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This is the Griffith Observatory Sky Report for the period between October 1 and October 31, 2022. Here are the events happening in the sky of southern California.

Mercury rises at 5:43 a.m., PDT, and the sun rises at 6:48 a.m., PDT, on the 1^st. Mercury is 18-percent illuminated and 8.7 arcseconds wide. On the 31^st, Mercury rises at 6:47 a.m., PDT, and the sun rises at 7:12 a.m., PDT. Mercury is 99-percent illuminated and 4.8 arcseconds wide. Do not observe any planet when it appears close to the sun, for the danger to the eyes is great.

Venus rises at 6:21 a.m., PDT, on the 1^st and rises at 6:01 a.m., PDT on the 31^st. It is too close to the sun to be safely observed in October. Do not observe any planet when it appears close to the sun, for the danger to the eyes is great.

Mars is in Taurus the Bull.  On the 1^st, the planet rises at 10:20 p.m., PDT, with a disk that is 88-percent illuminated and 12 arcseconds wide. On the 31^st, Mars rises at 8:39 p.m., PDT, with a disk that is 93-percent illuminated and 15 arcseconds wide.  A telescope capable of magnification of 100x or more will be needed to show the disk and any large surface features.

Jupiter is in Pisces the Fishes. On the 1^st, Jupiter rises at 6:22 p.m., PDT, and on the 31^st at 3:15 p.m., PDT. Jupiter’s disk is 50 arcseconds wide on the 15^th. A telescope capable of magnification 50x will show the Red Spot and the four bright Galilean moons, which can be seen moving back and forth, roughly in a line centered on Jupiter.

Saturn is in Capricornus the Sea Goat. On the 1^st, the planet rises at 4:21 p.m., PDT, and on the 31^st at 2:22 p.m., PDT. The rings and Saturn’s largest moon Titan can be seen with a telescope capable of magnification 50x.

Uranus is in Aries the Ram. On the 1^st, the planet rises at 8:23 p.m., PDT, and on the 31^st at 6:22 p.m., PDT. On the 15^th, Uranus is at Right Ascension 3^h 2^m 7^s with a declination of +16° 48ʹ 6ʺ. Uranus is 3.8 arcseconds wide, and so a telescope with a magnification of 150x is needed to show its diminutive disk.

Neptune is in Aquarius the Water Bearer. On the 1^st, the planet rises at 5:56 p.m., PDT, and on the 31^st at 3:56 p.m., PDT. On the 15^th, Neptune is at Right Ascension 23^h 37^m 14^s and declination -3° 47ʹ 37ʺ. Neptune is 2.4 arcseconds wide, and so a telescope with a magnification of 150x is needed to show its diminutive disk.

First quarter occurs on the 2^nd, full moon on the 9^th, last quarter on the 17^th, new moon on the 25^th, and first quarter again on the 31^st.

SPECIAL EVENTS

The Orionid meteor shower is active from October 2 to November 7. The Orionids peak on the morning of the 21^st. The rate will be about 19 meteors per hour. Orionids are particles shed by comet 1P/Halley, and they hit our atmosphere at 41 miles (66 kilometers) per second. The meteors appear to stream from the area of the upraised club in the constellation Orion the Hunter.

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