SUN AND MOON

On the 20th of the previous month, the sun reached its highest point in the sky at noon and is now sinking again. The length of the day in Zweibrücken decreases from 16 hours 17 minutes to 15 hours 17 minutes over the course of the month. From July 5, we again reach the point at which it becomes dark enough for astronomical observations. Even if only at 1:20 a.m. for a whole 15 minutes. During these few minutes, the sun already reaches a position of more than 18 degrees below the horizon, which is considered night for amateur astronomers. Also on the morning of July 5 at 5:00 a.m., the earth is at its furthest point from the sun. The distance at this time is 152,100,000 kilometers.
On the 21st of the month, the full moon makes it difficult to observe fainter objects. In the night from July 24 to 25, our Earth companion apparently visits the planet Saturn. At 1:00 a.m., the angular distance is just under 2 degrees, i.e. almost four full moon diameters.

PLANETS

The first planets reappear in the night sky.

Mercury reaches its almost maximum possible eastern angular distance from the sun on July 22 at just under 27 degrees. The large angular distance is due to the fact that five days later it is at its furthest point from the sun at a distance of almost 70 million kilometers. Unfortunately, this is not sufficient for evening visibility as it is too far south of the Sun's apparent orbit around the Earth (ecliptic).

Venus was at an upper conjunction to the Sun on 04.06.2023. The angle to the sun of almost 15 degrees is not yet sufficient for evening visibility. In August, it is possible to find it low in the evening sky.

Mars increases its morning visibility considerably and reaches the northern parts of the zodiac. On the first of the month, it crosses the horizon line in Zweibrücken at 2:23 a.m. and continues to rise early to 1:21 a.m. at the end of the month.

Jupiter can be observed in the morning sky. It rises at 1:47 a.m. on the last day of the month. However, it does not reach its peak with the opposition until the beginning of December.

From the middle of the month, the planet Uranus the object of observation in the second half of the night.

Neptune begins its opposition loop, but still poses a challenge in the morning sky. A telescope is required to observe both planets, Uranus and Neptune, as they can never be seen with the naked eye.

Formerly the ninth planet and now belonging to the minor planets Pluto is at opposition to the sun on July 23. However, it can only be observed in larger telescopes, such as those at observatories.

STARRY SKY

Deep in the East the winged horse of antiquity, Pegasus, stretches its head above the layers of haze near the horizon.

Just above the Southern horizon Scorpio and Sagittarius are still in the sky. They are only significantly higher in the night sky in the Mediterranean regions.

A little further to West the inconspicuous constellation of the Northern Crown and Bootes can still be observed. As already here experts expect a nova to appear by September 2024.

The summer triangle with Vega, Atair and Deneb is approaching from the east. Zenith.

High above us Hercules and the inconspicuous dragon still stand.

The big bear is already sinking on northern night sky towards the west. Opposite Polaris, as seen from the Great Bear, the "celestial W", Cassiopeia, slowly rises into the northern regions.

The following sky view is valid for July 1 at 0 am, July 15 at 11 pm and July 30 at 10 pm.

Due to the short nights, the observatory will remain closed at night in June. However, a few Sundays are planned on which the observatory will open between 14:00 and 16:00 for solar observation. The dates cannot be planned in advance due to the weather. The times will be announced via a ticker on our main page.

SUN AND MOON

The longest day of the year 2024 occurs on June 20. At 20:51, the sun reaches its greatest northern latitude due to the tilt of the earth's axis by 23.45 degrees. At 13:32 on this day, the sun will be an impressive 64.18 degrees above the horizon in Zweibrücken.

Provided the weather gods are on our side, we can look forward to long, bright days and, due to the full moon on June 22, brighter nights. However, the full moon in summer is not quite as bright as in winter. The maximum altitude on this night is only 11.5 degrees.

PLANETS

The end of the period of planetary poverty is gradually approaching. But a little patience is still required.

Mercury and Venus are in upper conjunction to the Sun on June 14 and June 4.

In the second half of the night Mars and Saturn in the sky. Mars is only 5 arc seconds in diameter and not a worthwhile telescopic object. Saturn rises on the 15th at 1:40 am.

The giant planet appears from the middle of the month Jupiter also in the second half of the night over the south-eastern horizon. On the 15th of the month, it rises at 4:14 am.

Uranus was in conjunction with the Sun in the middle of the previous month and cannot be observed.

Neptune is not yet a worthwhile object in the night sky.

Note:  Upper conjunction means that one - or both - of the two inner planets are behind the Sun as seen from Earth, usually slightly above or below it. Lower conjunction means that Mercury or Venus are in front of the sun. Here, too, they are usually slightly above or below the sun.
In contrast to the inner planets, there is no upper or lower conjunction for the outer planets. Here only the term Conjunction used for the position behind the sun. One Opposition can also only occur with the outer planets. The planet, the earth and the sun are roughly in line, so the planet can be observed throughout the night and reaches the smallest distance from the earth.

STARRY SKY

In the East the summer constellations have already risen. Among them are the Swan with the star Deneb, the Eagle with the main star Atair, which is still close to the horizon, and Lyra with its bright star Vega, which is also the brightest star in the northern sky. This means that the summer triangle, which consists of the three stars mentioned above, is completely above the horizon, even if it is not yet too high.

Deep in the South is Scorpio with its main star Antares, which means "opposite Mars". Because of its reddish color, it has been confused with Mars, which is also reddish. According to one of the many sources of Greek mythology, the Scorpion was sent by the goddess Artemis to defeat Orion, the great sky hunter, as he had incurred the wrath of the goddess through his excessive hunting. The bright star to the west of Scorpio is Spica, the main star of Virgo.

The lion is already approaching the western horizon. Cancer is already on the verge of extinction.

High above us is home to the inconspicuous constellation of Hercules. A little further to the southwest is the equally inconspicuous constellation of the Northern Crown and Bootes, which has also been referred to as an ice cream cone due to its shape.

Low on the Northern sky is Cassiopeia, the wife of Cepheus, who can be found a little further west.

The following sky view is valid for June 1 at midnight, June 15 at 11 p.m. and June 30 at 10 p.m.

Due to the increasing length of the day, the useful observation times will be reduced from five hours at the beginning of May to just two hours at the end of the month. This would mean that the start of observations of galaxies and similar faint objects would shift from 23:00 CEST to 0:30 CEST. For this reason the observatory is only open from the beginning of May to the end of August under certain conditions. These include, for example Observation of the sun and moon on some weekends. The times will be announced via a ticker on our main page.

SUN AND MOON

In the spring month of May, the day length for Zweibrücken increases from 14 hours and 46 minutes at the beginning to 16 hours and 4 minutes at the end of the month. The maximum height of the sun on May 31 is already an impressive 62 degrees.
The full moon on May 23 will affect the observation of fainter objects.

On May 5 at around 5:00 a.m., the narrow crescent of the waning moon will pass just under one degree north of Mars. However, a small telescope is needed to observe it. The occultation of Mars remains hidden from us; it only takes place in a strip from Madagascar, Indonesia, south-east Asia to Japan.

PLANETS

May, like April, is poor in planets.

Mercury reaches its greatest western angular distance from the Sun on the 9th of the month at 29.3 degrees, but this is not sufficient for morning visibility, as the ecliptic is very flat in the morning sky.

Venus is approaching its upper conjunction with the Sun. Upper conjunction means that the Earth, Sun and the object, in this case Venus, are aligned. The term upper and lower conjunction is only used for Mercury and Venus.

Mars appears low in the morning sky in the last third of May. Due to its distance and the associated optical size, it remains uninteresting as an object for telescope observers.

On the 18th of the month Jupiteras seen from Earth, opposite the Sun (conjunction). It therefore remains unobservable.

Saturn continues to behave hesitantly, on the first of the month it crosses the horizon in Zweibrücken at 4:31 am, on the last of the month it rises at 2:38 am.

Uranus and Neptune are still not observed.

STARRY SKY

Direction West the twins are already in the process of setting. Cancer is already stuck in the haze layers near the horizon. Leo is still a little higher up.
In Greek mythology, the lion is often associated with the hero Hercules (Heracles). According to one source, it is said to be the Nemean Lion, who was up to mischief near the city of Nemea and harassed the inhabitants there. The first of Hercules' twelve tasks was to defeat the lion. However, every weapon bounced off his fur, so the Greek hero had to face the lion with his bare hands in order to defeat him. From then on, the skin protected Hercules from his enemies. At Hera's request, Zeus moved the lion to heaven.

About us are the hair of Berenice with a multitude of galaxies, although a medium-sized telescope is required to observe them. A little further to the east is the Bear Keeper with its bright main star, Arcturus. A little trick makes it easier to find. If you extend the three drawbar stars of the "Big Dipper" in an arc, you will come across a bright star, Arcturus.
Here is a graphic for orientation:

Next Eastbound you come across the inconspicuous constellation Hercules with its bright globular cluster M13, which is already a magnificent sight in binoculars. In the image above on the left.

Just above the southeastern horizon the summer constellation of Scorpio appears towards the middle of the month. In the Northeastthe summer constellations enter the celestial stage.

Low on the northern night sky you can see the "celestial W", Cassiopeia, on the other side of the pole star as seen from the Great Bear.

Note: To the east of the Bear Keeper is the Northern Crown, in which a free-eyed observable nova should appear by September. An article about this can be found here. A nova is, briefly explained, a periodic phenomenon in which mass flows from a red giant star onto its companion, a white dwarf. When a critical mass is reached, a new short-lived nuclear fusion (thermonuclear explosion) starts, which ejects the mass into space. This process lasts a few days.

The following sky view is valid for May 1 at midnight, May 15 at 11 pm and May 30 at 10 pm.