Phone (503) 655-7430 <> e-mail – starguy1@comcast.net
<> Website – www.atlbible.org/astronomy.htm
LAST ISSUE FOR 1999/2000 SUBCRIPTION YEAR
This is the last issue of Biblical Astronomy
for the July 1999 to June 2000 subscription year. If you have not yet subscribed to the July 2000 through June 2001
year and wish to do so, please send a check or money order for $20.00 ($25.00
Canada, $30.00 other countries) to the above address. I look forward to serving you astronomical information in the
coming year, as well as updates from the Mid-east.
The following is the New
Moon Report from the Karaite Korner, Jerusalem, Israel.
“On Saturday June 3, 2000 the New Moon was seen by Devorah Gordon and Nehemia Gordon from Jerusalem. The moon was first sighted by Devorah at 19:56 and by Nehemia at 19:58. Sunset was observed at 19:34. The moon was not visible from Israel on the previous evening, making the evening of June 3, New Moon Day of the Third Month.
Rosh Hodesh Sameah! (Happy
New Moon Day!) Nehemiah Gordon –
Jerusalem, Israel.”
The next New Moon will most
likely be visible near sunset on July 3, when it will be 5% illuminated and 18
degrees above the horizon five minutes after sunset. But there is a somewhat slight possibility that it will be seen
near sunset on July 2, when it will be 1% illuminated and 7 degrees above the
horizon five minutes after sunset.
Since I have been recording
the New Moon sightings over the last few years, the lowest point above the
horizon at five minutes after sunset that the first crescent was sighted when
the moon was 1% illuminated, was 8 degrees.
If the moon is sighted on July 2, the lower boundary I use to forecast a
New Moon sighting will move down a notch.
Jupiter, Saturn and the Moon
will come into conjunction on June 1, in the constellation Taurus. The moon will be a waning crescent with 3%
illumination at the time of the conjunction in the early morning sky. As mentioned in the May issue of Biblical
Astronomy, Jupiter and Saturn come into conjunction about every 20 years. On occasion, the moon joins them (about
every 60 years on the average). Charts 147 and 148 show the position of the three celestial bodies in Taurus.
Some
attribute the deaths of several U.S. presidents while in office to the 20-year
cycle of the Jupiter/Saturn conjunction.
Others attribute this factor to an old indian curse. I believe that it is just coincidence,
though a strange one. Since 1840 each president elected during
or within one year of the conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn has been assassinated,
or died in office, with the exception of Ronald Reagan. Though he was shot in an assassination
attempt in 1981. Did he break the
curse? Below is a listing of U.S.
presidents who met this fate.
Year Elected President Fate
1840 Harrison Died
in Office
1860 Lincoln Assassinated
1880 Garfield Assassinated
1900 McKinley Assassinated
1920 Harding Died
in Office
1940 Roosevelt Died
in Office
1960 Kennedy Assassinated
1980 Reagan Broke
the curse 2000 ??????? ?????????????
Jupiter and Saturn will not
be in conjunction again until the year 2020.
On December 21, 2020, Jupiter and Saturn will be at their closest for
the entire century when they pass about 1/10th of a degree from one
another.
Venus (the bright and morning
star) and Mars (Michael) will be in a close conjunction on June 21, when they
will pass within ¼ of a degree from each other. The planets will be too close to the sun to be seen visually,
unless you have access to the SOHO observatory. Charts 149 and 150 show the position of Venus and Mars
in the constellation Gemini at the time of the conjunction. Mars and Venus are above left to the club of
Orion.
The Summer Solstice will
also occur on June 21, at 4:48 a.m. Jerusalem Daylight Savings Time or on June
20, at 9:48 p.m. Eastern Daylight Savings Time. The Summer Solstice occurs when the Sun reaches the celestial
coordinates of 6 hours Right Ascension (90 degrees from the Vernal Equinox
point) and 23.5 degrees Declination north of the Celestial Equator. This is the farthest north in the sky that
the Sun reaches during the year.
Charts
151 and 152 show the position of the Sun at the time that it reaches Summer
Solstice. The line running horizontally
through the Sun is the Ecliptic, which is the path that the sun follows through
the heavens as seen from Earth. The
celestial coordinates for the Winter Solstice is 18 hours Right Ascension (270
degrees from the Vernal Equinox point) and 23.5 degrees Declination south of
the Celestial Equator. This is the
farthest south in the sky that the sun reaches during the year.
The following is an update from the Comet Observation Home Page released on May 16.
“Mike Linnolt has visually
recovered this comet from Haleakala National Park, Maui, Hawaii. His observed magnitude, which appears to be
very carefully estimated, suggests that 99 S4 may be falling behind the
brightness predictions for the comet.
Such behavior is not unexpected given that this comet may be making its
first trip through the inner solar system.
However, it is a bit too soon to declare 99 S4 a fizzle. Mike Linnolt’s observation, while made very
carefully from a wonderful observation site, still was made with the comet only
six degrees above the horizon. It is
still possible that his estimate is on the faint side. We will have to wait another two weeks
before the comet is higher in the sky without the moon. By then we should have a good handle on the
question of how bright the comet is likely to get.”
The following update was
released on June 5.
“This comet is running
behind predictions. It now looks like
this comet might only get to be magnitude 5.0 or perhaps fainter. It is unlikely that the comet will be a
naked eye object unless you are in very dark skies and know exactly where to
look.”
The comet may have an
outburst as it approaches closer to the Sun, in which case it can become
considerably brighter. But this is only
speculation at this point. We’ll see what
happens in late July.
Charts 153 and 154 show the path of
Comet 1999 S4 from June 1, 2000 to July 9, 2000. The path starts in the Triangulum
and ends under the armpit of Perseus.
The positions are marked off in 5-day increments. The comet will reach its closest approach to
Earth on July 22 at a distance of 34.6 million miles. On July 6/7, this comet will pass conjunction to the spot in Rosh
Satan where Comets Hyakutake and Hale-Bopp crossed on April 10/11, 1996 and
1997. There will be more on this comet
in the next issue of Biblical Astronomy.
The star Eta Carinae, which is in the rear section of the constellation Argo (the ship or company of travelers), is expected to go supernova in the near future and may become bright enough to be seen in the daytime. The location of this star in the ship is actually in the poop deck.
I received some very
interesting insight on this through a telephone conversation with Steve Coons
of Seattle, Washington. Steve related
to me that the poop deck was where the captains of ancient and not so ancient
ships stood to direct the crew and oversee the voyage. From that vantagepoint, the captain could
see everything in front of him, including the direction the ship was heading. The captain of the fabled Argo was Jason
(the Graeco-Hebrew equivalent of Joshua or Jesus). It is Jesus who is the Captain of our salvation and our
ship. When this star goes supernova, it
will outshine millions of suns.
See the June 1999 issue of
Biblical Astronomy for more information on this star and the constellation
Argo.
