The moon is new as September begins, marking the event with an annular solar eclipse, the track of which crosses the southern part of the African continent.
On the following two days, both Jupiter and Venus are occulted in rapid succession, but not for viewers in North America. We get to enjoy seeing the two planets up close to the young moon in the western evening sky. Sept. 15, Neptune is within two degrees of the nearly full moon, an occultation in Europe. Full moon is Friday, Sept. 16, also generating a lunar eclipse for viewers in the Eastern Hemisphere. This is to be expected, as eclipses occur in pairs, separated by two weeks. In this case, the solar eclipse of Sept. 1 is followed a little over 14 days later by the lunar eclipse.
Mercury is well placed in the western evening sky for the first week of September, passing in front of the sun for about two weeks, re-appearing in the morning sky for the last 10 days of the month. This morning apparition is the best of the year for northern observers. And, putting on a good show late in the month, the speedy planet pairs up with the moon Sept. 29, an occultation in the Southern Hemisphere.
Venus continues as the bright "star" in the western evening sky, occulted by the moon Sept. 3, a close pairing for Canadian viewers.
Mars appears after sunset in the southwest, fading from view and setting near mid-evening.
Jupiter is a poor object for viewing this month, as it becomes lost in the sun's glare early on.
Saturn is low in the southwestern evening sky, setting in late evening.
Uranus is in retrograde mode, appearing to move westward against the starry backdrop. The blue-green planet is in the constellation Pisces, the fish.
Neptune is visible during the entire night, in opposition early in September. Watch for the nearby moon Sept. 15.
The zodiacal light, a phenomenon caused by dust orbiting in the sun’s equatorial plane and backlit during morning twilight in the fall, is visible as a towering shaft of dim light in line with the ecliptic.
— James Edgar has had an interest in the night sky all his life. He joined The Royal Astronomical Society of Canada in 2000 and is now the Society’s president, assistant editor and a contributor to the renowned Observer’s Handbook and production manager of the bi-monthly RASC Journal. He was given the RASC Service Award at the 2012 General Assembly in Edmonton.
