Nightfly Astrophotography

October provides New Englanders with warm sunny days and cool clear nights. The period of late summer and early fall could easily be called “stargazing season” since this time of year provides the highest percentage of clear skies. The cold crisp air seams to recall our fondness for the night sky and lures us out our homes. Take time for your eyes to adjust to the darkness, at least 20 minutes. This will allow you to see and appreciate the night sky to the fullest. If a light is necessary for reading star charts, use a red flashlight. A regular flashlight can be covered with red cellophane if a red lens is not available. Red light diminishes night vision the least. The bright Summer Triangle is still nearly overhead come nightfall, but Sagittarius is sinking low in the southwest. Arcturus is sinking low in the northwest. The big dipper is just above the trees looking north. The Milky Way’s brightest region lies high overhead in Cygnus, the Swan. Cygnus is home to the largest and brightest star cloud in the northern skies. It is visible south of its brightest star, Deneb. The remainder of October’s Milky Way traverses through Cepheus, Cassiopeia, and Perseus. October’s Orionid meteor shower, which peaks on the early morning hours of the 21st, is not the most prominent shower, but can contain fireballs as well as faint meteors. This year the Moon will diminish the usual count of about 25 meteors per hour. Jupiter has a close encounter with the Moon on the evenings of the 6th and 7th. Both will be low on the south-west horizon and will offer a spectacular scene with the fall landscape just after dusk.