is this a bad moment to mention how weird it is that the moon is perfectly positioned to create eclipses?
I think its pretty incomprehensible odds if you ask google.
But I could be wrong I know literally nothing about astronomy, it just always surprised me its not common, but it be cool if someone could explain that
By the way, current Stellarium+ simulations indicate that the Moon is positioned to plow through occultations of the Beehive Cluster and Jupiter, albeit below the horizon for me, coming up in the first week of October. There will also be a very close encounter with Mars... which happens every month, anyway.
I've personally been cataloging those notable stars which are close enough to ecliptic that they have a high probability of occultation, along with the planets that coincide at those times. And it's personally gratifying to watch the Moon occult most or all of the Pleiades, which is also a fairly common occurrence.
The Beehive Cluster is dimmer, and even though the Moon be a waning crescent, for those where it appears above the horizon, may be something exciting to think about!
ionwake · · focus · HN ↗
I think its pretty incomprehensible odds if you ask google.
But I could be wrong I know literally nothing about astronomy, it just always surprised me its not common, but it be cool if someone could explain that
ButlerianJihad · · focus · HN ↗
<a href="https://occultations.org/publications/rasc/2026/lunar26.pdf" rel="nofollow">https://occultations.org/publications/rasc/2026/lunar26.pdf
I've personally been cataloging those notable stars which are close enough to ecliptic that they have a high probability of occultation, along with the planets that coincide at those times. And it's personally gratifying to watch the Moon occult most or all of the Pleiades, which is also a fairly common occurrence.
The Beehive Cluster is dimmer, and even though the Moon be a waning crescent, for those where it appears above the horizon, may be something exciting to think about!