There aren’t many of these events left this year — catch Titan’s shadow on Saturn’s cloud tops this morning.
This chart shows the appearance of Saturn at 4:30 A.M. EDT on July 2, as Titan’s shadow has begun crossing from east to west. Note that while Mimas and its shadow are also transiting, they will likely be too dim to see. Credit: Alison Klesman (via TheSkyX)
Titan’s shadow transits the northern hemisphere of Saturn this morning beginning around 3:30 A.M. EDT. It’s definitely worth getting up early to catch this event if you can — we won’t get shadow transits much longer this year as the angle at which we’re viewing the Saturn system changes.
Saturn remains in the same spot in Pisces, visible to the naked eye as a 1st-magnitude light below the Circlet asterism. Center the ringed world in your telescope shortly before 3:30 A.M. EDT to make sure you’re ready for the moment Titan’s shadow appears at the eastern limb, north of the rings. Note that Titan itself is some 20” from the limb, casting its shadow on Saturn’s cloud tops from afar. It takes almost three hours for the shadow to reach midway across the planet, as the Sun is rising in the Midwest (and it’s already daylight along the East Coast). The shadow takes just over two and a half hours more to reach the northwestern limb, disappearing after day has broken across the continental U.S.
Follow the shadow as long as you can from your location, but take care to put away any optics at least several minutes before the Sun is due to rise from your location, which may differ from the time given here.
Sunrise: 5:36 A.M.
Sunset: 8:32 P.M.
Moonrise: 1:12 P.M.
Moonset: 12:21 A.M.
Moon Phase: Waxing crescent (49%)
*Times for sunrise, sunset, moonrise, and moonset are given in local time from 40° N 90° W. The Moon’s illumination is given at 12 P.M. local time from the same location.
For a look ahead at more upcoming sky events, check out our full Sky This Week column.
