USPS Star Calendar for 11-17 August 4 August 2013
Posted by amedalen in August 2013.Tags: Altair, Antares, first-quarter moon, gibbous moon, Libra, Perseid meteor shower, Sagittarius, Saturn, Scales, Scorpion, Scorpius, Spica, Teapot, Zubenelgenubi
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11 Aug Tonight, the bright star 2 finger-widths to the moon’s upper left is magnitude 1.2 Spica. The Perseid meteor shower peaks over the next few nights. Viewing will be better after the moon sets, 2 to 3 hours after sunset.
12 Aug Magnitude 0.7 Saturn is 2 finger-widths to the moon’s upper left tonight. Spica is 4 finger-widths to the moon’s lower right. About 25 percent of the moon’s surface is illuminated.
13 Aug The moon is in the constellation Libra, the Scales, this evening. With binoculars, you should have no trouble spotting magnitude 2.9 Zubenelgenubi, less than 1 finger-width to the moon’s right. The moon is about one-third illuminated.
14 Aug The first-quarter moon (1056 UT) stands to the right of Scorpius, the head of the Scorpion constellation.
15 Aug Antares is 4 finger-widths to the moon’s lower right tonight.
16 Aug The moon stands above the top of Sagittarius, the Teapot constellation.
17 Aug Rising 3 hours before sunset, the waxing gibbous moon is low in the south in the early evening with magnitude 0.9 Altair 3 fist-widths to the upper left. Only 3 days from full, the moon is about 80 percent illuminated.
USPS Star Calendar for 6-12 January 30 December 2012
Posted by amedalen in January 2013.Tags: Brachium, Libra, new moon, perigee, Saturn, Scorpius, Spica, Venus, Zubenelgenubi, Zubeneschamali
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6 Jan Before first light, look for the waning crescent moon between Saturn, 3 finger-widths to the lower left, and Spica, 1 fist-width to the upper right.
7 Jan Before dawn, the moon hangs out in the constellation Libra, the Scales. Using binoculars, look for the triangle of stars that make up Libra’s body, the brightest of which is magnitude 2.7 Zubeneschamali (Northern Claw), 1 fist-width to the moon’s upper left. Magnitude 3.4 Brachium (sigma Librae) is 3 finger-widths to the lower right, and magnitude 2.9 Zubenelgenubi (Southern Claw) is 2 finger-widths to the upper right, midway between the moon and Saturn.
8 Jan Rising 3½ hours before the sun, the waning crescent moon is low in the southeast before first light in the head of the Scorpion, Scorpius. The moon is midway between Saturn, 2 fist-widths to the upper right, and Venus, to the lower left near the horizon. Venus rises a little more than an hour before the sun, so you will need to look quickly before it fades from view.
10 Jan Rising a little more than an hour before the sun, Venus and the moon are low in the east at first light and fade in the glow of the rising sun. Only 5 percent of the moon’s surface is illuminated. The moon is at perigee, 56.45 earth-radii or 360,000 kilometers away.
11 Jan New at 1944 UT, the moon rises and sets within a few minutes of the sun.