October 2024 sky

Here is a great guide to observing the October sky. See the constellations, planets and all celestial events

October brings us into the heart of autumn, characterized by less exposure to sunlight, which is also marked by the return in the European Union countries to standard time that will come into effect on the night between Saturday 26 and Sunday 271 October. At three in the morning, the hands should be turned back one hour, to two. Hero of the month is Cometa C/2023 A3 (Tsouchenshan-Atlas) Which will reach its maximum splendor this month (Here is a guide and maps).

Let’s dig deeper now October 2024 sky.

Planets in the sky in October

To the northeast you can follow the ascent of the Perseus-Cassiopeia pair and the ascent of Auriga with its magnificent Capella (α Aurigae), Already followed by the bull lights With the beautiful star Aldebaran (α Tauri) with him chandelierRepresents the vanguard of the winter sky.

To the north on the horizon, the star constellation Ursa Major will be at the lowest point of its path across the sky. To the northwest will be Boots and Hercules already at sunset, and to the west we find the summer triangle of Vega, Altair and Deneb (respectively Lyra, Eagle and swan also at sunset. To the southwest we find Capricorn and Aquarius, then continuing towards the south and southeast we find Pisces, Pisces and Eridanus. In the east, the scenario will be completed by the ascension of Orion with its main star Betelgeuse (α Orionis), the hero of many articles in recent months, and Gemini with its brightest stars Castor (α Geminorum) and Pollux (β Geminorum). In Zenith we find Cepheus and Pegasus, and inside we find a constellation Andromeda The galaxy of the same name can also be observed with simple binoculars (But in very dark skies they can be seen with the naked eye).

For those who want to get closer to observing the sky, we recommend the book Daniel Gaspari“,”First encounter with the starry sky“. here connection.

Seeing planets

As with photography, planetary observation has always held enormous fascination. If you are interested in planetary photography, This is the course for you. Here’s an overview of how all eight planets of the solar system will be seen in the skies of October 2024:

1. MercurioObserving the planet in October will not be the best. We will find it visible to the west at the end of the month for about half an hour after sunset.
2. Venus: It will be visible in the evening sky after sunset, and as the days go by, it will become brighter in the west
3. Marty: Finally, the red planet can be seen again in the evening hours. We will find it visible with the naked eye in the East before midnight near the end of the month.
4. Jupiter: It will be clearly visible throughout the night, making it the brightest planet along with Venus. Ideal for observation even with telescopes (its atmosphere and Galilean satellites are unusual);
5. Saturn: It will be visible almost all night, and its rings can be seen clearly if you use a telescope;
6. Uranus: The planet is in good condition that should always be monitored with A telescope;
7. Neptune: Also visible with A telescopewill be visible almost all night (after last month’s opposition), but requires more effort to locate even with a telescope because it is not visible to the naked eye.

Observing the Milky Way

Although summer is now over, October still allows you to observe and photograph the area milky way In an interesting way. This month, the nucleus is no longer fully visible above the horizon, but rather during the first part of the night Some of it will be noticeable. The Milky Way will already be visible after dusk in the southwest direction, and will appear in the sky immediately at a practically vertical tilt. During the night it will move sharply to the west and at the same time It will continue to decline.

Based on these characteristics it is recommended Vertical configurationHowever, imaging the entire (visible) galactic arc is really complicated, so it is not recommended. To get a good note, we know how important it is to have it The sky is clear with the moonTherefore, it is advisable to wait until at least the 24th of the month, which are the days when our satellite will rise at night, giving us a window of a few hours. The best nights are those when there is a new moon. Starting from day 2.

The moon and celestial events

the police officer There will be a supermoon on October 17, 2024: our satellite will be at a distance 363.763 km). The new moon will fall on October 2nd and the first quarter on October 10th. Finally, the last quarter will fall on the 24th. The Moon can be easily observed even with fairly inexpensive binoculars, and we recommend the following: Celestron Up Close G2 10X50 Pinocolo.

Good observations and clear skies

An article he wrote: Pascual Dana, Stefano Maragi