You may aleady know that the Tau Herculid Meteor Shower this year may bring us a meteor storm.  They are predicting that this will peak near midnight between May 30 and May 31.   At midnight, the radiant will be close to directly overhead, so meteors should be visible before midnight.  Keep in mind that meteor storm forecasting is still a bit of an art, so this is only a prediction.  But if you have never seen a meteor storm, with over 1000 meteors per hour, then it is worth the attempt.

The meteors are remnants left behind by the comet:  73P/Schwassmann-Wachmann 3

The radiant is located at roughly:  Right Ascension – 13h 56m, Declination – +28°

This is a 2 page handout for the event (PDF file).
 

Check out these files for the June sky charts and significant events in June.

• Navigating the June Night Sky (PDF)
• Navegando por el cielo nocturno de Junio (PDF)
• La Superba (PDF)

REGISTER FOR ALCON ’22! JULY 28-30, 2022

Download the PDF here

Check out these files for the May sky charts and significant events in May.

• Navigating the May Night Sky (PDF)
• Navegando por el cielo nocturno de Mayo (PDF)
• May Lunar Eclipse (PDF)
• Jupiter and Venus Conjunction (PDF)

We need your help!  We would like to make sure that our on-line database is as accurate as possible.  Please take a few minutes and confirm that Observing Program certifications you have earned are represented.

We know that recent ones may not have had a chance to be entered yet, but submissions should have been made on 4/1/2022, so hopefully most of them have made it on-line.

If you find any discrepancies, please send an email to Aaron Clevenson at aaron@clevenson.org.  We will do what we can to correct the issues.

Some things to keep in mind:

• Awards are shown in the Astronomy Club in which you were a member when you earned them.  If you moved to a new astronomy club, the awards earned in the former club cannot be transitioned.
• If we have the wrong club associated with your award, this we can fix.  Sometimes we just get the wrong one entered.
• If you see and missing certifications, we want to know about them.  We will have to confirm with the Coordinator, but we can fix this.
• If we have your awards under two slightly different names, or if your name has changed, we can get them all listed under one name.  Be sure to tell us about all of the names you found, and also the name you prefer them to be listed under.
• And also anything odd that you find (incorrect numbers, etc.) let us know.

Thanks.

Aaron Clevenson, Cliff Mygatt, Al Lamperti, Maynard Pittendreigh, and Marie Lott

If you wish to apply for a Master Observer’s plaque, you need to register for ALCON 2022 by May 25. As part of the registration, you should indicate that you are a Master Observer, provide your certificate number, and state that you have not received the Master Observer plaque. You will also need to register to attend the Awards Banquet on 30 July, during which the plaques will be presented. You can register online or by mail.

The registration web page is: https://alcon2022.astroleague.org

The Astronomical League’s Observing Challenge for the Galaxy Season has started.  It runs from now through June 30, 2022.  This is open to anyone, membership in the AL is not required.  For more information, go to the Challenge’s web page:  

AL Observing Challenge – Special Observing Award

The Alternate Constellations Observing Program has been split into Silver and Gold Levels.  Links have also been added to help you find more information on the various cultural and obsolete constellations.  Those members who have already earned the certification have received the Gold Level.  Only the 40 observations of Obsolete Constellations are required for the Silver Level..  For full details check out their updated web page:

https://www.astroleague.org/alternate-constellation-observing-program