Welcome to my blog!
Feel free to 'drop in' any time to catch my monthly radio appearances on Uckfield 105FM with presenter Tony Williams where we share all things astronomical, and have a great deal of fun along the way!In yesterday's show - Monday 4 August - we discussed the two most distant red giant stars recently discovered in our Milky Way Galaxy's outer halo; a whopping 750,000 and 900,000 light-years away!
Also on the menu was ESA's exciting Rosetta mission whereby a spacecraft is about to rendezvous with, orbit around, and drop a lander - Philae - on the surface of comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko - a mission we shall follow closely in forthcoming shows.
I shall be join Richie Jarvis on Astronomy FM at 8.00pm on 17 August where I shall be privileged to join a live link-up with some of the key scientists working on the Rosetta Mission - more to follow.Also enjoyed on our radio show was the discussion on the dramatic 'mega Moon' about to make its closest approach to Earth for many years at circa 8.00pm on 10 August. From there we shared the delights of the Perseid Meteor shower, due to peak on 12 August, when, despite the Full Moon, some fast bright meteors and possible fireballs will still be visible as they blaze across the night sky. And finally, the thrilling conjunction of Venus and Jupiter pre-dawn on 18 August. Seen against the backdrop of M44, the Beehive Cluster, the fact that these two dazzling planets will appear a mere 15 arcminutes apart should make for an amazing sight.
My alarm clock will be set!
In addition to the exciting news about TOUR OF THE UNIVERSE - a national astronomy tour with media partner BBC Sky at Night magazine (see above) - details of other exciting events in which I am privileged to be involved will also appear here ... so dip in any time and join me for the start of more astronomical adventures!
Keep looking up!
Jane