Frank,

	It is astounding, and, if you check it out  a couple of nights in a row
you'll see those moons shift position ~ this was the clue which prompted
Galileo to begin speculating about the accepted theory that all the
heavens revolved around the earth.  Their names are Europa, Ganymede,
Io, and Calypso . . . I think.

	On a walk with some Howard County folks along the Patapsco recently
a knowledgeable fellow ("Richard" is all I caught) explained the this  
conjunction
is even more remarkable because Uranus is very nearby in the sky, also.
It is dimmer and "greenish" in color.   According to the web site I  
Googled,
it should be fairly visible to the upper left of Jupiter . . . which  
will be reversed
to lower-right by your scope's lens, most likely.

Leo Weigant


On Sep 18, 2010, at 4:27 AM, Frank Boyle wrote:

> I was out back last night here at Broken Wallet Farm at 10:30 to  
> listen for
> migrating songbirds , but heard 'nary a bird.  I then remembered to  
> look to
> the SE at Jupiter... sure enough, the brightest object in the sky,  
> save for
> a half-moon.  I decided to give the trusty Nikon fieldscope a try at
> celestial observations, and oh my goodness, what an AMAZING  
> result!  There
> was Jupiter in all its glory, with such detail as I have never  
> witnessed
> before!  Bands on the gas giant were clearly visible, and four of  
> its moons
> were neatly strung out on the horizontal plane like a sparkling  
> diamond
> neclace.  I had no idea my "birding" scope would excel as a telescope.
>
> This is the closest Jupiter will be in relation to Earth's orbit  
> for many
> years, so you might want to gaze up in the next few nights for a  
> once in a
> lifetime experience.
>
> Simply astounding.
>
>
> *************************
> Frank Boyle
> Rohrersville, MD
> 
> *************************
> -- 
> "The most powerful weapon in the hands of the oppressor is the mind  
> of the
> oppressed" - Stephen Biko