ROCHESTER, N.Y. (WROC) — 2023 has arrived and there is plenty to see and do. Especially if one of your New Year’s resolutions to was to do more star gazing. From January to December there is something for the casual observer to the advanced.
January
January 12
A comet, known as C/2022 E3 (ZTF) is going to makes its closest pass to the sun on its journey through our solar system. When it does, a good set of binoculars will help you see it, and just maybe you can see it with the naked eye.
January 22-23
Venus and Saturn will appear near each other, about a one-third of degree apart, low on the horizon to the southwest. These will be visible to the naked eye and will be the brightest objects in the area in question.
January 31
The moon will pass in front of Mars in and event known as a lunar occultation. This will be visible from Rochester and much of the United States. The only area you won’t be able to see this from will be the southern United States.
March
March 1-2
Jupiter and Venus will be separated by one-half a degree on the western horizon just after sunset both nights. These are the two brightest planets in the solar system and should be easy to find!
March 17
The equilux, or the day when Rochester will get closest to 12 hours of day and 12 hours of night, occurs. Since we are north of the equator this occurs a few days before the Spring Equinox.
March 20
Spring begins with the equinox, along the equator and within the Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn there will be 12 hours of day and 12 hours of night.
May
May 17
A crescent moon will pass in front of Jupiter, marking the second lunar occultation of the year. This will be visible across the entire eastern half of the United States.
June
June 21
The summer solstice occurs marking the longest day of the year in the northern hemisphere. For Rochester this means we’ll have 15 hours, 22 minutes and 53 seconds of daylight.
Also on June 21 once the sun sets look to the western horizon where the Moon, Mars and Venus will form a triangle in the sky!
July
July 3
By some definitions we will see our first super moon of the year. The moon will be approximately 226,000 miles away from the earth just outside of the perigee, or closest point to earth, in its orbit. The official definition of a super moon has the moon closer to only 225,000 miles from earth.
July 4
We reach the aphelion of the earths orbit around the sun. The aphelion is when the earth is at it’s furthest point from the sun.
August
August 1
The first true super moon of the year, aka the moon is at its closest pass in it orbit or perigee, occurs with a “Sturgeon Moon”. The moon will appear 14% bigger and 30% bigger than it would if it was at its apogee, or furthest point in its orbit from earth.
August 12-13
The Perseid Meteor shower peaks overnight with the best viewing in the hours just before sunrise. Under perfect viewing conditions, away from city lights and with a new moon you can see up to a 100 meteors an hour. This year the moon will be close to new moon but not there fully, but should give us a good shot to see plenty of meteorites if you’re away from city lights.
August 23
The moon will pass in front of the star Antares, one of the brightest in the night sky, this will be visible from the Great Plains and throughout the Midwest. We will not be able to view this from Rochester.
September
September 23
Fall begins with the autumnal equinox, along the equator and within the Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn there will be 12 hours of day and 12 hours of night.
September 26
The equilux, or the day when Rochester will get closest to 12 hours of day and 12 hours of night, occurs. Since we are north of the equator this occurs a few days after the autumnal equinox.
September 30
The second true super moon of the year, aka the moon is at its closest pass in it orbit or perigee, occurs with a full “Harvest Moon”. The moon will appear 14% bigger and 30% bigger than it would if it was at its apogee, or furthest point in its orbit from earth.
October
October 14
A partial solar eclipse will be visible from Rochester. From our vantage point we will see ~25% of the sun obscured by the moon. This of course will just be a taste before our total solar eclipse on April 8, 2024!
October 29
The third and final super moon of the year will occur in conjunction with the full “Hunters Moon.”
December
December 2
The normally minor Andromedid meteor shower may get a boost as debris from the parent comet known as Biela’s Comet reaches earth. The moon will be in its third quarter leaving it 25% illuminated which will aid viewing of any meteorite activity.
December 13-14
The Geminid Meteor shower peaks in the night sky. Commonly referred to as the best as it is the most active meteor shower of the year, with the potential of seeing 120 meteors an hour. A new moon will coincide with the peak of the meteor showers allowing for ideal viewing conditions from Rochester.
December 21
The winter solstice occurs marking the shortest day of the year in the northern hemisphere. For Rochester this means we’ll have 8 hours, 59 minutes and 10 seconds of daylight.
Information presented here in part was provided by Tony Rice, @rtphokie on Twitter
