Welcome to Observing With Webb, where a high school astronomy teacher tells you what you’re looking at, why it’s so cool, and what you should check out later this month…at night. Don’t forget to check out my Podbean page, YouTube Channel, and Twitter feed, or get my podcast feed on Stitcher, or iTunes.
A lunar eclipse, a conjunction between Jupiter and Venus, and two good lineups of planets bookending the month make January a spectacular month to go out stargazing, if you don’t mind the cold.
A lunar eclipse, a conjunction between Jupiter and Venus, and two good lineups of planets bookending the month make January a spectacular month to go out stargazing, if you don’t mind the cold.
Naked-eye PLANETS...
Mercury
Venus
Mars
Jupiter
Saturn
EVENTS...
New Moon – 5th (darkest skies)
First Quarter Moon – 14th (Visible until midnight)
Full Moon – 21st (Visible all night)
Last Quarter Moon – 27th (Visible from midnight into the morning)
1st – 4th – Close Encounter – Moon, Venus, Jupiter, Mercury – Anytime after 6am these mornings, you’ll see the three planets lined up, with the Moon traveling through. Every morning, Venus will be very bright about 30˚ above the horizon, with Jupiter about 20˚ down and to the left, and Mercury about 10˚ down and to the left of Jupiter. The Moon starts off not far above Venus on the 1st, but then descends to be almost equidistant between Jupiter and Venus on the 2nd. On the 3rd, you’ll find the Moon only about 3˚ to the left of Jupiter, and on the 4th you’ll struggle to see an extremely thin crescent only 3˚ above Mercury.
5th – Technically a Solar Eclipse – You’d have to be in the north Pacific Ocean or northeast Asia to see it. If you live there, Google it. But I’m guessing most of my 10 audience members live in North America.
12th – Conjunction – Moon, Mars – Get out after sunset, find the Moon, and Mars will be about 5˚ up to the right until they set around 11pm.
20th-21st TOTAL LUNAR ECLIPSE – Full Moon – A FANTASTIC eclipse for North and South America! Late night, but not super late night, the night before Dr. Martin Luther King Jr Day! Here’s how to watch it:
More info at earthsky, timeanddate, and Sky & Telescope
22nd – Conjunction – Jupiter, Venus – Get out in the morning after 4:30am but before 7ish and look very low in the SE for Jupiter and Venus about 2.5˚ apart. Venus will be up and to the left of the dimmer Jupiter. Don’t forget to check this out on the couple of days before and after, as the planets will still be close together.
30th – Feb 2nd – Morning Lineup – Saturn, Jupiter, Venus, and the Moon will all be lined up in the SSE these four mornings. Jupiter will be the highest planet, rising after 4am, with the brightest planet Venus trailing only 8˚ behind. Saturn will be the hardest to find, very low on the horizon around 6:30am, and 20˚ down and to the left of Venus. Where does the Moon come in? On the 30th, it’s above Jupiter, and on the very next day it travels to within 2˚ to the right of Venus. Feb 1st it will be directly in between Venus and Saturn. February 2nd will be a challenge, but binoculars will help you find Saturn and an extremely thin crescent Moon down and to the left.
CONSTELLATIONS...
(see sky map link at the bottom for a Star Map for this month)
After Dinner:
Cassiopeia, Andromeda, & Perseus - Look pretty much straight up you’ll be able to see Andromeda curving off of one corner of Pegasus. If your skies are decently dark, you might catch the faint fuzz that is the Andromeda Galaxy. Cassiopeia will be relatively easy to find as the “W” in the sky, whose right angle points right to Andromeda and her galaxy. Perseus is the other cornucopia-shaped constellation, but opposite of Andromeda, with its curves emptying out toward the Pleiades
Before Bed:
Auriga – Look almost straight up, and you’ll find a pentagon shaped constellation which is the Charioteer Auriga, with its brightest star Capella. For reference, Orion will be below it to the South, with Taurus a little to the right of Orion (following his belt stars)
Before Work:
Leo – Look South, halfway up the sky, to find the backward question mark and right triangle that is Leo the Lion.
Use a sky map from www.skymaps.com to help you out.
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