Occultation of Saturn, Thursday, 27June 2024.

The Moon at 23:07pm ACST in Adelaide looking east on Thursday 27 June just as Saturn reappears. The inset shows the binocular view as Saturn reappears (click to embiggen).	The Moon at 23:47pm AEST in Brisbane looking east on Thursday 27 June just as Saturn reappears. The inset shows the binocular view as Saturn reappears (click to embiggen).	The Moon at 23:39pm AEST in Canberra looking east on Thursday 27 June just as Saturn reappears. The inset shows the binocular view as Saturn reappears (click to embiggen).

On the evening of Thursday, June 27, between 11pm and midnight  there is an occultation of Saturn. The second of three occultations seen from Australia this year. This best as a binocular and telescope event. The Moon will have just risen, so this will be difficult for telescopes.

The path of the occultation, taken from the the IOTA site 

This occultation is visible from the eastern states from Cairns to Melbourne. and part of central Australia.

In the rest of Australia the Moon and Saturn will be very close when the Moon rises.  

Start watching about half an hour beforehand to get set up and familiar with the sky. Saturn will disappear behind the bright limb of the Moon very close to the horizon. In Cairns, Melbourne and Adelaide the Moon will rise with Saturn behind the Moon, you will need a level, unobscured horizon to see the occultation. 

Again, as the Moon is close to the horizon when ingress occurs it will be difficult to get telescopes to point that low, and binoculars will be required. By the time Saturn reappears the Moon will be higher (around 15°) so telescopes may be successful.  As Saturn reappears from behind the dark limb of the moon this should be quite dramatic.

Imaging Saturn and the Moon together will be a challenge, due to the differences in brightness, again however, as Saturn appears from behind the dark limb, some over exposure of the Moon will not really affect Saturn. You will need a high ISO (3200 to 1600) to have a short enough exposure time to stop Saturn from trailing. Try practicing the night or morning before to get an idea of your cameras/mobile phones performance. You will need a tripod for your camera or binoculars, and possibly some wy to attach the camera to binoculars or telescope (dedicated amateur astronomers will already have this kit). See this post for some examples.

More cities in Australia and New Zealand can be found at the IOTA site (UT times only).