Well we certainly have an autumn sky now, which in many ways is as it should be, the summer constellations are now but an ephemeral wisp of memory. Taurus the bull with its baleful red eye is well up in the east by 10 closely followed by Orion. Which neatly brings us to the Orionid meteor shower which peaks this week around the 21st, and much good will it do us, because we have a full moon on the 23rd so throughout the entire week we will be hard pushed to see anything at all. But if you’re a fanatic and are determined to have a look then to have any chance at all look toward Orion in the eastern sky after midnight and good luck
And because there’s not much else this week, and I know its flogging a dead horse, lets reprise comet Hartley, with the rash optimism of youth I looked for it again and failed again, and this week with a full moon as well it will be even more difficult, but undaunted I’ll put another guide on the blog. So if you’re a fanatic and are determined to have a look then to have any chance at all look toward Auriga, the only constellation named after a local guest house, almost straight over head to the North with binoculars look a greenish star with a smudge.
Some people have managed to find Hartley 2.
As for the planets Venus has gone it will be back in the dawn sky in 3 weeks. Jupiter remains the main attraction dominating the southern sky throughout the whole night. And Saturn is back in the dawn sky rising around 7 in the east.
And that's your night sky for the week ending on the 1704th anniversary of the Martyrdom of Saint Demetrius of Thessalonica.
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