Books, software for stargazers

What is so rare as a day in June ... and with the recent vagaries in the weather in this part of the world that is a very true statement.

When we start the morning with a comfortable 65 degrees, extend to a warmish 85 to 90 by 2 p.m. and end the evening with the clashing and bashing fireworks of lightning and thunder accompanied by high winds and large hail what else could be so rare.

The weather the last few days has not been conducive to any kind of astronomical observation. Clouds don't do well for observing and the weather forecast for the coming week doesn't hold much promise.

That is why the well-prepared astronomer will have some good books to read on cloudy nights or a good astronomy software program on his or her computer which will allow browsing of the night sky even if the clouds are covering up what is outside.

I have several books that I like to use on those cloudy nights. My favorite is "Nightwatch" by Terence Dickinson published by Firefly Books. Not only is there a wealth of information about observing the night sky the book contains very nice star charts for tracking down what you want to look at.

Another of my favorites is "365 Starry Nights" by Chet Raymo published by Simon and Schuster. It has information on events and things for each night of the year.

I could also recommend "Turn Left at Orion" by Guy Consolmagno and Dan Davis published by Cambridge University Press. The book contains information about 100 night sky objects for the small telescope and how to find them. One of the things I like most about this book is the illustrations look exactly like what you will see at the eyepiece. Small fuzzy smudges of light are just that, not grand, full-color photographs that only a large telescope and a camera will see.

Another book I would recommend is "Stargazing for Beginners." It is by John Mosley and published by Roxbury Park Books. It contains a monthly march through the heavens and a guide to the constellations.

These books can be found in your favorite bookstore or online bookstore.

I would also recommend a subscription to a monthly astronomy magazine. Two of the best are Astronomy and Sky and Telescope. Subscriptions can be obtained at astronomy.com or skyandtelescope.com.

As for software for the computer, there are a number of good possibilities. If you would like to look at a few of them, go online with your favorite Web browser to http:astro.nineplanets.org/astrosoftware.html There you will find numerous examples of astronomical software. Some is free and can be downloaded to your computer, others are available for purchase and can be either downloaded or sent in a CD format to be loaded onto our computer.

SKY WATCH:

If we get some cloudless nights, watch Mars as it moves eastward against the background stars each evening toward its June 30 meeting with Regulus, the brightest star in Leo, the Lion and sister planet Saturn. Reddish Mars can be found about 20 degrees above the western horizon in the early evening when the sky is good and dark. First quarter moon was on June 10. Be watching on June 17 when the almost-full moon will pass south of -- and very close to -- Antares, the brightest star in the constellations Scorpius. If we lived in the southern hemisphere we would be able to watch as the Moon covered up, or occulted, the star. Full Moon on June 18.

NEXT TIME:

More astronomical blathering.