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No really, look up! Those are the Leonids streaking through the sky (they began on November 10). This meteor shower often gives one of the best shows of the year, on rare occasions being so spectacular that it surpasses being just a shower and becomes a "meteor storm," with over 1000 meteors per hour. We won't get quite that amazing a sight this year, but the debris from comet Tempel-Tuttle should still send about 500 pieces an hour through the atmosphere -- and with the peak arriving on Tuesday night and a barely visible waxing Moon to darken the sky, the Leonids will still be an astronomical show worth staying outside in the cold for (perhaps with your camera?).

We've mentioned the International Year of Astronomy in passing, but not in great detail because Washington, D.C., disappointingly, doesn't seem to be hosting too many events. The IYA is a celebration of the 400th anniversary of the year Galileo Galilei first gazed through a telescope to look at the universe. Organized by the International Astronomical Union, IYA events have been planned all over the world all year, including tonight, the last night of Galilean Nights: three evenings encouraging the public to look up and get a closer look at our Moon and Jupiter and its moons (all of which will be close together in the sky this week) -- the objects Galileo first studied. If you're outside of D.C., see if there's a Galilean Night event near you, or follow other people's observations online through various webcasts and Twitter feeds (many with photos), or just head outside tonight and wait for a break in the clouds. You might consider buying a Galileoscope for just twenty bucks, which should give you a nice view of the Moon's craters, or participate in the last night of the Great World Wide Star Count.

The news isn't good for stargazers this weekend. Both events we mentioned last weekend, the National Capital Astronomers "Exploring the Sky" in Rock Creek Park and NOVAC's 27th Annual Star Gaze, are certainly going to be rained out. We'll let you know if the annual Star Gaze is rescheduled.

I think NASA would agree with me when I say, had I known the LCROSS mission -- which impacted the Moon early Friday morning -- was the mission that the mainstream media would finally report on en masse, getting it so unbelievably twisted in the process, I would have tried to explain the details of the mission much more clearly in the weeks leading up to it. Which isn't to say the coverage and the subsequent opinions by empty-headed followers hasn't been hilarious.

Back in early August, we previewed the Public Observatory Project at the National Air and Space Museum; this week the ribbon was cut and the telescope is officially in business. (Before I get too far, I should disclaim that I'm now a volunteer at POP -- having worked in observatories during college, this was too good an opportunity to pass up -- so I'm obviously a big fan of the project, and you may attempt to complete your DCist editor bingo card by trying to find me there during my weekly shift.) The observatory is focused on daytime observing and will be open Tuesday through Sunday, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. The research-grade 16" Boller and Chivens telescope, on loan from Harvard University, is fitted with a solar filter, making it perfect for viewing the Sun and Venus. On especially nice days, a portable 11" Celestron scope is rolled out, to which are attached two smaller scopes fitted with H-alpha and CaK filters, allowing viewers to see different wavelengths of light coming from the Sun -- during my first training session we caught spectacular prominence through the CaK scope. Programs with D.C. Public Schools will begin in November. The museum also has a new program in the Einstein Planetarium, Journey to the Stars.

Autumnal Equinox

       

Twice a year, as the vernal and autumnal equinoxes come upon us, nightwatchers in the D.C. area get a special treat when the full Moon's orbit brings it up behind the Capitol building, in line with the Washington Monument, Lincoln Memorial, and Iwo Jima Memorial. Usually this occasion occurs in concert with the Harvest Moon, the name of the full Moon that occurs closest to the autumnal equinox, which happens on September 22 this year; however, this time around, the closest full Moon actually occurs after the equinox. Nevertheless, it's September's Moon that gives us the spectacular line up, so this year our photographers met up near the Washington Monument last night to view the Corn Moon rise behind the Capitol. Check out the gallery above for their spectacular shots. Although the official full Moon was Friday, you should still get a pretty great view tonight, -- you might consider the Mall if you were looking for a romantic moon-lit walk with your partner.

It's a regular week of summer nights coming up. No meteor showers or amazing celestial events mark the calendar, but with the waxing Moon and (hopefully) some clear nights, it should be a great time to put on some bug spray and check out the regulars -- start with the Summer Triangle we pointed out last week.