Posts Tagged ‘waning gibbous moon’
Sky Tonight—April 27, Leo loses his tail. We gain a
Courtesy of EarthSky A Clear Voice for Science Visit EarthSky at www.EarthSky.org Tonight’s chart again shows the evening sky high to the south. To the upper left of the constellation Leo the Lion are dozens of very faint stars. They make up the constellation Coma Berenices, otherwise known as Berenice’s Hair. The Greek-Egyptian astronomer Ptolemy and others considered it the tuft at the end of Leo the Lion’s tail. Coma Berenices remained part of Leo until a few hundred years ago, when it ... Full Story
Sky Tonight—April 26, Star-hop from Leo to the Coma
Courtesy of EarthSky A Clear Voice for Science Visit EarthSky at www.EarthSky.org Our diagram shows the constellation Leo the Lion for about 9 p.m. to 10 p.m. tonight. At this time, the Lion will be due south and at his highest point in the sky. Two distinctive star patterns make the Lion easy to identify. Leo’s brightest star – the sparkling blue-white gem Regulus – dots a backward question mark of stars known as The Sickle. If you see a Lion in this pattern of stars, the Sickle outlines ... Full Story
Sky Tonight—April 25, Orion descends in the west
Courtesy of EarthSky A Clear Voice for Science Visit EarthSky at www.EarthSky.org The famous constellation Orion will soon disappear for another season. At this time of year, Orion is descending in the southwest to west in the hours after sunset. This constellation is noticeable for its bright stars and its distinctive pattern on the sky’s dome. Look for three stars in a short, straight row. Also look for Betelgeuse and Rigel, Orion’s brightest stars. If you did not come to know it this ... Full Story
Sky Tonight—March 24, Predawn moon near the
Courtesy of EarthSky A Clear Voice for Science Visit EarthSky at www.EarthSky.org On the morning of Friday, March 25, 2011, the waning gibbous moon helps you to locate the two “tail-end” stars of the constellation Scorpius the Scorpion. These two very noticeable stars – called Shaula and Lesath – are often shown on old star maps at the tip of the Scorpion’s stinger. Shaula and Lesath mean raised tail and stinger respectively in Arabic, although there is some controversy over the ... Full Story
Sky Tonight—Tuesday, March 22, Mercury farthest from
Courtesy of EarthSky A Clear Voice for Science Visit EarthSky at www.EarthSky.org Mercury, the solar system’s innermost planet, never strays far from the sun and into Earth’s nighttime sky. Today, however, this world reaches its greatest elongation east of the sun at 7 p.m. Mountain Daylight Time. Mercury swings to the end of its tether, at 19 degrees east of the sun. (For reference, your fist at an arm’s length approximates 10 degrees of sky.) Nineteen degrees east of the sun is not very ... Full Story
Sky Tonight—March 21, As Mercury sets, zodiacal
Courtesy of EarthSky A Clear Voice for Science Visit EarthSky at www.EarthSky.org After the sun sets, you can see the elusive planet Mercury – and the even more elusive zodiacal light – in the western sky. For those living in the northern hemisphere, this next week presents the best chance in all of 2011 to see Mercury, the solar system’s innermost planet. Meanwhile, if you have a very dark sky, the zodiacal light can be seen in the west about an hour after sunset through March and ... Full Story
Sky Tonight—March 20, The 2011 March equinox
Courtesy of EarthSky A Clear Voice for Science Visit EarthSky at www.EarthSky.org The March equinox happens today at 23:21 Universal Time, which is 17:21 (5:21 p.m.) Mountain Daylight Time for us in the U.S. The March equinox signals the beginning of spring in the northern hemisphere and autumn in the southern hemisphere. It marks that special moment when the sun crosses the celestial equator going from south to north. How do I translate Universal Time into my time? Celebrate the change of ... Full Story
Sky Tonight—Feb 23, Moon by Scorpion’s Crown
Courtesy of EarthSky A Clear Voice for Science Visit EarthSky at www.EarthSky.org Before dawn tomorrow – on Thursday, February 24 – the moon will be near the upper part of the constellation Scorpius. These three stars are sometimes called the Crown of the Scorpion. Scorpius – which now rises in the south-southeastern sky an hour or two after midnight – is the constellation of the Scorpion. Individually, the Crown stars are Graffias, Dschubba, and Pi Scorpii. It is rare when star ... Full Story
Sky Tonight—Feb 22, Stars in the daytime
Courtesy of EarthSky A Clear Voice for Science Visit EarthSky at www.EarthSky.org People often ask if stars are up there, beyond our blue sky, during the day. The answer is surely yes, because Earth is a planet in space, surrounded on all sides by stars. Here is a view looking southeast at morning in late February or early March. Of course you really cannot see the stars, but they are there. Cool image of daytime moon from December 18, 2010 The constellation behind the sun around now is ... Full Story
Sky Tonight—Feb 21, Zodiacal light is glowing
Courtesy of EarthSky A Clear Voice for Science Visit EarthSky at www.EarthSky.org Moonless February and March evenings present the best time of year to see zodiacal light in the northern hemisphere evening sky. The light appears when all traces of twilight have left the sky. It looks like a hazy pyramid of light in the west after true darkness falls. This light can be noticeable and easy to see from latitudes like those in the southern U.S. I’ve seen it many times from the latitude of ... Full Story
