Thrilling experience of Saturn disappearing behind the Moon!

Yesterday it was very cloudy in the evening. So the comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS) could not be seen. Afterwards it also rained. But somehow the clouds gave way right at the time of the occultation! What a thrilling experience it was! It was wonderful to observe this event with my friend Gireesh Mandhale and through his large 8 inch telescope. We both had watched the Saturn- Moon occultation that had occurred on 23 January 2022 (22.5 years back)! And now we again observed this together. We had my 4.5 inch telescope and also a binocular. We had to wait till midnight and the conditions were very cloudy. But the reward was blissful! 

 

Photos and videos

Saturn to be occulted by Moon tonight on 14th October 2024!

Comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS) easily visible in the evening

 
✪ Wonderful opportunity to witness Saturn- Moon occultation
✪ Saturn suddenly will disappear behind dark part of the Moon and will reappear from behind its lighted part!
✪ In Maharashtra, the timing is around 11.45 pm to 1.40 am
✪ Comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS) is visible in evening near Venus
✪ Need dark skies and clear view of West of the comet
✪ Comet can be photographed with smartphone pro mode
✪ Both are wonderful events to experience
✪ Season of sky watching started!

Hello all.

Greetings. Tonight we have opportunity to witness and enjoy two sky wonders. The first is the Comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS). This comet has now become visible in the Evening sky. For next few days, from around 14th October to 19th October, it will appear in the Western sky near the brightest planet Venus. Best chance of observing this comet is coming 10 days. In ideal sky watching conditions- away from city lights, it will be visible to the naked eye as a small smudge. With binoculars and small telescope, it will be more clear. You can track its daily sky position on astronomical app such as stellerium. It can be photographed also by using a smartphone. For this, you need to use the pro- mode. Set the shutter speed to 4 seconds or 8 seconds. Set the ISO to 800 or 1600, depending on how dark sky you have. Set the focus to infinity. Have some support for mobile and keep it tilt towards west. Then set the timer to 5 seconds. You need to keep the mobile steady for some time (timer seconds + shutter speed duration). Then you can photograph it. After some attempts this comet can be photographed.

सायकलीवर शिवथरघळ- एक अविस्मरणीय अनुभूती

✪ सह्याद्री पर्वतरांग व कोकणाचा संगम असलेली शिवथरघळ!
✪ "केल्याने होत आहे रे, आधी केलेची पाहिजे!"
✪ सोलो सायकलिंग नव्हे निसर्गाच्या सान्निध्यातली तीर्थयात्रा!
✪ शेकडो धबधबे, असंख्य डोंगर आणि अजस्र वरांधा घाट
✪ अजस्र धबधबा- जीवंत प्रवाहाचं रमणीय प्रतिक
✪ आयुष्यभराचा अनुभव देणारी १२४ किमीची थरारक सायकल राईड
✪ अनेक किल्ल्यांच्या परिसरातलं निसर्गाचं विराट रूप दर्शन
✪ परतीच्या थरारक प्रवासाची उत्सुकता

सर्वांना नमस्कार. २८ सप्टेंबर २०२४! कधी कधी आपल्याला अशी बुद्धी झाली ह्याचा आपल्यालाच विलक्षण आनंद होतो! खूप दिवसांपासून शिवथरघळ सायकल राईड करायची इच्छा होती. पावसाळ्यात बराच काळ वरांधा घाट बंद असतो. शिवाय ह्या भागामध्ये पाऊसही फार असतो. त्यामुळे राहून जात होतं. पण मग ठरलं. तरी निघतानासुद्धा पावसाची शक्यता होती. पण आतल्या आवाजाचं ऐकून निघालो! आणि नंतर स्वत:च्या नशीबाला असंख्य धन्यवाद देत राहिलो! पुणे ते शिवथरघळ अंतर साधारण १२० किमी! भोरच्या पुढे घाटाचा रस्ता व त्यामुळे साधारण ७-८ तास लागतील. अगदी कसोटी क्रिकेटमधल्या बॅटिंगसारखी ही खेळी असेल! सकाळी पावसाचा अंदाज बघण्यात वेळ गेल्यामुळे निघायला पावणेसात वाजले!