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NASA’s Marshall Center Celebrates International Observe the Moon Night

On Saturday, Oct. 8, from 5:30 to 9 p.m. the public and media are invited to attend the 6^th annual International Observe the Moon Night celebration, hosted by NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center at the Davidson Center for Space Exploration at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center, both in Huntsville, Alabama.

The free event will include moon-related and solar system exhibits and hands-on activities for children and adults. Activities will include an out-of-this-world photo booth, airbrush tattoo station, and a meet and greet with Janet Ivey from “Janet’s Planet” on PBS. Live music will be provided by DJ Shell. Several large amateur telescopes will be set up to view the moon, stars, and other visible planets. Visitors can also take a virtual 3-D trip to the moon with the astronomy van, offering a magnified, command-module-like view of the lunar surface. The family movie, “Home,” will begin at dusk.

A panel discussion titled: “Planets, Moons & Meteorites Oh My!” will begin at 7:15 p.m. in the National Geographic Theater and will feature Marshall speakers Mitzi Adams, solar physicist; Dr. Barbara Cohen, planetary sceintist; Dr. Bill Cooke, manager of the Meteoroid Environments Office; and Dr. Renee Weber, planetary scientist.

The U.S. Space & Rocket Center is the official visitor center for NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center.

For more information on NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center, visit https://www.nasa.gov/centers/marshall/home/index.html.

For more information on the U.S. Space & Rocket Center, visit http://rocketcenter.com.

Full Moon Photographed From Apollo 11 Spacecraft

Meteor Over Alabama Brighter than Crescent Moon

On September 16, at 8:22:25 PM local time, NASA meteor cameras in north Georgia and western North Carolina detected a bright fireball over middle Alabama. First seen at an altitude of 45 miles above Paul M. Grist State Park, near Selma, Alabama, the 6 inch diameter chunk of asteroid moved east at a speed of 38,000 miles per hour before burning up some 28 miles above northern Elmore County. At its most intense, the meteor was even brighter than a crescent Moon.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C0RWxMfBuLM[/embedyt]

Meteor Moment: What is the All-Sky Camera Network?

Dr. Bill Cooke, of NASA’s Meteroid Environment Office — located at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama — explains what the All-Sky Camera Network is and how it’s used to track meteors or fireballs.

Ask an Astronomer About the Shortest Lunar Eclipse of the Century on April 4

On Saturday morning, April 4, 2015 not long before sunrise, the bright full moon over North America should turn a lovely shade of celestial red during a total lunar eclipse. Join NASA astronomer Mitzi Adams as she takes questions via Twitter @NASA_Marshall. For Twitter questions, use the hashtag #eclipse2015. The question and answer via Twitter will begin at 6 a.m. EDT and continue through the end of the eclipse (approximately 8:00 a.m. EDT on April 4).

The lunar eclipse will be visible from all parts of the United States. Eastern North America and western South America can see beginning stages of the partial umbral eclipse low in the west before sunrise April 4, whereas middle Asia (India, western China, mid-Asian Russia) can view the ending stages of the partial umbral eclipse low in the east after sunset April 4. Greenland, Iceland, Europe, Africa and the Middle East won’t see this eclipse at all. A world map of eclipse visibility is available here. The total eclipse will last only five minutes. You can find more information here.

This image shows the Dec. 20, 2012 total lunar eclipse, as seen from Sagamihara, Japan.

Marshall Scientists to Take Questions via Twitter About the Partial Solar Eclipse

On Thursday, October 23, 2014, from 5:00pm – 6:00pm CDT, Marshall scientists Mitzi Adams, Sabrina Savage and Alphonse Sterling will be taking questions about the partial solar eclipse on the NASA Marshall Twitter account: http://twitter.com/NASA_Marshall, using the hashtag #askNASA.

At approximately 4:54 p.m. CDT, the eclipse will begin, with maximum eclipse occurring at 5:54 p.m. The partial eclipse will end at 6:49 p.m. CDT, which is after 6:02 pm sunset in Huntsville.

The magnitude of this eclipse, that is the fraction of the Sun’s diameter covered by the moon, will be 44%. The obscuration, or the fraction of the Sun’s area occulted by the moon, will be 32%.The Sun will be in the constellation Virgo, with Saturn low on the horizon after sunset, and Mars will be farther to the east.

A live Ustream feed of the partial solar eclipse will be available here.

Local Viewing Opportunity

Von Braun Astronomical Society (VBAS) is partnering with the U.S. Space & Rocket Center® on Thursday, October 23, 2014, from 5 p.m. until sundown, for the observance of the partial solar eclipse. Join astronomers in the Davidson Center for Space Exploration parking lot to discuss the phenomenon and observe the solar eclipse through the telescopes. There will be visible-light viewing telescopes to see any sunspots, and special telescopes with hydrogen-light viewing in order to see the prominences at the edge of the sun.

The telescopes are equipped with filters for safe viewing of the sun. Never look at the Sun directly! Attempting to look directly at the sun without such special filters is harmful to the eyes.
This event is free and open to the public.

Stay ‘Up All Night’ to Watch the Lunar Eclipse!

Spring is here and ready to capture the world’s attention with a total lunar eclipse. The eclipse will begin early on the morning of April 15 at approximately 2 a.m. EDT. If you have questions about the eclipse, this will be your chance!

NASA will host two events for NASA moon experts to answer your questions. On Monday, April 14 from 2-3 p.m. EDT, NASA planetary scientist Renee Weber will take your questions via a Reddit AMA (Ask Me Anything). The Reddit page will be live on April 14 at approximately 1:45 p.m. EDT.

NASA astronomer Mitzi Adams and astrophysicist Alphonse Sterling will also answer questions in a live web chat, beginning on April 15 at 1 a.m. EDT and continuing through the end of the eclipse (approximately 5 a.m. EDT). The chat module will go live on this page at approximately 12:45 a.m. EDT.