Sky Calendar

New Moon
9/5/2013 4:36 AM PDT

Moon, Venus, and Saturn
9/9/2013 After sunset
The waxing Crescent Moon, Venus, and Saturn can be seen on the western horizon shortly after sunset.

First Quarter Moon
9/12/2013 10:10 AM PDT

Full Moon
9/19/2013 4:13 AM PDT

Autumnal Equinox
9/22/2013 1:38 PM PDT

Third Quarter Moon
9/26/2013 8:56 PM PDT

Moon and Jupiter
9/28/2013 After 1:30 AM
The waning Crescent Moon comes very close to Jupiter tonight. The Moon rises at 1:01 AM, so watch for the pair in the east after this time.

Chabot's New Director
9/1 - 1923
After the death of Charles Burckhalter, Earle Linsley is appointed as Director of Chabot Observatory.

First Flyby of Saturn: Pioneer 11
9/1 - 1979
First flyby of Saturn and return of close up images, Pioneer 11, US, 1979.

First Solar Flare Recorded
9/1 - 1859
First solar flare ever recorded observed by solar physicist Richard Carrington in 1859.

Viking 2 Lands on Mars
9/3 - 1976
Viking 2 lander touched down on Mars, about 7 weeks after Viking 1 (July 20), US, 1976.

AAS Founded
9/6 - 1899
American Astronomical Society founded in 1899 as the Astronomical and Astrophysical Society of America.

To Boldly Go
9/8 - 1966
Star Trek uses high production values to boldly go where no TV science fiction show has gone before, inspiring a generation's interest in space, astronomy, technology, and alternative social systems -- US, 1966.

Amalthea Discovered
9/9 - 1892
Amalthea, Jupiter's innermost moon, discovered by Edward Emerson Barnard, Lick Observatory, 1892. It was the first of Jupiter's moons to be discovered since Galileo found the first four in 1609. Jupiter is now known to have 28 moons-- and counting....

First Glass Plate Photo
9/9 - 1839
First photograph on a glass plate taken by John Herschel, 1839 The subject of the photo was the famous 48-inch aperture telescope of John's father, William Herschel, in disuse for several decades and shortly to be dismantled.

James E. Keeler Born
9/10 - 1857
James E. Keeler, pioneer American spectroscopist and astrophysicist, born in 1857. In 1895, he showed that different parts of Saturn's rings rotate at different velocities, proving the rings to be not solid bodies, but instead systems of many tiny objects in independent orbits.

First Flyby of a Comet
9/11 - 1985
First flyby of a comet( Comet Giacobini-Zinner), ICE, the International Cometary Explorer, US, 1985. ICE was the former International Solar Explorer, reprogrammed for this mission.

Sir James Jeans Born
9/11 - 1877
Sir James Jeans, English astronomical theoretician, born in 1877. He proposed that stars created energy by the destruction of matter in accordance with Einstein's formula, E = mc².

First Human-made Object Strikes Moon
9/12 - 1959
First manmade object to strike the moon, Luna 2, USSR, 1959.

Mimas Discovered
9/17 - 1789
Saturn's moon Mimas discovered in 1789 by William Herschel.

Hyperion Discovered
9/19 - 1848
Saturn's moon Hyperion discovered by William Boyd in 1848.

Israel Launches First Satellite
9/19 - 1988
Israel became the ninth nation to launch a satellite, Ofec 1, 1988.

Andromeda Galaxy Say Cheese!
9/20 - 1948
First 48-inch Schmidt photographic plate taken, Palomar Mountain, 1948. M31, the Andromeda Galaxy, was the subject.

Neptune Discovered
9/23 - 1846
1846 - Neptune first observed by Johann Galle, Berlin Observatory, using the position predicted by French mathematician Urbain Leverrier.

Lunar Material Returned Automatically
9/24 - 1970
First automated return of lunar material to Earth, Luna 16, USSR, 1970.

Orion Nebula First Photographed
9/30 - 1880
First photo of the Orion Nebula (M42), Henry Draper, 1880.

Moon and Mars
10/1/2013 4:00 AM until sunrise
Look to the east before sunrise to find a very thin waning Crescent Moon alongside Mars.

New Moon
10/4/2013 5:34 PM PDT

Moon, Venus, Saturn, Mercury
10/7/2013 Immediately following sunset
A thin waxing Crescent Moon may be found next to Venus after sunset, low on the southwestern horizon. You may also be lucky enough to spot Saturn, and possibly even Mercury, to the right of the Moon, and a bit lower in the sky.

First Quarter Moon
10/11/2013 4:04 PM PDT

Full Moon
10/18/2013 4:38 PM PDT

Moon and Jupiter
10/25/2013 After 11:00 PM
Shortly before 11:00 PM, the waning Gibbous Moon and Jupiter rise together.

Third Quarter Moon
10/26/2013 4:52 PM PDT

Moon, Mars, and More
10/29/2013 3:00 AM until sunrise
If you look to the eastern horizon, you will find a thin waning Crescent Moon alongside Mars. Not far away, you might be able to spot Comet ISON.

NASA Inaugurated
10/1 - 1958
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration, NASA, was inaugurated on this date in 1958.

First Long-Range Rocket
10/3 - 1942
First successful launch of the A4, or V2, the first long-range rocket. Germany, 1942.

Sputnik Launched, 1957
10/4 - 1957
The USSR launched Sputnik 1, the first artificial satellite, marking the dawn of the Age of Space. 1957.

Robert Goddard Born
10/5 - 1882
Robert Goddard (1882-1945), American rocket pioneer, was born on this date. He launched the world's first liquid-fuel rocket from his Aunt Effie's Auburn, Massachusetts, farm in 1926, and anticipated many of the technical advances that made space flight possible.

First Extra-solar Planets Detected, 1995
10/6 - 1995
On this date in 1995, Swiss astronomers Michel Mayor and Didier Queloz discover planets orbiting the sun-like star 51- Pegasi. Since then more than 40 extra-solar system planets have been discovered.

Ejnar Hertzsprung's Birthday
10/8 - 
Danish astronomer Ejnar Hertzsprung was born on this day in 1873. Hertzsprung and American astronomer Henry Norris Russell independently conceived a graph which plotted the temperatures of stars against their luminosities. This graph has come to be known as the Hertzprung-Russell Diagram and has become one of the astronomers most important tools in understanding stars and their evolution.

Triton Discovered
10/10 - 1846
Triton, the first known moon of Neptune, was discovered by William Lassell of England in 1846.

Apollo 7 Launched
10/11 - 1968
The US launched Apollo 7, the first human-crewed Apollo mission, into Earth's orbit, US, 1968.

First Supersonic Flight
10/14 - 1947
Charles Yeager made the first supersonic flight aboard the Bell X1 rocket plane, US, 1947.

Orionid Meteor Shower
10/21 - Oct 21-22
The Orionid Meteor Shower reaches its peak activity tonight. At its peak, the number of Orionids that are seen is around 25 per hour. This is one of two meteor showers that are associated with Comet Halley. The other meteor shower associated with Comet Halley is the Eta Aquarids, which are seen on or about May 5.

First Images from Surface of Venus
10/22 - 1975
The first images were returned from the surface of Venus by Venera 9, USSR, 1975.

Daylight Savings Time Ends
11/3/2013 2:00 AM PDT / 1:00 AM PST

New Moon
11/3/2013 4:50 AM PST

Solar Eclipse
11/3/2013 4:43 AM PST

Moon and Venus
11/6/2013 After sunset
Look to the southwest after sunset to find the waxing Crescent Moon and Venus together again.

First Quarter Moon
11/9/2013 9:59 PM PST

Full Moon
11/17/2013 7:17 AM PST

Moon and Jupiter
11/22/2013 After 8:36 PM
At 8:36 PM, the waning Gibbous Moon rises with Jupiter.

Third Quarter Moon
11/25/2013 11:30 AM PST

Moon, Mars, and More
11/27/2013 Before sunrise
The waning Crescent Moon and Mars can be seen together in the southeast before sunrise. The Moon rises at 1:17 AM, so anytime after that is a good time to spot this pair.

Harlow Shapley Born
11/2 - 1885
Harlow Shapley (1885-1972) born on this date. Before Shapley, the majority of astronomers believed the Universe consisted of a Milky Way Galaxy about 30,000 light years across with the Sun and the Solar System not far from the center. In 1918, Shapley found that the Galaxy was much larger and that the Sun was far from the center. (Edwin Hubble would soon demonstrate that this greatly enlarged Milky Way was but one of billions of galaxies in a much vaster Universe.)

First Earthling in Space
11/3 - 1957
On this date in 1957 a dog, named Laika, became the first Earth creature to fly in space. Laika, along with some other dogs, were recruited into the Soviet space program from the streets of Moscow.

First Flyby of Jupiter
11/3 - 1973
First flyby of Jupiter and close-up images, Pioneer 10, US, 1973.

Goddard Launches a Rocket
11/7 - 1918
American rocket pioneer Robert Goddard demonstrated tube-launched solid-fuel rockets in 1918, the basis for WWII's "bazooka" anti-tank weapon.

Edmund Halley Born
11/8 - 1656
On this day in 1656, Edmund Halley was born. Though he did not discover the comet that bears his name, his prediction of its return proved that comets were objects of the Solar System and, like the planets, orbited the Sun.

Mariner 9, a Pioneer
11/13 - 1971
First spacecraft to orbit another planet, Mars, Mariner 9, US, 1971.

Sir William Herschel Born
11/15 - 1738
Sir William Herschel was born on this date in 1738. Herschel’s discovery of Uranus marked the first time a planet was known to exist beyond the orbit of Saturn. At the time of the discovery, Herschel wanted to name the planet Georgium Sidus (“George’s Star”) after his patron, King George III of England. However, in keeping with the earlier tradition of naming the planets after the Roman gods of mythology, the planet was named Uranus. According to Roman mythology, Uranus was the father of Saturn and the grandfather to Jupiter. Jupiter, in turn, was father to the Sun and the other planets except the Earth.

First Long Distance Call--sort of
11/16 - 1974
First intentional interstellar radio signal sent from Earth, US, 1974. The message, a pictographic greeting, was sent toward M13, a globular star cluster some 21,000 light years away in Hercules, during the dedication of the Arecibo Radio Telescope. Expect a reply in 42,000 years...

Venera 3 Launched, 1965
11/16 - 1965
On this date in 1965, the Soviets launched Venera 3 to Venus.

Edwin Hubble Born
11/18 - 1889
Edwin Hubble (1889-1953) born in this date. He proved that the Universe is filled with galaxies like our Milky Way, and that it is expanding.

Pioneer Baloonists
11/21 - 1783
First humans to fly in a balloon, Pilatre de Rozier and the Marquis D'Arldes of France, 1783.

Oakland Observatory Opens to Public
11/24 - 1883
The new Oakland Observatory (later called Chabot Observatory, after Anthony Chabot, its funder) opens to the public. With its 8-inch refracting telescope, manufactured by Alvan Clark and Sons, the observatory begins its mission of offering astronomical views of the heavens to public visitors and Oakland school children.

First French Satellite
11/26 - 1965
France became the third nation to launch a satellite, Asterix, in 1965.

First Spacecraft to Impact Mars
11/27 - 1971
First spacecraft to impact the planet Mars, Mars 2, USSR, 1971.

Chimp In Space!
11/29 - 1961
Mercury 5 launched to orbit with a chimpanzee passenger named Enos, US, 1961.

Moon and Saturn
12/2/2013 Before sunrise
Before dawn, look to the southeast to find the waning Crescent Moon and Saturn together.

New Moon
12/2/2013 4:22 AM PST

Moon and Venus
12/5/2013 After sunset
Lookto the southwest after sunset to see a thin waxing Crescent Moon and Venus together.

First Quarter Moon
12/9/2013 7:13 AM PST

Full Moon
12/17/2013 1:29 AM PST

Moon and Jupiter
12/19/2013 All night
The just-past-Full Moon and Jupiter can be found together all night long, from sundown to sunup….

Winter Solstice
12/21/2013 9:07 AM PST

Moon and Mars
12/25/2013 After midnight
The Third Quarter Moon and Mars can be seen together anytime after they rise, after midnight.

Third Quarter Moon
12/25/2013 5:50 AM PST

First Soft Landing on Mars
12/2 - 1971
On this date in 1971, the USSR's Mars 3 achieved the first soft landing of an uncrewed vehicle on Mars, and transmitted the first radio signals from the surface of Mars.

First Spacecraft to Orbit Venus
12/4 - 1978
On this date in 1978, Pioneer Venus 1 became the first craft to orbit Venus.

Last Apollo Moon Landing
12/7 - 1972
Last humans to visit the Moon (in the 20th Century, at least) launched, Apollo 17, the sixth and last Apollo moonflight, US, 1972. Let's do it again.

Birthday of Annie Jump Cannon
12/11 - 1863
Among Annie Jump Cannon's long list of accomplishments in astronomy, she is known for having studied and catalogued a long list of variable stars, 300 of which she discovered. She also devised the lettering system for the classification of main sequence star types based on mass and temperature, the well known scale O B A F G K M, O standing for the most massive and hottest blue stars, M for the smallest, coolest, reddest stars.

Tycho Brahe Born
12/14 - 1546
Tycho Brahe (1546-1601) born on this date. Tycho, the last great pre-telescopic astronomer, made more accurate measurements of the positions of the stars and planets by a factor of 10 than had ever been made, and provided the data from which Johannes Kepler would discover his Laws of Planetary Motion.

First Soft Landing on Venus
12/15 - 1970
On this date in 1970, the USSR's Venera 7 achieved the first soft landing of an uncrewed vehicle on Venus, and transmitted the first radio signals from the surface of Venus.

Wilbur and Orville Fly!
12/17 - 1903
On this date in 1903, Wilbur and Orville Wright made the first powered, heavier-than-air flight on the Wright Flier.

First Voice Broadcast from Space
12/18 - 1958
On this date in 1958, the first voice broadcast from space was made from the Atlas Score: a pre-recorded Christmas message by President Eisenhower.

First Humans Orbit Moon
12/24 - 1968
On this date in 1968, the first humans orbit Moon in Apollo 8. Frank Borman, James A. Lovell, Jr. and William Anders were the crew of Apollo 8.

Isaac Newton Born
12/25 - 1642
Isaac Newton (1642-1727) born on this date (Julian calendar, it would have been 5 Jan 1643, Gregorian). He discovered that white light is made up of the colors of the rainbow, invented calculus, and demonstrated that the motions of the planets are governed by the same laws of motion and gravity as the motions of things on Earth. His Philosophiae Naturalis Principia Mathematica, the Mathematical Principals of Natural Philosophy, (the Principia) has been called the most important book on science ever written.

Johannes Kepler Born
12/27 - 1571
Johannes Kepler was born on this date in 1571. Kepler used Tycho Brahe's observations to discover Kepler's Laws of Planetary Motion: 1. Planets orbit in elliptical paths with the Sun at one focus. 2. A line connecting the Sun to a planet sweeps out equal areas in equal times. 3. The cube of a planet's period of revolution around the Sun is proportional the square of its average distance from the Sun.