June Total Lunar Eclipse

One of the longest lunar eclipses, totality lasting 1h40m. Imaged from Pooraka, South Australia (click on image for larger image).

Australia Day Eclipse

While parts of Indonesia saw a total annular (ring) eclipse on 26/1/2009 we here in the southern parts of Australia saw only a small nibble taken out of the Sun as the Moon's limb transited the edge of the Sun. Image: Mid eclipse from North Haven, South Australia. Canon A550 hand-held through eyepiece of Meade ETX90EC telescope fitted with solar filter. Warning. Do not try this yourself without specialist advice and equipment. Permanent damage to eyes and camera can occur. (Click on image for large version).

Click here for a gif animation - 14 images with with Pentax K100D.

The last Australia Day eclipse occurred 25/1/1963. The next will occur on 26/1/2047 (AEST)

Images: Martin Lewicki (c) 2009

Venus-Jupiter-Moon Smiley Face

A curious alignment brings Venus, Jupiter and crescent Moon together this evening 1 December 2008






































A close up of the three...

Venus Beam

Venus, Mercury and Mars at Dusk

We've heard of Moon beams. These last few evenings Venus has been sending her beam across the Gulf waters to viewers on the western shores of Adelaide (and anywhere else where there is a body of water to the west). She is joined by Mercury just to the upper left and Mars, the brighter of the two near the top edge of the picture. Venus and Mercury are gaining height each night and will join Mars next week. Larger image

Pentax K100D; 30 sec; ISO 800; Sigma zoom 40mm; 25 August 2008 9:29UT

Aurora Australis

Aurora Australis from Mt Nelson, Tasmania on 10 February 2008. It unexpectedly appeared during group sky viewing session. The aurora shimmered and changed by the minute. The green was easily visible to the eye while the red showed up in only in this image that I took with a Canon PowerShot A550, 15 sec, ISO 800.

Aurora occur when the Sun produces a coronal mass ejection (CME). This cloud of charged particles travel out from the Sun at about 400 km/sec. When a CME brushes past the Earth, the Earth's magnetic field acts a shield to protect us but some of the particles manage to channel down through the north and south magnetic poles to collide with atoms of the Earth's upper atmosphere, about 80km up (the image shows clouds in silhouetted in the foreground). This excites atoms that produce light. The green and red come from atomic oxygen molecules.

I've see aurora twice before from Adelaide. They were fleeting lasting only few minutes. But this time I was ready with a camera and the Mount Nelson aurora obliged us with a show that lasted more than an hour!

More about aurora from Wikipedia

October Big Moon

This month's full Moon is closest of the year. About 7% closer than average. In this image the full moon rises looming like a giant orb above the roof tops of shops at Henley Square in Adelaide South Australia on 26 October 2007.


Pentax K100D 200mm. Composite of two images, one exposed for the buildings, the second for the Moon.


Moon imaged later same evening with Vivitar compact digital through Meade ETX90-EC telescope - through cirrus haze. A bit of contrast enhancement however brings it up nicely.

How imagining through the scope is done.

The near point of the Moon's orbit to Earth advances about 40 days per year so the next Big Moon season will be in mid December next year.

September: Mercury and Spica Align

The blue-white star Spica 270 light years away aligns with Mercury 9 light minutes away. Click on image to enlarge.


They're only 4.3 arcminutes (0.07°) apart in this image taken 22 Sep 2007 from South Australia. Next time they are this close together will be in 2040.