astronomy
The Night Sky OUR SKIES MAY BE A LITTLE LIGHTER NOW IN THE EVENINGS, BUT THERE IS STILL SO MUCH TO SEE!
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aster Sunday has moved again so we will explore a little about why Easter changes from year to year. We can also look out for a number of interesting meetings between a few planets, bright stars and the Moon throughout the month. April is the time to spot some bright fast meteors during the Lyrid shower and we have so much more news to look forward to from the surface of Mars as the lander Perseverance (hopefully) continues to explore the surface of the planet. Our constellation focus for this month will be Lyra and the bright star Vega - found in that constellation - will be our object of the month. We continue to explore some of the astronomy jargon in this article shining a light on the terms 'Constellation' and 'Asterism'. Lastly, I
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just wanted to mention the astronomy group I have started on Facebook. It is called 'Astronomy and Astrophotography France'. I hope to share - with any English speakers here - a little more of my love of the stunning skies here in France. I will be posting information about upcoming astronomical events, images, sketches and more so please do have a look and join us. I hope it could become a sort of online Astronomy Club for anyone with an interest in anything related to the night sky. Easter Sunday : 4th April The spring festival, now involving chocolate, rabbits, eggs and chickens is a moveable feast and has long been linked to Lunar cycles. This year Easter Sunday will be on the 4th which is one week after
the full moon in March. The reason for this is linked to the Jewish lunar calendar. The time of the 'Passover' has been noted in the Bible and also honoured by Christians since the early centuries. The crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus was then seen as the perfect sacrifice during 'Passover' and this time was linked to the Hebrew calendar and the Moon phases. The Spring Solstice and the following full moon tell us when 'Passover' should be honoured. Full moon was on March 28th so the Sunday following that is Easter Sunday. The Moon and Planets in April The darkest skies and therefore the best viewing times will be during the week before and the week after 'New Moon'.
