The Astronomy Show 23.09.19

The Astronomy Show 23.09.19

On the Astronomy Show today I will be looking at what happened to the Indian moon mission Chandrayaan 2, contact was lost just before it was due to land on the Moon, the orbiter part of the mission is still working normally.

In addition to the normal weekly round up of the night sky and with Autumn now approaching this is a good time to take a look at the constellations that can be found in the night sky during autumn season.

The regular feartures include astronomy news stories including a possible interstellar comet entering the solar system, the latest news from the Yutu 2 Chinese rover on the Moon and why Jupiter's moon Io might not have a magma ocean after all. The astronomical scrapbook looking at events that happened this week include in 1846 the discovery of Nepture, the loss of the Mars Climate Explorer in 1999 and Edward Piggot discovered the variable star R Scutum in 1795. All this plus the round up of news from the astronomical societies  of the north of England.

The Astronomy Show every Wednesday between 7.00 pm and 9.00 pm only on Drystone Radio 103.5 FM. The programme can be heard on line at www.drystoneradio.com the show can also be heard later on the Drystone Radio podcast.

The next Astronomy Show will be on Monday 28th October

The Astronomy Show 02.09.19

The Astronomy Show 02.09.19

As we enter September the nights become longer and astronomers start to get ready for the new observing season. On the Astronomy Show tonight I will be looking towards the Septemebr skies when we experience the change over from summer to autumn skies. In addition the longer nights mean that Northern Lights or the Aurora Borealis have returned to the northern hemisphere.

I will be looking at news that Io the the closest of the four Galilean moons of Jupiter and often referrd to as the pizza planet is the most volcanic object in the solar system. In fact Io is superactive when it comes to volcanoes but a question being asked by astronomers is this. Do the volcanoes run like clockwork? The Astronomy Show will take a look.

The regular review of the astronomy news stories includes, the latest pictures from China's Chang'e 4 on the far side of the Moon, both the European Space Agency and Russia are experiencing problems with their parachute systems for landing space craft on Mars. Astronomers have discovered a second planet orbiting beta Pictoris and its huge.

The astronomical scrapbook which looks at dates in history this week includes in 1752 the introduction of the Gregorian calendar, in 1976 Viking 2 landed on Mars and in 1977 Voyager 1 was launched. There will be the regular round up of news from astronomical societies in the north of England.

The Astronomy Show every Wednesday evening between 7.00 pm and 9.00 pm only on Drystone Radio 103.5 FM, you can her the show live on line at drystoneradio.com or listen later on the Drystone Radio podcast.