Saturday: “Hey baby! What’s your sign?”
“Ophiuchus,
of course”
The Sun is
in the same part of the sky as the stars of Ophiuchus from about November 29 to
December 17. This is what astrologers mean when they say the Sun is “in” a
constellation. Thus, if you were born between these dates, you should be an
Ophiuchus. The fact that the horoscopes never list Ophiuchus is a major flaw of
astrology. Astrology says that some of our characteristics are based on the
location of the Sun at our birth. How can astrologers leave out three weeks
from their system? That is like a scientist saying she can explain the results
of her experiment every month of the year except early December. Ophiuchus was
a mythical healer who was a forerunner to Hippocrates. According to myth, he
could raise people from the dead. Maybe that is why he is ignored by astrology.
Raising people from the dead is much less impressive than giving spot-on advice
such as “Today is a good day to watch your finances.”
The bright
stars of Ophiuchus rise just before the Sun. Rasalhague (pronounced
Ras’-al-hay’-gwee), the brightest star, is about a half a fist held upright and
at arm’s length above the east-northeast horizon at 6:30 a.m.
Sunday: Tonight’s
first quarter Moon is in the constellation Aquarius the Water Bearer, in the
southern sky at 5 p.m. Before the Moon distracts you, look a half a fist above
the southwest horizon. This will be the last week you can observe Saturn in the
evening sky before it gets obscured by the glare of the setting Sun. Even more
challenging is the planet Mercury, between Saturn and the horizon.
Monday: Have
you been shopping all weekend? Do you need an evening sky break? You deserve a
big reward so make it a double. A Double Cluster, that is. The Double Cluster,
also known as h and Chi Persei, consists of two young open star clusters in the
constellation Perseus. Of course, young is a relative term as these clusters
are about 13 million years old. Each cluster is spread out over an area about
the same size as the full moon. To the naked eye, the Double Cluster shines
with a steady, fuzzy glow. Binoculars resolve dozens of individual stars in the
clusters. The Double Cluster is five and a half fists above the northeast
horizon at 6 p.m., about a fist below the sideways “W” of Cassiopeia and three
fists above the bright star Capella.
Tuesday:
Have you even seen a Black Hole? Neither have scientists. But they have seen
the effects of a Black Hole. Black holes have a strong gravitational influence
on anything that passes close to them, including light. Cygnus X-1, the first
Black Hole candidate ever discovered, is six fists above the west horizon at 7
p.m., in the middle of the neck of Cygnus the swan. NASA launched the Chandra
X-ray observatory in 1999 to study black hole candidates and other high-energy
events.
Wednesday: Mars and Spica are less than a half a fist apart, two and a half
fists above the southeast horizon at 6:45 a.m. Mars has a red tint and Spica
looks bluish-white. Now that you are up, you might as well find something else.
How about Jupiter, the king of the plants, one and a half fists above the southeast?
Not satisfied? Follow the line from Mars through Jupiter down to the horizon.
Venus is just above the horizon, almost obscured by the rising Sun.
Thursday: Is
your favorite astronomy-loving relative asking for a telescope this Christmas?
Before reaching for your credit card, read this guide to choosing your first
telescope, available at http://goo.gl/5oXmGj.
If cost is an issue, look no further than this article about low cost
telescopes https://goo.gl/8yyddy. These are not cheap telescopes.
They are simple, low-cost, easy to use telescopes that your future astronomer
will still use for quick observing sessions long after she has purchased a much
larger instrument for richer viewing. If you want to give a gag astronomy gift
to someone who really bugs you, give them a copy this column. After such a dud
“gift”, you’ll never hear from them again. And that may be the best gift of
all.
Friday: I am
guessing that some of you don’t like the line of reasoning from Tuesday: that
seeing the effects of a Black Hole is good enough to claim there are Black
Holes. You have never seen the wind. But, you have seen the effects of the
wind. And no Ellensburg resident doubts the existence of the wind.
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.
No comments:
Post a Comment