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.
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