Author: Alan Dyer / SkySafari 7 Premium
2024 promises to be a banner year for stargazing, with a total eclipse and a (possible!) bright comet, or two! Any year with a total solar eclipse you can drive to (for those in North America) is a fine year for stargazing. But there’s much more to see, as the Moon occults bright stars and planets, and an incoming comet provides prospects for a superb show late in the year. Here are my picks for the top 10 sky sights of 2024, with links to open the events in SkySafari 7 (Tonight --> Featured Stories --> View All) so you can check them out for yourself.
April 8 — Total Eclipse!
This is the Big Event of 2024 – the last total eclipse of the Sun from populated North America until 2044. You do not want to miss it. The path of totality crosses Mexico, the southern and eastern U.S., and eastern and Atlantic Canada, for a truly great North American eclipse.
The Moon will hide the Sun for up to four minutes or more, creating the most moving celestial event you can experience. Only an all-sky aurora (which might be possible this year at solar maximum!) comes close to matching a total eclipse for jaw-dropping grandeur.
Tap the link in SkySafari Premium "Featured Story" for a simulation that depicts the sky at mid-eclipse showing bright Jupiter and Venus flanking the eclipsed Sun. Mercury, Mars, Saturn and a comet are there, too, but all will likely be too faint to show up easily. No matter. The eclipsed Sun is spectacle enough.
April 10 — Mars and Saturn at Dawn + A Comet at Dusk
On your trip back home from the eclipse, circle April 10 on your calendar, for two events of note that day. At dawn that morning, you can see another close conjunction of two planets, this time Mars and Saturn, which will appear just 30 arc minutes (1/2°) apart.
At sunset that evening look into the dusk twilight below Jupiter and the waxing crescent Moon, fresh from its eclipse two days earlier. You might catch a glimpse of Comet 12P/Pons-Brooks, though it will likely require binoculars.
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July 13 — Moon Occults Spica at Dusk
On July 13 the first quarter Moon passes in front of the first magnitude star Spica in Virgo. This occultation will be best observed from eastern North America (the chart is for Toronto, Ontario) where the event occurs in the evening twilight. From farther west, the disappearance of the star behind the Moon’s dark limb occurs with the Sun still up. However, Spica reappears from behind the bright lunar limb after sunset.
A Special Look Ahead with SkySafari 7 from Late Night Astronomy
September 22 — Moon Occults the Pleiades
It’s a good year for occultations. On the night of September 21/22 the waning gibbous Moon passes across the Pleiades star cluster for multiple occultations of its blue stars. This event is best from western North America as it occurs in a dark sky with the occultations starting after midnight (the view here is from Los Angeles). From eastern North America, the sky is brightening with dawn twilight by the time the Moon edges up to the first of the Seven Sisters.
Get more 2024 events in the full Featured Story in the Tonight panel of SkySafari 7...
Take the best eclipse & astro experience even further with a free trial of SkySafari Premium within any V7 app. Enjoy exclusive content, interactive maps, countdown timers, audio alerts, prepared simulations & so much more. Tap "Observe" --> "Special Events" or check out featured content in the "Tonight" panel.
