Astronomy Picture of the Day

Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer.

NGC 7822: Cosmic Question Mark

Image Credit & Copyright: Yizhou ZhangExplanation: It may look like a huge cosmic question mark, but the big question really is how does the bright gas and dark dust tell this nebula’s history of star formation. At the edge of a giant molecular cloud toward the northern constellation Cepheus, the glowing star forming region NGC 7822 lies about 3,000 light-years away. Within the nebula, bright edges and dark shapes stand out in this colorful and detailed skyscape. The 9-panel mosaic, taken over 28 nights with a small telescope in Texas, includes data from narrowband filters, mapping emission from atomic oxygen, hydrogen, and sulfur into blue, green, and red hues. The emission line and color combination has become well-known as the Hubble palette. The atomic emission is powered by energetic radiation from the central hot stars. Their powerful winds and radiation sculpt and erode the denser pillar shapes and clear out a characteristic cavity light-years across the center of the natal cloud. Stars could still be forming inside the pillars by gravitational collapse but as the pillars are eroded away, any forming stars will ultimately be cut off from their reservoir of star stuff. This field of view spans over 40 light-years across at the estimated distance of NGC 7822.

The Astrological Correspondences Of Herbs And Plants By Emma Kyteler

From eclecticwitchccraft.com

Herbs have many correspondences that can help you use them in spells, including astrological correspondences. For instance, an herb may correspond with one of the 4 elements (EarthAirFire, or Water), one of the planets, or one of the astrological signs.

Knowing the correspondences of plants can tell you how and when to use them in a spell. For instance, an herb that corresponds to Sagittarius can help you bind the spell to a Sagittarius person you are trying to influence. Or, an Aries herb may help you to add a bit of enthusiasm and strength to a spell because that is what that sign represents.

Having the knowledge of herbal correspondences also helps you to wing it when making a spell. If you know instinctively that an herb has a specific association, you don’t have to check a book before completing a spell.

What Is Herbal Astrology?

When applying astrology to herbalism, we are usually looking at each astrological sign’s unique energies and powers.

These unique characteristics can be used with the…

14 October Southerner Hemisphere Current Moon Phase and Planetary Positions

 

Moon’s Current Phase 

You can use this link to go forward or backward in time for Moon phase information. If you are curious you can even find out what phase the Moon was in when you or anyone else, you know was on the date the person was born. 

From Moongiant.com

Today the Moon will be in a Waxing Gibbous phase. This phase is when the moon is more than 50% illuminated but not yet a Full Moon. The phase lasts about 7 days with the moon becoming more illuminated each day until the Full Moon. During a Waxing Gibbous the moon rises in the east in mid-afternoon and is high in the eastern sky at sunset. The moon is then visible through most of the night sky setting a few hours before sunrise. The word Gibbous first appeared in the 14th century and has its roots in the Latin word “gibbosus” meaning humpbacked.

Visit the October 2021 Moon Phases Calendar to see all the daily moon phase for this month.

Today’s Waxing Gibbous Phase

The Waxing Gibbous on October 14 has an illumination of 65%. This is the percentage of the Moon illuminated by the Sun. The illumination is constantly changing and can vary up to 10% a day. On October 14 the Moon is 8.8 days old. This refers to how many days it has been since the last New Moon. It takes 29.53 days for the Moon to orbit the Earth and go through the lunar cycle of all 8 Moon phases.

The 8 Lunar Phases

There are 8 lunar phases the Moon goes through in its 29.53 days lunar cycle. The 4 major Moon phases are Full Moon, New Moon, First Quarter and Last Quarter. Between these major phases, there are 4 minor ones: the Waxing Crescent, Waxing Gibbous, Waning Gibbous and Waning Crescent. For more info on the Moon Cycle and on each phase check out Wikipedia Lunar Phase page.

Phase Details

Phase: Waxing Gibbous
Illumination: 65%
Moon Age: 8.80 days
Moon Angle: 0.53
Moon Distance: 372,822.01 km
Sun Angle: 0.53
Sun Distance: 149,176,203.45 km

Useful Moon Resources

October 13 Northern Hemisphere Moon Phase and Planetary Positions

Moon Phase

Click here to find out the Moon phase for anyone’s birth date.

From Moongiant.com

The Moon’s current phase for today and tonight is a First Quarter phase. This phase occurs roughly 7 days after the New Moon when the moon is one quarter of the way through its orbit around the earth. Exactly half the moon will be illuminated and half dark. On the day of the First Quarter phase the moon is high overhead at sunset and is visible until mid-night when it sets in the west. The First Quarter phase is a one-day event and in the following days enters a Waxing Gibbous phase becoming more illuminated each day until the Full Moon.

Visit the October 2021 Moon Phases Calendar to see all the daily moon phase for this month.

Today’s First Quarter Phase

The First Quarter on October 13 has an illumination of 54%. This is the percentage of the Moon illuminated by the Sun. The illumination is constantly changing and can vary up to 10% a day. On October 13 the Moon is 7.76 days old. This refers to how many days it has been since the last New Moon. It takes 29.53 days for the Moon to orbit the Earth and go through the lunar cycle of all 8 Moon phases.

The 8 Lunar Phases

There are 8 lunar phases the Moon goes through in its 29.53 days lunar cycle. The 4 major Moon phases are Full Moon, New Moon, First Quarter and Last Quarter. Between these major phases, there are 4 minor ones: the Waxing Crescent, Waxing Gibbous, Waning Gibbous and Waning Crescent. For more info on the Moon Cycle and on each phase check out Wikipedia Lunar Phase page.

Phase Details

Phase: First Quarter
Illumination: 54%
Moon Age: 7.76 days
Moon Angle: 0.54
Moon Distance: 369,063.85 km
Sun Angle: 0.53
Sun Distance: 149,218,784.35 km

Useful Moon Resources