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Independence Day Eclipsing Binary Marathon
It's a 3-day weekend for those in the USA. So here is a list of some eclipsing binary stars with expected eclipses this weekend. They are mostly bright so can be seen with the naked eye or binoculars. If you are out this weekend, look up, make a few obs and report them!
For you morning folk, our friend Algol (Beta Per - the Demon Star) will be in eclipse the evening of July 3-4. Mid eclipse is around 4:30am eastern, but it should start dimming around 12:30am or so. You don't have to stay up all night to get the whole eclipse. Just getting the start or end would be fun enough. Algol's chart is in our 10-Star Tutorial. It's brighter then epsilon Aurigae so can easily be seen from the city.
V505 Sgr will have two eclipses. The first is on the evening of July 2-3 centered at 10:30pm and the second is on the evening of July 3-4 centered at 3am eastern. It should start dimming around 2.5 hours before mid-eclipse. It has a magnitude range of 6.4 - 7.6 so you would need binoculars to see the whole thing. We don't have a premade chart for it. But you can click here to visit the AAVSO's free Variable Star Plotter and make a chart. Just type in "V505 SGR" and choose "B-scale" for the size, that will give you a good field of view for binoculars.
On the evening of July 3-4, U Crb will have an eclipse around midnight but should start dimming around 9:30pm eastern. It varies from 7.6- 8.8 so would defintely require a pair of binoculars. Corona Borealis (the Crown), is a very easy constellation to identify and it is relatively compact. So this would be a nice starter eclipse for someone with binocs. It's relatively bright, easy to find, has a short eclipse length that doesn't start too late in the evening.
Remember, we'll send a certificate to anyone who observes an entire eclipse or makes at least 10 observations of a partial eclipse. You can go out and observe as often as you want, but every 30 minutes is a good rule of thumb to start with.
Click below for past eclipsing binary observation hints and advice from our forums and blogs.
- Aaron Price's blog
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Aaron, You did a great job selecting these eclipsing binary stars. I have observed all three of these many times in the past. V505 Sgr is a real nice star to observe, while at the same time enjoying the heart of the summer Milky Way. U CrB is a real fun star, it can have a mind of its own. One quick suggestion to people, try it with binoculars, but it may need a small telescope. A six to eight inch reflectoror 80-100mm refractoris plenty. I hope many will take advantage of this posting. Chris Stephan Robert Clyde Observatory Sebring, Florida USA