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Tag Archives: Easter

From the Tablet: Why is Ash Wednesday So Late This Year?

Sacred Space Astronomy avatarPosted on March 6, 2019 by Br. Guy ConsolmagnoFebruary 5, 2019
This entry is part 66 of 191 in the series Across the Universe

This column ran in The Tablet for the new year’s issue of 2008, when Easter occurred remarkably early, on March 23. It was relatively early in 2016, on March 27th, when we ran it here. This year, it’s about as late as it can be! Early or late, the explanation is the same… and so probably worth running again. Why is Ash Wednesday so late this year? Contrary to popular conception, the Vatican Observatory doesn’t set the date of Easter. (We don’t cast horoscopes for the Pope, or evangelize UFOs, either.) But since Pope Gregory’s reform of the calendar in 1582 marked the beginning of the Vatican’s support for astronomy, we have a historical connection. Our calendars have always been marked by a confusion of days, planets, and gods. Even today, our week begins with the Sun’s day, followed by the Moon’s day and ending with Saturn’s Day. The month (think, “moonth”) was originally based on the 29.5 day period of the Moon, … Continue reading →

Posted in History, Popular Culture, Religion | Tagged Calendar, Easter | Leave a reply

A note on the date of Easter

Sacred Space Astronomy avatarPosted on April 2, 2018 by Br. Guy ConsolmagnoApril 2, 2018
This entry is part 28 of 63 in the series Diary

Horst Rademacher,  a seismologist at U C Berkeley, wrote to friends of mine there last weekend, asking about the date of Easter: May I bother you with a question, which is probably trivial for astronomers like you to answer. However neither Peggy nor I could find an answer anywhere. Here is the question: Tomorrow (Apr 1) is Easter. According to the classic definition Easter always falls on the first Sunday after the first full moon after the vernal equinox. That makes sense, because today is full moon, which is the first full moon after the beginning of spring. And tomorrow is Sunday, hence Easter. However, today’s full moon occurred at 5:37 am PDT. Let’s assume, the full moon would have occurred at 5:37 pm PDT. Applying the definition above from a purely California perspective, tomorrow would still be Easter. However, if we were in the Netherlands, in Germany or in the Vatican for that matter, this assumed full moon would … Continue reading →

Posted in Popular Culture, Religion, Science | Tagged Calendar, Easter, history of astronomy | Leave a reply

Across the Universe: Redating Easter?

Sacred Space Astronomy avatarPosted on January 18, 2018 by Br. Guy ConsolmagnoMay 30, 2018
This entry is part 160 of 191 in the series Across the Universe

This column first ran in The Tablet in January 2016 The archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby has recently [2016] announced discussions to redefine the date of Easter. Pope Francis and various leaders of Eastern churches have also expressed interest in a common date that all churches would celebrate together. Easter was originally the Sunday following Passover, the first full moon of the Hebrew year. But the start of the Hebrew year varied from year to year. Jewish months, 29 days long, mirror the phases of the moon, and so every three or four years an extra month is needed to keep that lunar calendar in phase with the seasons. After the destruction of the Temple in AD 70, there was no central Jewish authority to determine when to add that month. Instead, Jews of the Diaspora relied on a Greek formula (devised in 432 BC by Meton) to add seven intercalary months over a repeating 19 year cycle. It was … Continue reading →

Posted in History, Popular Culture | Tagged Calendar, Clavius, Easter | Leave a reply

Holy Week and Easter: The Collision Point of Measured Time!

Sacred Space Astronomy avatarPosted on March 31, 2015 by Fr. James KurzynskiJuly 10, 2015

How can you reduce your Priest to a stammering ball of confusion with one, simple question? In two weeks, ask him, “Father, what is the date for Easter in 2016?” Unless your Pastor had the good fortune of looking at his Liturgical Planner a year ahead of time, I can almost guarantee his answer will be, “Uuuum… I think its… ah… late March… early… mid… or late April?” The reason this question can stump the smartest of liturgical chumps is because the date of Easter is a collision point between differing approaches of measured time. The calculation of Easter is done by identifying the Sunday that falls after the first full moon after the vernal equinox. Sounds easy enough.  However, given that lunar cycles do not match up exactly with our calendars, we can have a spread of dates for Easter. For Western Christians, those dates can occur between March 22 to April 25. For Eastern Christians, the dates for … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Easter, Fr. Barron, leap seconds, time | 2 Replies
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Space Missions In 2021: What Are You Most Excited To See In This New Year?

Sacred Space Astronomy avatarPosted on January 18, 2021 by Fr. James KurzynskiJanuary 18, 2021

Now that the Christmas season is done, I can return to reflecting on astronomy! As I shared with you in the past, I plan on doing a couple more pieces on the forthcoming Artemis Missions. I also thought it would be fun to reflect on space missions slated for 2021. … Continue reading…

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a reply

Specola Guestbook | October 14, 1924: Edward Phillips S.J.

Sacred Space Astronomy avatarPosted on January 17, 2021 by Robert MackeJanuary 11, 2021
This entry is part 77 of 77 in the series Specola Guestbook

Since its founding in 1891, many people have passed through the doors of the Vatican Observatory.  A quick perusal of our guestbook reveals several Names, including Popes, Nobel laureates, astronauts, actors, and saints. Today’s guestbook entry is from October 14, 1924, when Edward Phillips made a visit. Next to his … Continue reading…

Posted in Astronomy, History, Mathematics, Uncategorized | Tagged Georgetown Observatory, Jesuits, Phillips, Specola Guestbook, Statistics, Vatican Observaory | Leave a reply

“Cosmos: Possible Worlds”, 10-13: Goodbye to a Losing Season

Sacred Space Astronomy avatarPosted on January 16, 2021 by Christopher M. GraneyJanuary 15, 2021

When your favorite team is not so good, sometimes the end of the season can come as a relief.  That’s doubly true when the last couple games of the season go especially badly.  This Cosmos fan finds himself happy to see this season come to an end.  There is always … Continue reading…

Posted in Astronomy, Popular Culture, Science | Tagged cosmos-possible-worlds | 1 Reply

JWST update – Hexagons in Space

Sacred Space Astronomy avatarPosted on January 15, 2021 by Deirdre KelleghanJanuary 15, 2021

My small group at Space Camp in Louisburgh. Proud of their new James Webb replica mirror and knowledge !! What an exciting week regarding the JWST announcment that the launch date is set for October 31st 2021 !!! Am shareing my previous blog about a workshop I did back in … Continue reading…

Posted in Astronomy, Education, Science, Space Exploration | Tagged ESA, Hexagons, James Webb Space Telescope, JWST, Launch, NASA, Space | 2 Replies

ⓜ Curiosity and the Exploration of Mars, I

Sacred Space Astronomy avatarPosted on January 14, 2021 by Br. Guy ConsolmagnoJanuary 14, 2021
This entry is part 1 of 54 in the series And Then I Wrote

And then I wrote… On January 12, 2021, the NASA Mars rover Curiosity marked 3000 Martian days on the surface of Mars. In 2012 I was invited to write an article about the exploration of Mars; “Curiosity e l’esplorazione di Marte” appeared in the Jesuit journal La Civiltà Cattolica on November 17,2012. … Continue reading…

Posted in And Then I Wrote, Planet, Space Exploration | Tagged Curiosity, Mars, NASA Solar System Exploration | Leave a reply

A Platonic journey

Sacred Space Astronomy avatarPosted on January 13, 2021 by Richard HillJanuary 13, 2021
This entry is part 38 of 38 in the series Lunarcy

I always look forward to the appearance of the 104km diameter crater Plato and surrounding environs as they emerge from the lunar night. There is so much to see there I find imaging irresistible. Usually I don’t like to do this wide a field but there’s much to enjoy. Plato’s … Continue reading…

Posted in Astronomy, Moon, Uncategorized | Tagged Craters, mare, Moon, mountains | Leave a reply
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Recent Comments

  • Stan Sienkiewicz January 16, 2021 at 9:17 am on “Cosmos: Possible Worlds”, 10-13: Goodbye to a Losing SeasonIt is a shame that the producers of the show are not amazed by the real world and need to enhance reality with special effects. I feel you are discussing a topic that is coming up quite often about our culture: the lack of astonishment. I recently had taken a...
  • Fernando Comeron January 15, 2021 at 5:22 am on JWST update – Hexagons in SpaceIncidentally, you can see that we at the European Southern Observatory (ESO, of which Ireland is a member too) did something that bears some resemblance several years ago. We invited visitors to our headquarters near Munich on the open doors day in 2011 to put hexagons together to reproduce a...
  • Fernando Comeron January 15, 2021 at 5:07 am on JWST update – Hexagons in SpaceNice article, Deirdre -and actually hexagons in space are very common, although very tiny. Carbon hexagonal cycles are at the basis of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, a class of molecules that compose the cold interstellar medium. So hexagons are pretty much everywhere in the Universe!
  • Bob Trembley January 14, 2021 at 2:01 am on In the Sky This Week – January 12, 2021Thanks for keeping me honest! :) I corrected it to say "Mercury appears slightly higher above the horizon each evening." When you advance days in Stellarium at dusk, you see Jupiter and Saturn get lower each day, and Mercury getting higher. Venus gets a bit lower each morning in the...
  • Joseph O'Donnell January 12, 2021 at 10:03 am on In the Sky This Week – January 12, 2021"Mercury appears slightly higher above the horizon each morning" I believe you mean Venus or am I missing something?
  • Christopher M. Graney January 4, 2021 at 10:50 am on Carols versus Matthew on the Star of WonderVery interesting -- I had never read the "Gospel of James", or "Protoevangelium of James", until now. Below is its whole section about the star, for those not familiar with it. Remarkably, the same problem is found in it. It follows Matthew in talking about the magi. No one knows...
  • Christopher M. Graney January 4, 2021 at 10:43 am on Carols versus Matthew on the Star of WonderI should have been more clear. When I said "This sounds just like the Great Conjunction of 2020", I meant it sounds like that *kind* of thing -- something no one who was not an astronomer would have noticed it just by chance.
  • Alfred Kracher January 2, 2021 at 10:47 am on Carols versus Matthew on the Star of WonderEmbellishments of Matthew’s simple “star” into a spectacular miracle are all but irrresistible. Already in the apocryphal 2nd century Gospel of James it shines with an “incredible brilliance amidst the constellations and making them seem dim.” And over the centuries artists of all kinds have further expanded on these exaggerations,...
  • Fr. Timothy Sauppé January 2, 2021 at 5:30 am on Carols versus Matthew on the Star of WonderI thought the biggest objection to the Jupiter/Saturn conjunction being the “Star of Bethlehem” was the 800 year cycle of its occurrence viz. the timing is off. Also, I am reminded of a comment of an amateur astronomer when he went to Chile, up in the Andes. He said there...
  • Stan Sienkiewicz December 26, 2020 at 1:07 pm on The Sun Illuminates Fort AncientYes, while not quite following the astronomy it still is fascinating to see what these early N American people did to their environment. As to why they did it and your article disagreeing with the solstice explanation reminded me of the book, Motel of the Mysteries. It is a funny...
  • Joel Hopko December 24, 2020 at 1:09 pm on Bah! Humbug. Science.And a very Merry Christmas to you Professor. May your spirit and inquiring mind continue to brighten our New Year! Joel Hopko
  • Fr. Timothy Sauppé December 21, 2020 at 6:04 pm on Was Jesus Born on December 25? The Fight Between Inculturation and Radical Certitude.Just saw this Socrates In The City from 2005 with Eric Metaxas interviewing Colin Nicholl. His book and thesis is that the Star of Bethlehem was one big comet. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6mT-8O8S_Fw&t=1s
  • Bob Prokop December 21, 2020 at 12:08 pm on Was Jesus Born on December 25? The Fight Between Inculturation and Radical Certitude.It's interesting that Tolkien chose March 25th as the date the One Ring was cast into the fires of Mount Doom (see the appendixes to The Return of the King for the date). It can't be a coincidence that the destruction of evil in Middle Earth coincides with the Annunciation...
  • Fr. Timothy Sauppé December 21, 2020 at 10:35 am on Was Jesus Born on December 25? The Fight Between Inculturation and Radical Certitude.Here is an interesting take by Liberato De Caro, Ph.D., of the Institute of Crystallography of the National Research Council in Bari, Italy, who led the research, proposes that the date of Jesus’ birth. He posits 1 BC for Jesus’ Birth. For your consideration. https://www.ncregister.com/blog/liberato-de-caro-nativity?utm_campaign=NCR%202019&utm_medium=email&_hsmi=102396683&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-9xKkcgGuiy7rFyWiX8fgbgA63Wabi_9C-VcU6QmESl4QYoKUDYHXm6DrY_jGwbVptu0roDhgBz363uEIX8dd6P7oOaBQ&utm_content=102396683&utm_source=hs_email
  • Bob Prokop December 18, 2020 at 7:52 am on Pursuing the ConjunctionLooks like we're going to be clouded out here in Maryland. But I did get a good look at the two planets last night (Thursday). They were already practically on top of each other! So it has not been a total loss. By the way, your December 14th drawing is...
  • Fr. James Kurzynski December 14, 2020 at 6:42 am on Follow the Money, the Science, or the Theology? A Second Reflection on the Forthcoming Artemis Moon Mission.Thanks Ed! I so appreciate your thoughts! As a fellow "Star Trek" fan, I can appreciate you insight! :)
  • Fr. James Kurzynski December 14, 2020 at 6:38 am on Follow the Money, the Science, or the Theology? A Second Reflection on the Forthcoming Artemis Moon Mission.Absolutely! Send me a message through the "Contact US" tab!
  • Br. Guy Consolmagno December 12, 2020 at 10:09 am on ⓜ Cosmology and ExpertiseOh, yes!
  • Richard Gabrielson December 10, 2020 at 9:19 pm on ⓜ Cosmology and ExpertiseBr. Guy -- be SO GLAD those were private messages instead of questions from the audience at a big conference!
  • Ed Yepez December 10, 2020 at 4:31 pm on Follow the Money, the Science, or the Theology? A Second Reflection on the Forthcoming Artemis Moon Mission.I think I was too young to appreciate "Earth Rise", when I first saw it. Probably only after a few years of education, did I start to appreciate what the effort was to take that picture, and then the fragile beauty of the Earth (in contrast with the "Magnificent Desolation")...

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