Tracking the Moon

Dear Moon, When Can I See You?

Most of us probably have this difficulty in understanding the Lunar Phases. We probably have a hard time figuring out the current lunar phase, or trying to locate where in the sky and also when is the best time to actually see the Moon.

The series of diagrams below may be able to help you. Probably you need to dedicate yourself a full lunar month, and observe the sky (possibly every night!), then hopefully you can have a better idea of the 'movement' of the Moon.

Try it! The next new moon will be on 15 September 2015 ( 1 Zulhijjah, 1436 - Islamic Calendar). Use the diagrams below as a guide.

Before you start, here are some assumptions that you need to make when using the diagrams....

Sunset is at 6.00 pm local time

Middle of the night is at 12.00 midnight

Sunrise is at 6.00 am local time

Middle of the day is at 12.00 noon

Equal day and night, 12 hours each

Good Luck, Happy Oberving!

Perseid Meteor Showers

Perseid Meteor Showers 2015

Starting today and for the next few days, observers in the northern hemisphere will be able (if weather conditions permits) to see the Perseid Meteor Showers. Below are some information gathered from the internet.
(http://www.timeanddate.com/astronomy/meteor-shower/perseid.html)

Location in the sky tonight

NOTE: Table below changes every day to show the coming night's location

Perseids meteor shower for Kuala Lumpur (Night between 11 Aug and 12 Aug)
Time	Azimuth/Direction	Altitude
Wed 01:00	32°	3.2°
Wed 02:00	31°	11.0°
Wed 03:00	29°	18.5°
Wed 04:00	24°	25.2°
Wed 05:00	18°	30.6°
Wed 06:00	9°	34.0°

Direction to see the Perseids in the sky:

• Azimuth is the direction, based on true north, a compass might show a slightly different value.
• Altitude is height in degrees over horizon.

Condition for this year might be good because at this particular time the sky is almost free of moonlight. Better still if you can get out of town so as to avoid any ambient light from the city lights




What is the Perseids Meteor Showers?

Meteor showers basically come from the dusty, icy remains of comets. When a comet travels through the solar system, parts of it are blown off by the solar wind and forms the comet’s dust tail.

As Earth passes through this tail, the tiny remains enter the Earth’s atmosphere at about 130,000 mph.

When these icy bits enter the atmosphere at such tremendous speeds, they rub against molecules in the air, generating heat from friction. The heat grows to 3,000 degrees Fahrenheit and vaporizes the materials. The light we see in the sky is actually the air around it that is so blazing hot that it radiates light.

Below are some Perseid Meteor photos from wikipedia.



Perseid meteor in 2010



Perseid meteor in 2007

So get yourself ready and observe the sky for the next few nights. Best time to watch... between midnight and dawn. Happy observing!