Author: Crystal Clear

The Orionid meteor shower peaked overnight on October 21 into October 22, closing out one of the more reliable showers of the autumn. The moon is now waxing toward its full October phase, the Hunter’s Moon, which arrives October 26. Skies will stay brighter than usual for the next several nights as a result, so this is a good week to rest the telescope and watch the calendar instead.

The next dark window opens with the new moon on November 9, running roughly November 5 through November 13. This stretch is likely to be the best stargazing of the remaining season, before the park closes for its scheduled seasonal break.

The Keweenaw Mountain Lodge calendar lists two programs during that window: a Northern Lights Photography Workshop on November 7, taught by photographer Nate Bett, and a Lights Out! observance running November 6 through 12, encouraging reduced outdoor lighting across the property to support darker skies. Reservations for the workshop are required and may be made by calling the front desk at the Lodge.

Looking a little further ahead, the Leonid meteor shower peaks overnight on November 17, debris left behind by Comet Tempel-Tuttle. It is not expected to be an especially strong year for the Leonids, with roughly ten to fifteen meteors per hour under dark skies, but it remains worth watching for. This peak falls just after the Keweenaw Dark Sky Park closes for staff vacation on November 16 (opening back up on December 15th), so the golf course grounds will not be accessible that night. Stargazers are welcome to watch instead from Brockway Mountain Drive or one of the nearby county and state parks along Lake Superior.

The sun also remains active this autumn, and additional coronal mass ejections remain possible in the weeks ahead. It is worth checking NOAA’s real-time aurora forecast at spaceweather.gov each evening and watching the northern horizon from a dark, open vantage point.

The Keweenaw Dark Sky Park closes for the season on November 16 and reopens December 14. Cabin guests of the Keweenaw Mountain Lodge may borrow a telescope to make the most of any of the nights remaining before then.

The moon continues to wax toward its October full phase, the Hunter’s Moon, which arrives October 26. Skies are brighter than they were during the new moon window earlier this month, but the next week still holds one of the best reasons to look up this fall (as long as the skies stay clear). The Orionid meteor shower, debris from Halley’s Comet, peaks the night of October 21 into the morning of October 22, typically producing fifteen to twenty-five meteors per hour under a dark sky, among the more reliable showers of the year. A waxing gibbous moon, roughly eighty percent lit, will wash out the early evening hours this year, so the better viewing time will be in the hour or two before dawn, once the moon has set and the sky darkens again. A stargazing walk on the golf course at the dark sky park, or a drive up Brockway Mountain in the hours before sunrise, is a way to catch the peak.

The sun also remains active this autumn, and additional coronal mass ejections remain possible in the weeks ahead, so it is worth checking NOAA’s real-time aurora forecast at spaceweather.gov each evening and watching the northern horizon from a dark, open vantage point.

Looking further ahead, the moon reaches new phase again on November 9, opening one more extended dark stretch before winter, running roughly November 5 through 13 — likely the best week of stargazing remaining this season. The Keweenaw Mountain Lodge calendar also lists a Northern Lights Photography Workshop on November 7, taught by photographer Nate Bett, plus a Lights Out! observance running November 6 through 12. Reservations for the workshop are required and may be made through the Outdoor Activity Center.

The park closes for the season on November 15 and reopens in mid-December, so this stretch of autumn is one of the last chances of the year for an extended dark-sky visit. Guests of the Keweenaw Mountain Lodge may borrow a telescope from the Outdoor Activity Center to make the most of any of these nights.

The moon reaches its new phase tomorrow, Saturday, October 10, beginning the darkest and clearest stretch of sky this month. The best viewing window runs from tonight through approximately October 16, before the moon begins to wax back toward full on October 26. This is an excellent week for a stargazing walk on the golf course (at the dark sky park) or a drive up Brockway Mountain.

The sun also remains active. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration issued a G2 (moderate) geomagnetic storm watch for the overnight hours of October 8 into October 9, after a coronal mass ejection left the sun on October 6, and aurora reached south into the northern United States, including Michigan. Additional flare-ups are possible through the rest of the month, so it is worth checking NOAA’s real-time aurora forecast at spaceweather.gov each evening and watching the northern horizon from a dark, open vantage point on the property.

Mark the calendar for the Orionid meteor shower, which peaks the night of October 21 into the morning of October 22. The Orionids are debris from Halley’s Comet and typically produce fifteen to twenty-five meteors per hour under a dark sky. A waxing gibbous moon, about eighty percent lit, will interfere during the early evening this year, so the better show will be in the hour or two before dawn, after the moon has set.

The clock is also running on the season. The park closes for the year on November 15 and reopens December 15. Between now and then, the next new moon arrives November 9, offering one final dark stretch, roughly November 5 through 13, before the lights go down on the season.

Guests of the Keweenaw Mountain Lodge may borrow a telescope from the Outdoor Activity Center to make the most of any of these nights.

A coronal mass ejection reached Earth today, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has issued a G1 (minor) geomagnetic storm watch for tonight, October 2. If the storm holds, the aurora may become visible across the northern tier of the United States, including Michigan. The best window is just after dark, before the moon rises later in the evening. Visibility depends on cloud cover and local conditions, so check NOAA’s real-time aurora forecast at spaceweather.gov before heading out, and look toward the northern horizon from a dark, open vantage point on the property.

Early risers should also set an alarm for the morning of October 6. The moon will pass in front of Jupiter beginning around 4:15 a.m. Eastern time, blocking the planet, and in sequence, its four largest moons, Io, Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto, from view for just over an hour. Binoculars or a small telescope will bring out the best detail.

The moon continues to wane through the week, and the sky darkens quickly as the New Moon approaches on October 10. The darkest, clearest viewing of the month will run from roughly October 6 through 14, a good window for a stargazing walk on the golf course or a visit to Brockway Mountain.

Looking further ahead, mark the calendar for the Orionid meteor shower, which peaks the night of October 21 into the morning of October 22. The Orionids are debris from Halley’s Comet and typically produce around twenty meteors per hour at their peak. A waxing gibbous moon will interfere during the early evening this year, so the better show will be in the hour or two before dawn, once the moon has set.

Guests of the Keweenaw Mountain Lodge may borrow a telescope from the Outdoor Activity Center to make the most of any of these nights.

The Corn Moon reaches full on September 26, so the next several nights will be too bright for deep-sky viewing. Skies darken quickly after that. By the New Moon on October 10, the Keweenaw Dark Sky Park will offer its darkest, clearest views of the month.

Plan your visit around the Keweenaw Mountain Lodge’s Lights Out! week, running October 9 through 15, or join the Northern Lights Photography Workshop on October 10 from 7:00 to 9:00 pm, where you will learn the camera settings and the best locations on the property for capturing the night sky.

Looking further ahead, mark your calendar for the Orionid meteor shower, which peaks in the hours before dawn on October 23. The Orionids are debris from Halley’s Comet and are one of the more reliable annual showers, though a nearly full moon will wash out the fainter meteors this year — the best window will be in the hour or two before dawn, after the moon has set.

Aurora watch: a moderate solar storm lit up skies across the northern United States in late September, with the Upper Peninsula of Michigan named among the possible viewing areas. Activity is expected to quiet down through early October, with smaller upticks possible around October 4–6 and October 11–14 — the second of which falls right in this New Moon stretch. Before you head out, check NOAA’s real-time aurora forecast at spaceweather.gov.