Ted Forte

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Articles

Backyard Astronomer: Here comes Jupiter!

Nov 29, 2024 | myheraldreview.com | Ted Forte

Named for the Roman king of the Gods, Jupiter is truly the king of the planets. It has a diameter greater than 11 Earths and is two and a half times as massive as all the other planets put together. It’s by far the most colorful and varied object visible in small telescopes. Jupiter comes to opposition (directly opposite the sun) on December 7. At opposition, a planet rises at sunset and is above the horizon all night reaching its highest point around midnight.
Inside the December 2024 Issue

Oct 8, 2024 | skyandtelescope.org | Quanzhi Ye |William Sheehan |Ted Forte |Shannon Hall

SUBSCRIBE TODAY | ISSUE INDEXExoplanet Atmospheres, Meteor Showers, and Planetary PhotometryIn the December 2024 issue of Sky & Telescope, you’ll learn how astronomers are going back to the drawing board and rethinking how we model exoplanet atmospheres using new data from the James Webb Space Telescope. While JWST gathers spectra of distant worlds, you can help scientists by measuring the light coming from the planets in our solar system.
Backyard Astronomer: Is a bright comet coming our way?

Oct 4, 2024 | myheraldreview.com | Ted Forte

Like so many before it, comet Tsuchinshan-Atlas (pronounced “touch-in-shin”) is being hyped as the “comet of the century” or at least of the decade. Maybe, just maybe, this time we won’t be disappointed. The problem is that the only reliable prediction you can make about a comet is that it’ll be unpredictable. I’ve lost count of how many potential “comets of the century” have totally fizzled, or been completely destroyed by their close passage by the sun.
Saturn takes center stage on Sept. 8

Sep 1, 2024 | myheraldreview.com | Ted Forte

Saturn comes to opposition (is directly opposite the sun) on September 8. At opposition, a planet is above our horizon all night and is due south and highest in the sky around local midnight. It will also be at its brightest (magnitude 0.6) for the year and make an excellent target all month. The Earth is poised to cross Saturn’s ring plane early next year. When that happens, its famous ring system will be edge-on to our line of sight and so thin as to essentially disappear.
David Levy to speak at Patterson Observatory’s 20th anniversary

Aug 3, 2024 | myheraldreview.com | Ted Forte

Famed comet hunter and author, David Levy, will be the keynote speaker at the Patterson Observatory’s 20th anniversary celebration on Thursday, September 5. The celebration will consist of a reception with light refreshments, starting at 5 p.m. in the Judy A. Gignac Education Center on the University of Arizona’s Sierra Vista Campus, 1140 N. Colombo Avenue. Admission to the reception/talk is free and open to all.
Backyard Astronomer

Jun 3, 2024 | myheraldreview.com | Ted Forte

A morning planet lineupYou may have heard that six planets will “line up” in the morning sky this month. While some attribute special significance to this circumstance, it really has no consequence other than to provide a cool visual treat. All of the major planets in our solar system orbit in essentially the same plane. From our position within that plane, they seem to form a line when they appear close in the sky.
You don’t need an eclipse to enjoy viewing the sun

May 4, 2024 | myheraldreview.com | Ted Forte

The solar eclipse on 8 April was perhaps the most anticipated, most observed, and most photographed astronomical event in history. Millions of people live along the path of totality that traversed Mexico, Canada, and a huge swath of the United States, and millions of others flocked to the centerline to view the event. Many more millions of people enjoyed the partial eclipse that was visible from almost anywhere on the continent.
Backyard Astronomer: You don’t need an ellipse to enjoy viewing the sun

Apr 29, 2024 | myheraldreview.com | Ted Forte

The solar eclipse on April 8 was perhaps the most anticipated, most observed and most photographed astronomical event in history. Millions of people live along the path of totality that traversed Mexico, Canada and a huge swath of the United States, and millions of others flocked to the centerline to view the event. Many more millions of people enjoyed the partial eclipse that was visible from almost anywhere on the continent.
Backyard Astronomer: Get ready for April’s 'Great American Eclipse'

Mar 27, 2024 | myheraldreview.com | Ted Forte

Most of the continental United States will experience a solar eclipse on Monday, April 8. The path of totality crosses the continent from Mazatlán Mexico to Little Catalina, Newfoundland, and traverses 13 U.S. states from Texas to Maine. Outside the 115-mile-wide strip of totality, most of America will see a partial eclipse. Here in Sierra Vista, the moon will block 73% of the sun’s disk.
Backyard Astronomer: Catch a comet this month

Feb 28, 2024 | myheraldreview.com | Ted Forte

A bright periodic comet will be at its best in March. Comet 12P/Pons-Brooks returns to our neighborhood every 71 years. Known for its unpredictable outbursts, it has already shown off its tendency to brighten unexpectedly, with an overnight hundred-fold increase in brightness last July. Several more flaring episodes have occurred since. Observers have fingers crossed that it will continue to flare as it passes close to the sun.