So another year of skywatching has arrived, bringing with it plenty to watch in 2021.
Here are the most anticipated astronomical events of 2021. The conjunction of the 2 bright planets, the total and near-total lunar eclipses, the famous Perseid meteor shower, the autumnal appearance of Venus… are the astronomical highlights that will take place in the new Year.
January 3: Quadrantid meteor shower
Right now, perhaps the Quadrantid meteor shower – along with December’s Geminid meteor shower – is one of the densest, but has the shortest duration: occurring in the last 6 hours and after the maximum. This year, these blue shooting stars only appear at the quarter peak. The peak of this year’s meteor shower is expected to occur at 10 p.m. Vietnam Time (1500 GMT).
A quadrantid meteor photographed by photographer Frank Kuszaj.
Unfortunately, the Crescent Moon at the end of the month will disrupt observations. Under favorable conditions, several dozen meteors can be counted per hour. The center of the Quadrantid meteor shower is located roughly halfway between the line connecting the start of the Draco constellation with the end of the Big Dipper handle, which appears at the highest position in the early sky. The morning.
March 5: Conjunction between Jupiter and Mercury
Jupiter and Mercury rarely appear together above the east-southeast horizon at dawn, but this morning the two planets were very close to each other with a distance of only 0.35 degrees.
Mercury (apparent magnitude +0.1) will be directly above much brighter Jupiter (-2.0). The largest planet in the solar system is now 7 times brighter than the smallest planet. Binoculars will do a great job of helping you spot these two planets in a bright twilight sky about half an hour before sunrise.
The positions of Jupiter and Saturn on the days of peri-conjunction. Photo: Sebastien Voltmer
May 25: Super Moon
At 9 a.m. on May 26, the Moon will reach perigee in its orbit at a distance of just 222,002 miles (357,311 km) from Earth. About 9 hours later, the Moon will officially enter the full moon phase (and this full moon also occurs a total lunar eclipse.)
The consequence of the coincidence of the full moon phase with the moon reaching the point of perigee is the phenomenon of violent tidal fluctuations. If there are coastal storms during this period, the problem of flooding will certainly become more serious. These extreme tides are known as “perigee spring tides”, where “spring” is derived from the German word “Springen” which refers to the outbreak, not the “season”. Spring”.
May 26: Total Lunar Eclipse
With this total lunar eclipse, the Pacific Rim (the entire geographical area surrounding the Pacific Ocean, including the western coasts of the North and South American continents, the Australian coast, eastern Asia and the Pacific islands) is in the visible range. Residents of the Hawaiian Islands will be able to take full advantage of the total lunar eclipse in the night sky. Throughout North America, western regions can observe the full phase and partial phase ending before the Moon sets.
In central areas, people will be able to see from the beginning to the full (or near full) phase before the Moon sets. In the eastern region, the observable part is probably only a small patch of darkness appearing on the left edge of the Moon, or even a slight black shadow (a consequence of observing the lunar phase alone). Earth’s shadow.) The Moon will pass north of the Earth’s central shadow (shadow). The top of the Moon is only 34 km from the outer edge of the shadow. This is why the complete phase only lasts 14.5 minutes.
Vietnam can observe part of the evolution of this lunar eclipse, from 6:35 p.m. when the Moon rises until the end.
Photograph of the first total lunar eclipse of 2018 by photographer Fred Espenak.
June 10: “Ring of Fire” – Annular Solar Eclipse
During the eclipse, the Moon is 404,300 km from Earth, so it will be exactly 5.7% smaller than the Sun. Therefore, when the Moon crosses the Sun, that is, between the Earth and the Sun, it will not be able to completely obscure the surface of the Sun. Instead, a ring of light will appear around the Moon. The word “annular” in “annular eclipse”, comes from the Latin “annulus” meaning ring.
However, this eclipse is quite unusual because its trajectory follows a strange path: it goes first northeast, then north, then northwest, passing through central and northern Canada, and west of North Greenland, passing through the North Pole and finally ending in Northeast Siberia.
Bright 2012 annular solar eclipse in New Mexico by photographer Colleen Pinski.
For the State of New York, the region of New England (USA) as well as in the southern regions of Ontario and Quebec (Canada), those who live there will have the opportunity to witness a strange Sun rising on the horizon. The Sun now looks like a crescent with the tip of the sickle pointing up. The Toronto area will see the partial eclipse with 86% coverage, 85% in Montreal and 80% in New York and Boston. The final stages of the eclipse can be observed from Minnesota, the Great Lakes, the Ohio Valley as well as the Carolinas and mid-Atlantic states.
Vietnam absolutely did not observe this eclipse.
August 11-12: Perseid and meteor shower
From midnight till morning is the perfect time to see the heart of summer nights: the sky’s “reliable perennial friend” – the Perseid meteor shower.
The best time to observe is from 10 p.m., when the Moon has set, which makes the rest of the night very dark, extremely conducive to observing these light trails.
The Perseid meteor shower will produce around 1 meteor per minute under favorable conditions and can include “fireballs” – large, very bright meteors, sometimes even explosive meteors, called “bolides”.
The beautiful Perseid meteor shower with over 400 meteors, captured by photographer Petr Horálek in 2018.
Mid-September to end of 2021: Venus show
Venus begins to descend low in the dawn sky from the southeast, disappearing from sunlight in March and April. It will reappear in the twilight sky at moderate altitude, moving south and brightening, but still sinking below the horizon before the sky darkens.
In mid-September Venus was still visible after sunset, then in early November it suddenly became a prominent object in the evening sky. Then in December, it peaked in brightness, as if bringing all the attention to this wonderful sight every night of the Christmas period before disappearing into the sunlight again in early 2022.
Venus. Credit: Alamy Stock Photo
November 19: partial lunar eclipse
North America is an excellent place for observation. This eclipse will occur a few hours before dawn and the visible phases will end before the Moon dips below the horizon.
The Moon will pass through the southern part of the Earth’s shadow (Umbra) and at its maximum phase almost the entire surface of the Moon will be in darkness (only about 2.6% of the surface will be left untouched).
Because some of the sunlight reaching Earth will be scattered and scattered in the atmosphere, Earth’s shadow will not be completely dark. This light reaches the Moon and gives the Moon a slight metallic bronze color which, combined with the clear golden silver surface, becomes the “Japanese lantern effect” – a beautiful view with the naked eye or with binoculars and small telescopes.
The early phases of the lunar eclipse are visible from the UK and parts of northern Europe before the moon sets. East Asia and Australia will also be visible after Moonrise later in the evening.
A partial lunar eclipse over the construction site of the Kaliningrad stadium ahead of the 2018 World Cup in Russia on August 7. Photo: TASS/Getty.
December 4: total solar eclipse
The final solar eclipse of 2021 will only be visible from the Antarctic continent. Total eclipse path: 265 miles (427 km) wide on average, sweeps inland south-southwest from the Weddell Sea, passes Berkner Island and the Filchner-Ronne Ice Cap, then continues sweeping across the West Antarctic region, up to the Executive Committee Range (a mountain range made up of five major volcanoes), before heading into the Ross Sea.
However, a partial eclipse (small occlusion) was also visible from South Africa, Namibia, Botswana, Tasmania and the southern part of New South Wales, Victoria in Australia, a small part at the south poles of New Zealand as well as neighboring Stewart. Island.
Unique “diamond ring” by photographer Andrew Struder.
December 13 and 14: Geminids Meteor Shower
In 2021, the Geminid meteor shower will peak around the predawn hours of December 14, and around 60 to 120 meteors can be seen per hour under favorable sky conditions. The Geminids are one of the very rare meteor showers with large numbers of meteors appearing even before midnight, but this year’s crescent moon phase light will hamper sightings before midnight. In fact, the Moon will continue to hamper observations until it sets around 3 a.m. local time. But this is probably the best time of night to chase meteors because Gemini – the focal point of the meteors – will be high in the sky. Small and rather faint meteors are likely to appear in abundance. But during and after the maximum, bright meteors and even the occasional fireball will appear.
Geminid meteor shower – the most anticipated meteor shower of the year captured through the lens of photographer Stefano Pellegrini.
Translated from Space.com
Translator: Kim Ngan – Hanoi Astronomical Society
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