Today: Today: “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 today 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 just above the
east-northeastern horizon at 6:30 a.m.
Sunday: We are just a few days away from the earliest
sunsets of the year in Ellensburg. (No, the earliest sunsets are not on the
first day of winter.) So this is a good time to learn how to quantify the
darkness of the sky. First find the Great Square, the main part of the
constellation Pegasus. It is six fists above due south at 7:30 p.m. Find the
dimmest star that you can see inside or near the square. Then compare that star
to the chart at https://www.skyandtelescope.com/observing/how-dark-is-your-night-sky/.
The larger the magnitude number, the dimmer the star. When the sky is
exceptionally dark, you can see more stars and more interesting deep-sky
objects such as star clusters and nebulae.
Monday: Have you been online 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 northeastern horizon at 6:00 p.m.,
about a fist below the sideways “W” of Cassiopeia and three fists above the
bright star Capella.
Tuesday: Mars is four fists above the eastern horizon at
9:00 p.m.
Wednesday: Lacerta, the faint lizard constellation, is
straight overhead at 6:00 p.m. It was named by the Polish astronomer Johannes
Hevelius in 1687 to fill the space between the much brighter and well-defined
constellations Pegasus, Andromeda, Cassiopeia, Cepheus, and Cygnus going
clockwise from the constellation just south of Lacerta.
Thursday: Jupiter is less than a half a fist above the moon.
Both are about four fists above the south-southeastern horizon. Saturn is two
and a half fists above the south-southwestern horizon.
Friday: What do Justin Bieber and Betelgeuse have in common?
Both are superstars. One will shine brightly for about a few hundred thousand
more years. The other will only seem to be around for that long. “Sorry”
Beliebers. “If you Love Yourself”, you and your “Boyfriend” need to learn more
about Betelgeuse, the real supergiant star that is big enough to hold about one
million Suns. “What Do You Mean” you don’t know where to look? For more
information about Betelgeuse, go to http://goo.gl/0MyfHT.
You’ll find it one fist above due east 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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