Richard Darn
richard@richarddarn.com
0775 367 0038
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- Jupiter at its best 26/08/2022 The only planet in the solar system bigger than Saturn is marvellous Jupiter. It reaches its so called "opposition" on 26 September and stands a mere 480 million miles or so from the Earth. Binoculars will show up to four of its mons, but with a telescope there's chance to glimpse the complexity of the…
- Orionid meteor shower 21/10/2022 The Orionids meteor shower reaches its peak overnight on 21/22 October. This is one of the few shooting star events not compromised by a bright moon this year so make the best of it. Although text books refer to it as an "average shower" I'd have to disagree. It's a little beauty with lovely shooting…
- Partial solar eclipse 25/10/2022 at 09:00 – 10:30 On 25 October there's a partial solar eclipse visible from the UK. This is when the Moon comes between the Earth and the Sun and seems to take a bite taken out of the latter. To observe this with a telescope you will need one equipped with a special solar filter to ensure your safety.…
- Uranus occulted by the moon 05/12/2022 Uranus is the second most distant planet in the solar system and at its nearest to Earth the gap between us is still over 1.6 billion miles. So despite being a large planet it is not visible to the naked eye, but it is a very easy binocular object if you know where to look.…
- Mars at its best - and dances with the Moon! 08/12/2022 On 8 December Mars makes its closest approach to the Earth. It does so every two years, but not all such events (or oppositions) are equal. This one is a corker. The red planet will swell in brightness in the preceding months and will be visible all night. It also grows in apparent size as…
- Geminids meteor shower 13/12/2022 To close out the year the Geminids meteor shower takes centre stage and it's by far the best of the lot Shooting stars are visible well before and after the peak overnight on 13/14 December which is good news as the climax is a bit affected by a big moon which rises at 8.30pm. We…
Dark Skies UK 
I got interest in Dark Skies out of a concern about excessive LED streelighting in my area, and sone evidence of effects on human health, including MY health. I also think darker skies would encourage people to stop living in fear of crime, which is still sometimes exaggerated, and of course, I love sharing all aspects of nature with new friends, including the stars. Here is a report from CNN you should read. https://edition.cnn.com/2019/05/16/health/blue-light-led-health-effects-bn-trnd/index.html
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