Hi all,
1. PERSEIDS
The Perseids is the best-known meteor shower of all, and this year it peaks on 12 August at about 15.00, so the nights of August 11/12 and 12/13 will be equally favourable. However, the bright Moon, not long past full, will make the sky rather bright after it rises later in the night, so try to catch the few hours between the end of twilight, and Moonrise. Although the actual number of meteors per hour decreases gradually after maximum, the fading moon, rising later each evening, means that good rates might be seen on the nights of 13/14, and even 14/15. The shower continues until 16/17 August, but rates are low by then.
We don't see the meteor particles themselves, as they are much too small; what we see is the flash of light given off as they burn away and ionize air molecules when they collide at very high speed with the Earth's atmosphere. Most burn away at a height of about 80 - 100 km in the upper atmosphere, but bigger ones can penetrate a bit lower before finally burning up. The brighter ones are only the size of a grape pip, and a really bright one would be only the size of a pea!
They can be seen in any part pf the sky, but if you trace their paths backwards, they will appear to come from the constellation Perseus, which will be rising in the NE part of the sky as it gets dark, and it then gets higher and higher up as it gets later, which gives a higher number of meteors, although after the Moon rises it also gets brighter and more obtrusive. You can get an app for your phone which will show you where Perseus is at any given time.
To see the most meteors, you need to be well away from bright artificial lights, especially earlier in the night when you can enjoy darkness before the Moon rises. The best direction to look is about 40 - 50 degrees on the side of Perseus away from the Moon, and at a similar height above the horizon, as long as that's in a dark clear part of the sky. That's about half of a right-angle, as a rough guide.
Once the Moon rises, a good trick is to position yourself so that it's hidden behind a building, wall or tree, so it's not in your direct field of view.
Meteors are best seen with the naked eye - even binoculars have much too small a field of view, as you never know where the next one will appear! Use a lounger or a reclining chair for comfort, and allow at least 10 minutes for your eyes to adjust to the dark before you can see any but the brightest ones.
You can try to get photos with a phone camera, but it's a matter of luck - the meteor will be gone before you can press the shutter! So just prop the camera up pointing at the sky, in night mode, and set it to take a series of exposures each as long as possible, and hope for the best - but you'll be lucky to image even one. The best advice is - just look, and enjoy the free show. Use a lounger or reclining chair so that you can view the sky comfortably for long periods.
Under good conditions, we might see about 100 Perseids per hour, but with the intrusive moonlight this year you might only see about 50 per hour at the best times.
FOR IAA MEMBERS ONLY: We plan to have an observing session at Clandeboye Estate near Bangor, BT19 1RN, on Tuesday, or possibly Wednesday night, depending on weather. When you drive into the estate turn left at the purple sign for the tree nursery. Go down a few yards and keep right to go through the gate. Drive down the narrow track, and you'll reach a small area where you can park your car. There is a door to the walled garden. Just go through the door and in a hort distance you'll see the building on the right.
2. NEW INTERSTELLAR VISITOR FOUND.
It's official! An interstellar object is visiting our solar system
With an absolute magnitude of about 12, it will be interesting to see how much it brightens as it nears perihelion. We may get our best view as it moves out from the solar glare in December, and gets closest to Earth, although even then it will be about 1.6 AU away.
LATEST – Here's A Photo Telescope spies rare interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS zooming through our solar system (photos)
Latest, from Dan Fisher - It is going to reach a magnitude of 6 in late October, although it will be very close to the Sun (I wonder? – this goes against other predictions!).
There is now also a CBET about 3I/ATLAS:
http://www.cbat.eps.harvard.edu/iau/cbet/005500/CBET005578.txt - it gives the comet as 13th magnitude after perihelion in November with the elongation around 60°.
Since this is the first chance any of us will have had to see a non-stellar object from outside our solar system, I'm giving the following details for initial planning. No doubt more accurate details will be available in due course:
Epoch = 2025 Oct. 12.0 TT
T = 2025 Oct. 29.41062 TT Peri. = 127.93850
e = 6.1801697 Node = 322.18759 2000.0
q = 1.3620397 AU Incl. = 175.11382
(Note that the inclination is much more than 90 degrees – almost 180, in fact. This means that it is travelling round the Sun in almost the opposite direction to all the planets.)
The following ephemeris is from the above orbital elements, and uses photometric power-law parameters H = 9.5 and 2.5n = 8 for the magnitudes. (Delta is distance from Earth, and r (Radius Vector) is distance from the Sun, both in AUs)
Date TT R. A. (2000) Decl. Delta r Elong. Phase Mag.
2025 08 08 16 32.32 -16 57.8 2.730 3.269 113.5 16.5 15.8
2025 08 13 16 18.64 -16 30.6 2.682 3.109 105.5 18.3 15.6
2025 08 18 16 05.18 -16 00.8 2.644 2.951 97.4 19.9 15.4
2025 08 23 15 52.06 -15 29.1 2.615 2.794 89.4 21.2 15.2
2025 08 28 15 39.37 -14 55.8 2.593 2.640 81.5 22.2 14.9
2025 09 02 15 27.16 -14 21.4 2.576 2.489 73.7 22.9 14.7
2025 09 07 15 15.46 -13 46.3 2.563 2.341 65.9 23.1 14.5
2025 09 12 15 04.25 -13 10.8 2.552 2.197 58.3 22.9 14.3
2025 09 17 14 53.51 -12 35.0 2.542 2.059 50.8 22.2 14.0
2025 09 22 14 43.19 -11 59.1 2.531 1.928 43.3 20.9 13.8
2025 11 21 12 34.09 -02 22.3 2.040 1.593 49.8 28.3 12.7
2025 11 26 12 18.72 -01 01.8 1.978 1.694 58.9 29.9 12.8
2025 12 01 12 01.83 +00 27.9 1.920 1.808 68.4 30.5 13.0
2025 12 06 11 43.30 +02 06.8 1.871 1.932 78.4 30.0 13.1
2025 12 11 11 23.10 +03 54.3 1.833 2.063 88.8 28.5 13.3
2025 12 16 11 01.34 +05 48.4 1.811 2.202 99.7 26.1 13.5
2025 12 21 10 38.31 +07 45.8 1.808 2.345 110.8 23.1 13.7
2025 12 26 10 14.50 +09 42.1 1.828 2.493 122.1 19.5 14.0
2025 12 31 09 50.52 +11 32.4 1.872 2.645 133.3 15.7 14.2
2026 01 05 09 27.06 +13 12.7 1.941 2.799 144.3 11.8 14.5
2026 01 10 09 04.75 +14 40.1 2.035 2.956 155.0 8.1 14.8
2026 01 15 08 44.07 +15 53.7 2.153 3.114 165.1 4.6 15.1
2026 01 20 08 25.34 +16 53.8 2.293 3.274 174.5 1.7 15.4
2026 01 25 08 08.70 +17 41.8 2.454 3.436 175.2 1.4 15.7
2026 01 30 07 54.15 +18 19.6 2.632 3.599 167.0 3.5 16.1
3. ISS
The ISS will start a new series of morning passes on 21 August
4. LATEST FAS NEWSLETTER
The latest FAS Newsletter is now available to Download. Thank you to everyone who submitted content for this issue. Your contributions have resulted in this issue becoming probably the largest we have ever produced at 22 pages.
Click on the link below to download.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/17rw89C8fHSa6VKmMkynhbniBoDNeO_EB/view?usp=sharing
5. Connemara AC Smartphone Astrophotography event, August 24
At this hands-on astrophotography workshop, you'll learn how to capture the night sky using just your mobile phone. Led by Vladimir Kanaev and Caitríona Mosk, passionate astronomy enthusiasts and members of the Connemara Astronomy Club, this session is perfect for beginners and curious stargazers alike. They will be joined by Ray Butler of the Centre for Astronomy at the University of Galway and Dark Sky Ireland, who will demonstrate equipment used by more advanced amateurs.
It's at Connemara National Park, Letterfrack, Co Galway. Time 9.30 – 11.30 p.m. Booking is essential, via madeline,joyce@npws.gov.ie
6. VENUS VISIBLE IN MORNING SKY, approaching Jupiter.
Our sister planet is now visible low in morning twilight, getting close to fainter, but still prominent, Jupiter but only for a short period before the sky gets too bright. Saturn is also now visible, but will be better placed later in the month.
7. WhatsApp Group for alerts on Observing Nights.
The IAA have set up a WhatsApp Group for updates on Observing Nights. If you would like to be included in this group, please e-mail Mary at callistoboxers@hotmail.com with your full name & mobile telephone number.
No discussions about anything other than Observing Nights will be posted on this group.
8. Skellig Star Party, Ballinskelligs, Co Kerry, August 15-18.
Always a good event, in the Kerry Dark Sky Reserve
9. ALAN 2025, 28 – 30 October 2025, Westport, Co.Mayo.
Preparations are under way for the 9th Scientific Conference on Artificial Light At Night, ALAN2025, from October 28-30, 2025, in Westport, Ireland. Our host will be Dark Sky Ireland. The invited speakers will be revealed soon, but we can already promise you interesting talks about science, governance, dark sky outreach, and lighting design.
The conference offers a platform for interdisciplinary networking and exchange on the topics Biology & Ecology, Governance & Regulations, Health, Measurements & Modelling, Social Sciences & Humanities, Technology & Design.
We welcome researchers, lighting professionals, policy makers, light pollution activists, and everybody who is interested in the effects of artificial light at night. The conference aims to present new findings, exchange experiences and ideas, network, and discuss hoe artificial light can be used with less negative impacts.
I'm on the organising committee for this event, so I'll keep you posted regarding the programme.
For more information check out our website at artificiallightatnight.org .
This event will be followed immediately by the wonderful Mayo Dark Sky Festival in nearby Newport –
10. October 4: International Observe the Moon Night
11. October 4 – 10: World Space Week. Irish events will be co-ordinated by BCO in Cork.
12: Mayo Dark Sky Festival, 31 October – 2 November. More details later.
13. CAP May 2026, Armenia:
As the only large-scale international conference dedicated to astronomy communication, CAP gathers science communicators, educators, planetarium professionals, journalists, astronomers, and creatives to explore the best ways to share astronomy with diverse audiences. Whether you work in outreach, media, museums, or informal education, CAP is where you'll find inspiration, fresh perspectives, and a welcoming global community.
The next CAP Conference will happen in May 2026, hosted by the Byurakan Astrophysical Observatory and the Armenian Astronomical Society, in-person in Yerevan, Armenia, and online. This hybrid format ensures that participants from all corners of the world can take part in the discussions, workshops, and networking opportunities.
Organised by IAU Commission C2 and the IAU Office for Astronomy Outreach, CAP 2026 promises to be an unmissable event. If you're passionate about bridging the gap between science and society, this is your chance to connect, learn, and contribute to the future of astronomy communication.
14: 2026 Eclipse planning.
1 year since the Great North American Eclipse — Here's how the 2026 total eclipse will compare
This may be of interest to those planning observing locations for the total solar eclipses in 2026 and 2027
Global risk map reveals the most dangerous countries and cities
And weather prospects for the coming eclipses such as the one in Spain in 2026, and N. Africa in 2027, are on www.eclipsophile.com . The discussions there will help you pick a site for the eclipse, as weather is one of the important factors to consider.
15: Recurrent Nova T Corona Borealis – We're still waiting!
It's well over a year now since the first predictions of an 'imminent' outburst! But, it could explode any time, so, keep an eye on it - comparison charts can be found on the websites of the BAA Variable Star Section, or the AAVSO. The current magnitude is around 10, so you'll need a good telescope to see it now.
(BTW, don't confuse it with the other nearby famous variable star, R CrB, which does the opposite – it stays normally around 6th magnitude, but occasionally dims to as faint as magnitude 14 or 15!)
Anyway, do keep an eye out – T CrB lies just outside the East side of the circle of the 'Crown', about a degree from Epsilon CrB, but you really do need charts to observe it properly. It's now visible in the sky in the East each night before midnight.
It's at Declination: 25° 55′ 12.613″; R.A.: 15h 59m 30.1622s)
16: New EASY TEASER:
What's next in this sequence – I've added one more, so what's next after Betelgeuse: Aldebaran, Rigel, Capella, Betelgeuse …..?
Clue: It's Right….
17: New DIFFICULT TEASER:
Where in astronomy would you find the following sequence of letters (ignoring variable stars) - "Z Z'
Clue: Note the space between the letters.
Another clue: What's in a name?
Remember, send answers to me only at my aol address: terrymosel@aol.com.
18. INTERESTING WEBLINKS (Disclaimer – Use of material herein from various sources does not imply approval or otherwise of the opinions, political or otherwise, of those sources). NB: If the title in the weblink does not indicate the subject matter, I give a brief simple intro before the link. I may also comment about the link afterwards.
Aliens
'Alien' Comet Is A Spaceship In Disguise Says Harvard Scientist - And It's Headed To Earth More arrant nonsense, largely due to the increasingly eccentric Avi Loeb!
ASTROPHYSICS:
Black hole found to be about 36 billion times bigger than our sun
Scientists capture bridge of stray stars being sucked from one galaxy to another
'Ice cube' clouds discovered at the galaxy's center shouldn't exist — and they hint at a recent black hole explosion
Astronomers Spot The Birth Of A Solar System For First Time | Watch
The Universe's Brightest Flash Reveals the Secrets of Cosmic Jet - Universe Today
Scientists reveal eerie new details on mysterious 'interstellar object' spotted in solar system Good for Chris! He and I discussed Avi Loeb's crazy ideas at Chris's recent lecture at the RIA!
James Webb telescope reveals 'Sleeping Beauty' galaxies in the early universe — snoozing where they weren't supposed to exist
JWST finds unusual black hole in the center of the Infinity Galaxy: 'How can we make sense of this?'
This 200-light-year-wide structure could be feeding our galaxy's center: 'No one had any idea this cloud existed'
COSMOLOGYNew discovery at Cern could hint at why our universe is made up of matter and not antimatter
EARTH & MOONSad News: Another of the greats is dead: Jim Lovell, commander of Apollo 13, and other notable missions, has dies at the grand old age of 97. He was a great and unique part of the Apollo story. RIP.Meteor explodes in fireball and sonic boom over Australia Lunar Dust Mitigation Requires Collaboration And Lots of Tests - Universe Today
New Findings Indicate that the Origin of Life Started in Space - Universe Today
The Potential Danger to Satellites due to Ejecta from a 2032 Lunar Impact by Asteroid 2024 YR4 Unfortunately, according to Prof Alan Fitzsimmons, on current trajectories, the Moon will be below our horizon at the probable time of impact. But if the odds increase to 95% plus, it would be worth travelling to somewhere to get clear sky and the Moon well above the horizon to see the actual event!
Humans Felt The Effects of Weird Space Weather 41,000 Years Ago : ScienceAlert https://share.google/vMJBPwGW8WgndZqHx
EXOLIFEPossible sign of alien Life detected 120 light-years away
Scientists scan famous 'Earthrise' crater on mission to find alien life in our solar system
EXOPLANETSExotic 'lava worlds' are a hot new frontier in exoplanet science This 'super-Earth' exoplanet 35 light-years away might have what it takes to support life
'Rare' planet like Jupiter discovered 400 light years away
Astronomers witness birth of new solar system
IMAGESNasa reveals stunning 'cosmic razzle-dazzle' in 9 new images from space
LIGHT & SATELLITE SKY POLLUTIONCould Surrey Space Centre paint stop 'motorway of satellites' in sky? - BBC News https://share.google/wUP4zmi1RoqNJGfp6
SETIThe Fermi Paradox has a potentially terrifying answer: The Dark Forest
SOLAR SYSTEM Life on Mars breakthrough after mystery rover discovery Seasonal Frosts Could Lead to Patches of Briny Water on Mars' Surface - Universe Today
'Hostile alien spacecraft' may strike Earth in November Poor Avi Loeb. Does Harvard not have a good psychiatry Department? In fact, are there no decent psychiatrists anywhere in Boston? Saying it's just 'hypothetical' does not justify this arrant nonsense.
It could also, hypothetically, be a giant interstellar ice-cream van, here to give us a sample of the delicious ice-cream from the centre of the Milky Way (Geddit?). Or perhaps it's a spacecraft full of Intergalactic Mormons or Jehovah's Witnesses, who will pour out of it in their thousands, and put their feet in our doors. Or perhaps it's a gigantic interstellar turd, dumped overboard from some ginormous spaceship piloted by giga-scale elephants. Hypothetically. Astronomers discover strange solar system body dancing in sync with Neptune: 'Like finding a hidden rhythm in a song'
SPACE Lunar Dust Mitigation Requires Collaboration And Lots of Tests - Universe Today
Astronauts' Hearts Stay Healthy Years After Space Missions - Universe Today
https://www.space.com/space-exploration/launches-spacecraft/twin-nasa-mars-probes-will-fly-on-2nd-ever-launch-of-blue-origins-huge-new-glenn-rocket
Voyager 1 at one light-day: Spacecraft to reach unthinkable milestone after 49 years https://share.google/vQSb4VbvVbuwavfky Pause for thought. It will take even longer than 49 years for it to reach a second light-day, because its velocity now is much less than just after launch. And longer still to reach a third light-day, although the rate of deceleration will then be minimal. But it just shows how far we are from Interstellar travel!
SUN
Sharpest-ever images of the Sun's surface reveal magnetic 'stripes' - Earth.com https://www.earth.com/news/sharpest-ever-images-of-the-suns-surface-reveal-stripes-that-resemble-silk-threads/
TELESCOPES, INSTRUMENTS, TECHNIQUES
In Its First Year, Rubin Observatory Will Gather More Space Data Than All Other Telescopes In History Combined https://www.jalopnik.com/1914398/new-rubin-observatory-space-data-gathering/
FINAL WORD:
"The treasures hidden in the heavens are so rich that the human mind shall never be lacking in fresh nourishment." - Johannes Kepler
19. JOINING the IRISH ASTRONOMICAL ASSOCIATION. This link gives options to join the IAA.
https://irishastro.org/join-the-iaa/ If you are a UK taxpayer, please select the 'gift-aid' box, as that enables us to reclaim the standard rate of tax on your subscription, at no cost to you. You can also make a donation via Paypal if you wish: just click on the 'Donate' button. See also https://irishastro.org/
The Irish Astronomical Association is registered with The Charity Commission for Northern Ireland NIC 105858
DISCLAIMER: Any views expressed herein are mine, and do not necessarily represent those of the IAA.
Clear skies,
Terry Moseley
