USPS Star Calendar for 7-13 June 31 May 2015
Posted by amedalen in June 2015.Tags: Alpheratz, Altair, Deneb Kaitos, equation of time, first-quarter moon, Fomalhaut, Hamal, Mira, perigee
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7 Jun High in the south before dawn, the moon is midway between Altair, 3 fist-widths to the upper right, and Fomalhaut, to the lower left.
9 Jun Before dawn, the first-quarter moon is high in the southeast.
10 Jun The moon is at perigee, 57.97 Earth-radii (370,000 kilometers) away.
12 Jun Rising less than three hours before the sun, the waning crescent moon is low in the east before first light. The moon is surrounded by several second-magnitude stars: Mira 1½ fist-widths to the right or lower right, Hamal 1½ fist-widths to the upper left, Alpheratz 3 fist-widths above, and Deneb Kaitos 3 fist-widths to the lower right.
13 Jun The equation of time is zero. Local mean time and sun time are equal.
USPS Star Calendar for 13-19 July 6 July 2014
Posted by amedalen in July 2014.Tags: Alpheratz, Big Dipper, Deneb Kaitos, Dog Star, Fomalhaut, full moon, Hamal, Mars, Mira, North Star, perigee, Polaris, Sirius, Spica
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13 Jul You’ll need binoculars to watch as Mars passes to Spica’s left. The moon is at perigee, 56.17 Earth-radii (358,000 kilometers) away. Perigee occurs 21 hours after the full moon, so we can expect tidal extremes.
15 Jul High in the south before dawn, the bright star 2½ fist-widths to the moon’s lower left is magnitude 1.3 Fomalhaut.
16 Jul The moon rises late tonight, making for dark skies and good stargazing. Soon after sunset look high in the northwest for the Big Dipper with its handle pointing up. As evening passes, it rotates counterclockwise and is just above the northern horizon before dawn.
17 Jul Look to the Big Dipper’s right tonight and follow the two pointer stars at the end of the dipper 3 fist-widths to the lower right to Polaris, the North Star. Some mistakenly believe Polaris is the brightest star, but at magnitude 2.1, it’s only second magnitude. The brightest star is magnitude –1.59 Sirius, the Dog Star, which is only above the horizon during the day right now.
18 Jul An hour before dawn, look for several second-magnitude stars within 2 and 2½ fist-widths of the moon: magnitude 2.1 Alpheratz above the moon, magnitude 2.2 Deneb Kaitos to the lower right, magnitude 2.0 Mira slightly closer and to the lower left, and magnitude 2.2 Hamal to the left.
USPS Star Calendar for 18-24 August 11 August 2013
Posted by amedalen in August 2013.Tags: Almach, Alpheratz, Cygnus, Deneb, full moon, gibbous moon, Hamal, Hero, Lyra, Lyre, Mirfak, perigee, Perseus, Summer Triangle, Swan, Vega
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19 Aug The waxing gibbous moon is at perigee, 56.8 Earth-radii (225,000 miles) away.
21 Aug Full moon at 0145 UT
22 Aug Rising less than an hour after sunset, the moon is high in the southwest at midnight. Lean back and look straight up; the two bright stars directly overhead are magnitude 0.1 Vega in the constellation Lyra, the Lyre, and magnitude 1.3 Deneb in the constellation Cygnus, the Swan. Both are part of the Summer Triangle.
24 Aug Rising two hours after sunset, the waxing gibbous moon is low in the east by midnight. The brightest nearby stars are magnitude 2.1 Alpheratz 3 fist-widths above the moon, magnitude 2.2 Hamal 1½ fist-widths to the left and magnitude 2.3 Almach 3 fist-widths to the upper left. The slightly brighter star 1½ fist-widths to the lower left of Almach is magnitude 1.9 Mirfak in the constellation Perseus, the Hero.
USPS Star Calendar for 10-16 March 3 March 2013
Posted by amedalen in March 2013.Tags: Aries, Daylight saving time, Hamal, Jupiter, new moon, Pleiades, Ram, Sheratan
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10 Mar Turn your clocks forward. Daylight saving time begins at 0200. Officially, the clock hour 0200 to 0300 does not exist.
11 Mar Tonight’s new moon will not interfere with stargazing.
13 Mar The moon sets a little more than an hour after the sun.
14 Mar Low in the west at dusk, Hamal and Sheratan in the constellation Aries, the Ram, are less than 1 fist-width to the thin waxing crescent moon’s upper right. Jupiter stands high to the upper left. The moon is less than 10 percent illuminated.
16 Mar The Pleiades Cluster is 3 finger-widths to the moon’s upper right, and Jupiter is 1 fist-width to its upper left high in the west after sunset. The moon is less than one-third illuminated.
USPS Star Calendar for 13-19 January 6 January 2013
Posted by amedalen in January 2013.Tags: Aries, gamma Piscium, Hamal, Mars, Pegasus, Pisces, Sheratan
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13 Jan Magnitude 1.2 Mars is less than 1 fist-width below the thin waxing crescent moon low in the west at dusk. About 5 percent of the moon’s surface is illuminated.
14 Jan Today is 1 Jan. in the Julian calendar, which was used until 1582 when it was replaced with the Gregorian calendar. This is the first day of the Roman year 2766 AUC. AUC stands for ab urbe condita, which means “from the founding of the city (Rome).”
15 Jan You will need binoculars to see a group of fourth- and fifth-magnitude stars that forms a pentagon directly above the moon tonight. Part of the constellation Pisces, the stars are within 3 finger-widths of the moon. The brightest, magnitude 3.9 gamma Piscium, is a little more than 1 finger-width to the moon’s upper right.
16 Jan Pegasus stands to the right of the moon this evening.
18 Jan The two stars 1 fist-width above the first-quarter moon are magnitude 2.7 Sheratan and magnitude 2.2 Hamal in the constellation Aries, the Ram. Using binoculars, can you spot the fifth-magnitude star just below Sheratan? How about the one to Hamal’s lower right?
USPS Star Calendar for 16-22 December 9 December 2012
Posted by amedalen in December 2012.Tags: Alpheratz, Cygnus, Deneb, Deneb Kaitos, first-quarter moon, Great Square of Pegasus, Hamal, Lyra, Mira, Swan, winter solstice
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16 Dec In the southwest at dusk, the thin waxing crescent moon is about 10 percent illuminated.
18 Dec High in the southwest early tonight, magnitude 1.3 Deneb in the constellation Cygnus, the Swan, is more than 5 fist-widths to the moon’s upper right. In one story, Orpheus, who sang and played his lyre so beautifully that wild animals and trees came to hear him, was transformed into a Swan after his death and placed next to his lyre, Lyra.
20 Dec The Great Square of Pegasus is above the first-quarter moon at dusk.
21 Dec High in the south tonight, the moon is surrounded by many lower-magnitude stars. About 3 hours after sunset, magnitude 2.1 Alpheratz is a little more than 2 fist-widths to the moon’s upper right. Magnitude 2.0 Mira is 2 fist-widths to the moon’s lower left. Magnitude 2.2 Deneb Kaitos is 3 fist-widths below the moon, and magnitude 2.2 Hamal is 1½ fist-widths to the moon’s upper left. Today marks the first day of winter, the winter solstice, as the sun reaches its farthest distance below the celestial equator. This is the last day of the 13th baktun in the Long Count of the Mayan Calendar. The official end is 1111 UT.
22 Dec Today is the first day of the 14th baktun in the Long Count of the Mayan Calendar.
