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Watch for lunar eclipse Oct. 8

The moon is at first quarter as the month begins ("first quarter" meaning half of the way through the lunar month, a little over seven days from "new"). And, a little over seven days later, the moon is full, also a lunar eclipse that day, Oct. 8.
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The moon is at first quarter as the month begins ("first quarter" meaning half of the way through the lunar month, a little over seven days from "new"). And, a little over seven days later, the moon is full, also a lunar eclipse that day, Oct. 8.

For western Canada, the eclipse begins a couple of hours past midnight and ends at sunrise. Interestingly, this same morning sees an occultation of the planet Uranus by the moon, from the far-northern reaches of the Arctic. For us here, it's close conjunction of the two bodies, with Uranus just over a degree south of the moon. Jupiter is just north of the moon Oct. 17.

Two weeks after the lunar eclipse, we are treated to a partial eclipse of the sun in mid-afternoon of Oct. 23. The moon begins to cover the upper portion of the sun at about 3 p.m., lasting until about 5:30 p.m. Venus may be visible just above the partially darkened sun around mid-eclipse. Oct. 25, Saturn and the very thin crescent moon cosy up, but it will be a tough observation in the daytime sky.

Mercury is low in the west at sundown early in the month, quickly passing in front of the sun for the rest of the month. A challenging observation!

Venus is passing behind the sun, so is not visible, except perhaps during the solar eclipse mentioned above.

Mars is low in the west at sundown, along with Mercury nearest the horizon, Saturn above to the left, with the first-quarter moon due south. Should be a good photo opportunity. Near month end, the Red Planet has moved into the realm of the Milky Way, gliding by the Lagoon Nebula (M8) for a few days, Oct. 25 to 28. The moon also pairs up with Mars Oct. 28.

Jupiter rises in the east around 2:30 a.m., near the bright stars of Orion (the Hunter) and Canis Major (the Great Dog). Watch for the nearby moon Oct. 17 and 18.

Saturn rises in the daytime, setting shortly after sundown, so will be a challenging observation early in the month. The moon is close by Oct. 25. Near month end, the Ringed Planet is lost in the sun's glare, not to be seen until November as a morning object.

Uranus rises around 6 p.m. and crosses the sky all through the night. Watch for the close encounter with the moon Oct. 8.

Neptune rises about an hour before Uranus, crossing the sky all night. The moon is nearby Oct. 5, but a telescope is needed to see blue-green Neptune.

The Orionid meteor shower is Oct. 20 and 21, best seen just after midnight and right before sunrise. This shower is the debris left behind by Halley's Comet.

The Zodiacal Light is visible in the east in the last two weeks of October.

- 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 Observer's Handbook, production manager of the bi-monthly RASC Journal. He was given the RASC Service Award at the 2012 General Assembly in Edmonton.