to 45 minutes). The more sensitive your eyes are, the more chance you will have of seeing meteors. Since some meteors are faint, you will tend to see more meteors from the “corner of your eye.” Even a short exposure to light (from passing car headlights, etc.) will start the adaptation over again (so no turning on a light or your cell phone to check what time it is).
      In addition, a number of relatively minor meteor showers will peak during this lunar cycle. The light of the waning Moon will interfere with the Leonids (013 LEO) on November 17, α-Monocerotids (246 AMO) on November 21, and November Orionids (250 NOO) on November 28. The Phoenicids (254 PHO), best seen from the Southern Hemisphere, may peak around December 1. Models predict low rates and faint meteors this year but not much is known about this meteor shower. Most years the rates are low, but as reported by the International Meteor Organization, significant activity was observed in 2014. Once, in 1956, the Phoenicids reached an estimated rate of 100 visible meteors per hour. Another Southern Hemisphere shower is the Puppid-Velids (301 PUP), expected to peak sometime around December 4 at about 10 meteors per hour (under ideal conditions). The Monocerotids (019 MON) and σ-Hydrids (016 HYD) are both expected to peak on December 9 at 3 meteors per hour and 7 meteors per hour, respectively. These rates are low enough that seeing them from our light-polluted urban areas will be unlikely.
      Evening Sky Highlights
      On the evening of Friday, November 15 (the evening of the full Moon), as twilight ends (at 5:55 PM EST), the rising Moon will be 14 degrees above the east-northeastern horizon with the Pleiades star cluster 5 degrees to the lower left. The brightest planet in the sky will be Venus at 12 degrees above the southwestern horizon. Next in brightness will be Mercury at less than a degree above the west-southwestern horizon. Saturn will be 38 degrees above the south-southeastern horizon. Comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS) will be 39 degrees above the west-southwestern horizon, with its current brightness curve predicting it will have faded to magnitude 8, too faint to see with the unaided eye. The bright star closest to overhead will be Deneb at 79 degrees above the northwestern horizon. Deneb (visual magnitude 1.3) is the 19th brightest star in our night sky and is the brightest star in the constellation Cygnus the swan. One of the three bright stars of the “Summer Triangle” (along with Vega and Altair). Deneb is about 20 times more massive than our Sun but has used up its hydrogen, becoming a blue-white supergiant about 200 times the diameter of the Sun. If Deneb were where our Sun is, it would extend to about the orbit of the Earth. Deneb is about 2,600 light years from us.
      As this lunar cycle progresses, Saturn and the background of stars will appear to shift westward each evening (as the Earth moves around the Sun). Bright Venus will shift to the left and higher in the sky along the southwestern horizon. Mercury, shining brighter than Saturn, will initially shift left along the southwestern horizon until November 19, after which it will shift to the right. On November 22 Jupiter will join the planets Venus, Mercury and Saturn in the sky as twilight ends, shining brighter than Mercury. November 24 will be the last evening Mercury will be above the horizon as evening twilight ends, although it will remain visible in the glow of dusk for a few more evenings as it dims and shifts towards its passage between the Earth and the Sun on December 5. Jupiter will be at its closest and brightest for the year on December 7. The waxing Moon will pass by Venus on December 4, Saturn on December 7, and the Pleiades on December 13.
      By the evening of Saturday, December 14 (the start of the night of the December 15 full Moon), as twilight ends (at 5:50 PM EST), the rising Moon will be 19 degrees above the east-northeastern horizon with bright planet Jupiter 6 degrees to the right and the bright star Aldebaran father to the right. The brightest planet visible will be Venus at 21 degrees above the southwestern horizon. Next in brightness will be Jupiter. Saturn will be 43 degrees above the southern horizon. The bright star closest to overhead will still be Deneb at 61 degrees above the west-northwestern horizon.
      Morning Sky Highlights
      On the morning of Friday, November 15 (the morning of the full Moon after next), as twilight begins (at 5:51 AM EST), the setting full Moon will be 7 degrees above the west-northwestern horizon. The brightest planet in the sky will be Jupiter at 35 degrees above the western horizon. Mars will be at 68 degrees above the southwestern horizon. Comet C/2024 S1 (ATLAS) will not be visible, even with a telescope, as it broke apart into pieces too small to see as it passed its closest to the Sun on October 28. The bright star appearing closest to overhead will be Pollux at 69 degrees above the west-southwestern horizon (higher than Mars by about a half degree). Pollux is the 17th brightest star in our night sky and the brighter of the twin stars in the constellation Gemini. It is an orange tinted star about 34 lightyears from Earth. Pollux is not quite twice the mass of our Sun but about 9 times the diameter and 33 times the brightness.
      As this lunar cycle progresses, Jupiter, Mars, and the background of stars will appear to shift westward each evening, with Mars passing near the Beehive star cluster in early December. The waning Moon will pass by the Pleiades star cluster on November 16, Jupiter on November 17, Mars and Pollux on November 20, appear on the other side of Mars on November 21, Regulus on November 22 and 23, and Spica on November 27 (passing in front of Spica for parts of the USA and Canada). Jupiter will be at its closest and brightest on December 7, rising around sunset and setting around sunrise. December 12 will be the first morning Mercury will be above the east-southeastern horizon as morning twilight begins, though it will be visible in the glow of dawn for a few days before.
      By the morning of Sunday, December 15 (the morning of the full Moon after next), as twilight begins (at 6:16 AM EST), the setting full Moon will be 15 degrees above the west-northwestern horizon. The brightest planet in the sky will be Jupiter, appearing below the Moon at 5 degrees above the horizon. Second in brightness will be Mars at 46 degrees above the western horizon, then Mercury at 4 degrees above the east-southeastern horizon. The bright star appearing closest to overhead will be Regulus at 55 degrees above the southwestern horizon, with Arcturus a close second at 52 degrees above the east-southeastern horizon. Regulus is the 21st brightest star in our night sky and the brightest star in the constellation Leo the lion. The Arabic name for Regulus translates as “the heart of the lion.” Although we see Regulus as a single star, it is actually four stars (two pairs of stars orbiting each other). Regulus is about 79 light years from us. Arcturus is the brightest star in the constellation Boötes the herdsman or plowman and the 4th brightest star in our night sky. It is 36.7 light years from us. While it has about the same mass as our Sun, it is about 2.6 billion years older and has used up its core hydrogen, becoming a red giant 25 times the size and 170 times the brightness of our Sun. One way to identify Arcturus in the night sky is to start at the Big Dipper, then follow the arc of the handle as it “arcs towards Arcturus.”
      Detailed Daily Guide
      Here for your reference is a day-by-day listing of celestial events between now and the full Moon on December 15, 2024. The times and angles are based on the location of NASA Headquarters in Washington, DC, and some of these details may differ for where you are (I use parentheses to indicate times specific to the DC area). If your latitude is significantly different than 39 degrees north (and especially for my Southern Hemisphere readers), I recommend using an astronomy app set for your location or a star-watching guide from a local observatory, news outlet, or astronomy club.
      Thursday morning, November 14, at 6:18 EST, the Moon will be at perigee, its closest to the Earth for this orbit.
      As mentioned above, the full Moon will be Friday afternoon, November 15, 2024, at 4:29 PM EST. This will be early Saturday morning from Kamchatka and Fiji Time eastwards to the International Date Line. It will be the last of four consecutive supermoons. The Pleiades star cluster will appear near the full Moon. The Moon will appear full for about 3 days around this time, from a few hours before sunrise Thursday morning to a few hours before sunrise Sunday morning.
      Friday evening into Saturday morning, November 15 to 16, the Pleiades star cluster will appear near the full Moon. This may best be viewed with binoculars, as the brightness of the full Moon may make it hard to see the stars in this star cluster. As evening twilight ends (at 5:55 PM EST), the Pleiades will appear 5 degrees to the lower left of the full Moon. By the time the Moon reaches its highest for the night (Saturday morning at 12:07 AM), the Pleiades will be 2 degrees to the upper left. The Moon will pass in front of the Pleiades in the early morning hours. By the time morning twilight begins (at 5:52 AM) the Pleiades will be a degree to the lower right of the Moon.
      Saturday, November 16, will be when the planet Mercury reaches its greatest angular separation from the Sun as seen from the Earth for this apparition (called greatest elongation). Because the angle between the line from the Sun to Mercury and the line of the horizon changes with the seasons, the date when Mercury and the Sun are farthest apart as seen from the Earth is not always the same as when Mercury appears highest above the southwestern horizon as evening twilight ends, which will occur three evenings later, on November 19.
      Saturday night into Sunday morning, November 16 to 17, the planet Uranus will be at its closest and brightest for the year, called “opposition” because on Saturday night it will be opposite the Earth from the Sun. At opposition Uranus can be bright enough to see with the unaided eye (under very clear, dark sky conditions). From our light-polluted urban locations you will need binoculars or a telescope.
      Also on Saturday night into Sunday morning, November 16 to 17, the planet Jupiter will appear near the full Moon. As Jupiter rises on the east-northeastern horizon (at 6:14 PM EST) it will be 10 degrees to the lower left of the Moon. The Moon will reach its highest for the night about 7 hours later (at 1:09 AM), with Jupiter 7.5 degrees to the lower left. By the time morning twilight begins (at 5:52 AM) Jupiter will be 6 degrees to the left of the Moon.
      Tuesday night into Wednesday morning, November 19 to 20, the bright star Pollux and the bright planet Mars will appear near the waning gibbous Moon. As the Moon rises on the northeastern horizon (at 8:20 PM EST), Pollux will be 2.5 degrees to the upper left of the Moon. By the time the Moon reaches its highest in the sky (at 4:11 AM) Pollux will be 5 degrees to the upper right of the Moon, with Mars 7.5 degrees to the lower left of the Moon, such that these three appear aligned. By the time morning twilight begins (at 5:55 AM) Mars will be 7 degrees to the upper left and Pollux 5.5 degrees to the lower right.
      Wednesday night into Thursday morning, November 20 to 21, the waning gibbous Moon will have shifted to the other side of Mars. As the Moon rises on the east-northeastern horizon (at 9:29 PM EST) Mars will be 4 degrees to the upper right of the Moon. By the time the Moon reaches its highest for the night (at 5:03 AM) Mars will be 7 degrees to the right of the Moon. Morning twilight will begin less than an hour later (at 5:56 AM) with Mars 7 degrees to the lower right of the Moon.
      Friday evening, November 22, will be the first evening the bright planet Jupiter will be above the east-northeastern horizon as evening twilight ends (at 5:51 PM EST).
      Also on Friday evening, the waning Moon will appear half-full as it reaches its last quarter at 8:28 PM EST (when we can’t see it).
      Friday night into Saturday morning, November 22 to 23, the bright star Regulus will appear near the waning half-Moon. As Regulus rises on the east-northeastern horizon (at 11:29 PM EST) it will be 9 degrees below the Moon, with Mars farther to the upper right and Pollux beyond Mars. By the time the Moon reaches its highest for the night (at 5:49 AM) Regulus will be 7 degrees to the lower left, and morning twilight will begin 8 minutes later (at 5:57 AM).
      Saturday night into Sunday morning, November 23 to 24, the waning crescent Moon will have shifted to the other side of Regulus. When the Moon rises on the east-northeastern horizon (at 11:38 PM EST) Regulus will be 4 degrees to the upper right of the Moon. The pair will separate as the night progresses. By the time morning twilight begins (at 5:58 AM) Regulus will be 6.5 degrees to the upper right of the Moon.
      Sunday evening, November 24, will be the last evening the planet Mercury will be above the west-southwestern horizon as evening twilight ends, although it should remain visible in the glow of dusk before twilight ends for a few more evenings as it dims and shifts towards its passage between the Earth and the Sun on December 5.
      Tuesday morning, November 26, at 6:57 AM EST, the Moon will be at apogee, its farthest from the Earth for this orbit.
      On Wednesday morning, November 27, the bright star Spica will appear near the waning crescent Moon. As Spica rises on the east-southeastern horizon (at 3:41 AM EST) it will be a degree below the Moon. As morning progresses the Moon will shift towards Spica, and for much of the Eastern USA and Canada the Moon will block Spica from view. See http://www.lunar-occultations.com/iota/bstar/1127zc1925.htm for a map and information on the areas that will be able to see this eclipse. Times will vary by location, but for the Washington, DC area, Spica will vanish behind the illuminated limb of the Moon at 5:34 AM and the Moon will still be blocking Spica from sight as morning twilight begins at 6:02 AM.
      Early Sunday morning, December 1, at 1:22 AM EST, will be the new Moon, when the Moon passes between the Earth and the Sun and will not be visible from the Earth.
      The day of or the day after the New Moon marks the start of the new month for most moon-based calendars. The eleventh month of the Chinese year of the Dragon starts on Sunday, December 1. Sundown on Sunday, December 1, marks the start of Kislev in the Hebrew calendar. Hanukkah will begin towards the end of Kislev. In the Islamic calendar the months traditionally start with the first sighting of the waxing crescent Moon. Many Muslim communities now follow the Umm al-Qura Calendar of Saudi Arabia, which uses astronomical calculations to start months in a more predictable way. Using this calendar, sundown on Sunday, December 1, will probably mark the beginning of Jumādā ath-Thāniyah, also known as Jumādā al-ʾĀkhirah.
      Wednesday evening, December 4, the bright planet Venus will appear 3 degrees to the upper right of the waxing crescent Moon. The Moon will be 15 degrees above the southwestern horizon as evening twilight ends (at 5:49 PM EST). The Moon will set 2 hours later (at 7:46 PM).
      Thursday evening, December 5, the planet Mercury will be passing between the Earth and the Sun as seen from the Earth, called inferior conjunction. Planets that orbit inside of the orbit of Earth can have two types of conjunctions with the Sun, inferior (when passing between the Earth and the Sun) and superior (when passing on the far side of the Sun as seen from the Earth). Mercury will be shifting from the evening sky to the morning sky and will begin emerging from the glow of dawn on the eastern horizon in less than a week.
      Saturday afternoon, December 7, the planet Jupiter will be at its closest and brightest for the year, called “opposition” because it will be opposite the Earth from the Sun, effectively a “full” Jupiter. Jupiter will be 12 degrees above the east-northeastern horizon as evening twilight ends (at 5:49 PM EST), will reach its highest in the sky right around midnight (11:59 PM), and will be 11 degrees above the west-northwestern horizon as morning twilight begins (Sunday morning at 6:11 AM). Only planets that orbit farther from the Sun than the Earth can be seen at opposition.
      Saturday evening, December 7, the planet Saturn will appear to the upper left of the waxing crescent Moon. They will be 6 degrees apart as evening twilight ends (at 5:49 PM EST). Saturn will appear to shift clockwise and closer to the Moon, so that by the time the Moon sets 5.5 hours later (at 11:18 PM) Saturn will be 3.5 degrees above the Moon on the west-southwestern horizon. For a swath in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Asia the Moon will actually block Saturn from view, see http://lunar-occultations.com/iota/planets/1208saturn.htm for a map and information on the locations that can see this eclipse.
      Sunday morning, December 8, the Moon will appear half-full as it reaches its first quarter at 10:27 AM EST (when we can’t see it).
      Thursday morning, December 12, will be the first morning the planet Mercury will be above the east-southeastern horizon as morning twilight begins (at 6:14 AM EST).
      Thursday morning, December 12, at 8:18 AM EST, the Moon will be at perigee, its closest to the Earth for this orbit.
      Friday evening into Saturday morning, December 13 to 14, the Pleiades star cluster will appear near the full Moon. This may best be viewed with binoculars, as the brightness of the full Moon may make it hard to see the stars in this star cluster. As evening twilight ends (at 5:50 PM EST), the Pleiades will appear 4 degrees to the upper right of the full Moon. By the time the Moon reaches its highest for the night (at 10:49 PM), the Pleiades will be 6 degrees to the right. By about 2 AM the Pleiades will be 8 degrees to the lower right of the Moon and they will continue to separate as the morning progresses.
      As mentioned above, one of the three major meteor showers of the year, the Geminids (004 GEM), will peak Saturday morning, December 14. The light of the nearly full Moon will interfere. In a good year, this shower can produce 150 visible meteors per hour under ideal conditions, but this will not be a good year. For the Washington, DC area the MeteorActive app predicts that at about 2 AM EST on the morning of December 14, under bright suburban sky conditions, the peak rate from the Geminids and all other background sources might reach 20 meteors per hour. See the meteor summary above for suggestions for meteor viewing.
      Saturday morning, December 14, the full Moon, the bright planet Jupiter, and the bright star Aldebaran will form a triangle. As Aldebaran sets on the west-northwestern horizon (at 6:10 AM EST) it will be 9 degrees to the lower left of the Moon with Jupiter 7 degrees to the upper left of the Moon. Morning twilight will begin 6 minutes later.
      Saturday evening, December 15, the full Moon will have shifted to the other side of Jupiter. Jupiter will be 6 degrees to the right of the Moon as evening twilight ends (at 5:50 PM EST) and the pair will separate as the night progresses.  
      The full Moon after next will be Sunday morning, December 15, 2024, at 4:02 AM EST. This will be Saturday evening from Alaska Time westwards to the International Date Line. The Moon will appear full for about 3 days around this time, from Friday evening through Monday morning, making this a full Moon weekend.
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    • By NASA
      2 min read
      NASA-Funded Study Examines Tidal Effects on Planet and Moon Interiors
      NASA-supported scientists have developed a new method to compute how tides affect the interiors of planets and moons. Importantly, the new study looks at the effects of body tides on objects that don’t have a perfectly spherical interior structure, which is an assumption of most previous models.
      The puzzling, fascinating surface of Jupiter’s icy moon Europa looms large in this newly-reprocessed color view, made from images taken by NASA’s Galileo spacecraft in the late 1990s. This is the color view of Europa from Galileo that shows the largest portion of the moon’s surface at the highest resolution. NASA/JPL-Caltech/SETI Institute Body tides refer to the deformations experienced by celestial bodies when they gravitationally interact with other objects. Think of how the powerful gravity of Jupiter tugs on its moon Europa. Because Europa’s orbit isn’t circular, the crushing squeeze of Jupiter’s gravity on the moon varies as it travels along its orbit.  When Europa is at its closest to Jupiter, the planet’s gravity is felt the most. The energy of this deformation is what heats up Europa’s interior, allowing an ocean of liquid water to exist beneath the moon’s icy surface.
      “The same is true for Saturn’s moon Enceladus.” says co-author Alexander Berne of CalTech in Pasadena and an affiliate at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California. “Enceladus has an ice shell that is expected to be much more non-spherically symmetric than that of Europa.”
      The body tides experienced by celestial bodies can affect how the worlds evolve over time and, in cases like Europa and Enceladus, their potential habitability for life as we know it. The new study provides a means to more accurately estimate how tidal forces affect planetary interiors.
      In this movie Europa is seen in a cutaway view through two cycles of its 3.5 day orbit about the giant planet Jupiter. Like Earth, Europa is thought to have an iron core, a rocky mantle and a surface ocean of salty water. Unlike on Earth, however, this ocean is deep enough to cover the whole moon, and being far from the sun, the ocean surface is globally frozen over. Europa’s orbit is eccentric, which means as it travels around Jupiter, large tides, raised by Jupiter, rise and fall. Jupiter’s position relative to Europa is also seen to librate, or wobble, with the same period. This tidal kneading causes frictional heating within Europa, much in the same way a paper clip bent back and forth can get hot to the touch, as illustrated by the red glow in the interior of Europa’s rocky mantle and in the lower, warmer part of its ice shell. This tidal heating is what keeps Europa’s ocean liquid and could prove critical to the survival of simple organisms within the ocean, if they exist. The giant planet Jupiter is now shown to be rotating from west to east, though more slowly than its actual rate. NASA/JPL-Caltech The paper also discusses how the results of the study could help scientists interpret observations made by missions to a variety of different worlds, ranging from Mercury to the Moon to the outer planets of our solar system.
      The study, “A Spectral Method to Compute the Tides of Laterally Heterogeneous Bodies,” was published in The Planetary Science Journal. 
      For more information on NASA’s Astrobiology Program, visit:
      https://science.nasa.gov/astrobiology
      -end-
      Karen Fox / Molly Wasser
      Headquarters, Washington
      202-358-1600
      karen.c.fox@nasa.gov / molly.l.wasser@nasa.gov 
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      Last Updated Nov 07, 2024 Related Terms
      Astrobiology View the full article
    • By European Space Agency
      Image: Moon waves goodbye to Hera View the full article
    • By NASA
      3 min read
      Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)
      NASA employees plant an Artemis Moon Tree at NASA’s Stennis Space Center on Oct. 29 to celebrate NASA’s successful Artemis I mission as the agency prepares for a return around the Moon with astronauts on Artemis II. NASA/Danny Nowlin A tree-planting ceremony at NASA’s Stennis Space Center on Oct. 29 celebrated NASA’s successful Artemis I mission as the agency prepares for a return around the Moon with astronauts on Artemis II.
      “We already have a thriving Moon Tree from the Apollo years onsite,” NASA Stennis Director John Bailey said. “It is exciting to add trees for our new Artemis Generation as it continues the next great era of human space exploration.”
      NASA’s Office of STEM Engagement Next Gen STEM Project partnered with U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Forest Service to fly five species of tree seeds aboard the Orion spacecraft during the successful uncrewed Artemis I test flight in 2022 as part of a national STEM Engagement and conservation education initiative. 
      The Artemis Moon Tree species included sweetgums, loblolly pines, sycamores, Douglas-firs, and giant sequoias. The seeds from the first Artemis mission have been nurtured by the USDA into seedlings to be a source of inspiration for the Artemis Generation.
      The Moon Tree education initiative is rooted in the legacy of Apollo 14 Moon Tree seeds flown in lunar orbit over 50 years ago by the late Stuart Roosa, a NASA astronaut and Mississippi Coast resident.
      NASA Stennis and the NASA Shared Services Center (NSSC), located at the site, planted companion trees during the Oct. 29 ceremony. Bailey and NSSC Executive Director Anita Harrell participated in a joint planting ceremony attended by a number of employees from each entity.
      The American sweetgum trees are the second and third Moon Trees at the south Mississippi site. In 2004, ASTRO CAMP participants planted a sycamore Moon Tree to honor the 35th anniversary of Apollo 11 and the first lunar landing on July 20, 1969.
      The road to space for both Apollo 14 and Artemis I went through Mississippi. Until 1970, NASA Stennis test fired first, and second stages of the Saturn V rockets used for Apollo.
      NASA Stennis now tests all the RS-25 engines powering Artemis missions to the Moon and beyond. Prior to Artemis I, NASA Stennis tested the SLS (Space Launch System) core stage and its four RS-25 engines.
      The Artemis Moon Trees have found new homes in over 150 communities and counting since last spring, and each of the 10 NASA centers also will plant one.
      As the tree grows at NASA Stennis, so, too, does anticipation for the first crewed mission with Artemis II. Four astronauts will venture around the Moon on NASA’s path to establishing a long-term presence at the Moon for science and exploration.
      The flight will test NASA’s foundational human deep space exploration capabilities – the SLS rocket and Orion spacecraft – for the first time with astronauts.
      Explore More NASA Stennis Image Articles View the full article
    • By NASA
      8 min read
      Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)
      Artemis I Moon Tree seedlings continue to find new homes with schools, museums, libraries, universities, and community organizations across the contiguous United States. An open call to NASA’s Artifacts Module in Fall, 2023 welcomed over 1000 organization submissions, which were reviewed and ranked by a joint USDA Forest Service and NASA panel.
      Final recipient selection and seedling assignments for each cycle are informed by rank and region, and subject to a limited inventory of trees germinated from each of the five species of seeds flown aboard Artemis I in 2022. Recipient selection and seedling distribution follows four cycles: Spring 2024, Fall 2024, Spring 2025, and Fall 2025.
      Spring 2024 Artemis I Moon Tree Stewards
      Alabama
      Fairfield City Schools – Fairfield High Preparatory School Fairfield AL American Sweetgum
      Meridianville Middle School Hazel Green AL Loblolly Pine
      Pioneer Museum of Alabama Troy AL Loblolly Pine
      Troy University Arboretum Troy AL Loblolly Pine
      Arkansas
      Baxter County Library Mountain Home AR American Sweetgum
      Arizona
      University of Arizona – Lunar and Planetary Laboratory (LPL) Tucson AZ American Sweetgum
      California
      Forestr.org Castro Valley CA Sequoia
      Girl Scout Troop 7574 Dana Point CA Sequoia
      Greenfield Union School District Greenfield CA Sequoia
      Quest Science Center Livermore CA Sequoia
      Santiago STEAM Magnet Elementary School Lake Forest CA Sequoia
      Colorado
      United States Air Force Academy USAF Academy CO American Sweetgum
      Connecticut
      New Milford High School New Milford CT American Sweetgum
      South School – New Canaan School District New Canaan CT Sycamore
      Yale University Marsh Botanical Garden New Haven CT American Sweetgum
      Washington, DC
      United States Capitol
      Washington, DC DC American Sweetgum
      Florida
      Agricultural Biotechnology Academy, West Florida High School of Advanced Technology, Escambia County School District Pensacola FL Loblolly Pine
      Cornerstone Learning Community Tallahassee FL American Sweetgum
      Dreamers Academy Sarasota FL American Sweetgum
      Florida Forest Service Tallahassee FL Loblolly Pine
      Florida Polytechnic University Lakeland FL American Sweetgum
      Gulfside Community Partnership School Holiday FL Loblolly Pine
      H.B. Plant High School Tampa FL American Sweetgum
      Hobbs Middle School Milton FL American Sweetgum
      Lawton Environmental Study Area (LESA), T.W. Lawton Elementary Oviedo FL American Sweetgum
      Montverde Academy Montverde FL American Sweetgum
      Museum of Archaeology, Paleontology & Science New Port Richey FL American Sweetgum
      Museum of Science and Industry Tampa FL American Sweetgum
      North Andrews Gardens Elementary Oakland Park FL American Sweetgum
      Orange Park Elementary Orange Park FL American Sweetgum
      Pine Crest School Fort Lauderdale FL American Sweetgum
      Port Malabar Elementary School Palm Bay FL American Sweetgum
      St. Peter Catholic School Deland FL Loblolly Pine
      UF/IFAS Extension Clay County 4-H Green Cove Springs FL Loblolly Pine
      University of West Florida Pensacola FL Loblolly Pine
      West Navarre Intermediate School Navarre FL American Sweetgum
      Georgia
      Berrien Elementary School Nashville GA Loblolly Pine
      East Georgia State College Swainsboro GA Loblolly Pine
      Lilburn Elementary School Lilburn GA Loblolly Pine
      Park Elementary School Hamilton GA Loblolly Pine
      Sagamore Hills Elementary School Atlanta GA Loblolly Pine
      United States Air Force Moody Air Force Base GA American Sweetgum
      Iowa
      Cedar Rapids Community School District, Metro High School Cedar Rapids IA Sycamore
      Idaho
      American Falls High School American Falls ID Sycamore
      Illinois
      Eagle Pointe Elementary School Plainfield IL Sycamore
      Marion Community Unit #2 School District, Marion Junior High School Marion IL Sycamore
      Monmouth College Monmouth IL American Sweetgum
      Indiana
      Franklin Community High School Franklin IN American Sweetgum
      Hayes Arboretum Richmond IN American Sweetgum
      Kansas
      Tecumseh South Elementary School Tecumseh KS American Sweetgum
      Kentucky
      Christian County Middle School Hopkinsville KY American Sweetgum
      FIND Outdoors Gladie Visitor Center, Red River Gorge Stanton KY American Sweetgum
      Graves County High School Mayfield KY American Sweetgum
      Martha Layne Collins High School Shelbyville KY American Sweetgum
      Louisiana
      Shreve Island Elementary, Caddo Parish Schools Shreveport LA American Sweetgum
      YMCA of Bogalusa Bogalusa LA Loblolly Pine
      Massachusetts
      Bernardston Elementary School Bernardston MA American Sweetgum
      Michigan
      The Botanic Garden at Historic Barns Park Traverse City MI Sycamore
      Minnesota
      Forest Lake Area High School Forest Lake MN Sycamore
      Missouri
      Columbia Public Schools Elementary Gifted Program Columbia MO American Sweetgum
      Trailridge Elementary Lee’s Summit MO American Sweetgum
      Mississippi
      Bayou Academy Cleveland MS American Sweetgum
      Clinton Community Nature Center Clinton MS American Sweetgum
      North Carolina
      Cardinal Gibbons High School Raleigh NC American Sweetgum
      FIND Outdoors Cradle of Forestry Pisgah National Forest NC American Sweetgum
      Mars Hill University Mars Hill NC American Sweetgum
      Montgomery County NC Extension Master Gardener Volunteers; The Gathering Garden Mount Gilead NC Loblolly Pine
      North Carolina Executive Mansion – Governor’s Residence
      Raleigh NC Loblolly Pine
      North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics – Morganton Morganton NC American Sweetgum
      White Oak High School Jacksonville NC American Sweetgum
      North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics – Durham Durham NC Sycamore
      Nebraska
      Hastings College Hastings NE American Sweetgum
      University of Nebraska-Lincoln Lincoln NE American Sweetgum
      New Hampshire
      Barnstead Elementary School Center Barnstead NH Sycamore
      Nashua Community College Nashua NH Sycamore
      New Jersey
      Edelman Planetarium at Rowan University Glassboro NJ American Sweetgum
      Information Age Learning Center Wall Township NJ American Sweetgum
      New Mexico
      New Mexico Farm & Ranch Heritage Museum Las Cruces NM Loblolly Pine
      New York
      Baldwinsville Central School District Baldwinsville NY Sycamore
      Bronx Community College Bronx NY Sycamore
      Franklin Middle School, Kenmore-Town of Tonawanda School District Town of Tonawanda NY Sycamore
      Pembroke Junior/Senior High School Corfu NY American Sweetgum
      Rome City School District Rome NY Sequoia
      State University of New York (SUNY) – New Paltz New Paltz NY American Sweetgum
      Suffolk County Vanderbilt Museum and Planetarium Centerport NY American Sweetgum
      Ohio
      Claymont High School Uhrichsville OH Sycamore
      Coldwater Exempted Village Schools Coldwater OH American Sweetgum
      Copley-Fairlawn Middle School, Copley-Fairlawn City Schools Copley OH Sycamore
      Liberty-Benton High School Findlay OH Sycamore
      Marshall STEMM Academy Toledo OH American Sweetgum
      Portsmouth City Schools Portsmouth OH American Sweetgum
      Pymatuning Valley High School Andover OH American Sweetgum
      Wayne National Forest Nelsonville OH American Sweetgum
      Oklahoma
      Centennial Middle School Broken Arrow OK Loblolly Pine
      Jenks Northwest Elementary School Tulsa OK American Sweetgum
      Perkins Public Library: Thomas – Wilhite Memorial Library Perkins OK American Sweetgum
      Oregon
      Crow Middle School Eugene OR American Sweetgum
      Friends of Myrtle Creek Library Myrtle Creek OR American Sweetgum
      Lent Elementary School Portland OR American Sweetgum
      Tamarack Elementary School Hillsboro OR American Sweetgum
      Willamette Elementary School, McMinnville School District McMinnville OR American Sweetgum
      Pennsylvania
      Allegheny Observatory, University of Pittsburgh Pittsburgh PA American Sweetgum
      Montour High School McKees Rocks PA American Sweetgum
      Penn State University, Penn State Erie – The Behrend College Erie PA American Sweetgum
      Penn State University, Penn State Schuylkill University Park PA Sycamore
      Perkiomen Valley Middle School East Collegeville PA American Sweetgum
      The Reading Public Museum Reading PA Sycamore
      Rhode Island
      Tiverton Public Library Tiverton RI American Sweetgum
      South Carolina
      Academy for the Arts, Science, & Technology Myrtle Beach SC Loblolly Pine
      Conway Elementary School Conway SC American Sweetgum
      Manning Early Childhood Center, Clarendon School District Manning SC American Sweetgum
      Spartanburg Community College Horticulture Program Spartanburg SC American Sweetgum
      Tennessee
      Great Smoky Mountain Council, Boy Scouts of America Knoxville TN American Sweetgum
      Lipscomb Academy Nashville TN American Sweetgum
      Pellissippi State Community College Knoxville TN Loblolly Pine
      Sumner Academy Gallatin TN American Sweetgum
      Texas
      Atlanta Public Library Atlanta TX American Sweetgum
      Beaumont Children’s Museum & Beaumont Botanical Gardens Beaumont TX Loblolly Pine
      Bonham Pre-Kindergarten School San Marcos TX Loblolly Pine
      Charles W. Young Junior High School Arlington TX Loblolly Pine
      Clear Creek Intermediate, Clear Creek Independent School District (CCISD) League City TX American Sweetgum
      Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden – Children’s Adventure Garden Dallas TX American Sweetgum
      DeKalb Independent School District De Kalb TX Loblolly Pine
      Doss Consolidated Common School District (CCSD) Doss TX American Sweetgum
      Fort Worth Botanic Garden Fort Worth TX Loblolly Pine
      Galveston County 4H Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Program (Houston Botanic Gardens) Houston TX American Sweetgum
      Goliad Independent School District Goliad TX Loblolly Pine
      Greens Prairie Elementary School College Station TX American Sweetgum
      Groves Elementary School Humble TX Loblolly Pine
      Kay Granger Elementary School Fort Worth TX Loblolly Pine
      Leadership Big Bend, Nopalitos Park Alpine TX American Sweetgum
      Science Hall Elementary School Kyle TX American Sweetgum
      Scobee Education Center at San Antonio College San Antonio TX Loblolly Pine
      Space Center Intermediate, Clear Creek Independent School District (CCISD) Houston TX Loblolly Pine
      Texas A&M Forest Service Conroe TX American Sweetgum
      Texas A&M University, Physics & Astronomy Department College Station TX American Sweetgum
      University of Texas at Arlington Arlington TX American Sweetgum
      Uplift Summit International Preparatory Middle School Arlington TX Loblolly Pine
      Westside Elementary School Cedar Park TX Loblolly Pine
      Zilker Botanical Garden Conservancy Austin TX Loblolly Pine
      Utah
      Southern Utah University STEM Center Cedar City UT American Sweetgum
      Virginia
      Essex County Museum Tappahannock VA American Sweetgum
      Virginia Living Museum Newport News VA Loblolly Pine
      Virginia Zoo Norfolk VA Loblolly Pine
      Washington
      Innovation Lab High School Bothell WA Sycamore
      Orchard Prairie School District Spokane WA Sycamore
      Richland School District Richland WA Sycamore
      Upper Columbia Resource Conservation & Development Council Spokane Valley WA Sycamore
      Yakima Area Arboretum Yakima WA Sycamore
      Wisconsin
      Dunn County Historical Society Menomonie WI Sycamore

      Fall 2024 Artemis I Moon Tree Stewards
      Distribution is underway through November 2024. This list will be updated once distribution is complete. Previously notified recipients who have not received a seedling may be deferred to a later cycle based on current ready-to-ship seedling inventory.
      Spring 2025 Artemis I Moon Tree Stewards
      Selection is in progress.
      Fall 2025 Artemis I Moon Tree Stewards
      Selection is in progress.
      Explore Moon Trees Website View the full article
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