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Astronomical events to watch out for in 2023

Beautiful meteor showers, full moons and lunar eclipses will light up the sky in 2023.

The year is sure to be a delight for skywatchers with many astronomical events on the calendar.

According to NASA, a comet discovered in March 2022 will make its closest approach to the sun on January 12. The comet, detected by astronomers using the Zwicky Transient Facility at the Observatory Palomar in San Diego County, California, is named C/2022 E3 (ZTF) and will make its closest pass of Earth on February 2.

According to NASA, the comet is visible through binoculars in the morning sky to skywatchers in the Northern Hemisphere through most of January and those in the Southern Hemisphere in early February.

On any given day, there is always the possibility that the International Space Station is flying overhead. And if you want to know which planets are visible in the morning or evening sky, check out The Old Farmer’s Almanac calculator.

Here are the rest of the top sky events for 2023, so you can have binoculars and telescopes ready.

Full moon and super moon

Most years there are 12 full moons — one in a month. But in 2023, there will be 13 full moons, of which 2 will take place in August.

According to NASA, the second full moon in a month is called a blue moon, like the phrase “onence in blue moon”. Normally, a full moon occurs every 29 days, while most months in our calendar last 30 or 31 days, so the months and phases of the moon don’t always align. This results in a blue moon every 2.5 years.

According to EarthSky, two full moons in August can also be considered supermoons. Definitions of a supermoon can vary, but the term generally denotes a full moon that is brighter and closer to Earth than usual and therefore appears larger in the night sky.

Some astronomers say the phenomenon occurs when the moon is within 90% of perigee – its closest point to Earth in orbit. By that definition, the July full moon would also be considered a supermoon event, according to EarthSky.

Here is a list of full moons for 2023, according to Old Farmer’s Almanac:

  • January 6: Wolf Moon
  • February 5: Snow moon
  • March 7: Worm moon
  • April 6: Pink moon
  • May 5: Full moon
  • June 3: Strawberry Moon
  • July 3: Moon Buck
  • August 1: Moon sturgeon
  • August 30: Blue Moon
  • September 29: Harvest Moon
  • October 28: Hunter’s Moon
  • November 27: Beaver Moon
  • December 26: Cold Moon

While these are common names associated with the monthly full moon, each carries its own meaning to Native American tribes (with many also known by different names) .

Lunar eclipse and solar eclipse

There will be two solar and two lunar eclipses in 2023.

A total solar eclipse will occur on April 20, visible to people in Australia, Southeast Asia and Antarctica. This type of event occurs when the moon moves between the sun and the Earth, obscuring the sun.

And for some skywatchers in Indonesia, parts of Australia and Papua New Guinea, it will indeed be a hybrid eclipse. According to NASA, the curvature of the Earth’s surface can cause some lunar eclipses to shift between total and annular as the moon’s shadow moves around the globe.

Like a total solar eclipse, the moon passes between the sun and Earth during an annular eclipse — but it happens when the moon is at or near the point farthest from Earth, according to NASA. This makes the moon appear smaller than the sun, so it doesn’t completely obscure our star and create a bright ring around the moon.

An annular solar eclipse that sweeps across the Western Hemisphere will occur on October 14 and will be visible across North, Central, and South America.

Be sure to wear suitable eclipse glasses to view the eclipse safely, as sunlight can be harmful to your eyes.

Meanwhile, a lunar eclipse can only occur during a full moon when the sun, Earth, and moon are aligned and the moon enters the Earth’s shadow. When this happens, the Earth will cast two shadows on the moon during a lunar eclipse. The outer shadow is called the semi-dark region; Full darkness is darkness.

As the full moon moves into the Earth’s shadow, it will darken but will not disappear. Instead, sunlight penetrating Earth’s atmosphere dramatically illuminates the moon, turning it red – which is why the event is often referred to as a “blood moon”.

Depending on the weather conditions in your area, it may be brick red or rusty. This happens because blue light undergoes stronger atmospheric scattering, so red light will be the most prominent color when sunlight passes through our atmosphere and hits the moon.

A penumbral lunar eclipse will occur on May 5 for those in Africa, Asia and Australia. This less dramatic version of a lunar eclipse occurs when the moon moves through the penumbra, or faint outer part of Earth’s shadow.

A partial lunar eclipse on October 28 will be visible to people in Europe, Asia, Australia, Africa, parts of North America, and much of South America. A partial eclipse occurs when the sun, Earth, and moon are not perfectly aligned, so only part of the moon goes into darkness.

Meteor shower

According to the American Meteorological Association, the new year begins with the Quadrantid meteor shower, which is expected to peak in the overnight hours from January 3 to 4 for those in North America.

This is the first of 12 year-round meteor showers, although the next one, the Lyrid meteor shower, doesn’t peak until April.

Here are the peak dates for other showers to watch in 2023:

  • Lyrids: April 22-23
  • Eta Aquariids: May 5-6
  • Aquariids in the Southern Delta: July 30-31
  • Alpha Capricorn: July 30-31
  • Perseids: August 12-13
  • Orionids: October 20-21
  • Male Taurus: November 4-5
  • North Taurus: 11-12 November
  • Leonids: November 17-18
  • Geminids: December 13-14
  • Ursids: December 21-22

If you live in an urban area, you may want to drive to a place that doesn’t have a lot of city lights. If you can find an area that is not affected by light pollution, you can see meteors every few minutes from late evening until dawn.

Find an open area with a wide view of the sky. Make sure you have a chair or blanket so you can look straight up. And give your eyes about 20 to 30 minutes to adjust to the dark — without looking at your phone! — so meteors will be easier to spot.



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