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Tuesday, March 19, 2024

‘Earth & Sky’ Archives

EarthSky Tonight—Nov 14, Waxing moon approaching

EarthSky Tonight—Nov 14, Waxing moon approaching Jupiter

Courtesy of EarthSky A Clear Voice for Science Visit EarthSky at www.EarthSky.org Given clear skies, everyone around the world will see the blazing planet Jupiter reaching its highest point tonight around 8 p.m. local time tonight. Moreover, everyone will see the waxing gibbous moon to the west of Jupiter. Watch as Jupiter chases the moon westward across the sky throughout the evening hours tonight. Depending on where you live worldwide, the moon will set in the west at late evening or after ... Full Story

EarthSky Tonight—Nov 13, Big Dipper bowl points to

EarthSky Tonight—Nov 13, Big Dipper bowl points to bright star Capella

Courtesy of EarthSky A Clear Voice for Science Visit EarthSky at www.EarthSky.org You can use the Big Dipper to find the brilliant star Capella in the constellation Auriga the Charioteer. The top two bowl stars point toward Capella, as we depict on today’s sky chart. The phrase spring up and fall down gives you some idea of the Big Dipper’s place in the evening sky. On fall evenings, the Big Dipper sits way down low in the northern sky. On spring evenings, the Big Dipper shines high ... Full Story

EarthSky Tonight—Nov 12, Big Dipper, aka Sky Bear,

EarthSky Tonight—Nov 12, Big Dipper, aka Sky Bear, comes to Earth on November evenings

Courtesy of EarthSky A Clear Voice for Science www.EarthSky.org In our northern hemisphere, the Big Dipper is probably the sky’s best-known asterism. In other words, it’s a recognizable pattern of stars – not an official constellation. The Big Dipper is part of the constellation Ursa Major, otherwise known as the Great Bear. Every year, the Big Dipper (Great Bear) descends to its lowest point in the sky on November evenings. In fact, people in the southern part of the United States ... Full Story

EarthSky Tonight—Nov 11, North Taurid meteors during

EarthSky Tonight—Nov 11, North Taurid meteors during night

Courtesy of EarthSky A Clear Voice for Science www.EarthSky.org You’re likely to see the most North Taurid meteors in the wee hours – just after midnight. This shower is going on now and might continue through the weekend. The North Taurids are generally a very modest shower, offering perhaps 10 meteors per hour. However, even one bright meteor can be a treat. The North Taurid meteors derive their name from the constellation Taurus the Bull. If you trace the paths of the Taurid meteors ... Full Story

EarthSky Tonight—Tonight Nov 10, Can we see stars

EarthSky Tonight—Tonight Nov 10, Can we see stars outside our Milky Way galaxy?

Courtesy of EarthSky A Clear Voice for Science www.EarthSky.org One of you wrote, “Are there any stars outside our own galaxy that we can see with just the eye?” The answer is no – unless you count seeing the combined light of many billions of stars. From the northern hemisphere, the only galaxy outside our Milky Way that is easily visible to the eye is the great galaxy in the constellation Andromeda – also known as M31. It is shown in the image at the top of this post. In late ... Full Story

EarthSky Tonight—Nov 9, Use constellation Cassiopeia

EarthSky Tonight—Nov 9, Use constellation Cassiopeia to find Andromeda galaxy

Courtesy of EarthSky A Clear Voice for Science www.EarthSky.org David Smith of Michigan wrote, "What is the easiest way to find the Andromeda galaxy at this time of year?" “I tried a couple times with my telescope, but had no luck." Dave, the image at right shows the view of the Andromeda galaxy through a telescope. We hope you are not looking through the eyepiece of your telescope when sweeping through the sky for this galaxy. That would be hard. You need a wider field of view to spot the ... Full Story

EarthSky Tonight—Nov 8, Young moon easier to spot

EarthSky Tonight—Nov 8, Young moon easier to spot after sunset on November 8

Courtesy of EarthSky A Clear Voice for Science www.EarthSky.org The young waxing crescent moon should be much easier to spot after sunset this evening than it was yesterday. Yesterday, the moon shone closer to the setting sun, so the moon followed the sunbeneath the horizon shortly after sundown. Tonight’s moon will be higher in the sky and will stay out longer after sunset. From our mid-northern latitudes, the lunar crescent sits low in the southwest sky at dusk and nightfall. Keep in ... Full Story

EarthSky Tonight—Tonight Nov 7, Can you see the

EarthSky Tonight—Tonight Nov 7, Can you see the young moon?

Courtesy of EarthSky A Clear Voice for Science www.EarthSky.org Bright object in the southeast on November evenings? It’s the planet Jupiter Will you catch the young moon slip in and out of the twilight dusk after sunset tonight? You might, if you live at mid-northern latitudes or farther south in North America. At mid-northern latitudes in Europe and Asia, you will have to wait until after sunset Monday. However, all latitudes south of the equator have a decent chance of spotting the young ... Full Story

EarthSky Tonight—Nov 6, A famous variable star in

EarthSky Tonight—Nov 6, A famous variable star in the constellation Cepheus

Courtesy of EarthSky A Clear Voice for Science www.EarthSky.org Delta Cephei is a famous variable star in the constellation Cepheus. With clock-like precision, this rather faint star doubles in brightness every 5.36 days. You can see the brightness change best if you contrast this star to others nearby. The constellation Cepheus requires a dark sky to be seen, but if you can spot this constellation, you might be able to find the variable star. You will find it high in your northern sky on ... Full Story

EarthSky Tonight—Tonight Nov 5, Constellation

EarthSky Tonight—Tonight Nov 5, Constellation Cassiopeia high in northeast on November evenings

Courtesy of EarthSky A Clear Voice for Science www.EarthSky.org The constellation Cassiopeia the Queen can be found high in the northeast in the evening at this time of year, not far from Polaris, the North Star. Cassiopeia is an easy constellation to recognize because it is small and compact and looks like the letter M or W, depending on what time of night and what time of year it is. The constellation on today’s chart used to be known among astronomers and skywatchers alike as ... Full Story

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