1 00:00:01,920 --> 00:00:06,560 Speaker 1: Welcome to brain Stuff production of I Heart Radio. Hey, 2 00:00:06,600 --> 00:00:11,040 Speaker 1: brain Stuff, Lauren Vogelbaum. Here is shaping up to be 3 00:00:11,080 --> 00:00:15,160 Speaker 1: a fantastic year for astronomical events, so we wanted to 4 00:00:15,200 --> 00:00:17,079 Speaker 1: present you with a list of some of the biggest 5 00:00:17,120 --> 00:00:20,480 Speaker 1: and brightest that there will be. It's not a complete list, 6 00:00:20,520 --> 00:00:22,920 Speaker 1: of course. A check a star app on any given 7 00:00:23,000 --> 00:00:27,319 Speaker 1: day in the universe may surprise you, but in chronological order, 8 00:00:27,640 --> 00:00:32,200 Speaker 1: here are a few to keep in mind. March thirteen 9 00:00:32,440 --> 00:00:34,839 Speaker 1: will be the ideal night for attempting to run the 10 00:00:34,880 --> 00:00:39,160 Speaker 1: Bessio Marathon. This is an event that many amateur astronomers 11 00:00:39,200 --> 00:00:41,840 Speaker 1: attempt once a year on the best night of moon 12 00:00:41,920 --> 00:00:45,120 Speaker 1: phase and weather conditions to try to see all a 13 00:00:45,200 --> 00:00:48,200 Speaker 1: hundred and ten deep space objects in the Messy You catalog. 14 00:00:49,040 --> 00:00:52,880 Speaker 1: These deep space objects include nebulas, star clusters, and galaxies. 15 00:00:53,280 --> 00:00:55,800 Speaker 1: Seeing them all in a single night is quite a challenge. 16 00:00:56,160 --> 00:00:59,160 Speaker 1: You'll need a minimum eighty millimeter telescope to complete the 17 00:00:59,160 --> 00:01:02,319 Speaker 1: Messier Marathon on, so start making plans now if you're 18 00:01:02,320 --> 00:01:07,160 Speaker 1: thinking of investing in one before March. On April seventeen, 19 00:01:07,360 --> 00:01:11,640 Speaker 1: the lunar occultation of Mars will occur, a lunar occultation 20 00:01:11,840 --> 00:01:14,360 Speaker 1: is when the Moon passes directly in front of another 21 00:01:14,400 --> 00:01:17,880 Speaker 1: planet or star. It's the lunar equivalent of an eclipse. 22 00:01:18,360 --> 00:01:22,000 Speaker 1: Just like eclipses, lunar occultations are visible from only a 23 00:01:22,080 --> 00:01:25,720 Speaker 1: small area on Earth when they occur. This one, with 24 00:01:25,760 --> 00:01:28,440 Speaker 1: the Moon passing over Mars will be visible only from 25 00:01:28,520 --> 00:01:33,520 Speaker 1: parts of Southeast Asia. The first great opportunity to spot 26 00:01:33,560 --> 00:01:37,360 Speaker 1: shooting stars will occur in the early morning of April. 27 00:01:38,400 --> 00:01:41,880 Speaker 1: The night of April one, this is the predicted peak 28 00:01:41,959 --> 00:01:45,959 Speaker 1: of the Lyrad's meteor shower that occurs from April sixty 29 00:01:46,040 --> 00:01:50,680 Speaker 1: six every year. Lyrad's meteors are caused by the comet Thatcher, 30 00:01:51,000 --> 00:01:53,880 Speaker 1: which orbits the Sun every four d and fifteen years. 31 00:01:54,640 --> 00:01:57,240 Speaker 1: What makes the Lyrad special is the chance to see 32 00:01:57,400 --> 00:02:02,040 Speaker 1: Lyrad fireballs. These meteors are unusually bright and can even 33 00:02:02,080 --> 00:02:05,080 Speaker 1: cause a shadow. On the night of peak activity, you 34 00:02:05,080 --> 00:02:09,720 Speaker 1: can see around twenty meteors per hour. And then, after 35 00:02:09,840 --> 00:02:13,000 Speaker 1: more than a year of penumberal lunar eclipses, which are 36 00:02:13,160 --> 00:02:16,040 Speaker 1: less impressive and harder to spot than partial and total 37 00:02:16,120 --> 00:02:19,120 Speaker 1: lunar eclipses, we finally have a chance to see a 38 00:02:19,160 --> 00:02:23,120 Speaker 1: total lunar eclipse on the night of May, viewers and 39 00:02:23,200 --> 00:02:27,040 Speaker 1: parts of Eastern Asia, Oceania, Western North America, and southern 40 00:02:27,080 --> 00:02:30,040 Speaker 1: South America will have the chance to spot a blood 41 00:02:30,080 --> 00:02:32,960 Speaker 1: red moon in the sky. Be sure to check the 42 00:02:32,960 --> 00:02:35,160 Speaker 1: time zone when the total lunar eclipse will occur in 43 00:02:35,160 --> 00:02:39,040 Speaker 1: your area so that you don't miss it. And, as 44 00:02:39,120 --> 00:02:42,359 Speaker 1: is always the case, lunar and solar eclipses happen together, 45 00:02:42,800 --> 00:02:45,480 Speaker 1: sometimes one of each, sometimes as solar eclipse will be 46 00:02:45,480 --> 00:02:50,280 Speaker 1: bookended by two lunar eclipses. On June tenth, those in 47 00:02:50,360 --> 00:02:54,320 Speaker 1: northern Russia and Siberia and Canada's northwest territories will have 48 00:02:54,400 --> 00:02:58,120 Speaker 1: the chance to see an annular solar eclipse. This is 49 00:02:58,160 --> 00:03:00,919 Speaker 1: sometimes called a ring of fire eclipse because the moon 50 00:03:01,040 --> 00:03:04,400 Speaker 1: doesn't fully block out the Sun, causing a bright circle 51 00:03:04,440 --> 00:03:07,360 Speaker 1: of sun in the sky. This is one of two 52 00:03:07,360 --> 00:03:11,920 Speaker 1: solar eclipses, the others in December and a bit more spectacular. 53 00:03:12,240 --> 00:03:15,119 Speaker 1: More on that one in a minute. In the meanwhile, 54 00:03:15,240 --> 00:03:17,520 Speaker 1: we'll see the peak of the Percy and meteor shower 55 00:03:17,639 --> 00:03:21,600 Speaker 1: on August twelve. This is widely considered the best meteor 56 00:03:21,600 --> 00:03:24,000 Speaker 1: shower of the year thanks to its high frequency of 57 00:03:24,040 --> 00:03:26,680 Speaker 1: activity and the warm weather that we experience in the 58 00:03:26,680 --> 00:03:31,440 Speaker 1: northern hemisphere during August. Typically, the proceeds peak sometime between 59 00:03:31,480 --> 00:03:35,720 Speaker 1: August twelve and fourtee. That peak is expected to be 60 00:03:35,840 --> 00:03:38,360 Speaker 1: on the first night. Look for up to a hundred 61 00:03:38,400 --> 00:03:41,240 Speaker 1: and fifty meteors per hour on this night, caused by 62 00:03:41,240 --> 00:03:44,000 Speaker 1: debris left by the Comet Swift Tuttle on its one 63 00:03:44,360 --> 00:03:48,160 Speaker 1: and thirty three year orbit around the Sun. NASA has 64 00:03:48,200 --> 00:03:51,960 Speaker 1: a number of exciting missions planned in though as with 65 00:03:52,040 --> 00:03:55,360 Speaker 1: all space launches, the dates are always considered tentative until 66 00:03:55,400 --> 00:03:58,800 Speaker 1: the launch actually happens. These include test flights for the 67 00:03:58,800 --> 00:04:01,960 Speaker 1: Boeing star Liner, the second man spacecraft planned for the 68 00:04:01,960 --> 00:04:06,320 Speaker 1: International Space Station, crude missions after SpaceX's crew Dragon, and 69 00:04:06,520 --> 00:04:11,520 Speaker 1: the Lucy mission to study Trojan asteroids near Jupiter. But 70 00:04:11,760 --> 00:04:14,160 Speaker 1: the one everyone has been waiting for is the James 71 00:04:14,160 --> 00:04:17,920 Speaker 1: Webb Space Telescope launch. The mission to launch a replacement 72 00:04:17,960 --> 00:04:21,760 Speaker 1: for the Hubble Space Telescope began and was supposed to 73 00:04:21,760 --> 00:04:25,520 Speaker 1: happen in two thousand seven. Numerous delays of plague the project, 74 00:04:25,720 --> 00:04:28,840 Speaker 1: but NASA seems confident that the October thirty first date 75 00:04:28,960 --> 00:04:32,000 Speaker 1: they've set will actually happen. We know this isn't an 76 00:04:32,000 --> 00:04:36,920 Speaker 1: astronomy event per se, but it's still pretty cool. Then, 77 00:04:37,200 --> 00:04:40,480 Speaker 1: after occulting Mars in the spring, the moon is back 78 00:04:40,520 --> 00:04:44,720 Speaker 1: for another lunar occultation on November seven. This time, it's 79 00:04:44,800 --> 00:04:47,400 Speaker 1: bright neighboring Venus that will be blocked by the Moon. 80 00:04:48,200 --> 00:04:51,279 Speaker 1: Like the lunar occultation of Mars, this occultation is only 81 00:04:51,360 --> 00:04:54,359 Speaker 1: visible from a small area of Earth. In this case, 82 00:04:54,480 --> 00:04:57,680 Speaker 1: those in far East Asia, including eastern China, Korea, and 83 00:04:57,760 --> 00:05:01,480 Speaker 1: Japan will have a picture perfect view the waxing crescent 84 00:05:01,520 --> 00:05:06,479 Speaker 1: Moon passing in front of Venus. Then in December, the 85 00:05:06,520 --> 00:05:10,240 Speaker 1: Southern Hemisphere will see a total solar eclipse. This is 86 00:05:10,279 --> 00:05:13,200 Speaker 1: the better solar eclipse viewing opportunity of the two this year. 87 00:05:14,080 --> 00:05:17,560 Speaker 1: Overnight from December three to four, the sun, Moon and 88 00:05:17,640 --> 00:05:20,599 Speaker 1: Earth will align, casting a shadow over part of the 89 00:05:20,600 --> 00:05:25,040 Speaker 1: Southern Hemisphere. But like that earlier eclipse, you'll need to 90 00:05:25,080 --> 00:05:27,920 Speaker 1: be up for quite a journey in order to experience totality. 91 00:05:28,080 --> 00:05:31,000 Speaker 1: Is the Moon's shadow passes over Earth, it will only 92 00:05:31,040 --> 00:05:34,360 Speaker 1: be visible from parts of Antarctica and cruise tours planning 93 00:05:34,360 --> 00:05:36,240 Speaker 1: to be in the right area on the day of 94 00:05:36,279 --> 00:05:41,479 Speaker 1: the eclipse. Last, but certainly not least, end your year 95 00:05:41,560 --> 00:05:45,320 Speaker 1: of astronomical wonders by viewing the Geminid meteor shower when 96 00:05:45,320 --> 00:05:48,960 Speaker 1: it peaks on the night of December. This meteor shower 97 00:05:49,040 --> 00:05:50,800 Speaker 1: won't be quite as good as the percy it's in 98 00:05:50,839 --> 00:05:53,880 Speaker 1: August for a number of reasons, including cold winter weather 99 00:05:53,920 --> 00:05:57,000 Speaker 1: in the northern Hemisphere and a bright, waxing gibbus moon. 100 00:05:57,760 --> 00:05:59,720 Speaker 1: If you're up for it anyway, there will be up 101 00:05:59,720 --> 00:06:02,160 Speaker 1: to a under twenty meters per hour on the night 102 00:06:02,240 --> 00:06:10,040 Speaker 1: of peak activity. Today's episode was written by Valerie Stomach 103 00:06:10,120 --> 00:06:12,280 Speaker 1: and produced by Tyler Clang. For more in this and 104 00:06:12,320 --> 00:06:15,200 Speaker 1: lots of other curious topics, visit how stuff works dot com. 105 00:06:15,279 --> 00:06:17,600 Speaker 1: Brain stuff It's production of I Heart Radio. For more 106 00:06:17,600 --> 00:06:21,000 Speaker 1: podcasts my heart Radio, visit the iHeart Radio app Apple Podcasts, 107 00:06:21,080 --> 00:06:22,880 Speaker 1: wherever you listen to your favorite shows.