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This is the Griffith Observatory Sky Report through October 31st, 2018. Here’s what’s happening in the skies of southern California.
The bright planets Jupiter, Saturn, and Mars can be seen starting half an hour after sunset. Jupiter, in the constellation Libra the Scales, is low in the southwest. It sets at 7:28 p.m. on the 24th and at 7:06 p.m. on the 31st. Golden hued Saturn, in the constellation Sagittarius the Archer, is 37 degrees to the upper left of Jupiter–nearly four times the angular span of your clenched fist held out at arm’s length. Saturn is at the midpoint of the imaginary line running from Jupiter to orange Mars, in the south-southeast and to the upper left of Saturn in the faint constellation Capricornus the Sea Goat.
Saturn sets shortly before 10:00 p.m. and Mars sets more than three hours later at about 1:15 a.m.
The moon’s phase wanes from full on the 24th to last quarter on the 31st. Its rising time on successive nights advances about 40 minutes, from 6:38 p.m. on the 24th to 11:38 p.m. on the 30th.
The brightest nighttime star, Sirius, sparkles in the southern sky before dawn. It is highest in the south at 5:28 a.m. on the 24th and at 5:00 a.m. on the 31st. Sirius is in the constellation Canis Major, the Big Dog, the mythological companion of the hunter Orion. The constellation Orion is the bright group of stars located about 20 degrees–two clenched fists–to the upper right of Sirius.
Two upcoming passes of the International Space Station will bring it directly over Los Angeles. The Space Station will be visible in the bright dawn light on Thursday morning as it crosses the sky from the southwest to the northeast between 6:36 and 6:42 a.m. It will be near the zenith, the point directly overhead, at 6:39 a.m. On Sunday morning, October 28, the ISS will abruptly emerge from the Earth’s shadow while already 72 degrees above the northwest horizon, at 5:39 a.m. It will be visible for another three minutes as it descends to the northeast horizon. The Heavens-Above website and App provides viewing times of the International Space Station (and many other satellites) from any location on Earth.
Free views of the Sun during the day and of the moon, planets, and other celestial objects at night are available to the public in clear weather through Griffith Observatory’s telescopes from Tuesday through Sunday, before 9:30 p.m. Check our website for the schedule. The next free public star party on the grounds of Griffith Observatory, hosted by the Los Angeles Astronomical Society, the Sidewalk Astronomers, and the Planetary Society, will take place on Saturday, November 17th.
Follow the Sky Report on Twitter for updates of astronomy and space-related events.
From Griffith Observatory, I’m Anthony Cook, and I can be reached at griffithobserver@gmail.com.