Welcome to SkyEye, your guide to this month's celestial events. All times and dates are given in Universal Time (UT). Nightly darkness estimates are calculated for Greenwich, London (51.5° N, 0° W).
| Date | Event | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Thu | The Moon occults the first-magnitude star Antares during daylight hours. |
| New Moon | ||
| 2 | Fri | |
| 3 | Sat | |
| 4 | Sun | |
| 5 | Mon | Moon at perigee |
| 6 | Tue | The waxing crescent Moon should not provide too many problems for observing the Phoenicids meteor shower. |
| 7 | Wed | Likewise, the Puppid-Velids meteor shower should not suffer from light pollution problems, at least not from the Moon! |
| 8 | Thu | First Quarter Moon |
| 9 | Fri | Minor planet 3 Juno is at opposition in the constellation of Orion. You will need telescopic aids to see it since it is only eighth magnitude. |
| 10 | Sat | |
| 11 | Sun | |
| 12 | Mon | As seen from the northern polar regions, the Moon occults Mars from around 0400 UT. |
| Mercury at greatest elongation west | ||
| 13 | Tue | |
| 14 | Wed | Unfortunately, the nearly Full Moon spoils this year's viewing of the Geminids meteor shower. |
| 15 | Thu | Full Moon |
| 16 | Fri | Pluto at conjunction |
| 17 | Sat | |
| 18 | Sun | |
| 19 | Mon | |
| 20 | Tue | |
| 21 | Wed | Moon at apogee |
| Earth reaches a solstice, marking the longest day of the year in the southern hemisphere and the longest night of the year in the northern hemisphere. | ||
| 22 | Thu | The waning gibbous Moon makes the observation of the Ursids meteor shower rather problematical. |
| 23 | Fri | Last Quarter Moon |
| 24 | Sat | |
| 25 | Sun | The Moon occults the first-magnitude star Spica as seen from western Canada and the northwestern and north central parts of the United States. This event begins about 1300 UT. |
| 26 | Mon | |
| 27 | Tue | |
| 28 | Wed | |
| 29 | Thu | The Moon occults the first-magnitude star Antares during daylight hours. |
| 30 | Fri | |
| 31 | Sat | The second New Moon in a month is sometimes called a 'Black Moon'. |
The word planet is derived from the Greek word for "wanderer." Unlike the background stars, planets seem to move around the sky, keeping mostly to a narrow track called the ecliptic, the path of the Sun across the stars.
Constellations are patterns of stars in the sky. The International Astronomical Union (IAU) recognises 88 different constellations. The brightest stars as seen from the Earth are easy to spot but do you know their proper names? With a set of binoculars you can look for fainter objects such as nebulae and galaxies or some of the closest stars to the Sun.
Descriptions of the sky for observers in both the northern and southern hemispheres are available for the following times this month. Subtract one hour from your local time if summer (daylight savings) time is in effect.
| Local Time | Northern Hemisphere | Southern Hemisphere |
|---|---|---|
| 1730 hours (1830 hours summer time) | 45° N | 30° S |
| 1930 hours (2030 hours summer time) | 45° N | 30° S |
| 2130 hours (2230 hours summer time) | 45° N | 30° S |
| 2330 hours (0030 hours summer time) | 45° N | 30° S |
| 0130 hours (0230 hours summer time) | 45° N | 30° S |
| 0330 hours (0430 hours summer time) | 45° N | 30° S |
| 0530 hours (0630 hours summer time) | 45° N | 30° S |
Much of this information can be found in this month's issue of your favourite amateur astronomy magazine available in your local bookshop. Another excellent source is the current edition of the Astronomical Calendar by Guy Ottewell and published by the Universal Workshop at Furman University.
The image of the Sun in the SkyEye banner is courtesy of the SOHO/EIT consortium. The composite image from May 1998 combines EIT images from three wavelengths (171Å, 195Å and 284Å) into one that reveals solar features unique to each wavelength. SOHO is a project of international cooperation between ESA and NASA.
Copyright © 1995-2005 by David Harper and L.M. Stockman