NEW MOON REPORT
Nehemia Gordon from Jerusalem, Israel compiled the
following New Moon Report for April 2004 and the beginning of the Second Month
of the astronomically correct Hebrew Calendar.
“On Tuesday April 20, 2004, observers across Israel looked for the New Moon but did not sight it. The moon had borderline astronomical conditions from Israel, which means it was not certain that it would have been visible even under ideal weather conditions. Barring further observation reports, New Moon Day will be observed tomorrow night, Wednesday April 21, 2004.”
According to Roy Hoffman of the New Moon Society,
because of cloud conditions, the moon was not observable on April 20 from
Jerusalem or nearby vicinity even if there was a thin crescent. The next New Moon is expected to be visible
from Jerusalem around sunset on May 20, 2004, which will most likely be the
beginning of the third month on the Hebrew Calendar.
THE THREE AMIGOS RIDE AGAIN
William
Bradfield from Yankalilla, South Australia, discovered a surprise new, bright
comet on March 23, 2004. Comet Bradfield
(C/2004 F4) became visible to the naked eye around April 14 for observers in
the Southern Hemisphere. The comet was
around a magnitude 3.0 at its brightest.
The comet was observable in the Northern Hemisphere
in the lower latitudes and in the southern United States on April 21/22. It was still visible to the naked eye
(magnitude 4.8) on April 27 from the Northern Hemisphere but is now fading in
brightness. It will most likely be out
of naked eye visibility within a week.
According to reports, this comet is a magnificent
object to see through binoculars. For
the moment it is stealing the show from Comet LINEAR T7, which is now gaining
in brightness and in the same neighborhood in the heavens as is Comet
Bradfield. But both are headed in
opposite directions.
Comet Bradfield on April 22, 2004
Chart 252 below shows the path (red line) of Comet
Bradfield from March 23 (the date of discovery) to May 5, 2004. The comet is moving upward through Pisces to
Andromeda. It did a hook around the
point where the bands of Pisces are attached to Cetus (the beast from the sea).
Chart 352 - Path of Comet Bradfield from
March 23 to May 5 2004
The Biblical theme of the sign Pisces (which
includes its decan constellation Andromeda) is the Nation of Israel in bondage
and captivity. Celestial events
occurring in this sign can signify Israel going into bondage and captivity, or,
coming out of bondage and captivity. The interpretation depends on the context
of surrounding celestial signs and events.
I believe here, we have a magnificent portrayal of Israel (both houses)
coming out of bondage.
Chart 253 below shows the positions of both Comet Bradfield
and Comet LINEAR T7 in Pisces on April 21, 2004. Both comets were visible to the naked eye on
that date. Comet Bradfield is in the
fish that represents the House of Ephraim and Comet LINEAR T7 is in the fish
that represents the House of Judah (see the article Two Houses, Two Fish
in the May 2002 issue of Biblical Astronomy).
Chart 353 - Comets Bradfield and LINEAR (C/2002 T7) on April 21,
2004
It is also interesting that at that time, as well as
now (April 27) that the two brightest planets, Zedek (Jupiter) and Nogah
(Venus) are in the constellations Arieh (Leo) and Shur (Taurus)
respectively. Arieh represents
the Lion of the House of Judah, and Shur representing the House of
Ephraim. These are big signs in respect
to the Two Houses. It may prove to be a
very exciting Shavuot (Pentecost) this year (May 30). Does Yahoshua (Jesus) have something special
in store for his sheepfolds at this time?
We will soon know.
Comet LINEAR (C/2002 T7) on
April 17, 2004
The two comets that highlight the month of May are
Comet LINEAR (C/2002 T7) pictured above and Comet NEAT (C/2001 Q4) pictured
below. Both comets are now (April 27) at
magnitude 4.0 – visible to the naked eye and described as stunning through binoculars. Both comets have yet to reach peak magnitude
and should grow much brighter from early to mid May.
Comet NEAT (C/2001 Q4) on April 26, 2004
Chart 354 below shows the path (red line) of Comet NEAT
from May 7 to June 7 2004. The Comet
will most likely reach its peak brightness on May 7, when it reaches its
closest approach to Earth at about 30 million miles on May 5/6. It is possible that it could reach magnitude
1.0 in brightness at that time, though it seems more likely that it will be
between magnitude 2.0 and 3.0.
Chart 354 - Path of Comet NEAT (C/2001
Q4 – Red Line Above) from May 7 to June 7, 2004
The below chart shows Comet NEAT above the
west-southwest horizon as seen from Jerusalem in the early evening of May 7,
2004. The planets Venus, Mars and Saturn
are lined up east of the comet.
Comet NEAT (C/2001 Q4) on May 7, 2004
Comet LINEAR may reach the same brightness when it
is at its closest approach to Earth on May 19 at about 25 million miles. However, the comet will only be visible in
the Southern Hemisphere at that time.
(Both dates for the closest approaches of the above comets differ
slightly from previous dates given in the January/February issue of Biblical
Astronomy due to updated data on their orbital elements).
Comet LINEAR should return to a Northern Hemisphere
visible object around May 25. Chart
355 below shows the position of Comet LINEAR (C/2002 T7) in the
early evening sky above the west-southwest horizon on May 25, 2004 as seen from
Jerusalem. The comet is about 8 degrees
above the horizon in the evening twilight.
Chart 355 - Comet LINEAR C/2002 T7 on
May 25, 2004
It is quite rare for three comets of such magnitude
to come to their closest approach to the earth within a one-month period. It appears that the draught is over. For more information and charts on Comets
NEAT Q4 and LINEAR T7 see the January/February 2004 and March/April 2004 issues
of Biblical Astronomy.
TOTAL LUNAR ECLIPSE
There will be a Total Lunar Eclipse that will be
visible in its entirety from Israel on May 4, 2004. This eclipse will not be visible from the
United States. The moon will rise during
its totality for Scotland, Ireland, and the eastern part of South America. The moon should appear a coppery color as
seen from Israel.
Chart 356 below shows the position of the moon in Libra
(the scales or the sacred alter) during the peak of the eclipse
as seen from Jerusalem around 11:30 pm.
The moon is in conjunction with the star Zuben al Genubi (the
price which is deficient) at that time.
The red line on the chart is the ecliptic, which is the path that the
sun travels through the Twelve Signs. As
seen from Jerusalem, the moon will start to enter the umbral (dark) shadow of
the earth around 9:55 pm and will exit the umbral shadow around 1:10 am. The moon will be seen totally eclipsed from
Jerusalem from about 10:55 p.m. to 12:07 a.m..
Chart 356 - Total Lunar Eclipse in Libra
on May 4, 2004
VENUS AT ITS BRIGHTEST
On May 2, 2004 the planet Nogah (Venus,
the bright and morning star) will be at its brightest magnitude at a –4.5
during its current evening apparition.
On May 5, 2004 Nogah will reach its
northernmost point in Earth’s sky. It
will be farther north than at any time in the 20th century, and will
set really late (for Venus) in the northwest, near midnight.
Nogah has been burning brightly over the western
horizon for over two months now and continues to dazzle us as it nears its
appointment to transit the sun on June 8.
There will be more on this in the June issue of Biblical Astronomy.
MARS AND SATURN IN CONJUNCTION
Adom (Mars) and Sabbatei (Saturn) will come into
conjunction (same celestial longitude) on May 24, 2004 in the constellation Thaumim
(Gemini). Chart 357 below shows
the positions of the two planets in Gemini as seen from Jerusalem when
the conjunction occurs.
Chart 357 - Mars and Saturn in
Conjunction in Gemini on May 24, 2004
The conjunction takes place in the right figure of
Gemini. In its portrayal of the two-fold
nature of Messiah, first coming to suffer for his people and then returning as
King of Kings and Lord of Lords, it is the right figure that represents the
returning King who will tread His enemies under his feet.
Adom (Mars), depending on the context, can either represent
Michael the warrior angel who fights against the Devil (Satan), or blood or war
(the one who breaks or wounds the enemy).
Saturn, in this context, represents Satan.
The main theme of the sign Gemini is Messiah’s
reign as Prince of Peace. One of the
decan constellations that belong to the sign Gemini is Canis
Major. As mentioned in previous
writings, Canis Major was an eagle or a hawk in the more ancient
planispheres, not a dog, and represents the coming glorious Prince of
Princes as signified by its brightest star Sirius (the Prince,
Sar as in Isaiah 9:6). Sirius is
the brightest star (other than the planets) in the heavens as seen from
Earth. It was at one time called Naz-Seir,
the Sent Prince who was to come and destroy the evil one. It was written of Messiah that he should
be called a Naz-Seir-ene (see the article He Shall be Called a Nazarene
in the January/February 2004 issue of Biblical Astronomy).
This conjunction of Mars and Saturn is of particular
interest since it occurs on the same evening that Comet LINEAR T7 crosses the
path of Comet Neat Q4 in Canis Major near the star Sirius. Again, see the Jan/Feb 2004 issue of BA for
further info and charts on the two comets.
The timing of these two events in the same sign (Gemini) is just
impeccable. There is definitely no
shortage of signs in the month of May 2004.
Taking all of these events into consideration and the timing involved,
these are not just signs, these are GREAT SIGNS in the heavens. We shall see what we shall see.
SUBSCRIPTION RENEWEL TIME
Where did the year go? It is that time again to renew subscriptions
for the next subscription year which is from July 2004 to June 2005. As you have most likely noticed, this issue
is printed with some color in it and appears a bit clearer than normal. Over the past 8 years, printing costs have
quadrupled at copy centers. I recently invested in a business color printer
that prints on two sides of paper. For a
little extra cost than black and white copies would cost me, I can now print
the newsletters with much clearer definition and in color in the pictures and
the charts
Over the last 8 years I only increased the price for
the newsletter subscription once, and that was 6 years ago. The postage for mailing the newsletters has
increased during that time also. Due to
increased quality and costs, I have decided to raise the subscription price
$5.00. A one-year subscription to Biblical
Astronomy will be increased starting July 1, 2004 to $25.00 per
year domestic, $30.00 Canada and $35.00 overseas. (For those who have already subscribed for
the year or for those who subscribe before July 1, 2004, the
subscription cost is $20.00 domestic, $25.00 Canada, and $30.00 overseas).
There is still no fee for those who get the
newsletter on the website but all donations to Biblical Astronomy are most
welcomed and much appreciated. I am
thankful to Yahuweh Elohim for this ministry that He has entrusted me with through
His beloved Son, and I look forward to serving you another year, Yahuweh
willing.
The Biblical Astronomy Video Set is now ready to be
ordered if you wish to do so. There are
three videos in the set with over 7 hours of comprehensive teaching. The cost of the video series is $65.00, which
includes shipping fees. If you desire to
order this series, send a check or money order for $65.00 to:
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Yahuweh bless you at least as much as He has blessed me in the knowledge of His salvation through His most beloved Son. In His Son’s new name.