Jupiter, Aug 22nd

by Dave North

Rich:

I'm kicking myself a little for not making a sketch of Jupiter.

You're not the only one! The SEB was a bit bland, but the action in the NEB is tremendous this year! Incredible views.

We weren't sure if the grayish thing was a barge or a bar, and sat around scratching our heads about terminology. There were, though, some very nice festoons and tendrils, and the equatorial belt itself was somewhat in evidence.

Overall, a very nice night.

We started on the moon, where I lingered for quite some time, especially hunting out the secondaries and domes around Copernicus.

The moon finally set behind Fremont Peak, and we were on a nearby rise from which it was possible to watch moonset through binos, then walk 20 feet and watch it again. I watched three of them before turning my binos over to someone else who had, in turn, given theirs over to the "public" and missed it... the coolest part was probably that either Promontory Laplace or "the other end" of Sinus Iridum (hanging off into the dark, just barely) seemed to go last with a little glint, probably between two rocks on Fremont Peak.

It was warm, still, and the seeing was not great but not bad.

Dave North
Also From Fremont Peak
San Juan Bautista, CA USA