Incredible Night Sky Events - 2021

Year 2021 will witness some incredible night sky events, which will be a treat to watch for enthusiasts. Here are some of those events.

September-December 2021, The Venus show..

Venus will sink out of sight behind the sun in March and April, but, it will Re-appear during sunset. gradually venus will get brighter, though it will still set before the sky becomes dark.

In September and November, Venus will remain in view until twilight ends. Venus will be worth watching in early December as it will appear more brighter than usual, before finally plunging back toward the sun in early 2022.

November 19, A near-total eclipse of the moon..
The lunar eclipse on November 19 will be special in few ways. Almost 97% of the moon will immerse in darkness. As some of the sunlight striking the Earth is diffused and scattered by our atmosphere, the Earth's shadow is not completely dark. Some of this light reaches the moon to give it a faint, coppery glow. Combined with the remaining uneclipsed yellow sliver, It will create a striking beautiful sight for the naked eye, or viewing with binoculars, or a small telescope.

The eclipse will be visible in United Kingdom, parts of northern Europe, North America, Eastern Asia and Australia.

December 4, The Total eclipse of the sun.
The Year 2021, will end with the Solar eclipse, which will be visible only from Antarctica.

The Eclipse fans won't be able to catch the first hand glimpse of that solar eclipse but another associated small partial eclipse can be glimpsed from parts of South Africa, Namibia, Botswana, as well as Tasmania, southern sections of New South Wales, Victoria in Australia, a small slice of southernmost New Zealand and adjacent Stewart Island.

December 13-14, The Geminids meteor shower..
On year end, we will also see some early fireworks and the reason is the Geminids meteor shower. We will be able to observer it during the pre-dawn hours of December 14. Initially we will be able to see, 60 to 120 slow paced meteors per hour under dark sky conditions. The Geminids are among the very few showers that perform well even before midnight, but, this year the light of a moon, will hamper pre-midnight observations.

In fact, the moon will continue to be a factor until it finally sets. But fortunately, that is probably the very best time to watch the meteor shower. We might also observe bright meteors, and even occasional, spectacular fireballs, during the shower. Luckily, the Geminids meteor shower will be observed almost, all over the world.