Venus crescent around 17:00

Moon and Mercury rise near an hour before the sun tomorrow

Later 22:00 Mars now egg shaped, but Saturn getting better ... 

Moon's slender 27 day sliver will rise around 6 am tomorrow in Scorpius, after Jupiter but before Mercury (and Pluto) so took the Bresser Skylux out around 20:00 UT to look at the stars.

Here is a sketch of the stars below the 3-star belt,  in Orion's sword,  brought to an untimely end by clouds!!

Viewed through 20mm obj.

Took the Bresser (more) out for a browse around 10.30 pm - some cloud around but Mars still bright high to the SW and Orion was in his glory to the south.  Moon not in view till it rises around 4:30 am with Jupiter - but Saturn and Titan were beautiful in Cancer

just lower down from the Beehive cluster (sketch of inner stars)

Got a new small Telescope - or Binoculars - or Camera?

Not sure what to look for? 

A few ideas and links here 

Got a new small Telescope - or Binoculars - or Camera?

Not sure what to look for?   

A few ideas and links here 

Christmas Eve Venus 

CHRISTMAS MORNING:  "Mom, dad, wake up, it's Christmas!" If this happens to you at 5:30 a.m. on Dec. 25th, steal a glance out the window on your way to the tree. The crescent moon will be gliding by the bright star Spica--a pretty close encounter. In some places the moon will actually blot out the star. Check http://spaceweather.com for sky maps and more information.

AN EXPLOSION ON THE MOON:  So you thought nothing ever happens on the moon? Think again. NASA scientists have observed a surprising and powerful explosion in the lunar Sea of Rains ( the Mare Imbrium) 

Credit: NASA/MSFC/Bill Cooke.

December 23, 2005: NASA scientists have observed an explosion on the moon. The blast, equal in energy to about 70 kg of TNT, occurred near the edge of Mare Imbrium (the Sea of Rains) on Nov. 7, 2005, when a 12-centimeter-wide meteoroid slammed into the ground traveling 27 km/s.

see Spaceweather or News

Bresser Skylux refractor ... 70mm

Tal 1 reflector ... 110mm

Right way up for binocular viewers ...

Walled plain of Cleomedes (129 km) - about 3.9 billion years old - and the much younger crater Picard (24 km)

The great craters south of Mare Crisium - Langrenus (136 km - same period as Picard) Petavius made 3.8 billion years ago - with battered Vendelinus the oldest of the trio made back in the Nectarian period 

Saturn was beautiful tonight.  Could see 3 moons

As seen in the reflector (Tal 110mm)

As seen in refractor (Bresser Skylux 70mm)

Right way up!!

10 x 50 binocs - through double-glazing -  camera zoom

Outside, cloudy, x 32, not much camera zoom

Very cloudy now - x 32 plus x 3 Barlow plus camera zoom ... rain came soon after ...

Visibility dreadful for all photos - 

Put all in greyscale. Did unsharp masking

Increased contrast/ lightened if needed, reduced size

Venus bright above the clouds and chimneys

Mars now showing less than 'full'

Beautiful 11 day moon

Saturn creeping up through the murk

Yellowish Capella and orange-red Alderbaran

Venus in the West

Mars

Mars and the Moon in the East

Sinus Iridum seems to float

Copernicus

Tycho and Clavius

Dragged the Tal out about 16:30UT - used the Barlow(x3) and Plossl 25 mm (x32) plus camera zoom. 

This corner of the Mare Imbrium where it meets the Mare Serenitatis through the gap between the Montes Caucasus and the Montes Apenninus is always worth a look.  Today the sun had just risen over the huge valley (130 km) in the Montes Alpes to the north.  The rays had found the top of Mons Piton and, to the south, the peaks of the mountains above Hadley Rille shone - but the Apollo 15 landing place was still in shadow along with the green-tinted soil they found

Moving further east to look at the whole of the Sea of Serenity.   Eudoxus can still be seen in the north but Burg now shows in the Lacus Mortis.  

The craters on the eastern side are less defined in the sunshine but shadows can just be seen in SE mountains near the Apollo 17 landing place south of Littrow, where orange soil was found - plus bits of rock which date back to the forming of the moon 4.5 billion years before. 

It was a day for landing places - somewhere in the sunlit east of the Albategnius (you can just see central peak and younger crater Klein on the rim) is the Apollo 16 site, where some of the youngest lunar samples were found (only 2 million yrs old) from the lighter ray material.

But there is yet another famous landing site captured here!!  The ancient walled plain Hipparchus (150 km) is to the north of Albategnius.  This is where Herge's Tintin and Snowy  landed  in  "Explorers on the Moon"   ;-)

Quick photo through Lidl's £9.99 binocs (10x50) on tripod - just before 16:00UT - sun still up

Day 5 and finally shows its face here in the Backyard

Well, nearly - too low for the Tal, about 15 Alt, 205 Az here at around 18:30 UT (1st sighting since 20th Nov)

Was in Capricorn, between Uranus and Neptune, with Mars in the SE and Venus in the SW and Saturn rising later ... ah well!!  Cloud looked dramatic ;-)

BUT  - moon goes down, skies cleared! Went hunting galaxies with binoculars - found Andromeda M31 ? - brightish patch with misty look? - and the Triangulum Pinwheel M33 ? - ovalish faint grey patch, no bright bits? both virtually overhead, latter further south.  Used Starry Night to find them.

Saw a double satellite, nice!  Was it a NOSS triplet or double? You can check out satellites on Heavens Above