[AZ-Observing] Joe Orman's Sky Events Almanac 2006

  Here's my annual list of sky events for the upcoming year.  This list is also 
available online:
  http://pages.prodigy.net/pam.orman/JoeAlmanac2006.html
   
  Hope you enjoy watching the sky!
   
  --Joe
   
  ************************************
   
    2006: A Year of Sky Events
  by Joe Orman 
  Photo Pages: http://pages.prodigy.net/pam.orman/JoeHome.html 
   
  Mark your calendar for these interesting alignments, conjunctions, 
occultations & meteor showers in the year 2006. Times are calculated for 
Phoenix, Arizona; other locations may differ. Most will be easy to see with the 
unaided eye, some very challenging -- take a look! Constructive comments and 
corrections welcome. This list may be copied and distributed for non-commercial 
use, but it must be credited to Joe Orman.
    
   January 8 (evening): Mars 4 degrees to right of gibbous Moon, high in ESE 
after sunset.
    
   January 9 (evening): Gibbous Moon partially occults star cluster Pleiades, 
very high in E after sunset.
    
   January 23-February 12 (nights): Saturn less than 1 degree from Beehive star 
cluster (M44).
    
   January 25 (morning): Bright star Antares 0.6 degrees above crescent Moon, 
in SE before sunrise (occultation for Central America).
    
   February 5-6 (night): Mars 3 degrees to lower right of first-quarter Moon, 
Pleiades star cluster (M45) 3 degrees to upper left of Moon, near zenith after 
sunset. Moon occults Pleiades as they set in WNW about 2:00 a.m.
    
   February 14-19 (evenings): Mars 2 degrees from Pleiades star cluster (M45), 
near zenith after sunset.
    
   February 17 (evening): Bright star Spica 1 degree above gibbous Moon, rising 
in E about 10:30 p.m. (occultation in eastern North America).
    
   March 5-6 (night): Mars 5 degrees to upper left of first-quarter Moon, 
Pleiades star cluster 6 degrees to lower right, high in WSW after sunset. Mars 
3 degrees to lower left of Moon as they set in WNW about 1:00 a.m.
    
   March 10 (evening): Saturn 5 degrees to upper right of gibbous Moon, high in 
E after sunset. Much-dimmer Beehive star cluster between Saturn and Moon.
    
   March 17 (morning): Bright star Spica 0.3 degrees above gibbous Moon, high 
in SW before sunrise (occultation in Hawaii).
    
   March 20: Spring equinox (11:26 a.m. MST). Sunrise straight east (6:32 a.m., 
azimuth 89.5 degrees), sunset straight west (6:40 p.m., azimuth 270.7 degrees). 
Always use proper eye protection when viewing the sun.
    
   March 27 (morning): Mercury 4 degrees to upper left of crescent Moon, very 
low in E before sunrise.
    
   April 1 (evening): Crescent Moon 0.5 degrees above Pleiades star cluster 
(M45), in W after sunset (occultation for eastern North America).
    
   April 6 (evening): First-quarter Moon, Saturn and much-dimmer Beehive star 
cluster make 3-degree equilateral triangle, near zenith after sunset.
    
   April 16 (evening): Bright star Antares 0.5 degrees to left of gibbous Moon, 
rising about 10:30 p.m. in SE.
    
   April 24 (morning): Venus 2 degrees to upper left of crescent Moon, low in E 
before sunrise.
    
   May 3-4 (night): Saturn 6 degrees to left of first-quarter Moon, high in W 
after sunset. Much-dimmer Beehive star cluster 3 degrees to upper right of 
Saturn. Saturn 3 degrees to left of Moon as they set in WNW about 1:00 a.m.
    
   May 24 (morning): Venus 5 degrees to right of crescent Moon, low in E before 
sunrise.
    
   May 30 (evening): Mars 3 degrees to left of crescent Moon, in W after sunset.
    
   May 31 (evening): Saturn 3 degrees below crescent Moon, in W after sunset. 
Much-dimmer Beehive star cluster 1 degree to upper right of Saturn, Mars to 
lower right. 
    
   June 1-7 (evenings): Saturn less than 1 degree from Beehive star cluster 
(M44), in W after sunset.
    
   June 11-12 (night): Major lunar standstill: full Moon stays low above 
southern horizon, only 27 degrees above S horizon as it transits at 1:00 a.m. 
    
   June 15 (evening): Mars 1 degree to right of Saturn, Beehive star cluster 
(M44) less than 1 degree to right of Mars, Mercury to lower right, in W after 
sunset. Mars 0.6 degrees to upper right of Saturn on June 17.
    
   June 22 (morning): Venus 7 degrees below crescent Moon, Pleiades star 
cluster (M45) 7 degrees to lower left of Moon, in ENE before sunrise. Venus 7 
degrees to right of crescent Moon on June 23.
    
   June 27 (evening): Mars, Saturn, Beehive star cluster (M44), crescent Moon 
and Mercury in line within 15 degrees, low in W after sunset. Moon 1 degrees 
above Mars on June 28.
    
   June 29 (evening): Bright star Regulus 2 degrees to left of crescent Moon, 
high in W after sunset. Mars, Saturn and Mercury to lower right.
    
   July 7-8 (night): Bright star Antares 2 degrees to left of gibbous Moon, in 
S after sunset. Antares less than 1 degree to upper right of Moon as they set 
in SW around 2:30 a.m.
    
   July 19-20 (night): Crescent Moon just leaving Pleiades star cluster (M45) 
as they rise in ENE around 1:00 a.m., Pleiades 2 degrees to upper right of Moon 
in E before sunrise (occultation for eastern North America).
    
   July 21-22 (evenings): Bright star Regulus less than 1 degree to lower left 
of Mars, low in W after sunset.
    
   July 31 (evening): Bright star Spica 2 degrees to upper right of crescent 
Moon, in SW after sunset (occultation for South America).
    
   August 7-10 (mornings): Mercury 2 degrees below Venus, low in ENE before 
sunrise.
    
   August 22 (morning): Venus 5 degrees to upper right of thin crescent Moon, 
Saturn 2 degrees to lower right of Moon, very low in ENE before sunrise. 
    
   August 26 (morning): Saturn 0.5 degree below Venus, low in ENE before 
sunrise. Saturn 0.5 degree above Venus on August 27.
    
   August 31 (evening): Bright star Antares 1 degree to upper right of 
first-quarter Moon, in SSW after sunset.
    
   September 22: Fall equinox (9:03 p.m. MST). Sunset straight west (6:25 p.m., 
azimuth 270.6 degrees), sunrise straight east on September 23 (6:17 a.m., 
azimuth 89.6 degrees). Always use proper eye protection when viewing the sun.
    
   October 9 (evening): Gibbous Moon occults Pleiades star cluster (M45). Rise 
in ENE about 8:00 p.m., occultation from about 8:30 p.m. to 11:00 p.m.
    
   October 16 (morning): Saturn 2 degrees to lower right of crescent Moon, high 
in E before sunrise.
    
   November 8 (daytime): Mercury transits the sun, entire 5-hour transit 
visible from 12:12 p.m. (high in S) to 5:05 p.m. (low in WSW). Sunset 5:30 p.m.
    
   November 13 (morning): Bright star Regulus 1 degree to lower right of 
last-quarter Moon, Saturn 5 degrees to upper right, very high in SE before 
sunrise.
    
   November 17 - 18 (night): Leonids meteor shower. Just-before-new Moon rising 
about 5 a.m. will not interfere. Shower radiates from constellation Leo, which 
rises in E about midnight. Best time to look between midnight and dawn. Typical 
rate 20 meteors per hour, some years much higher. Nights of November 16 - 17 
and 18 - 19 may also be good. 
    
   December 3 (evening): Full Moon occults Pleiades star cluster (M45) in E 
after sunset, occultation from about 6:00 to 8:00 p.m.
    
   December 4-5 (night): Major lunar standstill: full Moon passes nearly 
overhead, only 6 degrees away from zenith at about 12:30 a.m.
    
   December 9 (morning): Mercury, Mars and Jupiter form triangle within 1.5 
degrees, very low in SE before sunrise. Mercury 0.2 degrees above Jupiter on 
December 10. Mars 0.8 degrees to lower right of Jupiter on December 11. 
    
   December 10 (morning): Saturn 1 degree to lower right of gibbous Moon, 
bright star Regulus 5 degrees to left, very high in SW before sunrise.
    
   December 13 - 14 (night): Geminids meteor shower. Just-past-last-quarter 
Moon rising about 2 a.m. will interfere somewhat. Shower radiates from Castor 
in constellation Gemini, which rises in NE around 7 p.m. and is near zenith in 
early morning hours. Best time to look between 9 p.m. and moonrise. Typical 
rate 60 meteors per hour. 
    
   December 15 (morning): Bright star Spica 1 degree to upper left of crescent 
Moon, rising in E about 3 a.m. (occultation in South America).
    
   December 18 (morning): Grazing occultation of magnitude 3.0 star pi Scorpii 
by thin crescent Moon, very low in SE before sunrise. Jupiter and Mars 8 
degrees to left.
    
   December 31 (morning): Gibbous Moon within 1 degree of Pleiades before they 
set in WNW about 4:45 a.m. (occultation for northwestern North America).



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