The year 2015 is packed full of amazing astronomical sights in the daytime and nighttime sky, from solar and lunar eclipses to dazzlingly bright planets.
At Space.com, we’ve looked at the night sky events in 2015 to make our annual list of the best astronomy sights of the year.
If you are a casual stargazer or die-hard amateur astronomer, there is likely something here that will make you look up:
March 20: Total Eclipse of the Sun (event already occurred)
Northerners will get quite the view as the dark shadow of the moon traces a curved path primarily over the North Atlantic and Arctic oceans. April 4: Total Eclipse of the Moon
This will be the shortest eclipse since Oct. 13, 1856. The entire disk of the moon will be in the Earth’s shadow for only 9 minutes, and will be best seen from the Pacific coast, Alaska and Hawaii.
August 12: Perseid Meteor Shower
This year the moon shouldn’t interfere with the best meteor shower of the year, which can viewers can see up to 90 meteors an hour.
Sept. 27-28: Lunar Eclipse
Central and eastern North America gets a treat with a total lunar eclipse visible from start to finish. The farther west you are the more likely the eclipse will begin before moonrise. Western and central Europe will see it before the moon sets in the morning on Sept. 28.
Oct. 26: Another brilliant double planet
Venus and Jupiter engage in their second close conjunction of 2015.
Nov. 5- 12: Taurid meteor shower peak
This annual display should involve “fireball meteors” this year. Watch for them from mid-October to mid-November, peaking from Nov. 5 through 12.
Dec. 13-14: Geminid Meteor Shower
The king of meteor showers will light up the sky Dec. 13 and 14, as the narrow crescent moon sets early, providing ideal viewing conditions. At peak, watchers can see up to 2 meteors per minute.
Source SPACE.com: All about our solar system, outer space and exploration.
Source: http://www.space.com/28847-best-night-sky-events-2015-calendar-infographic.html
