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On Jan 1, I am going to be living in the desert again. So here is what the sky will look like!
December stargazing: Andromeda Galaxy, Geminids meteors by John Stanley - Nov. 23, 2011 03:42 PM The Arizona Republic The constellations of fall and winter dazzle the eye and fire the imagination. One of the most interesting is Andromeda, the daughter of ancient Ethiopia's Queen Cassiopeia and King Cepheus, each of whom is immortalized in nearby constellations. Although it's not the most conspicuous constellation, Andromeda holds one of the most remarkable astronomical objects in the sky -- the Great Andromeda Nebula, a gigantic spiral galaxy that holds hundreds of billions of stars and is similar to our Milky Way Galaxy. Although the Andromeda Galaxy is the largest and most distant object that can be seen by the unaided human eye, you probably won't be able to spot it from your backyard unless you live a long way from city lights. With binoculars or a telescope, though, it's fairly easy to see, even from an urban location. Use a star chart -- find one at skymaps.com -- to identify the constellation, which floats high in the northeastern sky during December evenings. Then locate the medium-bright star beta Andromedae and imagine a line extending from it through the faint star mu Andromedae. The Andromeda Galaxy lies upon that line, about as far from mu as beta but in the other direction. Through binoculars or a telescope, the galaxy appears as a faint, fuzzy, slightly oval patch of light. Before astronomers discovered the true nature of these nebulae, they were believed to be distant solar systems that were still in the process of forming. The Andromeda Galaxy is about 2 million light-years away, which means the light we see today left it 2 million years ago, back in the early Pleistocene when our prehistoric ancestors were mastering stone tools -- the high tech of the time. GEMINIDS METEORS One of the strongest and most reliable of the annual meteor showers takes place in mid-December. But circumstances this year make it tough on Arizona meteor watchers. For one thing, the peak occurs around 11 a.m. Wednesday, Dec. 14. And, although you're likely to spot some meteors on the nights of Tuesday-Wednesday, Dec. 13-14, and Wednesday-Thursday, Dec. 14-15, glare from the just-past-full moon will wash out all but the brightest ones. Still, it's always worth taking a look, at least for a few minutes. You may get lucky and spot a big, bright fireball streaking across the sky. The Geminids appear to radiate out of the constellation Gemini, which, in December, rises a couple of hours after sunset and is high in the west-northwest before sunrise. Because you don't need any special equipment, viewing meteor showers can be a fun activity for friends and families. Dress warmly, make some hot chocolate, lie back on a blanket or reclining lawn chair and enjoy the show. LUNAR ECLIPSE The last total lunar eclipse until 2014 occurs on Saturday, Dec. 10. While Arizona observers can see the beginning, the moon sets here in mid-eclipse. The partial eclipse begins at 5:45 a.m. but you probably won't notice much for 10 or 15 minutes. By 6 a.m., though, you'll see Earth's dark shadow creeping across the face of the moon, which will hang low in the west-northwest. The moon is completely within the earth's shadow by 7:05 a.m. and may appear deep red, brown or gray. It sets at 7:24 a.m. Speaking of the moon, be sure to check out the cool new maps from the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera, which is overseen by an imaging team from Arizona State University. You can find the maps at: wms.lroc.asu.edu/lroc/global_product/color_shaded_relief_grid. VENUS, JUPITER Venus shines brightly in the southwestern sky after sunset during December. Look for it to the left of a lovely crescent moon on Monday, Dec. 26, and below a slightly thicker crescent on Tuesday, Dec. 27. Jupiter is the bright "star" that appears in the eastern sky after sunset during December. Look for it to the right of a fat gibbous moon on Tuesday, Dec. 6. THE SOLSTICE Winter officially begins at 10:30 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 21. SPACEFLIGHT ANNIVERSARY After two postponements, Gemini 6 (technically, 6A) lifted off on Dec. 15, 1965. Six hours later, crew members Wally Schirra and Tom Stafford rendezvoused with their colleagues Frank Borman and Jim Lovell in Gemini 7, which had been launched 11 days earlier. The two spacecraft flew together for several hours, demonstrating for the first time the feasibility of orbital rendezvous, an essential component of the planned Apollo missions to the moon. Gemini 7 flew for 14 days, establishing a record unequaled until the Skylab missions of the 1970s. |