2021 Week 5: (January 31-February 6)

We are now entering the second month of 2021 and the winter constellations are brightening the dark cold of the season.  On February 4 the Moon will be at its last quarter and shine brightly in the early morning hours before the Sun rises.

I'd like to take a minute and talk about my favourite winter constellations.  First of all I would like to revisit the definition of a constellation.  It is a region of sky set by specific boundaries much like countries on Earth.  It is not specifically the pattern of the stars which is called an asterism.

I enjoy turning my telescope and eyes to Taurus. This pattern of stars has, since before the end of the last ice age, been known as a representation of the Bull.  I enjoy seeing the Hyades Star Cluster around the bright red star Aldebaran.  A loose formation of stars with interesting patterns you can see with the unaided eye and binoculars.  The Pleiades star cluster can be found in the northern reaches of the constellation and may appear as a blur of light with averted vision.  If you look closely with direct vision you may be able to count 6 or more stars!  Through a pair of binoculars or a wide field telescope you can see many more stars and perhaps even a hint of nebulosity.  Also, just above the southern most 'horn-star', Tianguan, is the Crab Nebula.  It is much smaller than you would imagine based on the images but, with a telescope, intermediate users can find this small blur of light.  This 'small blur of light' is actually a supernova remnant leftover from a star that went supernova in 1054.

Taurus

Another favourite constellation of the winter sky is Orion.  A very large region of space with the asterism of a hunter located within.  The three belt stars of the asterism are well known and many people can quickly pick it out of the cool winter sky.  What is fascinating about this belt is that just below you can find the Great Orion Nebula.  This is visible as a fuzzy patch of sky with your unaided eye.  However, if you turn binoculars or a telescope on this region you will see interstellar gas shining against the blackness of space.  This is a great target for beginners to point their telescopes at as is it both easy to find and a rewarding sight.

Orion

Coming up later this month the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada will be hosting astrochemist Ashley Walker who will be discussing planetary atmospheres with specific research into Saturn's Moon, Titan.  This is a free online event happening on February 18 at 7:30pm MST is for anyone to join and will be well worth the time.  Come out and support Ashley and have your questions ready!  We hope to see you there.  A link to register for this event can be found below.

https://www.meetup.com/The-Calgary-Astronomy-Meetup-Group/events/275832274/

I hope you have the opportunity to get out and look at the winter sky.  It is dark early and night lasts for many hours, the perfect chance to take in the night sky!

2021 Week 4: (January 24-January 30)

We are nearly through the first month of 2021 and it has been great for astronomy.  The Calgary Centre of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada just hosted an amazing talk from Berkeley researcher Sarafina Nance.  She spoke about supernovae and shared insight on how we can pursue our dreams in the face of the adversity that exists in the world.  Next month the Centre will be hosting Ashley Walker, who is the first astrochemist in Chicago State University's history.  She will be speaking on planetary atmospheres, specifically the Saturnian moon: Titan.  If you are interested in joining this free online lecture you can register at the link below.

https://www.meetup.com/The-Calgary-Astronomy-Meetup-Group/events/275832274/

Titan (Image Credit: NASA)

What is happening in the sky this week?

Mercury will still be visible in the western twilight as it begins to proceed to inferior conjunction in a few weeks.  I had the opportunity to go out and observe the diminutive inner planet.  I saw it slowly cutting through the dusk twilight around 5:45pm local time.  It became very bright and easily visible to the unaided eye.  It was up on a ridge with the Bow River below and the mountains in the distance.  Three does and a large buck appeared out of the brush in front of me and curiously watched me as I stared into the sky. 

On Monday night the Moon will be in conjunction with one of my favourite open clusters, M35.  This cluster is located at the foot of Castor in the constellation Gemini.  The image below shows a wide-field telescope and a basic binocular field of view just after 6pm MST.  All you need to do is put the Moon in a set of binoculars and see the beautiful cluster located just to the west.

Moon/M35 Conjunction (January 25, 6:00pm MST)

This past Saturday, on January 23, Saturn was in conjunction with the Sun.  A few days later, on January 28, Jupiter will be in conjunction with the Sun.  We will be unable to see these planets for awhile as the light from the Sun hinders our ability to observe them.  Later in February you will begin to see them in the dawn twilight.

I suggest you check out the RASC Calgary social media and webpage to learn more about the great astronomy activities that are held by our Centre.  All of our online events can be broadcast worldwide so you don't have to live in Calgary to participate!  Also, follow me on my personal Facebook page at:

https://www.facebook.com/simonjastronomy

Stay warm, stay safe, and always keep looking up in wonder!

2021 Week 3: (January 17-January 23)

The Royal Astronomical Society of Canada, Calgary Centre is excited this week as we will be hosting an astrophysicist, Sarafina Nance, from The University of California, Berkeley to discuss the lives, deaths and explosions of massive stars!  You can register for this free event at the following link.  It will take place on January 21, 2021 at 7:30pm MST.  

https://www.meetup.com/The-Calgary-Astronomy-Meetup-Group/events/275513173

Cassiopeia A Supernova

This is a free event for anyone to attend to learn more about supernovae. Sarafina is a brilliant scientist and an excellent science communicator. She recently teamed up with Seeker to discuss constellations and why zodiac constellations are still used in astronomy.  A link to this video is provided below.

The sky this week will contain some gems for those who take the opportunity to look up!  The Moon will be at its first quarter phase this Wednesday.  The first quarter is always my favourite phase because it is in a dark sky at a reasonable time of the evening.  Also, the terminator (region between dark and light) intersects some amazing features on the lunar surface.  The shading from the terminator line helps you to see greater details on these features that you would not see when they are fully illuminated.  Take a pair of binoculars or a telescope, if you have one, and look at our celestial neighbour and compare what you see to a lunar map!

The next evening we will be in for a treat.  Not only will Sarafina be speaking to us but Mars and Uranus will be in a close conjunction.  Look just below Aries (one of the constellations Sarafina speaks about in her video) and you should easily be able to see Mars with the unaided eye.  

Mars/Uranus Conjunction (January 21, 2021)

Once you have found the red planet put it in the field of view of any pair of binoculars and you should see Uranus just to the south.

Mars/Uranus Conjunction Fields of View

Something else you may wish to check out is trying to glimpse our diminutive friend Mercury in the dusk twilight.  Mercury reaches its greatest elongation east from the Sun during sunset on the 23rd and should be easy to spot at magnitude -0.5.  After sunset look in the area the Sun dropped below the horizon and you should see something that will appear as a 'star-like' object.  It will be the brightest visible object in the area.  This will be the unaided eye view of Mercury.  If you have binoculars or a telescope see if you can put this planet in your field.  However, if you're going to use optical aid be sure to wait until the Sun is fully below the horizon.

Mercury in Dusk Twilight (January 23, 2021)

As you can see from the image above both Saturn and Jupiter will be in conjunction with the Sun on January 23 and January 28 respectively.  They will slowly start to appear in the morning sky late in February and early March.

I suggest you check out the RASC Calgary social media and webpage to learn more about the great astronomy activities that are held by our Centre.  All of our online events can be broadcast worldwide so you don't have to live in Calgary to participate!  Also, follow me on my personal Facebook page at:

https://www.facebook.com/simonjastronomy

Stay warm, stay safe, and always keep looking up in wonder!

2021 Week 2: (January 10-January 16)

I wouldn't say that 2021 is off to a good start but hopefully we can take some solace in the night sky above.  The fun this week is happening in the twilight skies as several of the planets will hang out all close together.

Look toward the dusk twilight skies this week to find Jupiter, Saturn and Mercury having a party in the same binocular field of view.  You may actually need binoculars to see Saturn and Mercury as they will be dimmer and a little bit lower in the sky.  If you are going to use binoculars in this region of the sky make sure the Sun has fully set below the horizon.  There is no way you want to look at the Sun through binoculars or even the unaided eye.  The map below shows the party of planets at 4:50pm local time.  Look for this Sunday and Monday evening this week!

Mercury, Jupiter, Saturn Conjunction

If you are a morning person check out the dawn sky before the Sun rises.  If you can find Venus on Monday morning put it in binoculars and see if you can see the waning crescent Moon.  The Moon will actually be dimmer than Venus at this time due to it being so very close to a New Moon, reaching this phase late Tuesday night.  Again do not use binoculars if the Sun is moments from rising above the horizon.  The map below is for approximately 7:50am local time Monday morning.

Moon, Venus Conjunction

Several days later on the evening of Thursday, January 14 you may catch the slight waxing crescent Moon in the dusk twilight.  The planets Mercury, Jupiter and Saturn have spread out a little bit from the other evening and the Moon is now in the mix forming a line down to the Sun.  After the Sun has gone down look around this area with binoculars to see if you can catch all 4 objects in our twilight sky.  The map below is for 5:00pm local time.

Moon, Mercury, Jupiter, Saturn Conjunction

There isn't too much else special happening in the sky.  Uranus will be stationary on the 14th which isn't very exciting except for sounding inappropriate at dinner parties.  It will once again begin its prograde motion and appear to move eastward relative to the background stars.  It can still be found within the borders of Aries pairing up in the same binocular field as our red friend Mars.  Look directly above around 7:00pm local time to find Mars shining brightly.  Put Mars in your binoculars and see if you can see Uranus in the same field to the east.

Mars, Uranus Conjunction

I use the term 'conjunction' rather loosely as a close combination of objects throughout this blog and should clarify.  A true conjunction between two astronomical objects occurs when they have the same right ascension or the same ecliptic longitude as observed from Earth.  This happened with Jupiter and Saturn a few weeks ago.

Astronomy is a great hobby and profession that you can enjoy all over the world.  It can be enjoyed during a pandemic and during more regular times.  Follow me on Facebook for all the latest astronomy news and online events that you can freely participate in!

www.facebook.com/simonjastronomy

Stay safe and always look up at the night sky!

2021 Week 1: (January 3-January 9)

As we start a new year, let's see what is in our night sky week by week.  The Earth will be at perihelion on January 2 which is its closest the Earth gets to the Sun in its orbit.  This is approximately 147 million kilometers.  Compare this to the aphelion in July when the Earth is 152 million kilometers from the Sun.  This occurs because the Earth is in an elliptical orbit around the Sun.  The Sun is located at one of the foci of the ellipse.

Do not confuse the distance of the Earth to the Sun with the seasons as they occur due to the tilt of the Earth.  When the Earth is in its orbit around the Sun with the Northern Hemisphere tilted toward the Sun it will be Summer in that hemisphere and vice-versa 6 months later.

The first week of the year always starts out with a meteor shower.  The Quadrantid Meteor Shower will peak in the morning of the 3rd.  Your best chance to see them would be either Saturday or Sunday evening.  Unfortunately, the Moon will be around 80% illuminated it may hinder the observation of these meteors.  If you are lucky you may be able to catch one every 10-15 minutes.  Unlike other meteor showers, the Quadrantid peak is very narrow and you'll likely only have one good night of trying to observe one.

For more details on the Quadrantid Meteor Shower follow the link below.

Quadrantid Meteor Shower

In the middle of the week the Moon will be at its last quarter phase rising just after midnight.

If you liked the conjunction from last month of Saturn and Jupiter you may like the one occurring at the end of this week!

Mercury, Jupiter and Saturn will all be within a 2.3° circle near the western horizon shortly after sunset.  They will all fit into a widefield telescope or an ordinary pair of binoculars.  If you are going to be using optical aid on this conjunction be sure the Sun has fully set; it is not worth damaging your eyes.

Mercury, Jupiter, Saturn Conjunction January 10-11

Coming later this month...

On January 21, 2021 at 7:30pm, Sarafina Nance from the University of California - Berkeley will be giving a free lecture on "Tracing the Lives, Deaths, and Explosions of Massive Stars".

Supernovae are cosmic events of gigantic power. Their explosions can shine as bright as a galaxy, a pinprick of extraordinarily bright light in the night sky. What is less well-understood, however, is which stars reach the point of explosion and how they evolve to their deaths. Interestingly, their explosions provide astronomers with key tools to uncover fundamental aspects of our Universe. While we know that the Universe is expanding at an accelerated rate due to dark energy, the rate of the expansion of the Universe is not well-constrained. Supernovae provide us with independent ways to measure this expansion and work to resolve one of the most pivotal questions in astronomy: How fast is the Universe really expanding?

I hope you can join us for this great event, for more details follow the link below.

Tracing the Lives, Deaths, and Explosions of Massive Stars

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