TRAC Action Plan: September 2024
- Category: Action Plans
- Author: JM
- Published: 02 Sep 2024
- Last updated: 03 Sep 2024
Summer Constellations
August did not provide us with any good opportunities to make progress with the summer constellations, so we'll try again this month.
On a clear night, we'll see how many of these constellations we can spot:
- Hercules – named after the brave Roman mythological hero.
- Lyra – an eagle carrying a lyre. Brightest star: Vega.
- Cygnus – a regal swan. Brightest star: Deneb.
- Scorpius – shaped like a scorpion's tail. Brightest star: Antares.
- Pegasus – an enormous winged horse from Greek mythology.
- Ophiuchus – commonly drawn as a man grasping a snake.
- Aquila – its name is Latin for 'eagle'. Brightest star: Altair.
- Sagittarius – a centaur with a bow. Contains the "tea pot" asterism.
Planets
Saturn
Saturn will be in opposition on 08 Sep at a magnitude of +0.6, the brightest it will be this year. Saturn will still appear quite small in the telescope eyepiece; after all, it's 850 million miles (1.3 billion km) from Rainham!
Neptune
Neptune will reach opposition on 20 Sep, but because it's so far away, the fact it's closer to the Earth than normal has a negligible effect on its brightness. At magnitude +7.8, Neptune will be tricky to locate, and seeing it poses the biggest challenge our astronomy club will face in 2024.
The Wait Continues
Near the end of the month, Jupiter, Uranus, and Mars will be visible, but they'll all be quite low in the sky. We'll wait a little longer for the view to improve.
Pinhole Camera
Please refer all the way back to the May Action Plan! A homemade pinhole camera offers an interesting way to view the Sun safely.
No one seems particularly enthusiastic about this idea. I think it would be a fun activity for anyone who likes building things and testing them out.
Lunar Observations
September 2024 Lunar Calendar
- New Moon Tue 03
- First Quarter Wed 11
- Full Moon Wed 18
- Last Quarter Tue 24
The full moon will be close to Saturn again in the middle of the month. Anyone who would like to take a photo using the telescope phone adapter is welcome to try. Success will mainly depend on the weather, of course.
Admin Tasks
Writing to the council is our top priority. It might be a good idea to include a 'testimonial' from a team member saying why they are interested in astronomy and what they enjoy most about the astronomy club, etc.
The website remains a work in progress. All we did last month was add an image of Zak wearing solar eclipse glasses. If you'd like to add any text or images to the website, let me know or send me an email.
Summary
Our main goals this month will be to see the summer constellations and Saturn at opposition and to write the letter to Medway Council.
I think it's also worth mentioning that although the main meteor shower of the year has been and gone, meteors occur every night. September is the month with the highest rate of sporadic meteors, so it's definitely worth staying alert.
James M
TRAC Team Leader
02 Sep 2024 – Rainham, Kent
TRAC is an amateur astronomy group based in Rainham (Kent) in the United Kingdom.
On clear nights, you'll find us outside, observing stars, planets, moons, galaxies, satellites, meteors, and comets.
This action plan is specifically tailored for our location, schedules, optical equipment, level of experience, personal interests, and local sky conditions.
Unless stated otherwise, all magnitude values refer to apparent magnitude and have usually been rounded to one decimal place.
We welcome any questions, feedback, or suggestions you may have. Please let us know if anything is unclear or if you notice an error, inaccuracy, or typo. Contact us via email.
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