Satellite News

Earth at Perihelion and Aphelion: 2001 to 2050

Greenwich Mean Time (GMT)

Year      Date/Time of    Distance     Relative to     Date/Time of    Distance     Relative to    Perihelion
           Perihelion                    Mean Per.       Aphelion                     Mean Ap.      Interval
 
2001     Jan 04  08:52   0.9832860 AU    -582 km      Jul 04  13:37   1.0166426 AU  -10122 km     367.15 days
2002     Jan 02  14:09   0.9832898 AU     -20 km      Jul 06  03:47   1.0166882 AU   -3304 km     363.22 days
2003     Jan 04  05:02   0.9833204 AU    4556 km      Jul 04  05:40   1.0167282 AU    2683 km     366.62 days
2004     Jan 04  17:42   0.9832648 AU   -3752 km      Jul 05  10:54   1.0166937 AU   -2485 km     365.53 days
2005     Jan 02  00:35   0.9832968 AU    1032 km      Jul 05  04:58   1.0167416 AU    4683 km     363.29 days
2006     Jan 04  15:30   0.9833270 AU    5543 km      Jul 03  23:10   1.0166973 AU   -1949 km     367.62 days
2007     Jan 03  19:43   0.9832602 AU   -4449 km      Jul 06  23:53   1.0167059 AU    -649 km     364.18 days
2008     Jan 02  23:51   0.9832801 AU   -1476 km      Jul 04  07:41   1.0167535 AU    6465 km     364.17 days
2009     Jan 04  15:30   0.9832730 AU   -2526 km      Jul 04  01:40   1.0166664 AU   -6563 km     367.65 days
2010     Jan 03  00:09   0.9832897 AU     -38 km      Jul 06  11:30   1.0167020 AU   -1246 km     363.36 days

2011     Jan 03  18:32   0.9833413 AU    7681 km      Jul 04  14:54   1.0167404 AU    4501 km     365.77 days
2012     Jan 05  00:32   0.9832841 AU    -871 km      Jul 05  03:32   1.0166751 AU   -5270 km     366.25 days
2013     Jan 02  04:38   0.9832905 AU      82 km      Jul 05  14:44   1.0167085 AU    -268 km     363.17 days
2014     Jan 04  11:59   0.9833347 AU    6701 km      Jul 04  00:13   1.0166816 AU   -4287 km     367.31 days
2015     Jan 04  06:36   0.9832774 AU   -1874 km      Jul 06  19:40   1.0166821 AU   -4214 km     364.78 days
2016     Jan 02  22:49   0.9833039 AU    2097 km      Jul 04  16:24   1.0167509 AU    6080 km     363.68 days
2017     Jan 04  14:18   0.9833094 AU    2919 km      Jul 03  20:11   1.0166756 AU   -5190 km     367.65 days
2018     Jan 03  05:35   0.9832843 AU    -845 km      Jul 06  16:47   1.0166961 AU   -2129 km     363.64 days
2019     Jan 03  05:20   0.9833012 AU    1681 km      Jul 04  22:11   1.0167543 AU    6590 km     364.99 days
2020     Jan 05  07:48   0.9832436 AU   -6935 km      Jul 04  11:35   1.0166943 AU   -2399 km     367.10 days

2021     Jan 02  13:51   0.9832571 AU   -4916 km      Jul 05  22:27   1.0167292 AU    2832 km     363.25 days
2022     Jan 04  06:55   0.9833365 AU    6973 km      Jul 04  07:11   1.0167154 AU     760 km     366.71 days
2023     Jan 04  16:17   0.9832956 AU     845 km      Jul 06  20:07   1.0166806 AU   -4444 km     365.39 days
2024     Jan 03  00:39   0.9833070 AU    2553 km      Jul 05  05:06   1.0167255 AU    2273 km     363.35 days
2025     Jan 04  13:28   0.9833274 AU    5607 km      Jul 03  19:55   1.0166437 AU   -9957 km     367.53 days
2026     Jan 03  17:16   0.9833021 AU    1815 km      Jul 06  17:31   1.0166440 AU   -9920 km     364.16 days
2027     Jan 03  02:33   0.9833335 AU    6513 km      Jul 05  05:06   1.0167289 AU    2786 km     364.39 days
2028     Jan 05  12:28   0.9833074 AU    2608 km      Jul 03  22:18   1.0166798 AU   -4566 km     367.41 days
2029     Jan 02  18:13   0.9832917 AU     270 km      Jul 06  05:12   1.0167127 AU     362 km     363.24 days
2030     Jan 03  10:12   0.9833418 AU    7758 km      Jul 04  12:58   1.0167227 AU    1848 km     365.67 days

2031     Jan 04  20:48   0.9832664 AU   -3516 km      Jul 06  07:10   1.0166882 AU   -3308 km     366.44 days
2032     Jan 03  05:11   0.9832469 AU   -6437 km      Jul 05  11:54   1.0167510 AU    6086 km     363.35 days
2033     Jan 04  11:51   0.9832989 AU    1350 km      Jul 03  20:52   1.0166936 AU   -2494 km     367.28 days
2034     Jan 04  04:47   0.9832893 AU     -89 km      Jul 06  18:49   1.0166703 AU   -5979 km     364.71 days
2035     Jan 03  00:54   0.9833249 AU    5238 km      Jul 05  18:22   1.0167406 AU    4539 km     363.84 days
2036     Jan 05  14:17   0.9833202 AU    4530 km      Jul 03  21:17   1.0166633 AU   -7033 km     367.56 days
2037     Jan 03  04:00   0.9832889 AU    -152 km      Jul 06  12:05   1.0166651 AU   -6753 km     363.57 days
2038     Jan 03  05:01   0.9833549 AU    9718 km      Jul 04  19:46   1.0166909 AU   -2904 km     365.04 days
2039     Jan 05  06:41   0.9833113 AU    3192 km      Jul 05  13:25   1.0166588 AU   -7700 km     367.07 days
2040     Jan 03  11:33   0.9832937 AU     557 km      Jul 05  19:02   1.0167271 AU    2517 km     363.20 days

2041     Jan 03  21:52   0.9833471 AU    8554 km      Jul 04  01:38   1.0166887 AU   -3235 km     366.43 days
2042     Jan 04  09:07   0.9833014 AU    1723 km      Jul 06  13:10   1.0166554 AU   -8212 km     365.47 days
2043     Jan 02  22:15   0.9832882 AU    -257 km      Jul 06  02:25   1.0167441 AU    5064 km     363.55 days
2044     Jan 05  12:52   0.9832896 AU     -44 km      Jul 03  15:24   1.0166960 AU   -2140 km     367.61 days
2045     Jan 03  14:56   0.9832653 AU   -3677 km      Jul 06  12:51   1.0166888 AU   -3210 km     364.09 days
2046     Jan 03  00:58   0.9833451 AU    8247 km      Jul 05  06:06   1.0167265 AU    2432 km     364.42 days
2047     Jan 05  11:44   0.9833216 AU    4738 km      Jul 05  06:32   1.0166728 AU   -5608 km     367.45 days
2048     Jan 03  18:05   0.9832818 AU   -1219 km      Jul 06  05:08   1.0167072 AU    -469 km     363.26 days
2049     Jan 03  10:27   0.9833342 AU    6626 km      Jul 04  09:06   1.0166722 AU   -5702 km     365.68 days
2050     Jan 04  19:35   0.9833060 AU    2411 km      Jul 06  01:57   1.0166285 AU  -12240 km     366.38 days

Credit: http://www.astropixels.com/

• January 3, 4 – Quadrantids Meteor Shower. The Quadrantids are an above average shower, with up to 40 meteors per hour at their peak. The shower usually peaks on January 3 & 4, but some meteors can be visible from January 1 – 5. The near first quarter moon will set shortly after midnight, leaving dark skies for what should be a good show. Best viewing will be from a dark location after midnight. Look for meteors radiating from the constellation Bootes.
• January 9 – Full Moon. The Moon will be directly opposite the Earth from the Sun and will be fully illuminated as seen from Earth. This phase occurs at 07:30 UTC.
• January 23 – New Moon. The Moon will be directly between the Earth and the Sun and will not be visible from Earth. This phase occurs at 07:39 UTC.
• February 7 – Full Moon. The Moon will be directly opposite the Earth from the Sun and will be fully illuminated as seen from Earth. This phase occurs at 21:54 UTC.
• February 20 – March 12 – Best Chance to see Mercury. The planet Mercury will be far enough from the Sun’s glare to be visible shortly after sunset. Mercury will reach greatest elongation from the Sun on March 5, reaching a relatively bright magnitude of about -1. This will be your best chance to see the planet this year.
• February 21 – New Moon. The Moon will be directly between the Earth and the Sun and will not be visible from Earth. This phase occurs at 22:35 UTC.
• March 3 – Mars at Opposition. The red planet will be at its closest approach to Earth and its face will be fully illuminated by the Sun. This is the best time to view and photograph Mars.
• March 8 – Full Moon. The Moon will be directly opposite the Earth from the Sun and will be fully illuminated as seen from Earth. This phase occurs at 09:39 UTC.
• March 14 – Conjunction of Venus and Jupiter. The two brightest planets in the sky will be within 3 degrees of each other in the evening sky. On March 25 and 25, the crescent Moon will be near the two planets, creating a dazzling evening spectacle.
• March 20 – March Equinox. The March equinox occurs at 05:14 UTC. The Sun will shine directly on the equator and there will be nearly equal amounts of day and night throughout the world. This is also the first day of spring (vernal equinox) in the northern hemisphere and the first day of fall (autumnal equinox) in the southern hemisphere.
• March 22 – New Moon. The Moon will be directly between the Earth and the Sun and will not be visible from Earth. This phase occurs at 14:37 UTC.
• April 6 – Full Moon. The Moon will be directly opposite the Earth from the Sun and will be fully illuminated as seen from Earth. This phase occurs at 19:19 UTC.
• April 15 – Saturn at Opposition. The ringed planet will be at its closest approach to Earth and its face will be fully illuminated by the Sun. This is the best time to view and photograph Saturn and its moons.
• April 21 – New Moon. The Moon will be directly between the Earth and the Sun and will not be visible from Earth. This phase occurs at 07:18 UTC. Read the rest of this entry »

Geographic abbreviations (used above): n = north, s = south, e = east, w = west, c = central

The table below lists every lunar eclipse from 2001 through 2010. Click on the eclipse Date to see a map and diagram of an eclipse. Click on the Region of Eclipse Visibility to see a detailed description of an eclipse.

Geographic abbreviations (used above): n = north, s = south, e = east, w = west, c = central

¹Umbral magnitude is the fraction of the Moon’s diameter obscured by Earth’s Umbra. For penumbral eclipses, the umbral magnitude is always less than 0. For partial eclipses, the umbral magnitude is always greater than 0 and less than 1. For total eclipses, the umbral magnitude is always greater than or equal to 1. ²Eclipse Duration is the duration of a partial eclipse. If the eclipse is total, the duration of totality is given in bold.

³Geographic Region of Eclipse Visibility is the portion of Earth’s surface where a lunar eclipse can be seen.

Space Weather Activity

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Credit: https://swpc.noaa.gov/

Filamentary structure in 3D. Image credit: SubaruClick to enlarge
Astronomers have used the Subaru and Keck telescopes to discover gigantic filaments of galaxies stretching across 200 million light-years in space. These filaments, formed just 2 billion years after the Big Bang, are the largest structures ever discovered in the Universe. The filaments contain at least 30 huge concentrations of gas, each of which contains 10x the mass of the Milky Way.

Galaxy NGC 908. Image credit: ESOClick to enlarge
This photograph of galaxy NGC 908 was taken with the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope. This spiral galaxy was first discovered in 1786 by William Herschel, and is considered a starburst galaxy. Clusters of young, massive stars pepper its spiral arms indicating regions of furious star formation. NGC 908 must have had a recent encounter with another galaxy; the gravitational interaction between the galaxies caused gas clouds to collapse, igniting star formation.

Artist impression of a pulsar’s magnetosphere. Image credit: W.Becker/MPIClick to enlarge
Pulsars are the rapidly spinning corpses of massive stars. And although they were discovered nearly 40 years ago, they still hold many mysteries. One such mystery: why do pulsars have million-degree hotspots around their poles? New data from ESA’s XMM-Newton X-Ray observatory have cast doubt on the theory that charged particles are colliding with the pulsar’s surface at its poles. XMM-Newton failed to see the X-ray emissions in several old pulsars that should have been very bright if particles were continuously colliding.