October Astronomy Events

Last Month:  (September 1st – October 19th)                                            

September 29th, 2023 – Supermoon

There are usually only four supermoons per year. A supermoon occurs when a full moon

coincides with the Moon’s closest approach to Earth in its elliptical orbit. The supermoon on September 29th was the fall’s harvest moon. 

October 2nd, 2023 – The Andromeda Galaxy was in a great spot for people to stargaze because it was very viewable and high in the sky.

October 8th & 9th, 2023 – The Draconid Meteor Shower was at its peak. The Draconids are smaller meteors that get their name from the constellation Draco. The Draconids peaked sometime around midnight. These meteors are very unreliable, and they have different meteors every year. 

Coming Up:  (October 18th – November 14th)        

October 18th, 2023 – Dwarf Planet Eris is in opposition. You’ll need a telescope to see it, but Eris

 will be super bright on October 18th. It will be in the constellation Cetus in the night sky. 

October 21st, 2023 – Orionids Meteor Shower. Possibly the best space event in October, the Orionids Meteor Shower will take place. These meteor showers are special – they can contain up to 21 meteors per hour. The meteor shower will take place from October 16th to the 30th, peaking on the morning of the 21st. These meteors should

be easy to spot since they originate from the well known constellation Orion. If you want to see the meteors peak, you can see them anytime from 10:30pm on the 20th from the early morning to the next day.

Upcoming Constellations and Planets to See:  (October 16th – November 10th)

Next Full Moon: October 28th, Hunter’s moon. There will be a partial lunar eclipse, but it is unlikely to be seen on the east coast, or anywhere else in America.

October Constellations: Lacerta, Aquarius, and Pegasus can all be seen in the night sky this October.

October Planets: Venus, Jupiter, and Saturn can all be seen this month.

November Constellations: Cepheus, Cassiopeia, Andromeda, and Pisces can all be seen in the Northern hemisphere night sky this November.

November Planets: Uranus, Mars, Venus, Jupiter, and Neptune will be visible in November.

Featured Image: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Andromeda_Galaxy_%28with_h-alpha%29.jpg 

Supermoon Image: commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Artist%E2%80%99s_impression_of_the_dwarf_planet_Eris.jpg

Meteor Shower Image: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.0/#