Astrophiz 241: September Sky Guide — Venus at Greatest Brilliancy & the Occultation of Antares
Astronomy Astrophiz PodcastShow Notes
Dr Ian 'Astroblog' Musgrave returns with your essential guide to the September night sky — Venus at its greatest brilliancy (mag -4.5), the Moon's occultation of Antares, and Mercury lining up with Venus and Spica at dusk.
🔭 In this episode: - Spring equinox (Sept 23) and an apogee First Quarter Moon - Venus at greatest brilliancy, sinking toward evening twilight - Mercury returns and lines up with Spica and Venus - Saturn climbs toward October opposition; Mars crosses Gemini at dawn - Comet 220P/McNaught's second outburst — still visible in binoculars - T Coronae Borealis: still hasn't gone nova - The occultation of Antares, Sept 17–18 (Adelaide, Canberra, Hobart, Melbourne) - Deep-sky spotlight: Sagittarius and the triangle of globular clusters — M28, Omega Centauri, and 47 Tucanae
🌀 The Tangent: Ian traces the thousand-year argument over why Venus and Mercury never wander far from the Sun — from Ptolemy's epicycles to Tycho Brahe, Simon Marius, and Galileo's discovery of the phases of Venus.
Full transcript and show notes: https://astrophiz.com
Astrophiz is an independent, ad-free astronomy and astrophysics podcast. Free, unsponsored, and produced on Yorta Yorta, Pangarang and Kaurna country.
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