Saturday: In Scotland, August 1 was known as Lammas, the festival of the first wheat harvest of the year. You can remember this by looking at Spica, named for the Latin word for “ear of wheat”, one fist held upright and at arm’s length above the west-southwest horizon at 9:30 p.m. It is also called a cross-quarter day, a day approximately half way between an equinox and a solstice.
Sunday: The solar system’s cleaner is one fist above the southeast horizon at 10 p.m. Oh, you may know it as Jupiter. But as the hole in Jupiter’s atmosphere can attest, Jupiter helps rid the solar system of objects potentially hazardous to life on Earth. Astronomers think that a comet or asteroid collided with Jupiter about two weeks ago, opening up a nearly Earth-sized scar on Jupiter.
Monday: Are you thirsty? The Big Dipper can hold your water late at night. The cup is facing upright about two fists above the north-northwest horizon at 11:30 p.m.
Tuesday: Had the script been written a little differently for a well known Robin Williams movie, we may have heard Mr. Williams shout, “Goooood Morning Orion the hunter”. Orion is typically thought of as a winter constellation. But, it makes its first appearance in the summer sky. The lowest corner of Orion’s body, represented by the star Saiph (pronounced “safe”), rises at 4:30 a.m., well before the Sun. By 5 a.m., Orion’s belt is about one fist above the east-southeast horizon.
Wednesday: The full moon occurs at about 6:00 this evening. When the Moon is full, it is difficult to see dim objects in the sky because of the sky glow. But why struggle to find dim objects when there is so much to see on the big, bright object in front of you? The lunar crater called Tycho is best seen during a full Moon. Tycho was formed about 109 million years ago when an asteroid struck the Moon, leaving a crater over 50 miles in diameter and ejected dust trails visible from Earth that radiate out hundreds of miles in all directions. For more lunar highlights, go to
http://nightsky.jpl.nasa.gov/docs/ObserveMoon.pdf, a resource of the Night Sky Network.
Thursday: Saturn is a half a fist above due west at 9:30 p.m.
Friday: Need a caffeine pick-me-up? Make it a double. Need an astronomy pick-me-up? Make it a double-double. Find Vega, in the constellation Lyra the lyre, nearly straight overhead at 11:00 tonight. Less than half a fist to the east (or left if you are facing south) of the bright bluish star Vega is the “star” Epsilon Lyra. If you look at Epsilon Lyra through binoculars, it looks like two stars. If you look at Epsilon Lyra through a large enough telescope, you will notice that each star in the pair is itself a pair of stars. Each star in the double is double. Hence, Epsilon Lyra is known as the double-double. The stars in each pair orbit a point approximately in the center of each respective pair. The pairs themselves orbit a point between the two pairs.
The positional information in this column about stars and planets is typically accurate for the entire week.
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
Thursday, July 23, 2009
The Ellensburg sky for the week of 7/25/09
Saturday: The Southern Delta Aquarid meteor shower peaks for the next few nights and early mornings with the greatest concentration of meteors being visible Tuesday night and Wednesday morning. 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 tomorrow morning. 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. Since the moon sets before 1 a.m. all week, it will not be out to obscure many meteors so you should be able to see close to 15-20 meteors per hour at peak activity. 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.
Sunday: Speaking of meteor showers, the Perseid meteor shower is NASA’s “Go Observe” object for August. The Perseid meteor shower is typically the most easily visible shower of the year for Northern Hemisphere observers. This year, moonlight will interfere with the dimmer meteors during the peak evenings of August 12 and 13. Luckily, Perseid meteors are visible from about the last week in July until the last week in August so you can start watching the Perseid meteor shower this week. The meteors appear to come from a point just below the W of the constellation Cassiopeia. This point is about two fists above the northeast horizon at 11 p.m. tonight. For more information, go to http://astronomy2009.nasa.gov/observe.htm.
Monday: Say "Cheese". 158 years ago this month, Vega, in the constellation Lyra the lyre, became the first star ever photographed. The photograph was done at the Harvard Observatory using the daguerreotype process. Vega is the third brightest nighttime star we can see in Ellensburg behind Sirius and Arcturus. Vega is nearly straight overhead at 11:00 tonight.
Tuesday: Tonight’s first quarter Moon is in the constellation Virgo the maiden.
Wednesday: When you think of the Solar System, the main objects that come to mind are the planets and the Sun. But much of the evidence of how the Solar System formed comes from meteors, comets, and asteroids. Scientists have been analyzing the small chunks of rocks and ice that fall to Earth. More recently, astronomers have been studying the rocks and ice in outer space with telescopes and space probes. For example, in July, 2005, the NASA mission Deep Impact smashed into a comet to study its structure. For more information about this rather cold “Hot Topic”, go to http://astronomy2009.nasa.gov/topics.htm.
Thursday: Jupiter is one and a half fists above the southeast horizon at 11 p.m.
Friday: Mars is nearly three fists above due east at 4:30 a.m.
The positional information in this column about stars and planets is typically accurate for the entire week.
Sunday: Speaking of meteor showers, the Perseid meteor shower is NASA’s “Go Observe” object for August. The Perseid meteor shower is typically the most easily visible shower of the year for Northern Hemisphere observers. This year, moonlight will interfere with the dimmer meteors during the peak evenings of August 12 and 13. Luckily, Perseid meteors are visible from about the last week in July until the last week in August so you can start watching the Perseid meteor shower this week. The meteors appear to come from a point just below the W of the constellation Cassiopeia. This point is about two fists above the northeast horizon at 11 p.m. tonight. For more information, go to http://astronomy2009.nasa.gov/observe.htm.
Monday: Say "Cheese". 158 years ago this month, Vega, in the constellation Lyra the lyre, became the first star ever photographed. The photograph was done at the Harvard Observatory using the daguerreotype process. Vega is the third brightest nighttime star we can see in Ellensburg behind Sirius and Arcturus. Vega is nearly straight overhead at 11:00 tonight.
Tuesday: Tonight’s first quarter Moon is in the constellation Virgo the maiden.
Wednesday: When you think of the Solar System, the main objects that come to mind are the planets and the Sun. But much of the evidence of how the Solar System formed comes from meteors, comets, and asteroids. Scientists have been analyzing the small chunks of rocks and ice that fall to Earth. More recently, astronomers have been studying the rocks and ice in outer space with telescopes and space probes. For example, in July, 2005, the NASA mission Deep Impact smashed into a comet to study its structure. For more information about this rather cold “Hot Topic”, go to http://astronomy2009.nasa.gov/topics.htm.
Thursday: Jupiter is one and a half fists above the southeast horizon at 11 p.m.
Friday: Mars is nearly three fists above due east at 4:30 a.m.
The positional information in this column about stars and planets is typically accurate for the entire week.
Thursday, July 16, 2009
The Ellensburg sky for the week of 7/18/09
Saturday: Being in a coma is a bad thing. Looking at the Coma Star Cluster is a good thing. The Coma Star Cluster is an open cluster of about 50 stars that takes up more space in the sky than 10 full Moons. It looks like a fuzzy patch with the naked eye. Binoculars reveal dozens of sparkling stars. A telescope actually diminishes from the spectacle because the cluster is so big and the telescope’s field of view is so small. The Coma Star Cluster is in the faint constellation Coma Berenices (ba-ron-ice’-ez) or Queen Berenice’s hair. Queen Berenice of Egypt cut off her beautiful hair as a sacrifice to the gods for the safe return of her husband Ptolemy III from battle. The Coma Star Cluster is about four fists held upright and at arm’s length above the west horizon at 10:30 p.m.
Sunday: Mars, Venus and the Moon make an obtuse triangle low in the eastern sky early this morning. Venus, the brightest planet, is at the obtuse angle, a half a fist to the right of the Moon. Mars is about a fist to the upper right of Venus. At 4:30 a.m., the triangle is two fists above the east horizon.
Monday: Take a two and a half hour walk. Too long, you say? Forty 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 three astronauts would use to return to Earth. There is a special news conference featuring NASA astronauts from 6:30-7:30 a.m. Pacific Daylight Time to commemorate the event. At 9:30 a.m. Pacific Daylight Time, NASA astronauts and officials will answer questions from people at science museums all across the country. Both of these events will be broadcast live today on NASA-TV and at http://www.nasa.gov/ntv. For more information about 40th anniversary events, go to http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/apollo/40th/events.html.
Tuesday: Just as we did for the previous new Moon, it is time to revisit that well known astronomy version of the Blondie hit song The Tide is High. In the astronomy version, Debbie Harry sang: “The tide is high ‘cause the moon is new. Higher still when the moon’s close, too.” The last two new Moons have occurred near when the Moon is at perigee. Tides are high during the new Moon phase because the moon and Sun are both stretching the Earth in the same direction causing the ocean water in line with the Sun and moon to be pulled upward. Tonight's moon is new. When the Moon is at perigee, it is at its closest to the Earth which accentuates the upward pull on the water and makes the tides really high.
Wednesday: Jupiter is one fist above the southeast horizon at 11 p.m.
Thursday: Do you wish it was easy to find due north? After all, a compass points to magnetic north which is a few degrees off of true geographic north. Well, tonight’s your night. Capella, the brightest star in the constellation Auriga the Charioteer, is due north at exactly 10:14 p.m. It looks like a bright light on a pole on the north ridge because is only about one degree above the horizon.
Friday: Saturn is one fist above the west horizon at 9:30 p.m.
The positional information in this column about stars and planets is typically accurate for the entire week.
Sunday: Mars, Venus and the Moon make an obtuse triangle low in the eastern sky early this morning. Venus, the brightest planet, is at the obtuse angle, a half a fist to the right of the Moon. Mars is about a fist to the upper right of Venus. At 4:30 a.m., the triangle is two fists above the east horizon.
Monday: Take a two and a half hour walk. Too long, you say? Forty 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 three astronauts would use to return to Earth. There is a special news conference featuring NASA astronauts from 6:30-7:30 a.m. Pacific Daylight Time to commemorate the event. At 9:30 a.m. Pacific Daylight Time, NASA astronauts and officials will answer questions from people at science museums all across the country. Both of these events will be broadcast live today on NASA-TV and at http://www.nasa.gov/ntv. For more information about 40th anniversary events, go to http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/apollo/40th/events.html.
Tuesday: Just as we did for the previous new Moon, it is time to revisit that well known astronomy version of the Blondie hit song The Tide is High. In the astronomy version, Debbie Harry sang: “The tide is high ‘cause the moon is new. Higher still when the moon’s close, too.” The last two new Moons have occurred near when the Moon is at perigee. Tides are high during the new Moon phase because the moon and Sun are both stretching the Earth in the same direction causing the ocean water in line with the Sun and moon to be pulled upward. Tonight's moon is new. When the Moon is at perigee, it is at its closest to the Earth which accentuates the upward pull on the water and makes the tides really high.
Wednesday: Jupiter is one fist above the southeast horizon at 11 p.m.
Thursday: Do you wish it was easy to find due north? After all, a compass points to magnetic north which is a few degrees off of true geographic north. Well, tonight’s your night. Capella, the brightest star in the constellation Auriga the Charioteer, is due north at exactly 10:14 p.m. It looks like a bright light on a pole on the north ridge because is only about one degree above the horizon.
Friday: Saturn is one fist above the west horizon at 9:30 p.m.
The positional information in this column about stars and planets is typically accurate for the entire week.
Thursday, July 9, 2009
The Ellensburg sky for the week of 7/11/09
Saturday: At 10 p.m., the bright star Regulus is a little less than one fist held upright and at arm’s length above the west horizon. Saturn is one less than a half a fist to the upper left of Regulus. But, who is this Regulus? He has many potential identities. The most interesting from a pop culture standpoint is Regulus Black, the brother of Sirius Black who is Harry Potter’s godfather. Regulus Black was a former follower of Voldemort, the bad guy of the Harry Potter series. However, Regulus tried to dissociate himself from Voldemort and was killed. He would be in the pile of forgotten Harry Potter characters except that he is so interesting. Also, in the sixth book, Harry found an important note written by someone known only by the initials R.A.B. Humm. R.A.B. Regulus A. Black perhaps? If you’re too lazy to read the book and learn more about R.A.B., the sixth Harry Potter movie is coming out this Wednesday.
Sunday: Bellatrix Lestrange is Sirius Black’s cousin. But, far from being kissing cousins. They are killing cousins. Bellatrix kills Sirius in a fight at the Ministry of Magic. Bellatrix the star is the third brightest star in the constellation Orion the hunter. You can find it a half a fist above the east horizon at 4:30 am. But, don’t turn you back on it!
Monday: Hot enough for you? Don’t blame the Earth-Sun distance. Surprisingly, the overall temperature of the Earth is slightly higher in July, when the Earth is farthest from the Sun, than in January, when it is closest. That’s because in July, the Northern Hemisphere is tilted towards the Sun. (This is the real cause of the seasons.) The Northern Hemisphere has more land than the Southern Hemisphere. Thus, in July, the large amount of Northern Hemisphere land heats up the entire Earth about two degrees Celsius warmer than in January. In January, the watery Southern Hemisphere is tilted toward the Sun. But, water does not heat up as fast as land so the Earth is a few degrees cooler.
Tuesday: Draco Malfoy, Harry Potter’s young nemesis, is related to Sirius Black. Draco’s mother, Narcissa Black (Sirius’ cousin) helped develop a plan to trap Harry at the Ministry of Magic in the fifth book. Draco’s namesake, the constellation Draco the dragon is one of the largest constellations in the sky, winding around the North Star. Draco’s head is a four-sided figure nearly straight overhead at 11 p.m.
Wednesday: Venus is two fists above the east horizon at 4 a.m. Aldebaran, the brightest star in the constellation Taurus, is less than a half a fist to the lower right of Venus. Mars is a little more than a half a fist to the upper right of Venus.
Thursday: Not every woman in the Black family is evil. Andromeda Black, Bellatrix’s sister, is a good witch and the mother of Tonks, a young witch from the last few Harry Potter books. (If these Harry Potter references are confusing, talk to a young adolescent about them.) Andromeda the constellation is an interesting one. It contains the Andromeda galaxy, the most distant object visible with the naked eye from a dark site. To locate the Andromeda Galaxy, first find the Great Square of Pegasus. At 11:00 p.m., the left hand corner of the square is about two fists above the east-northeast horizon. Less than two fists to the left and down a little bit is another star the same brightness as the star at the corner of the square. From that star, hop about a half a fist up to a star that is about one fourth as bright. Less than another half fist in the same direction is a fuzzy oval patch of light known as the Andromeda Galaxy. The galaxy is impressive to see in binoculars. It consists of about 400 billion stars and is 2.2 million light years away.
Friday: Jupiter is one fist above the southeast horizon at 11:30 p.m.
The positional information in this column about stars and planets is typically accurate for the entire week.
Sunday: Bellatrix Lestrange is Sirius Black’s cousin. But, far from being kissing cousins. They are killing cousins. Bellatrix kills Sirius in a fight at the Ministry of Magic. Bellatrix the star is the third brightest star in the constellation Orion the hunter. You can find it a half a fist above the east horizon at 4:30 am. But, don’t turn you back on it!
Monday: Hot enough for you? Don’t blame the Earth-Sun distance. Surprisingly, the overall temperature of the Earth is slightly higher in July, when the Earth is farthest from the Sun, than in January, when it is closest. That’s because in July, the Northern Hemisphere is tilted towards the Sun. (This is the real cause of the seasons.) The Northern Hemisphere has more land than the Southern Hemisphere. Thus, in July, the large amount of Northern Hemisphere land heats up the entire Earth about two degrees Celsius warmer than in January. In January, the watery Southern Hemisphere is tilted toward the Sun. But, water does not heat up as fast as land so the Earth is a few degrees cooler.
Tuesday: Draco Malfoy, Harry Potter’s young nemesis, is related to Sirius Black. Draco’s mother, Narcissa Black (Sirius’ cousin) helped develop a plan to trap Harry at the Ministry of Magic in the fifth book. Draco’s namesake, the constellation Draco the dragon is one of the largest constellations in the sky, winding around the North Star. Draco’s head is a four-sided figure nearly straight overhead at 11 p.m.
Wednesday: Venus is two fists above the east horizon at 4 a.m. Aldebaran, the brightest star in the constellation Taurus, is less than a half a fist to the lower right of Venus. Mars is a little more than a half a fist to the upper right of Venus.
Thursday: Not every woman in the Black family is evil. Andromeda Black, Bellatrix’s sister, is a good witch and the mother of Tonks, a young witch from the last few Harry Potter books. (If these Harry Potter references are confusing, talk to a young adolescent about them.) Andromeda the constellation is an interesting one. It contains the Andromeda galaxy, the most distant object visible with the naked eye from a dark site. To locate the Andromeda Galaxy, first find the Great Square of Pegasus. At 11:00 p.m., the left hand corner of the square is about two fists above the east-northeast horizon. Less than two fists to the left and down a little bit is another star the same brightness as the star at the corner of the square. From that star, hop about a half a fist up to a star that is about one fourth as bright. Less than another half fist in the same direction is a fuzzy oval patch of light known as the Andromeda Galaxy. The galaxy is impressive to see in binoculars. It consists of about 400 billion stars and is 2.2 million light years away.
Friday: Jupiter is one fist above the southeast horizon at 11:30 p.m.
The positional information in this column about stars and planets is typically accurate for the entire week.
Friday, July 3, 2009
The Ellensburg Sky for the week of 7/4/09
Saturday: Do you want to take a chance on seeing some really big fireworks? Don’t go to those wimpy firecracker shows. Find the hypergiant star Rho Cassiopeiae. Astronomers think that Rho Cassiopeiae will likely go supernova (explode) in the near future. Of course, for stars, near future might mean July 4, 2009. It might mean July 4, 52,009. Rho Cassiopeiae is in the constellation Cassiopeia the queen. At 11:00 tonight, Cassiopeia looks like the letter “W” about three fists held upright and at arm’s length above the northeast horizon. Rho Cassiopeiae is about a finger’s width to the right of the rightmost star in the “W”.
Sunday: Now that “Jon and Kate Plus 8” is taking a break, you should get up early and watch Mars and Venus Plus 7”. That’s right. Those lovely, overworked planets are spending time with the seven sisters for the next few mornings. Mars, Venus, and the seven sisters, also known as the Pleiades, make a small triangle about one fist above the east horizon. Venus, the brightest point of light in the sky, is at the bottom of the triangle. Mars is in the upper right, about a half a fist from Venus. The Pleiades, an open star cluster consisting of seven naked eye stars, is a half a fist to the upper left of Venus.
Monday: The full moon occurs early tomorrow morning at about 2:20 a.m. When the Moon is full, it is difficult to see dim objects in the sky because of the sky glow. But why struggle to find dim objects when there is so much to see on the big, bright object in front of you? The lunar crater called Tycho is best seen during a full Moon. Tycho was formed about 109 million years ago when an asteroid struck the Moon, leaving a crater over 50 miles in diameter and ejected dust trails that radiate out hundreds of miles in all directions. For more lunar highlights, go to
http://nightsky.jpl.nasa.gov/docs/ObserveMoon.pdf, a resource of the Night Sky Network.
Tuesday: Jupiter has a planetary neighbor in the late night sky for a few nights. Neptune, the farthest planet from the Sun – take that you Pluto lovers – is above Jupiter for the next few weeks. At midnight, Jupiter, the brightest point of light in the sky, is one fist above the southeast horizon. You’ll need binoculars to see Neptune, the dim point of light right above Jupiter. There is also a star that is brighter than Neptune but much dimmer than Jupiter right above Jupiter in the sky.
Wednesday: Saturn is one and a half fists above the west horizon at 10 p.m.
Thursday: Jupiter is about a half a fist to the lower left of the Moon in the low southeast sky at 11:30 p.m.
Friday: Hot enough for you? Don’t blame the Earth-Sun distance. Surprisingly, the overall temperature of the Earth is slightly higher in July, when the Earth is farthest from the Sun, than in January, when it is closest. That’s because in July, the Northern Hemisphere is tilted towards the Sun. (This is the real cause of the seasons.) The Northern Hemisphere has more land than the Southern Hemisphere. Thus, in July, the large amount of Northern Hemisphere land heats up the entire Earth about two degrees Celsius warmer than in January. In January, the watery Southern Hemisphere is tilted toward the Sun. But, water does not heat up as fast as land so the Earth is a few degrees cooler.
The positional information in this column about stars and planets is typically accurate for the entire week.
Sunday: Now that “Jon and Kate Plus 8” is taking a break, you should get up early and watch Mars and Venus Plus 7”. That’s right. Those lovely, overworked planets are spending time with the seven sisters for the next few mornings. Mars, Venus, and the seven sisters, also known as the Pleiades, make a small triangle about one fist above the east horizon. Venus, the brightest point of light in the sky, is at the bottom of the triangle. Mars is in the upper right, about a half a fist from Venus. The Pleiades, an open star cluster consisting of seven naked eye stars, is a half a fist to the upper left of Venus.
Monday: The full moon occurs early tomorrow morning at about 2:20 a.m. When the Moon is full, it is difficult to see dim objects in the sky because of the sky glow. But why struggle to find dim objects when there is so much to see on the big, bright object in front of you? The lunar crater called Tycho is best seen during a full Moon. Tycho was formed about 109 million years ago when an asteroid struck the Moon, leaving a crater over 50 miles in diameter and ejected dust trails that radiate out hundreds of miles in all directions. For more lunar highlights, go to
http://nightsky.jpl.nasa.gov/docs/ObserveMoon.pdf, a resource of the Night Sky Network.
Tuesday: Jupiter has a planetary neighbor in the late night sky for a few nights. Neptune, the farthest planet from the Sun – take that you Pluto lovers – is above Jupiter for the next few weeks. At midnight, Jupiter, the brightest point of light in the sky, is one fist above the southeast horizon. You’ll need binoculars to see Neptune, the dim point of light right above Jupiter. There is also a star that is brighter than Neptune but much dimmer than Jupiter right above Jupiter in the sky.
Wednesday: Saturn is one and a half fists above the west horizon at 10 p.m.
Thursday: Jupiter is about a half a fist to the lower left of the Moon in the low southeast sky at 11:30 p.m.
Friday: Hot enough for you? Don’t blame the Earth-Sun distance. Surprisingly, the overall temperature of the Earth is slightly higher in July, when the Earth is farthest from the Sun, than in January, when it is closest. That’s because in July, the Northern Hemisphere is tilted towards the Sun. (This is the real cause of the seasons.) The Northern Hemisphere has more land than the Southern Hemisphere. Thus, in July, the large amount of Northern Hemisphere land heats up the entire Earth about two degrees Celsius warmer than in January. In January, the watery Southern Hemisphere is tilted toward the Sun. But, water does not heat up as fast as land so the Earth is a few degrees cooler.
The positional information in this column about stars and planets is typically accurate for the entire week.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)