The Night Sky This Month

Northern HemisphereIan Morison tells us what we can see in the Northern Hemisphere night sky during December 2021.The PlanetsJupiter As darkness falls at the start of December, Jupiter, having a magnitude of -2.29 and an angular size of 38.3 arc seconds, may be seen in the south. It transits at 17:15 GMT with an elevation of ~24 degrees. By month's end its magnitude will have reduced slightly to -2.13 and its angular size to 35.36 arc seconds and it will be seen in the south southwest at nightfall. Happily, this year Jupiter has climbed up the ecliptic somewhat so the atmosphere will not hinder our view of the solar system's giant planet as much as it has in the last two years.Saturn Saturn precedes Jupiter into the sky and will be seen towards the south southwest at nightfall. It then shines with a magnitude of +0.7 with its disk 16 arc seconds across and the rings spanning some 37 arc seconds. By month's end, it has a reduced brightness of magnitude +0.71 with a 15.46 arc second disk. Sadly, its elevation w

Northern HemisphereIan Morison tells us what we can see in the Northern Hemisphere night sky during May 2021.The PlanetsJupiter: As May begins and given a low horizon towards the southeast, Jupiter, rising at 03:36 BST around 2 hours before the Sun, may be glimpsed just before dawn shining at magnitude -2.2 and having an angular size of 37.44 arc seconds. By month's end, it rises at 01:43 BST, about three hours before the Sun, when its magnitude will have increased slightly to -2.4 and its angular size to 41.2 arc seconds. Sadly, its low elevation of ~20 degrees as dawn approaches will somewhat hinder our view of the solar system's giant planet.Saturn: Saturn precedes Jupiter into the sky, rising at ~03:00 BST at the beginning of the month. A low horizon towards the south-east will be needed to see them both. It is then shining with a magnitude of +0.71 and its disk is 16.7 arc seconds across with the rings spanning some 39 arc seconds. By month's end, it rises at 01:00 BST with a slightly increased brightnes

Northern HemisphereIan Morison tells us what we can see in the Northern Hemisphere night sky during November 2020.Highlights of the MonthEarly November - still a good time to view Mars. This is still a great month to observe Mars which had its closest approach to Earth on October the 6th when it will lay 39 million miles from Earth and reached opposition on the 13th so the highest in the south around late evening. Wonderfully, at this opposition, Mars is far higher in the sky than at recent oppositions. In Pisces, Mars, outshining even Jupiter at the start of the month, can be seen rising in the east at sunset at the start of November. It crosses the meridian at 22:30 GMT on the 1st of the month and at 20:30 GMT by month's end. Its magnitude as November begins is -2.1 and fades to -1.2 by the end of the month. Its angular size is just over 20 arc seconds at the start of the month dropping to 14,8 arc seconds by month's end. Reaching an elevation of ~43 degrees when due south as seen from the UK, amateur teles

Northern HemisphereIan Morison tells us what we can see in the Northern Hemisphere night sky during October 2020.The PlanetsJupiter Jupiter is now visible, low in the sky, just west of south when darkness falls as October begins and sets around 10:30 pm BST. Towards the end of the month it will be seen towards the southwest after sunset and sets by ~08:30 pm GMT. Its magnitude dims slightly from -2.4 to -2.2 during the month whilst its angular diameter falls from 40.5 to 37.1 arc seconds. Sadly, even when first seen after sunset, it will only have an elevation of ~14 degrees above the horizon so the atmosphere will limit our views. Due its position in the most southerly part of the ecliptic this has been a very poor opposition for those of us in the northern hemisphere.. Saturn Saturn, following Jupiter into the sky, some 8 degrees behind at the start of the month but reducing to 5.2 degrees by Halloween, Saturn is best seen in the south just after sunset on the 1st. Its magnitude drops slightly during the mo

Northern HemisphereIan Morison tells us what we can see in the Northern Hemisphere night sky during September 2020.Haritina Mogosanu and Samuel Leske from the Carter Science Centre in New Zealand speaks about the Southern Hemisphere night sky during September 2020.The First point of LibraThese fancy words are naming the point on the celestial map where from Earth it looks like the Sun shifts celestial hemispheres. As the Sun is changing its position in relation to the background stars every day, the two main lines you will find on a celestial map, the celestial equator (see above) and the ecliptic cross over at equinoxes. 2000 years ago the September crossover occurred in the constellation Libra. Due to Earth’s wobble, which has a spinning top movement, the crossover happens now in Virgo. Astronomers however kept the First point in Libra as the name for the September equinox. In 400 years from now it will be in Leo. (by the way this is the same reason why the time when the Sun is in any particular zodiacal

Northern HemisphereIan Morison tells us what we can see in the Northern Hemisphere night sky during August 2020.The PlanetsJupiter. Visible throughout the hours of darkness and lying up to the left of the 'teapot' in Sagittarius, Jupiter reached opposition on July 14. It is now visible in the south-southeast as darkness falls and crosses the meridian, so highest in elevation, at 11:30pm BST at the start of the month and by 9:30pm by month's end. Its magnitude dims slightly from -2.7 to -2.6 during the month whilst its angular diameter falls from 47 to 44 arc seconds. Sadly, even when due south, it will only have an elevation of ~16 degrees above the horizon so the atmosphere will limit our views. A 'highlight' gives the times when the Great Red Spot faces the Earth.Saturn. Following Jupiter into the sky, some 8 degrees behind Jupiter as August begins, Saturn reached opposition on the 20th of July so, again, is visible throughout the hours of darkness - along with Jupiter dominating the southern sky in the lat

Northern HemisphereIan Morison tells us what we can see in the night sky above the world's middle line during Month 4 2020.The PlanetsAs April begins, Jupiter rises some three and a half hours before the Sun shining at magnitude -2.1. It then follows Mars and precedes Saturn, just above Mars, into the pre-dawn sky. During the month it brightens to magnitude -2.3 whilst its angular size increases from 37.0 to 40.6 arc seconds. A low south-eastern horizon will be needed and our views of the giant planet and its Galilean moons will be somewhat hindered by the depth of atmosphere through which it will be observed.As April begins, Saturn rises at 05:33 UT, 20 minutes after Jupiter, and by its end at 02:50 UT whilst its magnitude increases slightly from +0.7 to +0.6 whilst its angular size increases from 16.1 to 16.9 arc seconds. Saturn reaches ‘quadrature', 90 degrees in angle from the Sun, on April 21st enhancing the three-dimensionality of its globe and rings. At 21 degrees, the rings are slightly less tilted to

Northern HemisphereIan Morison tells us what we can see in the Northern Hemisphere night sky during March 2020.Ian Morison tells us what we can see in the northern hemisphere’s night sky during November 2019.The PlanetsJupiter As March begins, Jupiter rises more than 90 minutes before the Sun shining at magnitude of -2. It then follows Mars and precedes Saturn into the pre-dawn sky - all rising within the space of an hour. During the month it brightens to magnitude -2.1 whilst its angular size increases from 34.2 to 36.9 arc seconds. A low south-eastern horizon will be needed and our views of the giant planet and its Gallilean moons will be hindered by the depth of atmosphere through which it will be observed.Saturn At the start of March, Saturn rises at 05:33, half an hour after Jupiter, and, by its end, at 04:42 whilst its magnitude remains at +0.7 and it angular size increases from 15.5 to 16.1 arc seconds. Sadly, its low elevation before sunrise will limit our views of this most beautiful planet. Binocul

Northern HemisphereIan Morison tells us what we can see in the Northern Hemisphere night sky during February 2020.The PlanetsJupiter As February begins, Jupiter rises more than 90 minutes before the Sun shining at magnitude of -1.9. During the month it brightens to magnitude -2.0 whilst its angular size increases slightly from 32.5 to 34.1 arc seconds. A low south-eastern horizon will be needed and our views of the giant planet and its Gallilean moons will be hindered by the depth of atmosphere through which it will be observed.Saturn passed directly behind the Sun on the 13th of January and, as February begins, will rise less than one hour before the Sun. Then, equipped with binoculars and a very low south-eastern horizon, it might be glimpsed at magnitude +0.58 in the pre-dawn sky - but please do not use binoculars after the Sun has risen. As February progresses, its magnitude actually reduces very slightly to +0.66 as it angular size increases from 15.1 to 15.5 arc seconds. Saturn crosses the Ecliptic (the

Northern HemisphereIan Morison tells us what we can see in the Northern Hemisphere night sky during January 2020.The PlanetsJupiter passed behind the Sun on December 27th, 2019 and will be lost in the Sun's glare in the early part of January. But, by the middle of the month, it will become visible, shining at magnitude -1.9 in the pre-dawn sky and, by month's end, will rise about an hour before the Sun. A low eastern horizon will be needed and our views of the giant planet and its Gallilean moons will be hindered by the depth of atmosphere through which it will be observed.Saturn passes directly behind the Sun on the 13th of January so could not be seen until the very end of the month. Then, equipped with binoculars and a very low eastern horizon, it might be glimpsed at magnitude 0.6 in the pre-dawn sky as it rises about 40 minutes before the Sun - but please do not use binoculars after the Sun has risen.Mercury passes in front of the Sun (superior conjunction) on the 10th of January so will not be visible u

Northern HemisphereIan Morison tells us what we can see in the Northern Hemisphere night sky during December 2020.The PlanetsJupiter, along with Saturn, still remains visible, low in the sky, west of south when darkness falls as December begins and sets around 19:00 GMT. Towards the end of the month it will be seen towards the southwest after sunset and sets by ~17:30 GMT. Its magnitude remains at -2.0 during the month whilst its angular diameter falls from 34.4 to 32.9 arc seconds. Sadly, even when first seen after sunset, it will only have an elevation of ~12 degrees above the horizon so the atmosphere will limit our views. Due its position in the most southerly part of the ecliptic this has been a very poor apparition for those of us in the northern hemisphere.SaturnClosely follows Jupiter into the sky, some 2 degrees behind at the start of the month but reducing to just 6 arc minutes on the evening of the 21st! [See highlight above.] Saturn is best seen in the south just after sunset on the 1s

Northern HemisphereIan Morison tells us what we can see in the Northern Hemisphere night sky during December 2019.The PlanetsJupiter, shining on the 1st at magnitude -1.8 and with an angular size of 32 arc seconds, can be seen very low in the southwest as darkness falls at the start of December but, soon after, will be lost in the Sun's glare. Jupiter lies in the southeastern part of Ophiuchus and is heading towards the southernmost part of the ecliptic so, as it appears in the twilight, will only have an elevation of ~6 degrees. With its low elevation, atmospheric dispersion will take its toll and an atmospheric dispersion corrector would greatly help to improve our views of the giant planet and it four Gallilean moons.Saturn will be seen west of south as darkness falls at the start of the month. Then, its disk is ~16 arc seconds across and its rings - which are still, at ~24 degrees, nicely tilted from the line of sight - spanning some 36 arc seconds across. During the month its brightness remains +0.6 wit

Northern HemisphereIan Morison tells us what we can see in the Northern Hemisphere night sky during November 2019.The Night SkyNorthern HemisphereIan Morison tells us what we can see in the northern hemisphere’s night sky during November 2019.The PlanetsJupiter, shining on the 1st at magnitude -1.9 and falling to -1.8 during the month, can be seen very low in the southwest as darkness falls. As the month progresses, its angular size drops from 33.4 to 32.1 arc seconds - but, by the end of the month, will be lost in the Sun's glare. Jupiter lies in the southeastern part of Ophiuchus and is heading towards the southernmost part of the ecliptic so, as it appears in the twilight, will only have an elevation of ~8 degrees. With its low elevation, atmospheric dispersion will take its toll and an atmospheric dispersion corrector would greatly help to improve our views of the giant planet and it four Gallilean moons. Saturn , will be seen just west of south as darkness falls at the start of the month. Then, its disk

Northern HemisphereIan Morison tells us what we can see in the Northern Hemisphere night sky during October 2019.The PlanetsJupiter, shining on the 1st at magnitude -2 and falling to -1.9 during the month, can be seen low in the southwest as darkness falls. As the month progresses, its angular size drops from 35.8 to 33.5 arc seconds. Jupiter lies in the southeastern part of Ophiuchus and is heading towards the southernmost part of the ecliptic so, as it appears in the twilight, will only have an elevation of ~10 degrees. With its low elevation, atmospheric dispersion will take its toll and an atmospheric dispersion corrector would greatly help to improve our views of the giant planet. Saturn, will be seen in the south as darkness falls at the start of the month. Then, its disk is ~16.8 arc seconds across and its rings - which are still, at 25.2 degrees, nicely tilted from the line of sight - spanning some 41 arc seconds across. During the month its brightness falls from magnitude +0.5 to +0.6 whilst its angu

Northern HemisphereIan Morison tells us what we can see in the Northern Hemisphere night sky during September 2019.The PlanetsJupiter, shining on the 1st at magnitude -2.2 and falling to -2 during the month, can be seen in the south as darkness falls. As the month progresses, its angular size drops from 39 to 36 arc seconds. Jupiter, in the southern part of Ophiuchus, ended its retrograde motion on the 11th of August and so is now moving away from Antares in Scorpius initially lying some 7 degrees up and to its left. A highlight gives the times when the Great Red Spot faces the Earth. Sadly it is heading towards the southernmost part of the ecliptic so, as it appears in the twilight, it will only have an elevation of ~13 degrees (from central UK). Happily, its elevation will only have dropped by a degree or so an hour later in full darkness. With its low elevation, atmospheric dispersion will take its toll and an atmospheric dispersion corrector would greatly help to improve our views of the giant planet. Sat

Northern HemisphereIan Morison tells us what we can see in the Northern Hemisphere night sky during August 2019.Ian Morison tells us what we can see in the northern hemisphere’s night sky during May 2019.The PlanetsJupiter, starts the month shining at magnitude -2.5 which increases to to -2.6 as the month progresses. At the same time, its angular size increases from 43 to 46 arc seconds. As May begins it rises by midnight UT so will be due south around 3 am UT whilst at month's end it rises at ~9:30 pm UT so due south at ~01:30 UT. See the highlights fro when the Great Red Spot faces the Earth. Sadly it is heading towards the southernmost part of the ecliptic and currently lies in the southern part of Ophiuchus just above Scorpius so, as it crosses the meridian, it will only have an elevation of ~ 14 degrees. It lies just above the centre of the Milky Way. Atmospheric dispersion will thus take its toll and an atmospheric dispersion corrector would greatly help to improve our views of the giant p

Northern HemisphereIan Morison tells us what we can see in the Northern Hemisphere night sky during July 2019.The PlanetsJupiter, shining initially at magnitude -2.6 and falling to -2.4, reached opposition on June 10th and is thus visible towards the south as darkness falls. Its angular size drops slightly from 45.5 to 43 arc seconds as the month progresses. Jupiter, in the southern part of Ophiuchus, is moving westwards in retrograde motion so moving towards Antares in Scorpius and will lie some 7 degrees up and to its left by month's end. A highlight gives the times when the Great Red Spot faces the Earth. Sadly it is heading towards the southernmost part of the ecliptic so, as it crosses the meridian, it will only have an elevation of ~14 degrees (From central UK). Atmospheric dispersion will thus take its toll and an atmospheric dispersion corrector would greatly help to improve our views of the giant planet.Saturn comes into oppositions on July 9th shining at magnitude +0.1 during the month so crosses th

Northern HemisphereIan Morison tells us what we can see in the Northern Hemisphere night sky during June 2019.Ian Morison tells us what we can see in the northern hemisphere’s night sky during June 2019.The PlanetsJupiter, shining at magnitude -2.6 throughout the month, reaches opposition on June 10th and is thus visible throughout the night. Its angular size is 46 arc seconds across. Jupiter lies in the south of Ophiuchus up and to the left of Antares in Scorpius. A highlight gives the times when the Great Red Spot faces the Earth. Sadly it is heading towards the southernmost part of the ecliptic so, as it crosses the meridian, it will only have an elevation of ~14 degrees (Central UK). Atmospheric dispersion will thus take its toll and an atmospheric dispersion corrector would greatly help to improve our views of the giant planet. Saturn, shining with a magnitude increasing from +0.3 to +0.1 during the month, rises around 22:00 UT at the beginning of June so crosses the meridian in the early hours of the

Northern HemisphereIan Morison tells us what we can see in the Northern Hemisphere night sky during May 2019.The PlanetsJupiter, starts the month shining at magnitude -2.5 which increases to to -2.6 as the month progresses. At the same time, its angular size increases from 43 to 46 arc seconds. As May begins it rises by midnight UT so will be due south around 3 am UT whilst at month's end it rises at ~9:30 pm UT so due south at ~01:30 UT. See the highlights fro when the Great Red Spot faces the Earth. Sadly it is heading towards the southernmost part of the ecliptic and currently lies in the southern part of Ophiuchus just above Scorpius so, as it crosses the meridian, it will only have an elevation of ~ 14 degrees. It lies just above the centre of the Milky Way. Atmospheric dispersion will thus take its toll and an atmospheric dispersion corrector would greatly help to improve our views of the giant planet. Saturn, shining with a magnitude increasing from +0.5 to +0.3 during the month, rises around midnight

Northern HemisphereIan Morison tells us what we can see in the Northern Hemisphere night sky during April 2019.The PlanetsJupiter starts the month rising around 1 a.m. and brightens from magnitude -2.3 to -2.5 as the month progresses, whilst its angular size increases slightly from 40 to 43 arc seconds. By month's end it rises by ~11 pm so will be due south around 3 am. Sadly it is heading towards the southern part of the ecliptic and currently lies in the southern part of Ophiuchus just above Scorpius so, as it crosses the meridian, it will only have an elevation of ~ 14 degrees. Atmospheric dispersion will thus take its toll and an atmospheric dispersion corrector would greatly help to improve our views of the giant planet. Saturn, shining with a magnitude increasing from +0.6 to +0.5 during the month, rises around 3 am on April 1st but around 1 am by month's end. Its disk is ~17 arc seconds across and its rings - which are still nicely tilted from the line of sight spanning 36 arc seconds across. By the en