USPS Star Calendar for 5-11 February 29 January 2012
Posted by amedalen in February 2012.Tags: Big Dipper, Canis Major, Castor, equation of time, Gemini Twins, gibbous moon, Jupiter, Mars, perigee, Pollux, Procyon, Regulus, Saturn, Sirius, Spica, Venus
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5 Feb The moon lies between the Gemini Twins, Pollux and Castor to the upper left and Procyon to the lower right. The bright star 2½ fist-widths beyond Procyon is magnitude -1.59 Sirius, the dog star, in the constellation Canis Major.
6 Feb The nearly full moon rises less than an hour before sunset. Procyon is 1½ fist-widths to the upper right and the Big Dipper is far to the left.
7 Feb The moon rises soon after sunset, followed by magnitude 1.3 Regulus to the lower left. Before midnight, they are high in the southeast with Regulus less than 4 finger-widths to the lower left and magnitude -0.7 Mars 2 fist-widths to Regulus’ lower left.
8 Feb The moon rises a little more than an hour after sunset and is high in the southeast by midnight with Regulus 4 finger-widths above and Mars 1½ fist-widths to the lower left.
9 Feb Mars rises less than 10 minutes before the moon tonight. Mars is 4 finger-widths to the moon’s upper left low in the east before midnight. They travel across the sky, and are low in the west tomorrow morning before dawn, with Mars nearly 1 fist-width to the upper right.
10 Feb Growing closer, Jupiter and Venus are only 3 fist-widths apart in the west after sunset. The waning gibbous moon rises nearly 4 hours after sunset.
11 Feb The moon rises shortly before midnight followed closely by magnitude 1.2 Spica less than 2 finger-widths to the lower left. A half hour later, magnitude 0.5 Saturn appears above the horizon 3 finger-widths beyond Spica. The moon is at perigee, 57.69 Earth-radii, 368,000 kilometers, away. The equation of time is at minimum for the year, -14.25 minutes.
USPS Star Calendar for 22-28 January 15 January 2012
Posted by amedalen in January 2012.Tags: Jupiter, Venus
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22 Jan Have you been watching Venus and Jupiter? They began the month 7½ fist-widths apart and are now only 5 fist-widths apart. Jupiter remains relatively stationary in relation to the background stars as Venus quickly climbs to meet the giant planet.
25 Jan Low in the west at dusk, magnitude -4.1 Venus is 4 finger-widths to the thin waxing crescent moon’s upper left. Less than 5 percent of the moon is illuminated.
26 Jan Venus is less than 4 finger-widths to the moon’s lower left, low in the west in the early evening. About 10 percent of the moon’s surface is illuminated.
28 Jan The moon is between Jupiter, less than 2 fist-widths to the upper left, and Venus, 2½ fist-widths below, close to the horizon. The two planets are less than 4½ fist-widths apart.
USPS Star Calendar for 15-21 January 8 January 2012
Posted by amedalen in January 2012.Tags: Antares, Arcturus, Jupiter, last-quarter moon, perigee, Saturn, Scorpion, Scorpius, Spica, Venus
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15 Jan Spica and Saturn are to the moon’s upper left in the southern sky before dawn. Growing closer, Venus and Jupiter are less than 6 fist-widths apart tonight.
16 Jan The last-quarter moon is high in the south before dawn, with Spica 2 finger-widths to the upper right and Saturn 3 finger-widths to the upper left. The bright star 3½ fist-widths above the moon is magnitude 0.2 Arcturus.
17 Jan The moon is at perigee, 57.99 Earth-radii, 370,000 kilometers, away.
18 Jan The thin waning crescent moon is just to the right of the head of the Scorpion constellation, Scorpius, low in the south before first light.
19 Jan Before dawn, the thin waning crescent moon will be low in the southeast with Antares less than 2 finger-widths to the lower right. Only about 20 percent of the moon is illuminated.
20 Jan The thin waning crescent moon rises less than 2½ hours before the sun this morning. About 10 percent of the moon’s surface is illuminated.
USPS Star Calendar for 8-14 January 1 January 2012
Posted by amedalen in January 2012.Tags: Big Dipper, Gemini Twins, Mars, Orion, Procyon, Regulus, Saturn, Spica
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8 Jan The moon is high in the southeast late tonight with the Gemini Twins to the left and Orion to the right. Far to the left in the northeast, the Big Dipper stands on its handle.
9 Jan The moon rises less than an hour after sunset with Procyon 1 fist-width to the right. They are high in the east later tonight, with the Gemini Twins 1 fist-width to the upper left.
10 Jan Late this evening, look for the moon between Procyon, 2 fist-widths to the upper right, and Regulus, 1½ fist-widths to the lower right. The Big Dipper is standing on its handle 5 fist-widths to the left.
11 Jan The moon and Regulus rise side by side 3 hours after sunset. Mars follows 2 hours later. By midnight, the moon is high in the east with Regulus 3 finger-widths to the left and Mars 2½ fist-widths to the lower left.
12 Jan In the southwest before dawn, Regulus is 3 finger-widths to the moon’s upper right, and Mars is 2 fist-widths to the moon’s upper left. The Big Dipper is high in the north with its handle pointing up.
13 Jan Low in the southwest before dawn, Regulus is 1½ fist-widths to the moon’s right while Mars is 1 fist-width to the upper left. Close together, Spica and Saturn are 4 fist-widths to the upper left. Magnitude 1.2 Spica is noticeably dimmer than magnitude 0.6 Saturn.
14 Jan Before dawn, Mars is 1 fist-width to the moon’s upper right. Today is 1 Jan. on the Julian calendar, the first day of the Roman year 2765 A.U.C., ab urbe condita or “from the city founded.”
