VENUS AND MERCURY: When the sun goes down tonight, step outside and look west. Venus and Mercury are shining through the twilight just above the horizon. Venus is brilliant and unmistakable; Mercury is dimmer and lower, but rising and brightening every night as it approaches greatest elongation from the sun on April 11th. The scene will improve every evening over the next week.
RARE HYBRID SOLAR ECLIPSE: A rare hybrid solar eclipse is about to happen in Australia, Timor-Leste, and Indonesia. On April 20, 2023, the Moon will pass in front of the sun producing a mixed sequence of eclipses: first annular, then total, then annular again. This sequence is known as a "hybrid" eclipse, and it hasn't happened since Nov. 3, 2013.
Annular eclipses are called "rings of fire." During the annular phase, the Moon is just a smidgen too small to cover the sun. The sun sticks out on all sides, forming a bright luminous ring.
During the total phase, the Moon approaches Earth, grows in apparent size, and--presto!--the full sun is covered, revealing the sun's ghostly corona. This is the phase that can turn an ordinary sky watcher into a lifelong eclipse chaser.
On April 20th, the eclipse will appear as both annular and total along different parts of its path. It begins as an annular eclipse over the Indian Ocean, then transitions into a total eclipse as it moves over western Australia, and ends as an annular eclipse over the South Pacific.
Spaceweather.com contributor Eliot M. Herman will be on an island in the path of totality. "This will be a neat eclipse," he says. "Because the Moon and sun are almost exactly the same diameter during a hybrid eclipse, the chromosphere will be visible all around the Moon, revealing 'beads' and flares." Here is an example of what he hopes to see:
Above: Baily’s beads observed by Fred Espenak from during the February 16, 1991, annular solar eclipse
"I saw this once before from the air over Lake Turkana in Kenya," says Herman, who has witnessed 14 previous eclipses. "Our view from the ground was blotted out by a sandstorm, so we had to take flight. The pictures from the April 20th eclipse could be just as good."
Visit GreatAmericanEclipse.com for detailed eclipse maps and timetables.
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"I LOVE YOU FOREVER" MOONSTONE PENDANT: Are you looking for a far-out gift? Consider the "I Love You Forever" Moonstone. This one hitched a ride to the stratosphere onboard a cosmic ray research balloon:
You can have it for $162.95. The moonstone's sterling silver infinity wrap is inscribed with the words "I love you forever." It makes a great anniversary or birthday gift. The moonstone comes with a greeting card showing the pendant in flight, telling the story of its trip to the edge of space and back again.
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