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sky_highlights [2015/12/05 09:27] edose add December 2015, remove November |
sky_highlights [2016/10/31 21:41] edose |
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- | ====== Sky Highlights and NEKAAL Events for DECEMBER 2015 ====== | + | ====== Sky Highlights and NEKAAL Events for NOVEMBER 2016 ====== |
- | * No NEKAAL Events for December--happy holidays! | + | * November 8 -- First Quarter |
- | * December 3 -- Last Quarter (moon absent from evening sky)\\ | + | * November 14 -- Full Moon |
- | * December 11 -- __**New Moon**__\\ | + | * November 21 -- Last Quarter |
- | * December 18 -- First Quarter\\ | + | * November 17 -- General Meeting, Mater Dei Catholic School, 7 pm. Join us! |
- | * December 25 -- Full Moon | + | * November 19 -- **Open House** at Farpoint Observatory, 7:30 pm to ? Join us! |
- | * January 28, 2016 -- First General Meeting of the New Year, Topeka Library, 7 pm. | + | * November 29 -- New Moon |
- | ===== PLANETS in December 2015 ===== | + | ===== PLANETS in November 2016 ===== |
Evening Sky: | Evening Sky: | ||
- | * **Mercury** -- low in southwest | + | * **Mercury** -- in southwest |
- | * **Uranus** -- in southeast | + | * **Venus** -- in southwest |
- | * **Neptune** -- in south | + | * **Mars** -- in south |
+ | * **Saturn** -- in southwest | ||
+ | * **Uranus** -- in east | ||
+ | * **Neptune** -- in southeast | ||
Midnight: | Midnight: | ||
- | * **Jupiter** -- in east | + | * **Uranus** -- in southwest |
- | * **Uranus** -- in west | + | * **Neptune** -- in west |
Morning Sky: | Morning Sky: | ||
- | * **Saturn** -- in southeast | + | * **Jupiter** -- in southeast |
- | * **Venus** -- in southeast | + | |
- | * **Mars** -- in southeast | + | |
- | * **Jupiter** -- in south | + | |
- | ===== CONSTELLATIONS well placed in evening during December 2015 ===== | + | |
- | North to South, at 7-9 pm: | + | ===== CONSTELLATIONS well placed in evening during November 2016 ===== |
+ | North to South, at 8-10 pm: | ||
* **Ursa Minor**, the Little Bear, also the Little Dipper | * **Ursa Minor**, the Little Bear, also the Little Dipper | ||
* **Cepheus**, the King of Ethiopia | * **Cepheus**, the King of Ethiopia | ||
- | * **Cassiopeia**, the Queen of Ethiopia | + | * **Cassiopeia**, the wife of King Cepheus |
+ | * **Draco**, the Dragon | ||
* **Lacerta**, the Lizard | * **Lacerta**, the Lizard | ||
- | * **Andromeda**, daughter of Cepheus and Cassiopeia | + | * **Cygnus**, the Swan |
- | * **Pegasus**, the winged horse | + | * **Sagitta**, the Arrow |
- | * **Aries**, the ram | + | * **Pegasus**, the Winged Horse |
- | * **Pisces**, the fishes (who had been Aphrodite and Eros) | + | * **Delphinus**, the Dolphin |
- | * **Cetus**, the sea monster | + | * **Aquarius**, the Water Bearer |
+ | * **Capricornus**, the Sea-Goat | ||
+ | |||
+ | ===== SKY EXTRAS in November 2016 ===== | ||
+ | * Still LOTS of evening planets in November! Check out the planet list above. Uranus is easily visible in binoculars, even visible naked-eye with deep dark-vision adaptation, from very dark skies. Jupiter's back with us, but you'll have to see it in the morning now, low in the eastern twilight. | ||
+ | * Best evening comet should still be C/2016 A8 (LINEAR), fairly high in the southern sky and large but fading slowly, so you'll need a scope of at least 8" aperture, an eyepiece giving low magnification...and patience. | ||
+ | * The Leonids meteor shower peaks November 17, but a nearly full moon once again washes out the show. | ||
+ | * And speaking of bright moons--the November 14 full moon is only 2.5 hours after the closest perigee (approach to earth), so this will be the largest full moon of 2016. | ||
- | ===== SKY EXTRAS in December 2015 ===== | ||
- | * **Venus** puts on a show in December's pre-dawn hours, in the southeast sky, spending some time near bright star Spica. Look a little higher for orange-red **Mars**, and higher still for bright yellow-white **Jupiter**. | ||
- | * **Mercury**'s back in the evening sky, late in December. Look above the southwestern horizon just after sunset. Binoculars help--by the end of the month it may well be visible naked-eye on very clear evenings. | ||
- | * The **Geminid meteor shower** will be moonless this year, peaking early morning December 14. Look at 1-3 am, in a wide region almost directly overhead. | ||
- | * Comet **Catalina C/2013 US10** will be visible in binoculars all month, rising through the eastern sky during December. Look in Virgo, moving into Bootes by month end. | ||
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