In light of the Lunar Eclipse this past weekend, it’s time for the 11th seasonal sunset watch!!

• When: December 21, 2011 at 4:05pm (so come at 3:30pm)
• Actual sunset is supposed to be at 4:20, but at the summer solstice we noticed that the Sun set about 10 minutes earlier than the USNO ^[1] says it does, so I’ve moved the time of our sunset watch up so we don’t miss it. I added another 5 minutes for the tall trees of Lincoln Park blocking our view. In Autumn the timing seemed to line up correctly – what will it do this time?
• Where: Solstice Park ^[2] – all the way up the hill from the tennis courts (or, if you’re not in Seattle, wherever you have a view of the western horizon!)
• Who: Everyone welcome, as usual.

^[3]

Sunset on September 23, 2011 Image credit: Jason Gift Enevoldsen

Come watch the winter solstice sunset at Solstice Park in West Seattle on Wednesday the 21st. We’ll see if the sunset lines up with the placed marker (it did for summer, but will it for winter?). I’ll be there even if it is cloudy because sometimes the Sun peeks through just as it begins to set, but if it is driving rain or sleet I’m staying home with some hot tea!

If you’re interested – here’s the timing of various celestial events on Saturday from Seattle, courtesy of the U.S. Naval Observatory Astronomical Applications Department: ^[1]

Sun and Moon Data for One Day

The following information is provided for Seattle, King County, Washington (longitude W122.3, latitude N47.6):

Wednesday 21 December 2011 Pacific Standard Time

SUN
Begin civil twilight 7:19 a.m.
Sunrise 7:55 a.m.
Sun transit 12:07 p.m.
Sunset 4:20 p.m.
End civil twilight 4:56 p.m.

MOON
Moonset 1:07 p.m. on preceding day
Moonrise 4:30 a.m.
Moon transit 9:11 a.m.
Moonset 1:47 p.m.
Moonrise 5:45 a.m. on following day

Phase of the Moon on 21 December: waning crescent with 11% of the Moon’s visible disk illuminated.

This event is my part of the NASA’s Solar System Ambassador program, and thanks to West Seattle Blog ^[4] for publicizing the last few!

Everyone is welcome, see you there!

~ A l i c e !