SkyEye: November 2024

Welcome to SkyEye, your guide to this month's celestial events!

All times and dates are in UT with the time given to the nearest 30 minutes.
Planetary positions are geocentric apparent places, referred to the true equator and equinox of date.

The phases of the in November 2024

Day	Events
1	NEW MOON
2
3	The Moon and Mercury are 2.1° apart at 07:30.
4	At 00:30, the Moon occults the first-magnitude star α Sco (Antares).
5	The waxing crescent Moon is 3.1° south of Venus at 00:30. Moonlight will not interfere with observations of the Southern Taurid meteor shower which peaks on this day.
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9	FIRST QUARTER MOON
10	At 04:30, Mercury is 2.0° north of the first-magnitude star α Sco (Antares).
11	Beginning around 01:00, the waxing gibbous Moon occults Saturn.
12	The Northern Taurid meteor shower suffers minimal moonlight interference during their peak activity today. Beginning at 01:00, the waxing gibbous Moon occults eighth-magnitude Neptune. The Moon also passes through its ascending node today.
13	The rings of Saturn open to a shallow maximum angle of 5.2° today. They will now begin to close up until they become edge-on to Earth next year.
14	Venus reaches its maximum southerly declination for the year and the Moon reaches perigee.
15	FULL MOON
16	The waning gibbous Moon is found 4.4° north of Uranus at 01:00 and occults the open star cluster M45 (Pleiades) six hours later. Saturn begins retrograde motion in right ascension (retrograde motion in ecliptic longitude started yesterday) and Mercury reaches greatest elongation east (22.5°).
17	Bright moonlight washes out the Leonid meteor shower this year. Uranus arrives at opposition today and at 15:00, the Moon passes a distant 5.6° north of Jupiter.
18
19	Mercury reaches its maximum southerly declination for the year.
20	At 02:00, the waning gibbous Moon passes 1.9° south of the first-magnitude star β Gem (Pollux). Later, at 21:00, the Moon and Mars are 2.4° apart.
21	The Moon is 2.9° north of the open star cluster M44 (Beehive) at 12:00. Moonlight will obscure observations of the α Monocerotid meteor shower which peaks today.
22	At 21:00, the Moon is 2.7° north of the first-magnitude star α Leo (Regulus).
23	LAST QUARTER MOON
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25	The Moon passes through its descending node.
26	Mercury begins retrograde motion today and the Moon reaches apogee.
27	The Moon occults the first-magnitude star α Vir (Spica) at 11:30.
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The position of the Sun and planets at mid-November 2024

Sun Libra → Scorpius → Ophiuchus Also Ophiuchus is not a member of the zodiac, the ecliptic passes through it.

Mercury Libra → Scorpius → Ophiuchus → Scorpius → Ophiuchus At the beginning of November, Mercury is in the ascent in western skies after sunset, although it dims as it rises, starting the month at a bright magnitude −0.3 and ending at second magnitude. The equatorial and southern regions of Earth have the best views of Mercury during this, its final evening apparition of the year. The tiny planet reaches its maximum altitude around the time of greatest elongation east on 16 November.

Venus Ophiuchus → Sagittarius The evening star is best viewed from the tropics and the southern hemisphere. It brightens slightly over the course of the month, from magnitude −4.0 to −4.2, even as its phase decreases. However, it is also getting closer to Earth which compensates for the dwindling phase.

Earth and Moon November is full of meteor showers, with the first two (the Southern and Northern Taurids) benefitting from minimal moonlight interference. The Leonids and α Monocerotids later in the month occur too close to Full Moon to be easily visible. The Moon occults both Saturn and Neptune this month, along with several bright stellar objects.

Mars Cancer The red planet rises during the evening hours and brightens from magnitude +0.1 to −0.5 over the course of the month. Its phase is increasing as it approaches opposition next year, with the planet 93% illuminated by the start of December. An equinox occurs on Mars on 12 November, signalling the start of spring in the northern hemisphere and autumn in the south.

Jupiter Taurus Jupiter rises early in the evening and at magnitude −2.7, is the brightest starlike object in Taurus. It is currently in retrograde motion through the "horns" of the Bull's head.

Saturn Aquarius Saturn is an evening sky object, setting around midnight. Its rings are at their most open this month — 5.2° — and will close again, reaching 0° (ring-plane crossing) early next year. The first-magnitude planet is occulted by the waxing gibbous Moon on 11 November and ends retrograde motion a few days later.

Uranus Taurus Uranus is at opposition on 17 November and is visible throughout the night. It is at its brightest (magnitude +5.6) and has an apparent diamter of 3.7″ when viewed through a telescope. However, this planet is best observed when the Moon is absent from the sky; look for Uranus early or late in the month when the Moon is nearer its New phase.

Neptune Pisces A small telescope is necessary to view the most distant planet in the solar system. Neptune is also occulted by the Moon this month, the event taking place on 12 November. Saturn and Neptune are getting closer in the sky and will undergo the beginning of a triple conjunction (in right ascension) next year.