very bright object (supernova?) in southwestern sky tonight

Hello all,

Living in central San Diego, the night sky here is
usually too bright for me to indulge my interest
in astronomy.

But tonight, while taking out the trash, i immediately
noticed a *really* bright twinkling object in the sky.
The direction was pretty much directly southwest, at
11:50pm PDT. Its altitude was about 35 degrees above
the horizon.

Unfortunately i no longer have a telescope,so
as soon as i returned from the dumpster, i grabbed
my binoculars and took a look. I thought it might
be possible that it was a satellite or some other
close-to-earth object.

Obviously the binoculars don't give much magnification,
and the biggest drawback is that there's no way to
keep the view steady. But i could clearly see that
it was not an object with any kind of shape, it's
just an extremely bright pinpoint of light, mostly
pure white but with rapid alternations of some blue,
yellow, and red.

So my guess is that it's a nova or supernova.

I tried to find some news about it on Google, but
didn't get anything that seemed relevant. According
to Sky View Cafe (http://www.skyviewcafe.com/),
Jupiter and Saturn are both in the general area
where i saw this, but this object is far brighter
than Jupiter -- in fact it's much brighter than the
brightest that i've ever seen Venus.

I'd love to find out more about this if anyone else
can help.

-monz

I did notice this and thought it was Venus which according to my ephemeris it is the right location.
about 30 degrees behind the sun.

Jupiter and Saturn are quite far apart at the moment. about 120 degrees away.

monz wrote:
> Hello all,
>
> Living in central San Diego, the night sky here is
> usually too bright for me to indulge my interest
> in astronomy.
>
> But tonight, while taking out the trash, i immediately
> noticed a *really* bright twinkling object in the sky.
> The direction was pretty much directly southwest, at
> 11:50pm PDT. Its altitude was about 35 degrees above
> the horizon.
>
> Unfortunately i no longer have a telescope,so
> as soon as i returned from the dumpster, i grabbed
> my binoculars and took a look. I thought it might > be possible that it was a satellite or some other > close-to-earth object.
>
> Obviously the binoculars don't give much magnification,
> and the biggest drawback is that there's no way to
> keep the view steady. But i could clearly see that
> it was not an object with any kind of shape, it's
> just an extremely bright pinpoint of light, mostly
> pure white but with rapid alternations of some blue,
> yellow, and red.
>
> So my guess is that it's a nova or supernova.
>
> I tried to find some news about it on Google, but
> didn't get anything that seemed relevant. According
> to Sky View Cafe (http://www.skyviewcafe.com/),
> Jupiter and Saturn are both in the general area
> where i saw this, but this object is far brighter
> than Jupiter -- in fact it's much brighter than the
> brightest that i've ever seen Venus.
>
> I'd love to find out more about this if anyone else
> can help.
>
>
> -monz
>
>
>
> >
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Meta Tuning meta-info:
>
> To unsubscribe, send an email to:
> metatuning-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
>
> Web page is http://groups.yahoo.com/groups/metatuning/
>
> To post to the list, send to
> metatuning@yahoogroups.com
>
> You don't have to be a member to post.
>
> > Yahoo! Groups Links
>
>
>
>
>
> -- Kraig Grady
North American Embassy of Anaphoria Island <http://anaphoria.com/index.html>
The Wandering Medicine Show
KXLU <http://www.kxlu.com/main/index.asp> 88.9 FM Wed 8-9 pm Los Angeles

Hi Kraig,

No, it definitely wasn't Venus, not at midnight.
Venus is closer to the sun than the earth, so to us
it only appears in the sky either right before sunrise
or right after sunset, and the only time it can be visible
that high in the sky is either the last moments of darkness
before sunrise or the earliest moments of darkness after
sunset. The sunset in San Diego last night was around 7:00pm.
By midnight Venus should have been well below the horizon.

(If anyone knows better and what i said is in error,
please correct me.)

Anyway, with all the light pollution in my neighborhood
it looked way too bright to be Venus.

-monz

--- In metatuning@yahoogroups.com, Kraig Grady <kraiggrady@...> wrote:
>
> I did notice this and thought it was Venus which according to my
> ephemeris it is the right location.
> about 30 degrees behind the sun.
>
> Jupiter and Saturn are quite far apart at the moment.
> about 120 degrees away.
>
> monz wrote:
> > Hello all,
> >
> > Living in central San Diego, the night sky here is
> > usually too bright for me to indulge my interest
> > in astronomy.
> >
> > But tonight, while taking out the trash, i immediately
> > noticed a *really* bright twinkling object in the sky.
> > The direction was pretty much directly southwest, at
> > 11:50pm PDT. Its altitude was about 35 degrees above
> > the horizon.
> >
> > Unfortunately i no longer have a telescope,so
> > as soon as i returned from the dumpster, i grabbed
> > my binoculars and took a look. I thought it might
> > be possible that it was a satellite or some other
> > close-to-earth object.
> >
> > Obviously the binoculars don't give much magnification,
> > and the biggest drawback is that there's no way to
> > keep the view steady. But i could clearly see that
> > it was not an object with any kind of shape, it's
> > just an extremely bright pinpoint of light, mostly
> > pure white but with rapid alternations of some blue,
> > yellow, and red.
> >
> > So my guess is that it's a nova or supernova.
> >
> > I tried to find some news about it on Google, but
> > didn't get anything that seemed relevant. According
> > to Sky View Cafe (http://www.skyviewcafe.com/),
> > Jupiter and Saturn are both in the general area
> > where i saw this, but this object is far brighter
> > than Jupiter -- in fact it's much brighter than the
> > brightest that i've ever seen Venus.
> >
> > I'd love to find out more about this if anyone else
> > can help.
> >
> >
> > -monz
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > Meta Tuning meta-info:
> >
> > To unsubscribe, send an email to:
> > metatuning-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
> >
> > Web page is http://groups.yahoo.com/groups/metatuning/
> >
> > To post to the list, send to
> > metatuning@yahoogroups.com
> >
> > You don't have to be a member to post.
> >
> >
> > Yahoo! Groups Links
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
>
> --
> Kraig Grady
> North American Embassy of Anaphoria Island
<http://anaphoria.com/index.html>
> The Wandering Medicine Show
> KXLU <http://www.kxlu.com/main/index.asp> 88.9 FM Wed 8-9 pm Los Angeles
>

a midnight , well you didn't say that.
Possibly Sirius

monz wrote:
> Hi Kraig,
>
> No, it definitely wasn't Venus, not at midnight.
> Venus is closer to the sun than the earth, so to us
> it only appears in the sky either right before sunrise
> or right after sunset, and the only time it can be visible
> that high in the sky is either the last moments of darkness
> before sunrise or the earliest moments of darkness after
> sunset. The sunset in San Diego last night was around 7:00pm.
> By midnight Venus should have been well below the horizon.
>
> (If anyone knows better and what i said is in error,
> please correct me.)
>
> Anyway, with all the light pollution in my neighborhood
> it looked way too bright to be Venus.
>
> -monz
>
>
> --- In metatuning@yahoogroups.com, Kraig Grady <kraiggrady@...> wrote:
> >> I did notice this and thought it was Venus which according to my >> ephemeris it is the right location.
>> about 30 degrees behind the sun.
>>
>> Jupiter and Saturn are quite far apart at the moment. >> about 120 degrees away.
>>
>> monz wrote:
>> >>> Hello all,
>>>
>>> Living in central San Diego, the night sky here is
>>> usually too bright for me to indulge my interest
>>> in astronomy.
>>>
>>> But tonight, while taking out the trash, i immediately
>>> noticed a *really* bright twinkling object in the sky.
>>> The direction was pretty much directly southwest, at
>>> 11:50pm PDT. Its altitude was about 35 degrees above
>>> the horizon.
>>>
>>> Unfortunately i no longer have a telescope,so
>>> as soon as i returned from the dumpster, i grabbed
>>> my binoculars and took a look. I thought it might >>> be possible that it was a satellite or some other >>> close-to-earth object.
>>>
>>> Obviously the binoculars don't give much magnification,
>>> and the biggest drawback is that there's no way to
>>> keep the view steady. But i could clearly see that
>>> it was not an object with any kind of shape, it's
>>> just an extremely bright pinpoint of light, mostly
>>> pure white but with rapid alternations of some blue,
>>> yellow, and red.
>>>
>>> So my guess is that it's a nova or supernova.
>>>
>>> I tried to find some news about it on Google, but
>>> didn't get anything that seemed relevant. According
>>> to Sky View Cafe (http://www.skyviewcafe.com/),
>>> Jupiter and Saturn are both in the general area
>>> where i saw this, but this object is far brighter
>>> than Jupiter -- in fact it's much brighter than the
>>> brightest that i've ever seen Venus.
>>>
>>> I'd love to find out more about this if anyone else
>>> can help.
>>>
>>>
>>> -monz
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> >>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Meta Tuning meta-info:
>>>
>>> To unsubscribe, send an email to:
>>> metatuning-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
>>>
>>> Web page is http://groups.yahoo.com/groups/metatuning/
>>>
>>> To post to the list, send to
>>> metatuning@yahoogroups.com
>>>
>>> You don't have to be a member to post.
>>>
>>> >>> Yahoo! Groups Links
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> >>> >> -- >> Kraig Grady
>> North American Embassy of Anaphoria Island
>> > <http://anaphoria.com/index.html>
> >> The Wandering Medicine Show
>> KXLU <http://www.kxlu.com/main/index.asp> 88.9 FM Wed 8-9 pm Los Angeles
>>
>> >
>
>
>
>
> Meta Tuning meta-info:
>
> To unsubscribe, send an email to:
> metatuning-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
>
> Web page is http://groups.yahoo.com/groups/metatuning/
>
> To post to the list, send to
> metatuning@yahoogroups.com
>
> You don't have to be a member to post.
>
> > Yahoo! Groups Links
>
>
>
>
>
> -- Kraig Grady
North American Embassy of Anaphoria Island <http://anaphoria.com/index.html>
The Wandering Medicine Show
KXLU <http://www.kxlu.com/main/index.asp> 88.9 FM Wed 8-9 pm Los Angeles

oh you did say that!

Kraig Grady wrote:
> a midnight , well you didn't say that.
> Possibly Sirius
>
> monz wrote:
> >> Hi Kraig,
>>
>> No, it definitely wasn't Venus, not at midnight.
>> Venus is closer to the sun than the earth, so to us
>> it only appears in the sky either right before sunrise
>> or right after sunset, and the only time it can be visible
>> that high in the sky is either the last moments of darkness
>> before sunrise or the earliest moments of darkness after
>> sunset. The sunset in San Diego last night was around 7:00pm.
>> By midnight Venus should have been well below the horizon.
>>
>> (If anyone knows better and what i said is in error,
>> please correct me.)
>>
>> Anyway, with all the light pollution in my neighborhood
>> it looked way too bright to be Venus.
>>
>> -monz
>>
>>
>> --- In metatuning@yahoogroups.com, Kraig Grady <kraiggrady@...> wrote:
>> >> >>> I did notice this and thought it was Venus which according to my >>> ephemeris it is the right location.
>>> about 30 degrees behind the sun.
>>>
>>> Jupiter and Saturn are quite far apart at the moment. >>> about 120 degrees away.
>>>
>>> monz wrote:
>>> >>> >>>> Hello all,
>>>>
>>>> Living in central San Diego, the night sky here is
>>>> usually too bright for me to indulge my interest
>>>> in astronomy.
>>>>
>>>> But tonight, while taking out the trash, i immediately
>>>> noticed a *really* bright twinkling object in the sky.
>>>> The direction was pretty much directly southwest, at
>>>> 11:50pm PDT. Its altitude was about 35 degrees above
>>>> the horizon.
>>>>
>>>> Unfortunately i no longer have a telescope,so
>>>> as soon as i returned from the dumpster, i grabbed
>>>> my binoculars and took a look. I thought it might >>>> be possible that it was a satellite or some other >>>> close-to-earth object.
>>>>
>>>> Obviously the binoculars don't give much magnification,
>>>> and the biggest drawback is that there's no way to
>>>> keep the view steady. But i could clearly see that
>>>> it was not an object with any kind of shape, it's
>>>> just an extremely bright pinpoint of light, mostly
>>>> pure white but with rapid alternations of some blue,
>>>> yellow, and red.
>>>>
>>>> So my guess is that it's a nova or supernova.
>>>>
>>>> I tried to find some news about it on Google, but
>>>> didn't get anything that seemed relevant. According
>>>> to Sky View Cafe (http://www.skyviewcafe.com/),
>>>> Jupiter and Saturn are both in the general area
>>>> where i saw this, but this object is far brighter
>>>> than Jupiter -- in fact it's much brighter than the
>>>> brightest that i've ever seen Venus.
>>>>
>>>> I'd love to find out more about this if anyone else
>>>> can help.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> -monz
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> >>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Meta Tuning meta-info:
>>>>
>>>> To unsubscribe, send an email to:
>>>> metatuning-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
>>>>
>>>> Web page is http://groups.yahoo.com/groups/metatuning/
>>>>
>>>> To post to the list, send to
>>>> metatuning@yahoogroups.com
>>>>
>>>> You don't have to be a member to post.
>>>>
>>>> >>>> Yahoo! Groups Links
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> >>>> >>>> >>> -- >>> Kraig Grady
>>> North American Embassy of Anaphoria Island
>>> >>> >> <http://anaphoria.com/index.html>
>> >> >>> The Wandering Medicine Show
>>> KXLU <http://www.kxlu.com/main/index.asp> 88.9 FM Wed 8-9 pm Los Angeles
>>>
>>> >>> >>
>>
>>
>> Meta Tuning meta-info:
>>
>> To unsubscribe, send an email to:
>> metatuning-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
>>
>> Web page is http://groups.yahoo.com/groups/metatuning/
>>
>> To post to the list, send to
>> metatuning@yahoogroups.com
>>
>> You don't have to be a member to post.
>>
>> >> Yahoo! Groups Links
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> >> >
> -- Kraig Grady
North American Embassy of Anaphoria Island <http://anaphoria.com/index.html>
The Wandering Medicine Show
KXLU <http://www.kxlu.com/main/index.asp> 88.9 FM Wed 8-9 pm Los Angeles

Mystery solved ...

My Precalculus textbook introduces each chapter with
a photo and a couple of paragraphs about something
high-tech which illustrates an application of the
concepts learned in that chapter.

One chapter opens with a description of the
International Space Station, and says that, after the
moon, it "is now the brightest object in the night sky".

-monz

--- In metatuning@yahoogroups.com, "monz" <monz@...> wrote:
>
> Hi Kraig,
>
> No, it definitely wasn't Venus, not at midnight.
> Venus is closer to the sun than the earth, so to us
> it only appears in the sky either right before sunrise
> or right after sunset, and the only time it can be visible
> that high in the sky is either the last moments of darkness
> before sunrise or the earliest moments of darkness after
> sunset. The sunset in San Diego last night was around 7:00pm.
> By midnight Venus should have been well below the horizon.
>
> (If anyone knows better and what i said is in error,
> please correct me.)
>
> Anyway, with all the light pollution in my neighborhood
> it looked way too bright to be Venus.
>
> -monz
>
>
> --- In metatuning@yahoogroups.com, Kraig Grady <kraiggrady@> wrote:
> >
> > I did notice this and thought it was Venus which according to my
> > ephemeris it is the right location.
> > about 30 degrees behind the sun.
> >
> > Jupiter and Saturn are quite far apart at the moment.
> > about 120 degrees away.
> >
> > monz wrote:
> > > Hello all,
> > >
> > > Living in central San Diego, the night sky here is
> > > usually too bright for me to indulge my interest
> > > in astronomy.
> > >
> > > But tonight, while taking out the trash, i immediately
> > > noticed a *really* bright twinkling object in the sky.
> > > The direction was pretty much directly southwest, at
> > > 11:50pm PDT. Its altitude was about 35 degrees above
> > > the horizon.
> > >
> > > Unfortunately i no longer have a telescope,so
> > > as soon as i returned from the dumpster, i grabbed
> > > my binoculars and took a look. I thought it might
> > > be possible that it was a satellite or some other
> > > close-to-earth object.
> > >
> > > Obviously the binoculars don't give much magnification,
> > > and the biggest drawback is that there's no way to
> > > keep the view steady. But i could clearly see that
> > > it was not an object with any kind of shape, it's
> > > just an extremely bright pinpoint of light, mostly
> > > pure white but with rapid alternations of some blue,
> > > yellow, and red.
> > >
> > > So my guess is that it's a nova or supernova.
> > >
> > > I tried to find some news about it on Google, but
> > > didn't get anything that seemed relevant. According
> > > to Sky View Cafe (http://www.skyviewcafe.com/),
> > > Jupiter and Saturn are both in the general area
> > > where i saw this, but this object is far brighter
> > > than Jupiter -- in fact it's much brighter than the
> > > brightest that i've ever seen Venus.
> > >
> > > I'd love to find out more about this if anyone else
> > > can help.
> > >
> > >
> > > -monz