special events

On July 13, the full moon will occur when the moon is at perigee, the point of the moon’s orbit when it is at its closest to Earth.

When the moon is full or near perigee, the moon appears slightly larger and brighter in the sky. This event is often called a supermoon. Supermoons can be up to 15% brighter than the average full moon.

There is also a unique astronomical phenomenon that occurs in Hawaii because the islands are located in the tropics. Known as Lahaina, this phenomenon refers to the days when the sun passes overhead during solar noon; At this time, objects with smooth sides will appear to cast little or no shadows.

These events can only be observed in the tropics and your latitude within the tropics will affect your Lahaina noon time.

In Honolulu, the Lahaina back will be held at 12:37 p.m. on July 15 and 26. Hilo will take place at 12:26 PM on July 23.

Evening notes

In the early evening hours we will be able to see two of the star liners in Hawaii. Kaiwikuamo’o will still stretch above our heads connecting the North Star, Hokupa’a, all the way to the Southern Cross, Hanaiakamalama. July is the last month of this year in which we can see the Southern Cross in the early evening sky. At the same time, our summer star, Manaiakalani, will rise in the eastern sky.

The views of the Milky Way are amazing during the summer months in Hawaii. Early in the evening, when we look at the shape of Kamakaunuiamaui, also known as Maui’s Fishhook, we see an area of ​​the Milky Way’s ring commonly called the bulge, which refers to the central regions of the Milky Way.

The strip of the Milky Way is illuminated by the combined light of millions of stars, most of which are far beyond our view with the naked eye. However, a small telescope or even a pair of binoculars will allow us to see many stars in the Milky Way’s range, especially on clear moonless nights with little light pollution.

morning notes

Early bird stargazers will enjoy a very different perspective of the night sky.

Throughout July, the sun will rise around 6 a.m. and our skies will turn the light of dawn starting right at 5:30.

The march of the planets will continue across the early morning sky. In the first week of July, the five planets visible to the naked eye – Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn – will be in the sky at the same time, around five in the morning.

Mercury will be the most difficult to detect because it will remain close to the horizon as the sun rises.

Venus, on the other hand, will be the brightest object in the sky and will stand out against the background of the constellation Taurus and the Hydes star cluster. Mars and Jupiter. Meanwhile, it will be higher in the southeast sky as Saturn begins to tilt down toward the southwest.

These five planets are historically counted among the so-called stars, which are seven celestial bodies that we observe moving across the sky against a background of fixed stars. The other stars are the sun and the moon.

The tracking of these celestial bodies goes back as early as the Babylonian records. The Seven Stars were so important to the people of the past that they are responsible for our seven-day week, with each day honoring one of the stars.

Discover / Observe the distinctive Mona Kia

Neptune and Uranus, the double ice giant of the outer solar system, are often confused with each other. After all, both planets have roughly the same size and mass, and share many of the same gases that make up their respective atmospheres. It is these gases that create the unique color of each world.

The fact that they share many similar physical characteristics inevitably leads to some confusion about which planet it is.

An international team of astronomers, using terrestrial and space-based observatories, has studied the atmospheres of both planets to ascertain exactly why the atmospheres of both worlds are different. The answer lies in the complex mathematical models of each planet’s atmosphere.

The study was conducted by combining the efforts of three very different instruments.

NASA’s Infrared Telescope Facility and the Gemini North Telescope, both located above Mauna Kea, have joined forces with the Hubble Space Telescope to produce an atmospheric model that can be applied to both planets. This fascinating combination of multi-length observations helps us understand why, when the two planets share so many characteristics, they are so different in color.

The color of the planet may seem like a trivial point of interest; However, color often indicates physical properties such as the presence of complex chemistry, weather patterns, and temperatures. In the case of rocky terrestrial planets, color can tell us about the environmental and geological conditions of the world. Take Earth for example: from space we can observe hills of deserts, blue and green of oceans, green of plants and crops, and of course the whiteness of ice and clouds.

The data collected and modeled for both icy planets gives us a glimpse into the interior of these planets. By studying reflected light at different wavelengths, we can ascertain details hidden from the human eye.

The reflective properties of the atmosphere of Uranus tell us that the pale color of the planet is due to the presence of dense fog located in the middle layers of the planet’s atmosphere. Composed of aerosols, this fog is probably not much different from the fog we sometimes see on Earth associated with wildfires, smog, and haze.

By studying the properties of color and reflectivity, we can better understand the weather systems on other planets – not just the planets of our own solar system. Observations of the atmospheres of exoplanets, and the atmospheres of planets around other stars, directly benefit from knowledge gleaned from studying our solar family.

By analyzing the reflectivity of exoplanet clouds, we can begin to understand what these alien planets look like and assess their potential habitability.

We can look for potential biomarkers, or possible indicators of life such as water and molecular oxygen. This knowledge allows us to better improve our methods for searching for life in the universe and helps us search for life in these strange new worlds.

Skywatch July 2022 By Honolulu Star-Advertiser

The Emiloa Astronomy Center of Hawaii is a center for informal science education at the University of Hawaii at Hilo, presenting astronomy and Hawaiian culture as parallel journeys of human exploration.