Posts Tagged ‘waxing crescent moon’
Sky Tonight—March 6, Crescent moon and Jupiter after
Courtesy of EarthSky A Clear Voice for Science Visit EarthSky at www.EarthSky.org As seen from North America on March 6, the waxing crescent moon and dazzling planet Jupiter shine nearly side by side in the western sky after sunset. Understanding moon phases Given clear skies, virtually everyone in the northern hemisphere will see the two brightest celestial bodies of the March evening sky – the moon and Jupiter – at dusk and nightfall tonight. In Europe, Africa, and Asia, people will see ... Full Story
Sky Tonight—February 9, Shedding light on the
Courtesy of EarthSky A Clear Voice for Science Visit EarthSky at www.EarthSky.org Look south to southwest this early evening to view the waxing crescent moon. The moon’s disk is nearly 40% illuminated by sunshine and 60% engulfed in its own shadow. Tonight, the moon shines near the three brightest stars of the constellation Aries: Hamal, Sheratan, and Mesarthim. Half the moon is always illuminated in space. In other words, the moon has a day side and a night side, just as Earth does. Due ... Full Story
Sky Tonight—February 8, Use Big Dipper’s Pointers
Courtesy of EarthSky A Clear Voice for Science Visit EarthSky at www.EarthSky.org If you can find the Big Dipper in the northern sky in mid to late evening tonight, you can find the North Star, Polaris. The Big Dipper is not a constellation. Instead, it is an asterism, just a recognizable pattern of stars on the sky’s dome. It is part of the constellation Ursa Major, the Greater Bear. Big and Little Dippers: Noticeable in northern sky A well-known trick for finding the North Star, or Polaris, ... Full Story
Sky Tonight—February 5, Moon closer to Jupiter
Courtesy of EarthSky A Clear Voice for Science Visit EarthSky at www.EarthSky.org The brilliant point of light above tonight’s waxing crescent moon is Jupiter, the 5th planet outward from the sun. These two worlds – our companion moon and the solar system’s largest planet – are the brightest objects in the evening sky now. Look for them in the west, shortly after sunset. Jupiter – the king of planets in our sun’s system – has over 60 known moons of its own. Only four of these ... Full Story
Sky Tonight—Moon and Jupiter still close
Courtesy of EarthSky A Clear Voice for Science Visit EarthSky at www.EarthSky.org Our sky chart shows the waxing crescent moon and the blazing planet Jupiter as viewed from North America. However, no matter where you live, it should be a piece of cake to find Jupiter this evening. Look for the very brilliant star-like object near tonight’s moon, and that will be Jupiter. For us in North America, the moon will shine at roughly the same distance from Jupiter tonight that it did yesterday. ... Full Story
Sky Tonight—January 9, Watch moon and Jupiter
Courtesy of EarthSky A Clear Voice for Science Visit EarthSky at www.EarthSky.org The first two celestial objects to pop out at evening dusk are the waxing crescent moon and the dazzling planet Jupiter. The moon and Jupiter rank as the brightest and second brightest heavenly bodies in the evening sky, respectively. The position of the moon and Jupiter at evening dusk depends on where you live worldwide. Way up north – like in Alaska – the moon and Jupiter will appear rather low in southern ... Full Story
Sky Tonight— January 8, Elusive Mercury farthest
Courtesy of EarthSky A Clear Voice for Science Visit EarthSky at www.EarthSky.org Bright star on January 2011 evenings? It’s the planet Jupiter Tomorrow – on Sunday, January 9, 2011 – the planet Mercury swings to its greatest distance west of the sun as seen in Earth’s sky. That means people around the world with a level horizon and a clear sky can view Mercury climbing over the eastern horizon just as darkness gives way to dawn. If you don’t see Mercury right away, wait for this ... Full Story
EarthSky Tonight—Nov 11, North Taurid meteors during
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
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
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