SUNSET SKY SHOW: When the sun goes down tonight, step outside and look west. Venus and the crescent Moon have lined up in the sunset sky, both in the constellation Taurus. Try to catch them before the sky fades to black; you'll get an eyeful of Earthshine, too. Sky maps: April 25, 26.
COMET ATLAS IS REALLY FALLING APART: The disintegration of Comet ATLAS (C/2019 Y4) is accelerating. This April 21st photo from the Hubble Space Telescope says it all:
Under the guidance of principal investigator Quanzhi Ye of the University of Maryland, Hubble peered deep into the comet's core. Previously, four fragments had been observed from the ground. Hubble saw that all four are in a state of decay.
"Fragments C and D seem to have been reduced into a handful of fainter fragments," notes Ye and colleague Man-To Hui (U. Hawaii) in an Astronomer's Telegram. "Two remaining major fragments, likely A and B, [have each split into] 1 to 2 brighter components."
Remarkably, this dying comet is still bright enough to be seen in amateur telescopes. It is currently shining like a 9th magnitude star in the constellation Camelopardalis. Observers, point your optics using this ephemeris from JPL.
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GET READY FOR MOTHER'S DAY: Are you looking for an out-of-this world Mother's Day gift? Consider this: Every time the students of Earth to Sky Calculus launch a cosmic ray balloon, they include something extra in the payload--something Mom will love:
Every item in the Earth to Sky Store has flown to the edge of space and comes with a greeting card showing the item in flight. The interior of the card tells the story of the gift's journey from launch to landing. Mom-satisfaction guaranteed!
Far Out Gifts: Earth to Sky Store
All sales support hands-on STEM education
STARLINK AGAIN: For the second night in a row, SpaceX's latest batch of Starlink satellites wowed observers in Europe. Olivier Staiger filmed the bright satellites gliding over Switzerland on April 24th. "The train has split in two parts!" he says. Turn up the volume and listen to his commentary:
"Wow, there is a second one! Indeed, they have split in two," he exclaims in the video. "Fabulous!"
SpaceX launched the satellites from Cape Canaveral on April 22nd. All 60 were in a single rocket, then deployed individually in orbit. This brings the total number of Starlinks in space to 420. SpaceX hopes to grow the number even more, potentially exceeding 12,000, in an effort to provide commercial space-based internet access to all parts of the world.
While the goal of widely available internet is good, the Starlink project has become controversial because of its interference with astronomy. It is becoming increasingly difficult for astrophotographers to make long exposures of faint objects without an unexpected intrusion from Starlink. And the IAU has warned that the project could seriously impact professional research.
Browse the Starlink photo gallery for more sightings.
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