Saturday: Do
you ever wonder who comes up with the official names for objects in the Solar
System? Names such as Sedna, Haumea, and Makemake? The International
Astronomical Union (IAU) does. What about all of those planets that have been
discovered orbiting other stars? The IAU will name those as well… but with your
help. They are starting a contest at http://nameexoworlds.org/ in which
individuals and clubs can propose names for a limited number of objects. The
number of objects on the list depends on how many individuals and clubs are
interested. So go to http://nameexoworlds.org/#planets, look at
the big list of planets, and start to feel at inspiration.
Sunday: Take
a two and a half hour walk. Too long, you say? Forty-five years ago today, Neil
Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin took the first ever walk by humans on another world.
They spend two and a half hours setting up scientific instruments and
collecting rocks for study back on Earth. Michael Collins orbited the Moon in
the spacecraft the astronauts would use to return to Earth.
Monday: Mars
is the reddish object exactly two fists held upright and at arm’s length above
the southwest horizon and Saturn is the orangeish object two fists to the left
of it. Speaking of –ish, the star Spica is the bluish less than a half a fist
to the lower right of Mars.
Tuesday: Hot
enough for you? If not, astronomers using NASA’s Spitzer Space telescope think
they have discovered a molten planet orbiting a star almost right next door on
an astronomical scale – only 33 light years away. This planet is about
two-thirds the diameter of Earth and is VERY close to its parent star – about
2% of the Earth-Sun distance. The star, GJ 436, is a dim red dwarf star. For
more information about this discovery, read the NASA press release at http://goo.gl/9nY8w.
Wednesday:
The Southern Delta Aquarid meteor shower peaks for the next few weeks with the
greatest concentration of meteors being visible next week. Meteor showers are
named after the constellation from which the meteors appear to originate. These
meteors appear to come from a point in Aquarius near the star Delta Aquarii,
also known as Skat. This point is about one and a half fists held upright and
at arm’s length above the southeast horizon at 1 am tonight. You can follow
this point throughout the night, as it will remain a fist above Fomalhaut, the
brightest star in that section of the sky. The
best time to view the shower is after midnight between moonset and dawn. The
next two weeks will bring excellent meteor watching conditions because the moon
will be below the horizon during the prime viewing times after midnight. For
more information about this year’s shower, go to http://goo.gl/Uoxvda. As you
Mother might say, dress warm and sit in a comfortable chair for maximum
enjoyment. Meteors are tiny rocks that hit the Earth and burn up in the
atmosphere.
Thursday: Venus,
Mercury, and the waning crescent moon are crowded low in the northeastern sky
this morning. At 4:30 a.m., the moon is a half a fist above the east-northeast
horizon and Venus is a half a fist to the upper left of the moon. Mercury will
be a challenge to find, one fist to the lower left of Venus.
Friday: Now
that Pluto’s two newest moons have been named Kerberos and Styx, the dwarf
planet system is probably going to release a Styx tribute album featuring these
songs. Blue Color Plan(et): “I’ll take those long nights, impossible
cold, keeping my eye for the spacecraft. If it takes nine years to show me in
the cam. Well, I’m gonna be a blue color plan(et)”. Too Much Time on my Hands:
“Is it any wonder I take two-fifty years? Is it any wonder I’m made of hail? Is
it any wonder I’ve got too much time on my hands”. The New Horizons spacecraft,
on a nine year journey to reach Pluto in 2015, even has a contribution to the
album: “Babe, I’m leaving, I must be on my way. Pluto is drawing near.” You
can’t see Pluto with binoculars or even a small telescope. But you can read
about the New Horizons spacecraft, which is less than a year out from Pluto. Go
to http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/newhorizons/main/
for more information.
The
positional information in this column about stars and planets is typically
accurate for the entire week. For up to date information about the night sky,
go to https://nightsky.jpl.nasa.gov/planner.cfm.
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