The Moon
Last Quarter 5th 00:33
-- 11:16
New 11th 07:27
-- 16:24 First Quarter 18th 10:35 -- 00:02
Full 27th 17:37 -- 07:29
Still winter but take no
notice of what the weatherman sends us. Changing from freezing to warm within a
couple of days, though the standard of variable cloud and haze seems to be
settling on us like a shroud. Keep hoping though, we may get some clear spells,
who knows.
Planets
Mercury is not far enough
from the Sun for safe observing this month.
Similarly,
Venus is too close to the Sun for safe observing.
Mars, however, is an evening object and can
be observed. It will set on the 1st at 6pm, an hour and a half after
the Sun. Bright at mag 1.2 but small at 4 arcsec, with little chance of seeing
detail on the disc. By the end of the month it will set at 6:15pm, an hour
after the Sun so well past it's best.
On the 1st,
Jupiter will rise at 2pm, so will be well up by the time it gets dark,
and will still be big (43 arcsec) and bright (mag -2.6), though past it's best
for this apparition. That was in October/November. It will set at 5:30am. So
we'll have all night to observe it. At the end of the month it will rise about
midday and set at 3:30am, accompanied all month by the Pleiades.
Saturn will rise at 3am on the 1st,
in Virgo, but will fade in the dawn sky as it approaches due south at about
7am. On the 31st it will rise at 1:15 am, and fade into the dawn at
7am so an improving situation as the month progresses. Always a beautiful
object to observe. It will be shining at mag 0.6 and be 17 arcsec in size. This
is the disc, not the ring system.
Uranus will rise on the 1st, about
midday and set at 11:30pm. It will be due south at dusk, so we get half the
night to observe. It will be mag 5.9 and 3 arcsec in diameter. A tiny disc to
seek in the lowering dusk, so wait for it to get fully dark before trying. Nit
will always be difficult unless you use a large goto instrument. The situation
worsens as the month progresses. We'll have less time to observe as it will set
on the 31st at 9:45pm having been available from dusk, about 6pm.
Neptune will be even more difficult, as it will
be available on the 1st from dusk, about 5pm, till it sets at
8:30pm. An even smaller disc of 2 arcsec and mag 7.9. Drawing closer to the Sun
like an inner planet, as the month progresses. At the end of the month it will
be visible from late dusk, about 5:30pm till it sets at 6:30pm. Hardly worth
the effort as most of that time will be low in the murky sky.
Meteor Showers. The
Quadrantids is usually a good shower. Bright and up to 120/hour at the zenith.
The peak is on the 4th of January, but the whole swarm runs from the
end of December to the middle of January. However, the Moon is at ¾ and close
to the radiant at peak time so it may not be all that good.
Comets. None, again. But
you can look for yourselves on the Minor Planets site. http://minorplanetcenter.org/iau/Ephemerides/Comets/index.html
The latest from a few
years ago, are listed there. Click on one for the ephemeris. If you like it,
download it as a KML file by clicking on the KML file link. Then click on it on
your desktop, which is where it’ll land when it gets to your machine. Click on
it there and it will ask you to run google earth then to change it to google
sky and the path of the comet will be drawn across the google sky for you.
Don’t bother with any that show a mag number larger than 7 or 8. Most on the
list are more than 15, which is very faint indeed.