It’s been twenty years since one of my first entries in my log, and exactly twenty since the first (more like one of the first) Jupiter observation. Living at the very margin of my home town, with a full horizon east-south-west, and very poor public illumination characteristic of the post-communist era, I had a decent view of the night sky. I remember how I “discovered”  Jupiter as an odd star that’s not supposed to be there in the constellation, during the dawn. As time passed the star has risen, so I was able to observe its… satellites, so it was Jupiter. And this is the entry I made twenty years ago. However, checking it out now in Stellarium, I see that I missed Saturn. Jupiter’s satellites’ positions are ambiguous, it could be 21:45 or anytime till midnidght since the bino I used (12×25) most likely didn’t show Io that’s been close to Jupiter during those hours. The Moon came later, towards midnight, hence the datetime of the entry.

1998-09-10, clear sky, at about midnight: The first luminous one is Jupiter, and I’ve seen three of its satellites, and also some craters on the Moon.

1998.09.10. Csillagnapló-részlet