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• Create Date 30 November 2020
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BASIL December 2020

December is a great month for observing Mars - reaching an elevation of ~45 degrees when due south, amateur astronomers will be able to see surface features such as Syrtis Major when the seeing conditions are good.

21st December 2020 - the Great Conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn, passing within 6.1 arcminutes of each other. This will be the closest approach of the two planets since the year 1623, and offers a once-in-a-lifetime chance to see the two planets within the same telescopic field of view.

Visible passes of the International Space Station and the USAF unmanned space vehicle X-37B.

31 Astronomical events are listed for December, including the Geminid Meteor Shower 2020 (4 - 17 December; peak 14 December).

Members' astro-images from Darren Gamlin, David Bennett and Andrew Grasemann.

23 observing targets for December are listed, all well placed for observing in December.

Detailed observing data are given for 4 targets:  the Pleiades (M45), the Hyades open cluster, the Blue Snowball planetary nebula and the beautiful double star Almach.

Society News includes the Bristol Gulls' visit to the BAS Observatory, BAS involvement in the National Astronomy Week and an update from the last BAS Committee meeting.