November Night Sky

The month of November will amplify the beauty of the pre-Christmas night sky with the numerous conjunctions between the moon and the planets, as well as the two major meteor showers that will occur this month. As we approach the December winter solstice, the constellations of Orion, Taurus, Leo and Virgo become more prominent in the sky.

Jupiter will be seen high up in Taurus in the evenings of the whole month, slowly moving westward, approaching a brightness of -2.8 and enlargening to 48 arcseconds as it does so. Saturn and Venus will constantly be visible near the east horizon at dusk, while Mars will be visible near the west horizon at sunset starting the middle of the month.

On November 1, the moon will be in apogee (its farthest distance from the Earth in the lunar cycle it is in). The slightly smaller moon will be seen near the bright planet Jupiter. These two heavenly bodies will approach a distance of only 0.9 degrees the following day, November 2.

Between November 2 to November 7, the Taurids meteor shower will peak. Slow meteors (some may leave trails) will be coming from near the Pleiades cluster in Taurus. However, the Taurids are not expected to be spectacular this year, with only around 7 visible meteors per hour. The moon’s luminosity may outshine the faint meteors, especially since it is only due to be at last quarter on November 7.

On November 11, the moon and Venus will be at close proximity during the pre-dawn hours, being only 5 degrees apart. The next day, it is the moon and Saturn that will be in close proximity, at an even closer 4 degrees apart.

The new moon falls on November 13. Though this will not have a huge impact on skywatchers here in the Philippines, Australia and some southern Pacific islands will be experiencing a total solar eclipse. The track of the moon’s shadow is shown below.

November 14 sees a slightly bigger crescent due to perigee (closest distance of the moon to the Earth), while Venus and Virgo’s alpha star Spica will steal the pre-dawn scene the next day, November 15, by being only 1.9 degrees apart.

On November 16, the crescent moon and Mars will be visible in the west at sunset – the two being only 4 degrees apart. Mars will have a faint glow of 1.2.

On November 17, mercury will be at inferior conjunction, the new moon counterpart for planets.

The more noterworthy astronomical of November 16 and 17 however, is the peak of the Leonids meteor shower. Ten to fifteen (10-15) meteors per hour will be expected emanating from the constellation Leo. The cresent moon’s luminosity will not interfere with this meteor shower as its gibbous phase did during the Taurids.

First quarter falls on November 20.

A week later, on November 27, Venus and Saturn will be an astonishing sight by being a mere 0.6 degrees apart before sunrise, while the Moon will be only 4 degrees away from the Pleiades of Taurus during the evening.

On November 28, another apogee occurs, which coincides with a penumbral lunar eclipse. This slight darkening of the moon will occur close to Juipter and Aldebaran in Taurus.

The last noteworthy astronomical event of the month is when the moon and Jupiter approach being only 0.6 degrees apart. Jupiter nears opposition in December.

References and Image sources:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/2012/oct/28/starwatch-november-night-sky-orion

http://www.absoluteaxarquia.com/nightsky.html

http://yourhub.denverpost.com/denver/november-2012-eye-sky/oplUw5lOG0M0bX9EyKksaL-ugc

http://eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/SEmono/TSE2012/TSE2012.html

http://journeytothestars.wordpress.com/2010/11/18/the-2010-leonids-meteor-shower/

http://earthsky.org/astronomy-essentials/visible-planets-tonight-mars-jupiter-venus-saturn-mercury

http://earthsky.org/tonight/n-taurid-meteors-at-late-night-moon-venus-before-sunrise

http://earthsky.org/tonight/moonless-nights-for-november-leonid-meteors-in-2012

http://earthsky.org/tonight/jupiter-out-all-night-venus-saturn-mercury-before-sunrise

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/November_2012_lunar_eclipse

Prepared by: Benjamin Francis Rodriguez

 

October Night Sky

October is a month for transitions. It also sets the stage for a handful of groupings involving planets and the Moon. Moreover, October marks the peak of two meteor showers.

On October 3, Venus will pair up with Regulus, the alpha star of the constellation Leo before sunrise.

Screenshot from Stellarium Version 0.10.6.1. Location: Quezon City, Philippines

Venus will later pair up with the Moon at its waning crescent phase on October 12.

Screenshot from Stellarium Version 0.10.6.1. Location: Quezon City, Philippines

On October 4, 5 and 6, the Moon will be seen with the stationary Jupiter.

Screenshot from Stellarium Version 0.10.6.1. Location: Quezon City, Philippines

On October 8, the Moon will be at its last quarter phase. This will occur at 7:33 UTC. Also on this day at 2:00 UTC, the Draconid meteor shower will peak. The meteors will appear before the last quarter Moon rises at midnight. Hence, the observation of these meteors will not be affected. Meteors can also be observed a day earlier.

On October 15, the Moon will be at its New Moon phase. It will not be visible from the Earth since no light from the Sun is reflected to us, as the side of the Moon facing us is not lit by the Sun. This will occur at 12:02 UTC.

On October 17 and 18, Mars will be seen with the waxing crescent Moon. Mars can also be seen near Antares, the alpha star of the constellation Scorpius. Mars can be spotted before sunset.

Screenshot from Stellarium Version 0.10.6.1. Location: Quezon City, Philippines

The Orionid meteor shower, a result of the Earth passing the dust trails left by Halley ’s Comet, will peak on October 20-21. It produces peak observed rates of more than 10 per hour (ZHR=25). Nevertheless, meteors can be seen anytime from October 17 to October 25. Brighter Orionids may leave persistent trains. The radiant, the apparent source of the meteors, rises at 21h UT. [1]

On October 22, the Moon will be at its first quarter. This will occur at 03:32 UTC. However, this will not affect the observation of the Orionid meteor shower as the first quarter Moon sets before the Orionid radiant rises.

On October 25, Saturn will leave the starry skies.

On October 26, Mercury will reach its greatest evening elongation at 24° East. It will shine at -0.1 magnitude. The innermost planet in Solar System will most likely be seen at dusk, and it will be hard for the observers in the Northern Hemisphere to spot it after the sunset.

On October 29, a Full Moon will lighten the night skies. This will occur at 19:49 UTC.

At the start of the month, Venus can be seen at the constellation Leo. Later in October, it can be seen moving towards Virgo. The planet’s apparent diameter decreases, whilst its gibbous phase grows at a significant illuminated proportion. It will remain a morning star all throughout the month and for the rest of the year. The planet is 35° west of the Sun and is 28° high at sunrise as the month ends.

All throughout 2012, Jupiter can be seen near the constellation Taurus. In early October, observers can see it rising by mid-evening. Towards the end of the month, it can be seen rising after sunset. It brightens from magnitude -2.3 to -2.7 and its apparent diameter grows from 39 to 47 arcseconds.

Sources:

Society for Popular Astronomy. Sky Diary: A Summary of sky events during September and October. In: Society for Popular Astronomy [Internet]. [cited 01 October 2012]. Available from: http://www.popastro.com/documents/SkyDiary.pdf

Sea and Sky. Astronomy Calendar of Celestial Events for  Calendar Year 2012. In: The Sky [Internet] [cited 01 October 2012] Available from: http://www.seasky.org/astronomy/astronomy-calendar-2012.html

Legendary Draconid meteors best after sunset October 7. In: EarthSky: A clear voice of science article [Internet]. [cited 01 October 2012]. Available from: http://earthsky.org/tonight/legendary-draconids-boom-or-bust

October 2012 guide to the five visible planets. In: EarthSky: A clear voice of science article [Internet]. [updated 05 September 2012; cited 01 October 2012]. Available from: http://earthsky.org/astronomy-essentials/visible-planets-tonight-mars-jupiter-venus-saturn-mercury

Prepared by: Ericka Jane Angeles

August Night Sky

Meteor Showers and Blue Moon

August may not be the very best month to observe the night sky in the country due to the greyness of the sky overhead and the fickleness of the rainfall, but those are not reasons to be discouraged, who knows, maybe we get lucky and we get to wish upon a meteor. This month we’ll have varied astronomical events to observe like meteor showers, planetary conjunction, planetary opposition and elongation. Observing all these astronomical events during this time of the year may be a “one in a blue moon” chance, but guess what? This month we’ll have an extra full moon (blue moon) to watch upon.

August 2 - Full Moon. This day marks the first full moon of the. This phase occurs at 03:27 UTC.

August 12 - Jupiter - Lunar Occultation. The crescent moon will pass in front of the planet Jupiter. The occultation will taje place at about 2:40 am to 3:22am in the morning of the 12th.

Image from stellarium

August 12, 13 - Perseids Meteor Shower. The Perseids meteor shower is claimed to be one of the best meteor showers having up to 90 meteors per hour at its peak. Just look at the northeast to see the constellation Perseus, the meteor showers’ radiant point, after midnight. The shower is said to be coming from the dust remnants of the comet Swift-Tuttel.

August 14 – Conjunction. The crescent moon will be in a conjunction with the planet Venus early in the morning.

Image from Stellarium

August 15, 16 – Mercury and Venus at Maximum Elongation. Mercury is at maximum western elongation at the morning of the 16th and Venus was at its maximum western elongation on the morning of the 15th. The view of the planet is at its best because the planets will be at their farthest from the Sun as seen from Earth.

 August 21 – Grouping. Early in the evening of the 21st the moon, the planets Mars and Saturn, with the bright star Spica will be in a close grouping.

Screenshot from stellarium.org: August 1, 2012, 12:56 pm, Manila, Philippines

August 24 - Neptune at Opposition. The blue planet, Neptune, will be at its closest point from Earth, and it will be fully illuminated from the Sun, making it the best time to observe the distant planet. Using a telescope, it will look like a tiny blue dot, just point into the two innermost stars of the constellation Capricornous, Deneb Algiedi, and Nashira.

August 31 - Full Moon (Blue Moon). The date marks the rise of the second full moon or commonly called the blue moon. This phase occurs at 13:58 UTC. This event only happens once every few years, thus the term “once in a blue moon” was coined.

Moon Phases, August 2012
Full Moon – August 2, 03:27
Last Quarter – August 9, 18:55
New Moon – August 17, 15:54
First Quarter – August 24, 13:54
Full Moon – August 31, 13:58 (blue moon)

Prepared by: Kristine Jane Atienza

July Night Sky

This month gives a lot of wonderful groupings in the night sky. Venus and Jupiter, 4.8˚ apart, welcome us as we approach the month of July. Midway through the month, the sky offers a perfect photo opportunity for the grouping of Venus, Jupiter, Aldebaran – the red eye of Taurus, the Moon, and the star cluster Pleiades, also known as the Seven Sisters. The grouping of Saturn, Mars, Spica which is the brightest star of the Virgo constellation, and the Moon will also be a delightful scenery at the end of the month.

Planet Saturn is a perfect object for telescope viewing for the whole month. Don’t miss the opportunity of seeing the rings of Saturn.