‘A memorable night for skywatching’
According to Rousay astronomer, John Vetterlein, the night of March 1/2 was one of those very rare events during which the sky remained virtually clear from dusk to dawn.
“It was a memorable night,” said Mr Vetterlein, “And one in which we were treated to a full array of items from the bright planets Mercury, Venus, Jupiter and Mars (early to later evening), a modest aurora (the glow lasting through to the early hours), a close to half-moon (with the Great Wall lying close to the terminator), a relatively accessible comet (overhead by 4 am on the 2nd), some spectacular meteors rivalling Venus in brilliance and a glimpse of the red giant star Antares (alpha Scorpius) low down in the south between 4m and 6am and generally associated with the summer sky for folk in the south.”
Examples from the above will be found over the course of the next few days on the NORTHERN SKIES site at: http://www.spanglefish.com/