The Ellensburg sky for the week of 12/28/13

Saturday: Did you get a new telescope for Christmas? Skyandtelescope.com has a good article on how to get started using it. Go to http://goo.gl/2cJwo. Any observing tip to the night sky should include Jupiter. Jupiter is three fists held upright and at arm’s length above the east horizon at 8 p.m. tonight. A small telescope should reveal Jupiter’s cloud belts and its four largest moons. Last year, the Hubble Space Telescope discovered plumes of water vapor spewing from the surface of Europa, one of these large moons. Astronomers have long thought that Europa has a liquid water ocean below its thick icy crust. But this is the first discovery of water vapor near Europa. For more information about the plumes, go to http://goo.gl/0FaVs8.

Sunday: Saturn is one fist to the upper right of the moon at 7 a.m.

Monday: Venus is about a half a fist above the southwest horizon at 5 p.m.

Tuesday: Forget about that big bright ball in Times Square. You can mark the start of the new year with one of the sky’s own big bright balls. That perennial favorite New Year’s Day marker, Sirius, the brightest star in the night sky, rises to its highest point in the sky a little after midnight on January 1. Thus, when Sirius starts to “fall”, the new year has begun. Look for Sirius about two and a half fists above due south at midnight.

Wednesday: Today is the day we celebrate the anniversary of something new – a new classification of celestial objects. Giuseppe Piazzi discovered Ceres [pronounced sear’-ease], the first of what are now called “asteroids”, on January 1, 1801. Ceres is the largest asteroid in the belt between Mars and Jupiter. At first, Piazzi thought it was a star that didn’t show up on his charts. But, he noted its position changed with respect to the background stars from night to night. This indicated to him that it had to be orbiting the Sun. The International Astronomical Union promoted Ceres to the status of “dwarf planet” in August of 2006.

Thursday: Today’s early morning weather forecast: showers. Meteor showers, that is. The Quadrantid meteor shower peaks late tonight and early tomorrow morning between midnight and dawn. Meteor showers are named after the constellation from which the meteors appear to originate. That makes this shower mysterious because there isn’t any constellation with this name now. The shower was named after Quadrans Muralis, an obsolete constellation found in some early 19th century star atlases. These meteors appear to come from a point in the modern constellation Draco the dragon. This point is about three fists above the northeast horizon at 1 a.m. This year, the waning moon will be rising just before the peak observation time so the dimmer meteors will be obscured by moonlight. Meteors are tiny rocks that hit the Earth and burn up in the atmosphere. Most meteors are associated with the path of a comet. This shower consists of the debris from an asteroid discovered in 2003. Keeping with the comet-origin paradigm, astronomers think the asteroid is actually an “extinct” comet, a comet that lost all of its ice as it passed by the Sun during its many orbits.

Friday: Has it been tough to wake up this past week? It should have been because the sunrise has been getting a little later since summer started. I know. I know. December 21 was the shortest day of the year. But, because the Earth’s orbit around the Sun is elliptical and not circular, the Earth does not travel at a constant speed. It moves faster when it is closer to the Sun and slower when it is farther away. This leads to the latest sunrise occurring around the first of January and the earliest sunset occurring in early December, not on the first day of winter, the shortest day of the year. On the first day of winter, however, the interval between sunrise and sunset is the shortest. For more information, go to http://goo.gl/SJC5r.

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.

The Ellensburg sky for the week of 12/21/13

Saturday: At 9:11 a.m., the Sun reaches its lowest point in the sky with respect to the background stars. This point is called the Winter Solstice. During the day that the Sun reaches this point, your noontime shadow is longer than any other day of the year. Also, the Sun spends less time in the sky on the day of the Winter Solstice than any other day making this the shortest day of the year. Even though it is the shortest day of the year, it is not the day with the latest sunrise or the earliest sunset. The latest sunrise is during the first week in January and the earliest sunset is during the second week in December. The Sun is at its southernmost point with respect to the background stars on the day of the winter solstice. This means the Sun spends the least amount of time above the horizon on that day. But, the Sun rise and set time depends on more than its apparent vertical motion. It also depends on where the Sun is on the analemma, that skinny figure-8 you see on globes and world maps. During the second week in December, the Sun is not quite to the bottom of the analemma.  But, it is on the first part of the analemma to go below the horizon. During the first week in January, it is on the last part of the analemma to rise above the horizon. For more information on this, go to http://goo.gl/KpbkTf.

Sunday: I know you’re staying up late to train yourself to wait up for Santa. So look out a south-facing window at 1 a.m. and see Sirius, the brightest star in the nighttime sky, as high as it ever gets in the sky. It is two and a half fists held upright and at arm’s length above due south.

Monday: Are you gaining a few pounds from too many Christmas cookies? The planet Venus isn’t. It has a thin crescent shape this month. Not because of willpower. No, Venus wants to chow down. Venus is a thin crescent because most of the illuminated side of Venus us facing away from us. Just like the moon, Venus has phases. For the next few weeks, Venus is close to being directly between the Earth and the Sun so we are looking at the Venus’s back side. Its thin, crescent shaped back side.  Look for Venus about one fist above the southwest horizon at 5 p.m. To the naked eye, it looks like a bright point of light. But with a small telescope, you can see that it does not look round just like the crescent moon doesn’t look round.

Tuesday: What would that special someone want to see on the back of Santa’s sleigh when she gets up early Christmas morning to eat one of Santa’s cookies? A fruit cake? No. A barbell? Maybe to work off the fruitcake. A subscription to The Daily Record? Of course. But what she really wants is a ring. And if she looks out a south-facing window, she’ll see her ring. Saturn the ringed planet, that is. Saturn is two fists above the south horizon at 7 a.m.

Wednesday: Where is the one who has been born King of the Jews? We saw Jupiter being eclipsed by the Moon in the east and have come to worship him” (Matthew 2:2, Bruce Palmquist version, informed by Michael Molnar). There are many theories as to the physical explanation of the Star of Bethlehem, the celestial object that guided the wise men to the location of Jesus. Some people think it was a recurring nova, a star that explodes. Some think it was a close alignment of bright planets. Some think it was a miracle that requires no physical explanation. In 1991, astronomer Michael Molnar bought an ancient Roman Empire coin that depicted a ram looking back at a star. Aries the ram was a symbol for Judea, the birthplace of Jesus. The Magi, or “wise men”, who visited the baby Jesus practiced astrology and would have been looking in that region of the sky for the king prophesied in the Old Testament. Molnar, a modern day wise person, used sky simulation software to model the positions of planets and the Moon in the region of Aries. According to his model, Jupiter was eclipsed, or blocked, by the Moon on the morning of April 17, 6 BC. Molnar’s theory is supported by a book written by the astrologer of Constantine the Great in 334 AD. The book describes an eclipse of Jupiter in Aries and notes a man of divine nature born during this time. See http://www.eclipse.net/~molnar/ for more information.

Aries and Jupiter make an appearance in the Christmas sky tonight. At 8 p.m., the dim constellation Aries is about six and a half fists above due south and Jupiter is about three fists above the east horizon.

Thursday: Mars is about four fists above the south horizon at 6:30 a.m.

Friday: Columbia the dove, representing the bird Noah sent out to look for dry land as the flood waters receded, is perched just above the ridge south of Ellensburg. Its brightest star Phact is about one fist above the south horizon at 11 p.m.

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. 

The Ellensburg sky for the week of 12/14/13

Saturday: The moon is spending a fun-filled Saturday night with seven sisters. (Don’t tell Mrs. Moon.) At 7 p.m., the open star cluster called the Pleiades, or the seven sisters, is less than one fist to the upper left of the moon. They stay close together the whole night, finally snuggling under the covers, I mean setting, at about 6 a.m. tomorrow. Expect the moon to sleep on the couch tomorrow night.

Sunday: Tonight, the moon is hiding out in the Hyades star cluster, near the bright star Aldebaran. After spending last night with seven sisters, the moon is spending time with someone less vibrant. In Inuit astronomy, Aldebaran is known as the spirit of the polar bear. At 6 p.m., they are about two fists held upright and at arm’s length above due east with Aldebaran about a thumb width to the lower right of the moon.

Monday: The full moon occurs late tonight at about 1:30 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: Today is Saturnalia, an ancient Roman festival in honor of their god Saturn, the god of agriculture and time. The holiday featured a break from work and school, a public banquet, and private gift giving. Some of these customs influenced the secular aspects of Christmas celebrations. Celebrate Saturnalia at 6:30 a.m. by viewing the planet Saturn, one and a half fists above due southeast. Seeing the real Saturn on the morning of December 17? As Leonard said on The Big Bang Theory, “It’s a Saturnalia miracle.”

Wednesday: This is a moon-intensive week. Tonight we’ll follow the moon as it moves near the planet Jupiter and the bright stars Procyon, Pollux, and Castor. At 9 p.m., Jupiter is a half a fist to the upper left of the moon and Procyon is about a fist below it. Pollux and Castor are on the opposite of Jupiter from the moon.

Thursday: On these cold mornings, it is difficult to get going. You just want to plop into a chair and sit still. But, are you really sitting still? You’re moving at about 700 miles per hour due to the rotation of the Earth on its axis and 66,000 miles per hour due to the revolution of the Earth around the Sun. If that’s not enough, the entire solar system is orbiting the center of the galaxy at a whopping 480,000 miles per hour! So while you may be sitting still with respect to your living room (and all of the over achievers in your house), you are NOT sitting still with respect to the center of the galaxy. For more information about this concept, go to http://goo.gl/lPVPS. Before you barf from all of that motion, go outside at 6:30 a.m. and observe Saturn, less than a fist above the moon in the southeast sky. Because of Saturn’s rapid rotation, only 10.5 hours, it appears visible flattened.

Friday: Venus is a fist above the southwest horizon at 5 p.m.

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.

The Ellensburg sky for the week of 12/7/13

Saturday: The earliest sunset of the year occurs today and throughout the next week, 4:13 p.m. This seems odd because the shortest day of the year, the winter solstice, isn’t for about two more weeks. The Sun is at its southernmost point with respect to the background stars on the day of the winter solstice. This means the Sun spends the least amount of time above the horizon on that day. But, the sunrise and sunset times depend on more than its apparent southward motion in the sky. It also depends on where the Sun is on the analemma, that skinny figure-8 you see on globes and world maps. During the second week in December, the Sun is not quite to the bottom of the analemma. But, it is on the leading edge of the analemma, the first section to go below the horizon. For a slightly different explanation about this, go to http://goo.gl/kjnHP. Or just go watch the sunset. But don’t stare at the Sun.

Sunday: The Christmas season is a time of love, joy, and Lovejoy. Comet Lovejoy, that is. The “Comet of the Century”, Comet ISON, disintegrated as it passed near the Sun. So it is time to focus on the “Comet of the Season”. Comet Lovejoy is visible with the naked eye under very dark skies and visible with binoculars even as dawn approaches. Go outside at 6 a.m. this morning and look three fists held upright and at arm’s length above the east-northeast horizon. You should see a keystone-shaped set of four moderately bright stars. These represent part of the constellation of Hercules. Find the brightest of the four stars, the one in the upper right corner, and put it at the bottom of your binocular field of view. Comet Lovejoy will be near the middle of your field of view with its tail stretching from upper left to lower right. For a detailed chart to help you find Comet Lovejoy, go to http://goo.gl/TWQIHw.

Monday: Venus is more than one fist above the southwest horizon at 5 p.m. You can’t miss it because it is brighter than it has been all year.

Tuesday: Do you like to look in a nursery and say, “it’s a boy” or “it’s a girl”? Not me. I say, “It’s a star”. Of course, I like looking into a stellar nursery – a star-forming region such as the Orion Nebula in the middle of Orion’s sword holder. The Orion Nebula looks like a fuzzy patch to the naked eye. Binoculars reveal a nebula, or region of gas and dust, that is 30 light years across. The center of the nebula contains four hot “baby” stars called the Trapezium. These hot stars emit the ultraviolet radiation that causes the Nebula’s gas to glow. The Orion Nebula is three fists above the southeast horizon at 11 p.m.

Wednesday: If trying to find Comet Lovejoy frustrated you, there are easier morning targets. Mars is four fists above the south-southeast horizon at 6 a.m. Saturn is one fist above the southeast horizon.

Thursday: The Geminid meteor shower peaks for the next two nights. Meteor showers are named after the constellation from which the meteors appear to originate. These meteors appear to come from a point in Gemini the twins. This point is about three fists held upright and at arm’s length above the east-northeast horizon at 9 p.m. tonight. You can follow this point throughout the night, as it will remain near the bright star Castor, the right hand star of the “twin” stars Pollux and Castor. This shower is typically one of the best ones of the year producing bright, medium speed meteors with up to 80 meteors per hour near the peak. This year, the moon will be in the waxing gibbous phase, reflecting sunlight that will obscure some of the dimmer meteors.

Most meteor showers occur when the Earth passes through the orbital trail of a comet. The broken off comet fragments collide with the earth and burn up in the atmosphere. Astronomers had searched for a comet source for this shower since 1862 when the shower was first observed. Finally, in 1983, astronomers discovered the object that created the fragments that cause the meteor shower. To their surprise, it was a dark, rock that looked like an asteroid, not a shiny icy comet. Astronomers named this object Asteroid 3200 Phaethon. But, they still don’t know if it an asteroid or if it is a comet with all of its ice sublimated away by many close passes by the Sun. For more information about 3200 Phaethon and the Geminid shower, go to http://goo.gl/LuwGW.

Friday: Today is Friday the 13th and you know what that means. Bad luck as evidenced by many paper cuts from people trying to tear that day off of their desk calendar as quickly as possible. Celebrate the day by looking at Aldebaran, the 13th brightest star in the nighttime sky. It is three fists above the east horizon at 7 p.m. Jupiter is in the same part of the sky, less than one fist above the east-northeast horizon.

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.