Bootleg Astronomers

The Bootleg Star Party Registration Form is available HERE (pre-registration deadline is Saturday, August 29th, 2026)

*** Due to the number of people doing imaging at the Bootleg Star Parties, Bootleg Management is indicating that Green Lasers will not be permitted starting one hour after sunset ***

2	Venus 1.5° SSW of Spica at 1h UT (evening sky). Mags. −4.5 and 1.0.
3	Moon near the Pleiades at 13h UT (morning sky).
4	Last Quarter Moon at 7:51 UT.
5	Moon near M35 Cluster at 20h UT (morning sky).
6	Moon near Mars at 20h UT (morning sky). Mag. 1.2.
6	Moon at perigee (closest to Earth) at 20:44 UT (distance 368,259km; angular size 32.4').
7	Moon near Castor at 1h UT (morning sky).
7	Moon near Pollux at 6h UT (morning sky).
8	Moon near Beehive Cluster (M44) at 7h UT (morning sky).
8	Moon near Jupiter at 20h UT (morning sky). Mag. −1.8.
9	Moon near Regulus at 21h UT (morning sky).
11	New Moon at 3:26 UT. Start of lunation 1283.
13	Moon near Spica at 20h UT (evening sky).
14	Moon near Venus at 12h UT (evening sky). Mag. −4.5.
17	Moon near Antares at 14h UT (evening sky).
18	First Quarter Moon at 20:43 UT.
18	Venus shows greatest illuminated extent (318 square arc-seconds) at 23h UT. Mag. −4.5.
19	Moon at apogee (farthest from Earth) at 3h UT (distance 404,221km; angular size 29.6').
22	Venus at its brightest at 18h UT (37.2° from Sun, evening sky). Mag. −4.56.
23	September equinox at 00:07 UT. The time when the Sun reaches the point along the ecliptic where it crosses into the southern celestial hemisphere marking the start of autumn in the Northern Hemisphere and spring in the Southern Hemisphere. • Equinox (Wikipedia)
26	Mercury 0.9° NNE of Spica at 9h UT (21° from Sun, evening sky). Mags. −0.1 and 1.0.
26	Full Moon at 16:49 UT.
27	Moon near Saturn at 7h UT (midnight sky). Mag. 0.3.
30	Moon near the Pleiades at 19h UT (morning sky).

>>> All times Universal Time (UT). USA Central Standard Time = UT-6 hours. (DST = UT-5 hrs,)

Zodiacal Light is caused by sunlight reflected off meteoric dust in the plane of the solar system. Choose a clear, moonless night, about 1-2 hours after sunset, and look for a large triangular-shaped glow extending up from the horizon (along the ecliptic). The best months to view the Zodiacal Light is when the ecliptic is almost vertical at the horizon: March and April (evening) and October-November (morning); times reversed for the southern hemisphere.
• Zodiacal Light (Wikipedia)
• Astronomy Picture of the Day (APOD)
• Photographing the Zodiacal Light (Weatherscapes)