The Quadrantid Meteor Shower

The Quadrantid Meteor Shower occurs during the coldest time in the northern hemisphere.  A few days into the new year we are treated to 'falling stars' from a possible parent asteroid known as 2003 EH1. 

The weather usually an issue for the Quadrantids.  It is usually quite cold during a typical peak and not a lot of people are interested in spending a few minutes outside in the late evening and early morning. 

The radiant is a point between Boötes and Draco sitting in the northeastern sky.  If you have trouble locating Boötes or Draco, use the more familiar Big Dipper.  The handle of the large spoon will essentially point you to the radiant.  The best time to catch the meteors will be between midnight and morning twilight, but you may be able to see a bunch before the day turns.  The map below highlights this region.

Quadrantid Radiant

According to the American Meteor Society the following table indicates, on average, how many meteors we should be able to see per hour. 

City	Suburbs	Rural	Optimal
5	10	25	120

If you would like to record your observations a printable sky map is provided at the link below.  It represents the sky at 1:00am.

Quadrantid Meteor Shower

Instructions for filling out the sheet can be found at the meteor shower blog post below.

Explore the Universe - Meteor Showers

Hopefully the weather is mild and the sky is clear to try to catch a meteor!

2018 Week 1: (December 31-January 6)

It is the first week of the year and there are exciting things happening!  The weather in Calgary is supposed to warm up to above freezing.  We have been suffering in the low negative 20°C's for over a week now!  This turn of weather is good for anyone who may want to watch the Quadrantid Meteor Shower which peaks this upcoming Wednesday.  You may also be surprised to know that the Earth will be at its closest point to the Sun late on January 2.  This may seem counter intuitive since it is so cold, but the seasons are determined by the tilt of the Earth.

Date	Event
January 1	Full Moon (Supermoon)
January 2	Uranus Stationary
January 2	Earth at Perihelion
January 3	Quadrantid Meteors Peak
January 5	Regulus 0.9°S of Moon
January 6	Mars 0.2°S of Jupiter

As you can see from the table above the first week of 2018 is jam packed with good stuff.  New Year's Day will have the largest Full Moon of the year as it occurs a mere four hours after the Moon's perigee.  Expect the media to start hyping this up as a premiere event when in actual fact the size difference is quite imperceptible.

Uranus will stop its retrograde motion and begin its prograde motion once again.  Apparently retrograde motion has significance in astrology since when I search for it I get nothing but psuedoscientific warnings.

The main excitement for the week comes from the Quadrantid Meteor Shower.  With a calculated hourly rate of 120 it is one of the most prolific showers.  It is best to get out of the city as, according to the American Meteor Society, rates drop to 25 in rural moonless nights and down to 10 and 5 with more significant light pollution.  With a harsh supermoon viciously illuminating the sky this prolific shower may turn into a flop.  However, it is always worth checking it out because you may get lucky.  We will look more into this shower with a posting in a few days.

Later in the week will be a few conjunctions that some people enjoy viewing or photographing.  The breast of Leo, Regulus, will be sitting just below the Moon on Friday night.  The next morning, check out Mars and Jupiter dancing together in the sky.

This may be a good chance to see some planets before the Sun comes up.  The map below shows the southeastern horizon shortly after 6am on the morning of January 6, 2018.  Jupiter and Mars are extremely close to each other just to the East of the bright Libra star: Zubenelgenubi.  Following them up from the horizon will be Mercury and Saturn.  I am not sure how good of a look you will get of these because the Sun shortly follows them up.

Planets - January 6, 2018

A closeup view of Jupiter and Mars is provided below.

Jupiter and Mars, January 6, 2018

Jupiter and Mars will fit into the same field of view of a highly magnified telescope and may be worth the trouble to haul one out into the cool Winter.  However, if you stick with a basic pair of binoculars you will not only see both planets, but Alpha Librae: Zubenelgenubi in the same field.

Stay tuned for more information about the Quadrantids and our January edition of the McKenzie Lake Star Night!  Follow us at:

www.facebook.com/simonjastronomy

or

www.twitter.com/simonjastronomy

for the latest events and news throughout 2018!

2017 Top Space Stories (Part II)

This is Part II of the top space stories of 2017.  It was certainly a great year for space exploration and interesting transient events.  Part I can be found here:

http://simonjastronomy.blogspot.com/2017/12/2017-top-space-stories-part-i.html

Cassini Grand Finale

Enough cannot be said about the great Cassini mission.  Launched in 1997 to explore the wonders of Saturn, Cassini exceeded all expectations.  The accompanying Huygens probe landed on Titan and provided the first images from the surface of this great moon.  Cassini explored the many moons of Saturn and even plunged through the giant geysers of Enceladus.  The video below captures the highlights of the mission.

Rivers and seas of methane and ethane on Titan form their own 'hydrological cycle' similar to that on Earth with water.  On September 15, 2017, Cassini plunged into the atmosphere of Saturn to prevent the contamination of possible life on Titan and Enceladus.  It broke up in the skies of Saturn and final contact was received at 11:55 UTC.  Information from this mission will fill many textbooks for decades to come.  Additional missions to Titan and Enceladus are already being planned.

First Interstellar Object

An object was discovered on October 19, 2017 from the Pan-STARRS telescope on Hawaii.  Initially it was labelled as a comet and then reclassified as an asteroid.  On November 6, it was then reclassified to an interstellar object.  This was the first known object from a different solar system than our own.  Current predictions show it coming from the direction of Vega; a bright star 25 light years away.  The International Astronomical Union has labelled it 1I/'Oumuamua, the first such object receiving an 'I' designation.  The video below from NASA discussed this discovery in more detail.

The name 'Oumuamua comes from Hawaiian and means 'scout'.  This asteroid is scouting our solar system from somewhere else in or galaxy.  It was examined for radio signals on the small chance it could be artificial in origin as a possible spaceship.  This sounds a lot like science fiction, but it was necessary to rule it out.

Giant Solar Flare

After the great eclipse in August we experienced some amazing solar weather a few weeks later.  The two events were completely unrelated.  Throughout the first 10 days of September, 4 X-Flares occurred on the Sun.  These are the strongest flares we have seen in a decade.  They were also pointing toward the Earth so we were able to feel the effects of them throughout the week.  The image below is the sunspot region these flares emanated from.

Sunspot Region 2673

Radio blackouts occurred and there were some people indicating they were having trouble with their satellite radio while on a lengthy car ride.  The solar flares were responsible for some great displays of aurora that reached down to typically much lower latitudes.

An article about this event is provided below.

https://www.universetoday.com/137150/unexpected-solar-flare-also-largest-twelve-years/

I am looking forward to 2018 as I am sure there will be some historic events to capture the imagination.  Keep posted on all important space news and local astronomy events at our Facebook Page!

www.facebook.com/simonjastronomy

We are also on twitter:

https://twitter.com/simonjastronomy (@simonjastronomy)

There seems to be a warming trend throughout next week which will hopefully allow for comfortable viewing of the Quadrantid Meteor Shower set to peak on January 3, 2018!

2017 Top Space Stories (Part I)

It has been an amazing year for astronomy!  I would like to run down some of my favourite space stories from 2017.

In no particular order:

1. Total Solar Eclipse
2. TRAPPIST-1 Solar System
3. Gravitational Wave and Light Detection
4. Cassini Grand Finale
5. First Interstellar Object
6. Giant Solar Flare

Total Solar Eclipse

This year offered the first solar eclipse since I began really paying attention to the sky.  I remember borrowing a shade 14 welding mask from the shop and peeking at the October 23, 2014 partial eclipse, but that was more on a whim.  August 21, 2017 had been marked in my calendar since the Spring of 2016.  Calgary would see the Sun 80% covered by the Moon.

Maximum Solar Eclipse - Calgary

We had a great time with beautiful weather at Olympic Plaza.  Hundreds of people turned out to take in the sight through the telescope.  Many people I know trekked down to the totality zone and took some amazing photographs.

Eclipse 2017

TRAPPIST-1 Solar System

There was big news announced back in February.  The TRAPPIST-1 System had 7 terrestrial planets orbiting a cool red dwarf star.  Several of these planets were in the habitable zone where they could hold life.  All of these planets orbit within 9 million kilometers of their host star.  Compare this to Mercury which is nearly 60 million kilometers away from our Sun.  The image below was an artistic representation released by NASA.

TRAPPIST-1 System (Image Credit: NASA/JPL - Caltech)

The shortest orbital period is just over 36 hours while the longest is about 19 days.  Earth's is approximately 365 days.  The news article below describes the great excitement about this discovery.

https://www.universetoday.com/133556/huge-news-seven-earth-sized-worlds-orbiting-red-dwarf-three-habitable-zone/

Gravitational Wave and Light Detection

Gravitational wave astronomy really came to the forefront of the news this year.  The first detection was announced back in February of 2016.  However, four published detections were announced this year.  The most significant was a neutron star merger that was confirmed by electromagnetic detection of the event occurring in the galaxy NGC 4993.  This was the first time a gravitational wave detection was confirmed by another source.  The video below highlights this great event.

I studied gravitational waves back in my General Relativity course nearly a decade ago.  I am astounded at the progress made in this field.  I thought it would remain a theoretical construct of the Einstein Field Equations for several more decades before we had some experimental footing.

The press release from this event is linked below.

https://www.ligo.caltech.edu/page/press-release-gw170817

Catch Part II of my picks for the Top Space Stories of 2017 in a blog posting later this week!  As always you can keep on top of the latest news at our Facebook Page below.

www.facebook.com/simonjastronomy

2017 Week 52: (December 24-30)

It is the final week of the year and the excitement of the holiday season caused this entry to be a little late!  Fortunately nothing was missed.  The weather in Calgary is bitter and we are under an extreme cold warning throughout the week.  I'm not sure if anyone will be out observing the sky, it's best to just stay inside!

However, if you do venture outside the following two events will be in the sky.

Date	Event
December 26	First Quarter
December 30	Aldebaran 0.8°S of Moon

The First Quarter Moon will be visible through your South facing windows.  It will look eerie through the clouds that typically float by during the cold Winter evenings.  Later in the week, close to the end of the year the Moon will make a close conjunction with Aldebaran.  This is the Alpha Star in Taurus surrounded by a bunch of dimmer stars forming the Hyades Cluster.  The image below shows Aldebaran on the left side of the Moon approaching an occultation.

Aldebaran Occultation

The beauty of the Winter constellations permeates the night sky and is certainly worth a look when the temperature rises back above what feels like that of Pluto.  As the year winds down I hope to write a few more entries before 2018.  I was hoping to do a more thorough blog about the Winter Solstice and another about astronomy New Years' Resolutions.  Also, the year wouldn't be complete without a rundown of the most exciting space news of 2017!  Moving into the new year the first entry will likely be a full primer on the Quadrantid Meteor Shower.  Unfortunately we'll have a Full Supermoon polluting our cold sky with its unwanted light.


It has been an exciting year, I hope you have enjoyed the weekly updates and were able to see a few items on the lists.  2018 is shaping up to be just as exciting (even without a fantastic solar eclipse)!

Constellation Profile - Mensa

It has been a two month ride through the southern celestial hemisphere.  This is the last of Lacaille's famous constellations.  There are many other constellations in the south that I am sure we will profile in the coming year.  Mensa is different from all of the other Lacaille constellations as it does not reflect laboratory equipment found in enlightenment times.  It represents Table Mountain which overlooks Cape Town and is the only constellation in the sky that features a terrestrial object.  Lacaille did most of his work from the Cape and chose to name the constellation after this amazing landmark.

Table Mountain (Image Credit: Cape Town Magazine)

It is impossible to view from Calgary because it resides in the very South of the celestial sphere.  With a declination range from 70-85°S you can only begin to see it when you drop near to the equator.  It is a small constellation with very dim stars.  The brightest star is dimmer than 5th magnitude and will be difficult to find from the suburbs in the Southern Hemisphere.  However, the Large Magellanic Cloud forms its northern border.  Look below our satellite galaxy for a tabletop formation.  That is Mensa.

Star-hop to Mensa

Mensa forms an open trapezoid type shape representing Table Mountain.  Lacaille's original image in his planisphere is shown below.

Lacaille Mensa

Bode later developed a book known as the Uranographia and depicted this mountain within its pages.  This depiction is shown below.

Uranographia Mensa

As mentioned earlier, the Large Magellanic Cloud borders Mensa in the North.  Although this blog won't go in too much detail about our satellite galaxy it is worth mentioning a few things.

It stretches across about 10° of the sky and is a fairly bright object.  It is the third closest galaxy to our own Milky Way and is the fourth largest in the Local Group.  It was noted by Ferdinand Magellan during his early 16th century voyage and Western astronomers denoted it by his name.

The Tarantula Nebula finds itself a home within the Large Magellanic Cloud.  An article was recently written about this amazing region of space.  It is known to be one of the most active star forming regions within the entire Local Group.  This nebula was even noted by Lacaille during his two year voyage to chart the southern sky.

The Large Magellanic Cloud is probably number one on my list of southern hemisphere wonders that I wish to explore when I drop below the equator.  The image below shows the LMC with the Tarantula Nebula in the upper left of the galaxy.

Large Magellanic Cloud (Image Credit: ESA: Eckhard Slawik)

There are a few other deep-sky objects found throughout the constellation, but certainly not as exciting as the LMC.  If you have the chance to go to the southern hemisphere it is worth looking at the cloudy haze found at the top of the sky's Table Mountain.

Constellation Profile - Norma

The tour of the southern constellations continues with a stop over at Norma.  Even though it sounds like a female name it actually refers to a carpenter's square.  Lacaille continued to use enlightenment lab equipment to represent his sky.  Unfortunately for residents of Calgary, Norma remains below the horizon throughout the entire year.  To find this constellation in the southern sky simply locate the two bright pointer stars, Alpha and Beta Centauri.  They will point to the other Lacaille constellation of Circinus.  Circinus the compass opens right onto Norma.  The constellation looks like a four-sided trapezoid that seems to sit underneath the tail of Scorpius.

Star-hop to Norma

As a key element of enlightenment architecture, Lacaille placed it up in the sky along with many other items.  An image from his original planisphere is shown below.

Lacaille Norma

The map was improved on half a century later by the astronomer Johann Bode.  His depiction of this region is below.  As you can see, the shape sits right below the tail of Scorpius.

Uranographia Norma

Norma has a plentiful supply of deep-sky objects as the Milky Way flows right through the middle.  The constellation even contains an arm of our galaxy known as the Norma Arm.  There are many open clusters that are visible through binoculars so it becomes a great region for casual observers.  I am certain if I were to travel south enough I would spend a lot of time here.

Norma also contains the Ant Nebula.  I have only seen a handful of astrophotographers image this beautiful looking nebula.  The image below is from the Hubble Space Telescope.

Ant Nebula (Image Credit: R. Sahai (JPL) Hubble Heritage Team)

Norma also contains the fastest spinning Magnetar (SGR J1550-5418).  An article about possible starquakes from this magnetar is presented below.  Although approximately 15,000 light years away it was felt by our own atmosphere.

https://www.nasa.gov/content/goddard/nasas-fermi-satellite-finds-hints-of-starquakes-in-magnetar-storm

The southern sky is full of wonders.  Each constellation has its own story to tell containing their own hidden treasures.  When I read stories of objects tens of thousands of light years away affecting Earth it makes me feel our own galactic neighbourhood is a little closer!

2017 Week 51: (December 17-23)

We are now at the second last week of the year and the Winter Solstice is now upon us!  There are flurries in the forecast for Calgary but hopefully we can get some peepholes to see some of the sky.  The chart below outlines the events happening this week.

Date	Event
December 17	New Moon
December 21	Winter Solstice
December 21	Saturn in conjunction with Sun
December 22	Ursid Meteor Shower Peak

The only somewhat exciting event happening is the Ursid Meteor Shower.  It certainly will not be as exciting as the recent Gemind shower but may be worth a visit with your eyes.  The shower is usually confined to a tight time window either side of the peak.  Your best bet to see it will be the evening of the 21st or 22nd.  The radiant is at the base of the Little Dipper in Ursa Minor.  An image of this region is shown below.

Ursid Radiant

The maximum rate is pegged around 10 per hour but that will certainly be attenuated in the city.  I would count yourself lucky if you can tag one Ursid throughout the evening.  You will be more likely to see one if you clear the North sky of light pollution by travelling accordingly out of the city.

A new lunar cycle begins on Sunday leading up to a Boxing Day first quarter and a Supermoon on New Years' Day.

Saturn will be in conjunction with the Sun less than 5 hours after the Winter Solstice.  Soon Saturn will be in the morning sky for early risers to catch a glimpse.  It will continue tracking through Sagittarius until it crosses into Capricorn in 2020.

I anticipate writing a 2018 preview in the coming weeks so you know what to look forward to through the new year!

McKenzie Lake Star Night - December 2017

Each month we host a free, kid friendly astronomy event at the McKenzie Lake Community Centre.  We have a short presentation on what is currently sitting above us in the sky followed by some time with the telescope.

We had a great evening!  More than twenty people came out to enjoy some time under the stars in Calgary's suburbs!  We learned many things together!  Many children came out and they were very smart!  Great questions!

We discussed constellations and went over a few that would be in the sky that evening.

Orion
Taurus
Gemini
Ursa Minor
Ursa Major

Orion was coming up over the homes in the East and we all had the opportunity to catch M42 - The Orion Nebula through the telescope.  As it got higher in the sky the contrast improved significantly.

Taurus was sitting a little higher than Orion and our first target for the night was M45 - The Pleiades Star Cluster.  It cut through the light pollution like a sword and made for a wonderful sight.  The binoculars were handed around to see the full expanse of the Pleiades with some people dropping down to the Hyades Star Cluster.

Gemini rose above the houses later in the evening.  I pointed out where the Geminids would radiate from and showed off one of my favourite open clusters -- M35.  M35 was barely visible through the binoculars indicating fairly bad light pollution.

The North Star was shining down on us from Ursa Minor.  Unfortunately, besides Kochab you couldn't really make out any other stars.

After everyone had a chance to see the Orion Nebula, the kids had a chance to make their own nebula.  All of them had their own unique beauty much like the ones in the sky. Some samples of these masterpieces are shown below.

Nebula Craft

After some hot chocolate we all sat back down and watched a quick video on one of 2017's greatest space stories: The Grand Finale of Cassini.  There were some great questions about the spacecraft!

How large was it?

An image of the construction is shown below.  It is about the size of a school bus!

Cassini Construction (Photo Credit: ESA)

How was it fueled?

It was fueled using a radioisotope thermoelectric generator.  A discussion on this would be outside the scope of this entry so a wikipedia link is provided below.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radioisotope_thermoelectric_generator

Next month we may talk about telescopes and binoculars and how they work and what to look for when deciding on purchasing.

Telescopes - What should I look for?
Binoculars - What should I look for?

If there are any topics you would like to see covered, or any objects in the sky you would like to see please leave a comment!  Hope to see you out in January!

The Geminid Meteor Shower

The Geminid Meteor Shower typically is the harbinger of Winter.  The Geminids peak around the middle of December.  This shower is usually one of the best we have all year.  Most people get excited about the Perseids because they are usually accompanied with good weather in August.  However, Winter showers are often the best.

The Geminids originate from an object known as 3200 Phaethon, an asteroid.  These are one of two major showers that do not originate from a comet.

According to the American Meteor Society the following table indicates, on average, how many meteors we should be able to see per hour.

City	Suburbs	Rural	Optimal
20	50	75	120

The Moon will certainly have an affect on the number of meteors that can be seen.  Years with the Moon below the horizon are much better!

Geminid Radiant

The radiant point of the Geminid Meteor Shower is right next to Castor, the Alpha star of Gemini.  Castor is one of the stars in the Winter Hexagon.  It will rise in the northeast just after 5pm and will cross the sky throughout the night.  If you are having trouble finding Gemini, start at the belt of Orion and trace a line through Orion's top left shoulder (bright red star -- Betelgeuse).  This will point you to a pair of stars forming the twin heads of Gemini. (See map above).

If you would like to record your observations a printable sky map is provided at the link below.

Geminid Meteor Shower

Instructions for filling out the sheet can be found at the meteor shower blog post below.

Explore the Universe - Meteor Showers

If you are heading out to a rural area you will want to ensure you have a good view of the southeastern sky.  To escape Calgary you are best off heading South or East so the growing urban light pollution does not wreck your view!

It is also important to note that you don't have to watch for the Geminids on the peak evening.  In the days leading up to the peak and the days after may have Geminids at a lower rate.

Keep your eyes to the sky!

2017 Week 50: (December 10-16)

We are almost at the end of 2017 and it has been an amazing year for viewing the sky.  Week 50 holds a mere few sights but, also, a critical one.  The chart below highlights the following week.

Date	Event
December 10	Last Quarter
December 13	Mars 4°S of Moon
December 14	Jupiter 4°S of Moon
December 14	Geminid Meteor Shower Peak

The Moon will reach its final Last Quarter of 2017 on Sunday and we will be only a half lunar cycle away from Christmas.  Throughout the week the Moon will dance with our Solar System's 4th and 5th planet in a couple conjunctions.  If you like to wake up early in the morning you can watch this dance for yourself.  Look in the southeast sky on the morning of the 13th and 14th and pick out the planets below the Moon.  The map below will help.

Week 50 Conjunctions

The Moon and Mars will be hanging tight with Virgo's Alpha Star: Spica, while Jupiter will be in Libra with Alpha Librae: Zubenelgenubi.  Mars is still a somewhat faint 1.6 so you might need some optical equipment in the morning twilight.  The large asteroid Vesta is also in the neighbourhood at magnitude 7.9, only accessible with good luck and a telescope at this time.

All this is quite exciting but the show stealing event will be the Geminid Meteor Shower.  I will make a complete post about this shower tomorrow.  However, I can say that given good weather, clear skies, a tucked away Moon, we may be in for a good show.  The Geminids typically peak at a maximum rate of about 75 from a moonless, rural site.  Most of us may be in the suburbs and will expect to see around 50.  This correlates to just about 1 per minute.  They will radiate from Alpha Geminorum (Castor) and should be visible from 10pm throughout the night until morning.  In fact, they are active right now and you may be able to catch a lower rate in the days leading up to the evening of December 13-14.

The American Meteor Society has a great FAQ that is linked below.

https://www.amsmeteors.org/meteor-showers/meteor-faq/

I am excited since most of the time during Geminid season it is very cold and cloudy.  If we can get good weather for the Quadrantids in early January that would be a bonus.  The waning gibbous Moon will have a negative effect on them though.

Keep posted for McKenzie Lake Star Nights throughout the Winter!  The sky is different each month with new things to see!  For more information check out our facebook page below!

https://www.facebook.com/simonjastronomy/

Constellation Profile - Circinus

We now move to the fourth smallest constellation in our night sky.  Circinus is another of Lacaille's regions he developed during his groundbreaking observing trip to South Africa.  It is representative of a compass, a technical drawing instrument used extensively throughout the enlightenment.  The constellation stretches from 56°S to 71°S thus out of range of telescopes from Calgary.  This should not deter you from checking it out on your next trip South to Mexico or Hawaii.  It is very easy to locate as it sits a mere few degrees East of Alpha Centauri.  Follow the line from Beta Centuari through Alpha Centauri to the stars representing the compass.  The map below will help.

Star-hop to Circinus

The compass served a fundamental role in mathematics, architecture and science.  It could be found in almost every scientific lab throughout the 17th century.  Lacaille desired to honour its role by placing it in the sky as a constellation.  The original picture from his planisphere is shown below.

Lacaille Circinus

Johann Bode included Circinus in his great atlas -- Uranographia and provided his own pictorial representation.

Uranographia Circinus

Unlike several of Lacaille's constellations, Circinus has some easy deep sky objects that can be seen by amateurs with their backyard telescopes.  NGC 5823 is a magnitude 8 open cluster that can be found in the very northernmost region of the constellation.  If you are trying to bag all the Caldwell objects, this is number 88.  You can find another open cluster, known as Pismis 20 in the same telescope field of view as Beta Circini.

If you are into planetary nebulae and a challenge you should check out NGC 5315 on the border between Circinus and Musca.  It sits a mere 45' from the open cluster Cromwell 277.  It may require a large aperture telescope, patience and high magnification with good transparency conditions.

If you would like to go hunting for galaxies, check out the Circinus Galaxy sitting just over 2° northeast of NGC 5315.  It is also recommended for large aperture users.

The following image is my version of the constellation to add to my collection.

Circinus

Unlike a lot of Lacaille's constellations, Circinus actually seems to take the shape of the object it is supposed to be representing.  Circinus also hosts an apparent meteor shower that peaks at the beginning of June.  The Alpha Circinids which was first and seemingly only noted in New Zealand in 1977.  Future studies have indicated they may appear again in 2033.

2017 Week 49: (December 3-9)

We are now full into December and the weeks of 2017 are waning.  The weather has been warm and the Winter constellations are on full display; I was able to see the complete Winter Hexagon.  The Moon will put on a great show this week, I hope you have the opportunity to check it out!

Date	Event
December 3	Mercury Stationary
December 3	Aldebaran 0.8°S of Moon
December 3	Full Moon (Supermoon)
December 8	Regulus 0.7°S of Moon

The week kicks off on Sunday with a Supermoon.  The media are already gearing up to get excited about the Full Moon phase coinciding with the its perigee.  This is great for public outreach as it generates an interest in astronomy.

The Moon orbits the Earth in an elliptical shape.  This means that at certain times during its orbit the Moon will be closer or further from the Earth.  A Supermoon is when the Moon is full near the point of closest approach to the Earth (perigee).  This term also applies to when there is a New Moon at perigee.  Since we are unable to view a New Moon not many people take interest.  There was an exception to this rule back in August.  The perigee was three days before the New Moon.  The New Moon passed between the Earth and the Sun and caused a total solar eclipse.  A total solar eclipse can only occur when the New Moon is close to perigee as it will appear larger than the Sun.

On the same night the Moon will pass slightly to the North of Alpha Tauri which is most commonly known as Aldebaran shining brightly in Taurus.  A few nights later the Moon will cruise through Leo and pass very close to its brightest star -- Regulus.

For more details on how to find the following objects, click on their related link.

I hope you have a pair of binoculars as there are some great sights in the sky.  Turn your binoculars to the Pleiades star cluster sitting a little over 10° NW of Aldebaran.  See if you can count the nine bright stars (seven sisters and two parents).  Also, check out the Orion Nebula.  You can see it without optical aid just below the belt of Orion.  Point your binoculars and prepare to be amazed.  The Andromeda Galaxy still makes for a great sight at this time of year.  Using the map provided on my blog entry, try to capture it with your glass.  Congratulations, you have managed to see 3 Messier objects from your own backyard, only another 107 to go.

Pleiades (M45), Orion Nebula (M42), Andromeda Galaxy (M31)

If you are patient enough you can try to find M35 sitting at the foot of Castor in Gemini.  It is one of my favourite open clusters to show off in the telescope.  It fits nicely into the field of view and it relatively easy to find.

Take some time off from Christmas shopping and look up to see what the sky has to offer!

Constellation Profile - Pictor

We are moving to another southern constellation in our tour and it is known as Pictor.  Originally named 'le Chevalet et la Palette' it was meant to represent a painter's easel and palette.  Its celestial latitude runs from 43°S to 64°S.  It is below the horizon for western Canada but you can catch it if you live below 47°N throughout Ontario, Quebec and the Maritimes.  It is quite easy to find if you have access to the southern skies.  It sits right between Alpha Carinae (Canopus) and the Large Magellanic Cloud.  Most of the bright stars, however, are at the southerly declinations of the constellation (between 50°S-60°S).  To help locate the constellation if you camp or vacation in the south use the map of the sky below.

Star-hop to Pictor

All artists throughout the enlightenment period carried an easel in their workshop.  Art was a major part of the enlightenment and Lacaille so honoured it by placing an easel in the sky.  It is shown on his original planisphere below.

Lacaille Pictor

This image was improved upon by Johann Bode nearly half a century later in his work the Uranographia.  This is shown below.

Uranographia Pictor

Pictor has a few interesting deep sky objects of note.  NGC 1705 is a lenticular galaxy (intermediate between spiral and elliptical) with a lot of interstellar matter conducive to very active star formation.  There have been many papers written on the star formation within this galaxy.  At 17 million light years from Earth it shines through at magnitude 12.8, within reach of moderate-large amateur telescopes.  The Hubble Space Telescope obtained a really good image of this galaxy.

NGC 1705 (Image Credit: NASA, ESA, and The Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA))

I one day hope to catch Pictor in my sights on an expedition to the southern hemisphere, say the Atacama Lodge in the desert of Northern Chile.  However, I have put together a constellation map based on my previous template as shown below.

Pictor

There are some other interesting things within the borders of Pictor.  There is a radio galaxy known as Pictor A nearly half a billion light years away.  It shoots a jet of matter close to the speed of light nearly 1 million light years away.

A star, known as Kapteyn's Star has a very high proper motion through the sky.  At 18" per year it is only second to Barnard's Star.  Ten thousand years ago it sat 7 light years from Earth, now it is almost 13.  It is also the closest known star to our solar system that sits in the galactic halo.  It may have been a member of Omega Centauri, a beautiful globular cluster in the southern sky.

Constellation Profile - Reticulum

We are almost finished with Lacaille's constellations and will continue with Reticulum.  The pattern of stars now recognized as Reticulum was once noted in the early 17th century as 'Rhombus' by another French astronomer, Isaac Habrecht II.  Reticulum is a very small constellation and is 81st out of 88 in area.  The constellation is only visible at latitudes below 37°N and fully visible at latitudes below 23°N.  Consider this your next target for your Hawaiian vacation.  It is quite simple to find.  Look halfway between Alpha Eridani (Achernar) and Alpha Carinae (Canopus), the second brightest star in the sky.  You should see an apparent rhombus shape which forms the major structure of the constellation.  The map below should help you find it.

Star-hop to Reticulum

Lacaille originally named the region, 'le reticule rhomboide' and eventually Latinized to Reticulum.  It fits with the theme of enlightenment lab equipment as it represents the 'reticle'.  A reticle is a set of lines on an optical device to aid in measurement.  In Lacaille's sense he meant an eyepiece for a telescope.  I have a reticle eyepiece that I use for measuring the drift due to poor polar alignment.  In the near future I will likely get an illuminated reticle that includes a microruler and microprotractor.  This will be useful for measuring distance and angle of multiple star systems.  Lacaille included this constellation in his planisphere below.

Lacaille Reticulum

Building upon Lacaille's work, Johann Bode popularized the constellation in his Uranographia shown below.

Uranographia Reticulum

Even though it is a small constellation, Reticulum has several worthwhile galaxies amateur astronomers can hunt for.  NGC 1313 is the brightest with an apparent magnitude around 9.0.  This galaxy is also known as the 'Topsy Turvy Galaxy'.  It is a barred spiral galaxy with an uneven shape and has been referred to as one of the southern sky's 'showpiece galaxies'.  NGC 1313 has a candidate intermediate mass black hole (IMBH).  IMBH's are a seemingly rare phenomenon and there is not currently any confirmed detection.  An article in S&T about NGC 1313 is presented below.

http://www.skyandtelescope.com/astronomy-news/new-mid-size-black-hole-2209201523/

I scaled the constellation down into my own format.  It was particularly easy since it is such a small constellation consisting of an easy shape.

Reticulum

If I have the opportunity to travel far South I will definitely stick this constellation on my bucket list.  It would be fun to follow in Lacaille's footsteps and spend a deal of time in the southern hemisphere making some great observations.

An interesting story floats around the binary star system Zeta Reticuli (pair of stars on the right side of the above image).  A couple known as Betty and Barney Hill claimed to have been abducted by aliens from the Zeta Reticuli system.  A bestselling novel and movie were created around this incident.  It is quite fantastical, reminiscent of an episode of the X-Files.  After reading the story, Zeta Reticuli seems a bit creepy now.  Much to the chagrin of conspiracy enthusiasts it currently has no detected extrasolar planets.  Or that's what they want you to think?

I am enjoying writing about these small southern constellations.  They all seem to tell a different, yet interesting story.  Even the smallest constellation may have mysteries lurking within.  Think about this the next time you enjoy the night looking at your favourite collection of stars.

2017 Week 48: (November 26-December 2)

We have reached the last week of November 2017 and the weather is above average.  A chinook has arrived and is giving room to some clear sky.  This is perfect weather to check out the open house at the Rothney Astrophysical Observatory this weekend!  There are a few sights in the sky to consider this week shown in the chart below.

Date	Event
November 26	First Quarter
November 26	Neptune 1.2°N of Moon
November 28	Mercury 3°S of Saturn

The Moon will reach its first quarter phase this Monday and be visible in the sky until you are likely in bed.  This is a good time to use binoculars or a telescope.  The weather is supposed to be warm and there are always incredible sights on the terminator at first quarter.

The same evening Neptune will be very close to the Moon.  I've never really tried to find Neptune during one of these close encounters as the Moon will likely contribute far too much light pollution to allow an easy observation.  Two nights later Mercury and Saturn will be having a party in the same binocular field of view.  If the western horizon is clear on Tuesday I will be at the river valley ridge just after sunset.  Join me at the West end of 130th avenue SE for the conjunction attempt.  I honestly do not know what to expect.  I have rarely scanned the twilight horizon for celestial objects.  Maybe I'll see them, maybe I won't.

The map below shows what to expect around 4:50pm in the southwest horizon.  Saturn will be at magnitude 0.5 while Mercury will be a few times bright at -0.1.  I would recommend not looking through the binoculars until after the Sun goes down.  If you accidentally catch the Sun through the binoculars you will likely go blind.

Mercury/Saturn Conjunction - November 28, 2017

It is nearly that time of year again.  The Full Moon will be within 24 hours of its perigee(closest to Earth).  What does this mean?  It means the media will be going crazy over a great 'Supermoon' again.  Honestly, it's not as cool as it sounds.  The Moon will be imperceptibly larger than other Full Moons throughout the year.  I only really get excited when the New Moon is close to perigee and covering the Sun.  See: Eclipse 2017.  If you are on a oceanfront beach (I wish) you may notice the tides a bit larger than normal.

For more information about the RAO Open House, please see the link below.

https://www.facebook.com/events/1951041424912940/

Get outside this week!  The weather will be warm and hopefully the evenings will be cloud free!  This could be a great chance to see the Winter constellations surrounded by relative warmth.  There aren't many days throughout the cold months like this!  Embrace the opportunity!

Constellation Profile - Telescopium

There is a telescope sitting in the night sky for those in the South to see.  The constellation is known as Telescopium and it sits just out of the reach of Albertans.  You would have to drive down to southern Montana to be able to catch a few of its stars.  This was not always the case.  The boundaries of Telescopium have changed many times over the years since its inception in 1751.  Eta Sagittarii and G Scorpii were once part of the constellation.  Messier 7, the southernmost messier object (34.75°S), was once considered to be Eta Telescopii.  The official boundaries set by the International Astronomy Union in 1930 confine Telescopium between 45°S and 57°S.  If you would like to see the entire constellation you'll have to go as far as Phoenix, Arizona and be there at the right time.  If you are down south and want to find it, just use Scorpius' tail to point you straight to it.  The map below will help.

Star-hop to Telescopium

Like most of Lacaille's constellations I certainly do not see the representation of the telescope.  However, it does make sense to immortalize the instrument that brought the universe down to the Earth.  Lacaille's original 18th century depiction is shown below.

Lacaille Telescopium

Later throughout the century other telescopes in the sky were invented.  Tubus Herchelii Major between Gemini and Auriga and Tubus Herchelii Minor between Taurus and Orion were once considered constellations for a short time.  Johann Bode referred to Lacaille's original 'Le Telescope' as Tubus Astromonicus which is depicted below.

Uranographia Telescopium

As you can see from the diagram above, the original Telescopium is stealing stars from Scorpius' Tail and the south section of Sagittarius.  Since the boundaries were shifted a lot Telescopium does not have Bayer designation Beta, Gamma and Theta among others.  I found this strange when I first studied the constellation.  Where is Beta?

Telescopium has some fairly bright stars in it regardless of its collapse throughout the centuries.  Seven stars are greater than 5th magnitude and should be fairly easy to see on a clear night.  NGC 6584 is a beautiful globular cluster that would look lovely through any backyard telescope.  There is also quite a selection of galaxies for those hunting with larger telescopes.  Telescopium even has a group of twelve galaxies with the brightest sitting just under 11th magnitude.  Grab a light bucket and suck in as many photons as you can.

The image below is an addition to my maps of all the constellations.

Telescopium

Telescopium has an interesting type of star located within its borders.  PV Telescopii is a supergiant extreme helium star.  It is almost completely lacking in hydrogen and thus likely formed in mergers and not molecular clouds.  A variable star ranging from 9.24-9.40 magnitude you'll need a telescope or a really good pair of binoculars to find it in the very southeast corner of the constellation.

If you are ever traveling south to a star party see if you can pull in some of the deep sky objects found within this homage to the instrument you will be using.

Constellation Profile - Octans

We continue our journey through the Lacaille constellations of the southern hemisphere with Octans.  This constellation certainly can not be seen from Calgary since it constitutes the South Celestial Pole much like Ursa Minor constitutes the North Celestial Pole.  If you are vacationing south of Canada below 15°N (Guatemala and South) you can glimpse some of the stars of Octans.  To find it all you have to do is look South in the sky.  If you live in Antarctica, look right over your head.

Although not significant for most people in the northern hemisphere it is critically important to those in the south.  We have Polaris as the 'North Star' which you can always use to determine where North is.  In the South, they must use Octans as a reference.  The nearest bright star to the South Celestial Pole is Sigma Octantis which sits a little over a degree away (70').  As a comparison, Polaris sits about 40' away from the pole.  Sigma Octantis is a magnitude 5.47 and thus more difficult to see than Polaris (1.97).  A map of the constellation is shown below.

Octans Map

Octans is the representation of the 18th century invention of the Octant.  An octant was a navigational device used by sailors to measure the altitude of celestial objects from the horizon.  It typically had a scale that went to 90° or just beyond.  When it became clear that the distance between two celestial objects was required, the scale had to extend beyond 90°.  This was provided by the successor to the Octant: the Sextant.  It was represented on Lacaille's planisphere below.

Lacaille Octans

Improving on the diagram several decades later, Johann Bode illustrated the following in the Uranographia.

Uranographia Octans

Octans is not really famous for its deep sky objects.  Melotte 227 is an open cluster of magnitude 5.30 that sits about halfway between Beta Octantis and Phi Octantis.  There are a few dim galaxies from the New General Catalog (NGC) that I have seen the odd astrophotographer nab throughout the years but it is not common.

My polar scope has Octans inscribed on it to polar align your telescope if you are observing or photographer far down in the south.  It looks something like the below diagram.

Polar Scope Reticle

Fortunately, I live in the North and it is fairly easy to line up Polaris for basic polar alignment.

Even though I will likely never have the opportunity to see this constellation, I have created a scale diagram of it below.  Highlighted is the brightest star (Nu Octantis) and the 'Pole Star' (Sigma Octantis).  The yellow cross indicates where the South Celestial Pole resides.

Octans

Interestingly, Alpha Octantis is the 7th brightest star in the constellation.  I have yet to determine how the Bayer letters were applied in this way.

If you are ever close to the equator or below, be sure to check out this constellation.  I know a few of my readers live in Australia and I hope to hear some Octans stories from them!