One of the benefits of viewing the night sky during the winter months is the lack of humidity - a contributor to light pollution clutter and general impediment to star-gazing.
In any event this time of the month there is a waning crescent moon and if you are fortunate-enough to live with generally dark skies there is limited competition from the moon this evening. Which is an opportunity to become familiar with a popular and easy to locate constellation. Cassiopeia - The Queen.
You will locate Cassiopeia in the northwest in the evening during the month of February. In the shape of an M or W it is one of the easiest constellations to spot.
On the subject of dogs today if we have clear night skies this evening there is this.
click on image for a closer look
The constellation Orion (the hunter) is a prominent, easily-identifiable object in the southern night sky.
If conditions warrant take the opportunity to venture out most anytime this entire month and locate this constellation. His belt of three stars (Alnitak, Alnilam and Mintaka)have an unmistakable tilt upward and the bright stars representing his shoulder and knee - red-colored Betelgeuse and blue-white Rigel.
If you draw an imaginary line down and slightly left from Orion's belt you will land on Sirius, the brightest star in the night sky, which locates the heart of Canis Major (the big dog). Above Sirius and to the left you will locate Procyon in Canis Minor (the little dog). As the story goes - Orion accompanies by his two canine companions - strides across the night sky from east to west.
Fingers-crossed for cold, clear viewing conditions.
Native Americans have long grown familiar with this
moon.Members of the Cherokee nation
refer to this month’s full moon as the Bone Moon.This was a consequence of depleted food
stores and the necessity of cracking-open bones to access the marrow for
survival food.
NASA image
Those of the Kalapuya
nation referred to this as the Out of Food Moon.For others it was the Little Famine Moon or
the Hunger Moon.For the Cherokee the
association with hunger and starvation also included a brush with death.And the people use this as an opportunity to
communicate with dead ancestors during the Bone Moon. Indeed, these ancient native tribes named this moon after
the way trees cracked in the cold, or how people had to huddle around a fire
for warmth.My own people – the ancient
Celts – remember this as the Moon of Ice as it is associated with the coldest
month of the year. On a more upbeat note
it is the Hopi tribe of the southwest who call this the Moon of Purification
and renewal.
This close association with
the renewal that is marked by the arrival of spring is much more appealing to
me than bones and death. We have modern
refrigeration, canning, grocers, central heat, wood stoves, Merlot and streaming television.Starvation is rare and the entertainment possibilities are endless. Nevertheless, turning our eyes to the heavens hasn't changed in millennia.
February's full Moon - called the Full Snow Moon - reaches peak
fullness at 4:09 PM CST on Sunday, February 1. For the best view of this Moon be sure to
watch for it rising in the east at sunset. Near midnight the moon will be high in the sky and cast shadows in the snow-covered landscape. If you are an early riser be sure to look for it low above the western horizon before sunrise on February 2. The moon will also appear full the evenings of Saturday and Monday - before and after. Last, but not least, the moon will be closely associated with the brightest star in Leo - Regulus. You may have to use your hand to block out any moon glow to spot Regulus.
Happy viewing. And fingers crossed for cold, clear winter sky
gazing.....
This time of year brings exceptional opportunities to view the night
skies without humidity, light clutter and skeeters. All with only your
eyes.
This is my pal Orion - The Hunter - an easily identified winter
constellation in the southern night sky. Doggo and I say good night to
him before turning-in most nights.
I’d like to take the last few moments of 2025 to wish all my friends,
neighbors and acquaintances best wishes for good health, prosperity and
community in the New Year.
Most stargazers consider the reliably prolific Geminid meteor shower the final act for any given year. Yet, there happens to be one more notable meteor shower on-deck that is frequently overlooked.
The Ursids.
With 5 to 10 shooting stars per hour the peak of this meteor shower will occur during the overnight hours of December 21-22 as it passes thru the debris field of Comet 8P/Tuttle.
The Ursids get their name as their radiant is located in the constellation Ursa Minor (Little Bear). This constellation moves in a circle around Polaris - the North Star. The New Moon is December 19 so we're assured of dark skies. Activity can be viewed all night.
Fingers-crossed for cold, clear viewing conditions.
Beginning last month and through February this constellation can be found traversing the southern night sky.
Orion - a familiar image situated on the celestial equator -
is one of the most recognizable constellations in the
night sky. Finding Orion's Belt is the easiest way to locate the Orion
Constellation. Orion's Belt is formed by three bright stars; Alnilam,
Mintaka and Alnitak.
Named for Orion 'The Hunter' of Greek mythology the
constellation's brightest stars are blue-white Rigel and red
Betelgeuse. The most noticeable part of Orion is Orion’s
Belt – with the alignment
of three stars sure to catch your eye. Hanging from The
Hunter’s belt is a sword identified as three fainter stars. The
central star of the sword is actually not a star at all – it is the
Great Orion Nebula.
In the mid-latitudes of the northern hemisphere
this time of year Orion appears to be lying on his side – with the
Belt stars pointing upward – when he rises in the eastern sky.
click on the image for a closer look
This photo was taken a couple weeks ago with my iPhone 14 Pro at midnight, from the porch, looking south. The unusual brightness is the timing of the photo with the December Cold Full Moon. A larger and brighter Super Moon.
As the story goes - Orion hunted along the river Eridanus along with his ever-present dogs – Canis Major
and Canis Minor. With his dogs Orion stalked various celestial
animals including Lepus the rabbit, and Taurus the bull. In the
mythology of the ancient Greeks Orion was in love with Merope - one
of the Seven Sisters forming the constellation Pleiades. Alas,
Merope spurned Orion’s advances. Tragically, the heartbroken Orion met his end
when he was stung by Scorpious the scorpion.
Nevertheless, the gods were kind and they consequently
fixed Orion permanently in the heavens with his two dogs. The
creatures he hunted were placed in the sky as constellations as well.
With foresight the gods exiled Scorpius to the opposite side of the
heavens so that Orion would forever be safe from harm.
Visibility peaks this month and January. Raising a toast to cold, clear skies and star gazing.
One of the fun things about
winter is the night sky. Cold, clear, winter skies are
characterized by a lack of humidity and if you live in the country
there is very little urban light pollution creating some spectacular
opportunities for star-gazing.
December
brings a couple of meteor showers to the night skies. The more
prolific of the two is the Geminids with as many as 120 shooting stars per hour. Shooting stars are most often
associated with the Earth’s passage thru the debris field of a
comet. Gritty debris burns-up as it collides with the upper
atmosphere. The Geminids are a bit of a mystery as they are related
with an extinct comet which also happens to be a near-earth asteroid
named 3200 Phaethon.
The Geminid meteor shower began December 4th and will remain active thru the 17th. It will be producing meteors at its peak rate this Saturday and Sunday evenings.
Each meteor shower is named after its radiant - that point where the shower appears to come from. In this case the constellation Gemini - The Twins. A meteor shower's radiant needs to be above the horizon before any of the action begins. And you don't have to look directly at the radiant to see meteors; shooting stars will be visible across the sky once the radiant has risen.
Find the easily recognizable belt of the three bright stars in Orion the Hunter. From Orion's belt (or from Rigel, his foot, through the belt), follow an imaginary line towards the northeast (up and left). Continue this line until you see two bright stars close together - Castor and Pollux - the heads of Gemini.
For
the
duration there will be a chance of seeing Geminid meteors whenever
the shower’s radiant point – found in the constellation Gemini – is
above the horizon. The number of visible shooting stars increases
as the radiant point rises to its highest point in the night sky.
December also brings the Ursid meteor shower with 5 to
10 shooting stars per hour as the Earth passes thru the debris field of Comet
8P/Tuttle.
Although not as spectacular as the Geminids peak action coincides with
the solstice the evening of the 21st and 22nd. This year the new moon occurs a few days before the Ursids peak, so you'll enjoy dark skies. Best time is before dawn with 10-15 meteors per hour.
Mark your calendar and if your
catch a cold, clear, winter sky bundle-up and take some time to sit outside and
observe the heavens.
The Orionid meteor shower featured in this post originates in the debris left behind by Halley's Comet.
Halley completes a circumnavigation of our sun every 76 years or
thereabouts. It last visited us in 1986 and will return in 2061.
Nevertheless, the dust trail left behind in its path does not disappear
and is intercepted every year in late October.
As
particulate matter from the debris trail enters our atmosphere it
burns-up producing the Orionid meteor shower. The orbit of the earth is
opposite that of the debris (Retrograde is the Word Of The Day)
resulting in fast-moving shooting stars. We also collide with the
debris once-again in May which results in the Eta Aquariids meteor
show. Halley is responsible for two meteor shows a year.
The
overall duration of this shower is from September 26 to November 22 and
is scheduled to peak on the evenings of October 21 with
the best opportunities after midnight and before dawn.
This month's New Moon coincides with tomorrow evening. New moons have no moonlight to clutter your viewing conditions and if you have clear skies viewing conditions could be optimal. The
radiant for the Orionids originates from the constellation Orion the
Hunter so fix yourself a cuppa hot cocoa or a glass of Merlot and keep
your fingers-crossed for good viewing conditions.
In the first week of September, Mars will lie low in the west and near Spica, the brightest star in the constellation Virgo. You’ll need a clear western horizon to spot them in the
evening twilight. Then on September 12, Mars will line up with Spica,
which currently shines much brighter than the red planet. After
mid-month, Mars will become more difficult to spot low on the western
horizon. Mars will be descending more each night this month, setting
with the sun by month’s end.
Consider making a wish-upon a star after the sun goes down. To make it easy I'll give you a couple to look for beginning this evening and it doesn't even require you to stay up late or rise from your slumber in an early morning.
After sunset and as the sky darkens step outside and cast your gaze to the southern sky.
Image credit - Starry Night
You will be able to spot yellow-orange Arcturus in the constellation Boötes (the Herdsman) This happens to be the fourth-brightest star found in the whole of the night sky worldwide.
Next, cast your gaze to the east to locate an equally bright star Vega in the constellation Lyra (the Harp). Two very bright stars in the June night sky to wish-upon.
If you locate constellation Orion (roughly center) you will
find Mars (upper left quadrant) and Jupiter (upper right quadrant).
Glow of Green Bay bottom right corner.
The three stars in the constellation Orion's belt may look alike to you and I; however, they substantially differ under closer scrutiny.
Magnitude 1.85 Alnitak (left) and magnitude 1.65 Alnilam (center) shine with almost the same brightness even though Alnilam is almost twice as far away. Magnitude 2.4 star Mintaka (Orion's right hip) is substantially dimmer. Both Alnilam and Mintaka are bright white and Alnitak is blueish in tone.
The very earliest memory of night sky objects I learned-of as a child is the Pleiades. This cluster of stars commonly known as the Seven Sisters is found in the constellation Taurus, The Bull. In Greek mythology Atlas' daughters turned into this group of stars. If, like me, you've ever owned a Subaru automobile you would be reminded of it on almost a near daily basis.
With cold, clear, viewing conditions this evening you can observe our moon eclipse this star cluster. This is technically known as an occultation. Because of the moon's orbit, from time-to-time it occults the Pleiades.
Look high above the east as soon as it gets dark and you will observe a waxing gibbous moon alongside the Pleiades and over the next three or four hours will over across the star cluster.
If you have binoculars, use them to counter the brightness of the moon.
Here's an opportunity you don't have to stay-up late for.
Image credit: Chris Vaughan/Starry Night
Shortly after sunset this evening look to the eastern sky and locate the moon. Just below you will discern a very bright planet. This is Jupiter.
If you want to stay -up late you can tract their ascent in the southern sky until they attain their highest position shortly after midnight. Afterwards they both descend towards the western horizon as dawn approaches.
At this point the diurnal rotation of the sky will move Jupiter to the left of the moon.
The gigantic winter hexagon asterism, a ring made-up of the brightest stars in the winter constellations of Taurus, Auriga, Gemini, Canis Major, Canis Minor and Orion will surround Jupiter for the Winter.
With November comes the Leonid meteor shower. The 2024 Leonids will be a reasonably laid-back
affair with the early morning opportunity to observe shooting stars
between November 6 to 30. The peak display will be this evening and into tomorrow Sunday morning
November 17.
The meteors originate when the orbital path of the earth collides with the debris left behind by comets.
These bits and pieces of comet detritus enter the earth’s atmosphere
with the resulting vaporization creating the streaks of light we call
meteors.
The debris associated with the repeated passage of the comet Tempel-Tuttle
results in this November display. Like other meteor showers, this one
will be best viewed after midnight. Turn your gaze toward the constellation Leo the Lion, where the shooting stars appear to emanate.
The 2024 Leonids
are a moderate meteor shower with a peak display of about 10-15 meteors
per hour. Regulus, the brightest star in the constellation Leo the
Lion, dots a backwards question mark of stars known as the Sickle. If
you trace all the “shooting stars” from the Leonid meteor shower
backward, they appear to radiate from this area of the sky.
Interference of moonlight may wash-out many of the meteors visible in a
darker sky. Nevertheless, a dark rural location with minimal light
pollution may yield good results.
Tempel-Tuttle
is a periodic visitor that will return in 2031. it is worthy of
mention that the Leonids can be stunning on rare occasions. With the
reappearance of Tempel-Tuttle every 33 years the debris left in its wake
can result in meteors up to a rate of 1000 an hour! 2001 was a very
good November and 1966 was breathtaking.
Unfortunately, a bright moon is going to shine on your meteor parade all night long competing with the fainter meteors.
Fingers-crossed for cold, clear viewing conditions and early rising if you have to get out of bed to pee.....
The Orionid meteor shower featured in this post originates in the debris left behind by Halley's Comet.
Halley completes a circumnavigation of our sun every 76 years or
thereabouts. It last visited us in 1986 and will return in 2061.
Nevertheless, the dust trail left behind in its path does not disappear
and is intercepted every year in late October.
As
particulate matter from the debris trail enters our atmosphere it
burns-up producing the Orionid meteor shower. The orbit of the earth is
opposite that of the debris (Retrograde is the Word Of The Day)
resulting in fast-moving shooting stars. We also collide with the
debris once-again in May which results in the Eta Aquariids meteor
show. Halley is responsible for two meteor shows a year.
The
overall duration of this shower is from September 26 to November 22 and
is scheduled to peak on the evenings of October 20 and 21 with
the best opportunities after midnight and before dawn.
The
radiant for the Orionids originates from the constellation Orion the
Hunter so fix yourself a cuppa hot cocoa or a glass of Merlot and keep
your fingers-crossed for good viewing conditions.
One of the bright spots (pun intended) of the fall and winter night sky is a bright star cluster called the Pleiades. Colloquially-known as the Seven Sisters you will be able to locate it tonight to the upper-right of a waning gibbous moon.
The glare from a bright moon may wash-out some of the cluster so a pair of binoculars might be helpful.
Something to look for in the night sky that doesn't require a late night.
As the sun sets tonight cast your gaze to the southwest. With the naked eye you should be able to spot the crescent moon to a the very bright planet, Venus.
They'll both return to visit tomorrow.
If you use binoculars be sure to wait until the sun has fully set. You don't want to inadvertently scorch your eyeballs...
Posts
