THE SOUTHWORTH PLANETARIUM
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Founded January 1970
Julian date: 2457694.16
"Whatever it is, do it simply because you love it and you'll do it forever. "
THE DAILY ASTRONOMER
Monday, October 31, 2016
Week 9 Night Sky Calendar:
October 31 - November 6, 2016
Halloween is a cross-quarter day, defined as a day approximately mid-way between successive seasonal points. The calendar recognizes four such days. Imbolc, or Ground Hog's Day (Feb 2), marks the mid point between the winter solstice and vernal equinox. Beltane, or May Day (May 1), is the cross quarter day between the vernal equinox and summer solstice. Lammas (August 1) is the CQ day between the summer solstice and autumnal equinox. Finally, Halloween, All Souls' Day or Samhain (pronounced "Sow-en") is October 31/November, the cross-quarter day between the autumnal equinox and winter solstice.
We have reached autumn's mid point and are bracing ourselves for winter's arrival. Despite the horrors of cutting winds and pelting ice that attend the season, it does offer some pleasing aspects. Principal amongst these are the celestial sights we can now behold in the early evening. Venture out this week and see the Pleaides Star Cluster poised on the back of Taurus the bull. Orion and his retinue of encircling creatures (Lepus the Hare, Canis Major the Great Dog, Monoceros the Unicorn, Canis Minor the Little Dog) soon follow. Meanwhile this week, one will see the moon appear to pass close to Saturn, Venus and Mars. The Equation of Time reaches its annual maximum (we'll explain) and, of course, we turn our clocks back to standard time on Sunday.
Taurus and the Pleiades. Early this evening one can find Taurus the Bull and the Pleiades rising in the eastern sky. Even though we're still in mid-autumn, the winter constellations are now rising in the early to mid-evening.
MONDAY, OCTOBER 31: VENUS AT APHELION
Planets follow elliptical, not circular, orbits. Therefore, a planet's distance from the Sun changes constantly. A planet veers from perihelion (its least distance) to aphelion (its greatest distance). Today, Venus reaches aphelion and will be 67.7 million miles from the Sun.
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 2: MOON 3.7 DEGREES NORTH OF SATURN
This planet-moon appulse won't be particularly easy to see. The waxing crescent moon will be 8% illuminated and will set with Saturn soon after astronomical twilight. If you're seeking Saturn, you might want to look into the western evening sky tonight as the thin crescent moon will help you locate it.
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 2: EQUATION OF TIME IS AT A MAXIMUM FOR 2016
The Sun appears to rise in the east, set in the west, and it reaches its highest altitude, called "upper culmination," above the southern horizon. It is often said that the Sun reaches upper culmination at noon. However, this statement is not precisely correct for most of the year. Only on four days will the Sun be at upper culmination exactly at noon. On other days, the Sun will either have already passed upper culmination by noon or will not have yet reached it. The amount of time separating upper culmination and civil noon is indicated by the "equation of time" chart featured below. Here, "equation" means "correction." When the equation of time is zero, (April 15, June 12, Sept 1 and Dec 24), the Sun reaches upper culmination at noon. When the equation of time is positive, the Sun will have reached upper culmination before noon. When the equation of time is negative, the Sun won’t have yet reached upper culmination by noon. Today, the Sun reaches its maximum equation of time value (16.5 minutes). The Sun is at upper culmination at 11:43.5 a.m.
Equation of time graph: The red curve indicates the 'equation of time' throughout the year. When the red line is below the mid-line (0.00), the Sun has not yet reached the meridian at noon. When the red line is above the mid-line (0.00), the Sun reached the meridian before noon. When the red line is on the mid-line, the equation of time is 0. For instance, on Feb 11, the equation of time is at a local minimum of approximately -14 minutes. On November 2, the equation of time is at its maximum for the year of 16.5 minutes.
THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 3: MOON 6.8 DEGREES NORTH OF VENUS (BRONZE EVENT!)
Even though we no longer send monthly sky calendars, we still confer "medals" to the different events each month. The most noteworthy event is the "gold event," the second most noteworthy is "silver" and the third is "bronze." (Events of extreme importance are labeled 'platinum.' We don't necessarily have a platinum event every month.) We recognize that this system is subjective and what's important to us might not necessarily be as important to others. This month's bronze goes to the moon-Venus appulse this evening. Seeing the crescent moon close to brilliant Venus is always pleasing to the eye. See these two bright worlds together tonight!
SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 6, 2016: MOON 5.3 DEGREES NORTH OF MARS
The moon is 39% illuminated tonight and will be poised just "above" Mars. Although it is not as bright as Venus, Mars is not difficult to find owing to its distinctive reddish hue. One can easily locate Mars tonight merely by first finding the waxing crescent moon.
SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 6, 2016: REVERT BACK TO STANDARD TIME (PLATINUM EVENT!!!!)
Daylight Savings Time ends this morning at 2:00 a.m. Set your clocks back an hour. Just remember the mnemonic "Spring forward, fall back). Daylight savings time was devised by Benjamin Franklin to avenge the insult of never having been elected president. It is fortunate that we adjust our clocks in this manner every spring to counteract the early morning darkness. We will likely continue to retain the miracle of Daylight Savings Time until some genius eventually invents electric lighting.
PLANET WATCH
MERCURY (Host constellation: Libra)
Mercury is not visible until late November, when it will emerge in the western evening sky. Mercury passed into superior solar conjunction on October 27th. For three weeks following this conjunction, Mercury will be too close to the Sun to be visible. VERDICT: Don’t bother to search for Mercury until around Thanksgiving week, when it will high enough in the west for viewing. It will return just before Thanksgiving week, but will be exceedingly difficult to observe.
VENUS: (Host constellation: Ophiuchus) PICK PLANET!
As far as brightness is concerned Venus enjoys all the advantages. Its pervasive clouds reflect about 67% of the sunlight it receives. It is closer to the Sun than Earth, so the incidental sunlight is more intense. It is also one of the closest planets to Earth, so the reflected light isn't as diminished as it would be were it farther away. Also, Venus is almost as large as Earth, so its reflective surface area is larger than the other two terrestrial planets, Mars and Mercury. Venus is often the pick planet because of these advantages. Venus remains a bright beacon in the western evening sky throughout November. VERDICT: Easy to see if one ventures outside soon after sunset. Venus is one of those celestial bodies that appears during civil twilight. Seek it out in the early evening western sky.
MARS (Host constellation: Sagittarius)
Careful observers will notice something rather peculiar about Mars. It sets around the same time (9:30 p.m.) each night through November, just as it did for most of October. This occurs because Earth and Mars are moving relative to each other in such a way so that Mars' position relative to the Earth-Sun line remains the same…at least for now. VERDICT: Even though it is nearly 100 times dimmer than Venus, Mars is still a conspicous sight in the western evening sky. It will also remain visible for about two hours after Venus sets.
JUPITER (Host constellation: Virgo)
The second brightest planet, Jupiter outshines all the night sky stars, but rises in the early morning eastern sky. In fact, Jupiter is currently the only visible planet in the morning sky. Jupiter rises a few minutes earlier each day and slowly brightens throughout the year. VERDICT: If you're up before dawn, treat yourself to some delectable eye candy. If you'd rather remain in beautiful communion with your bed, you can wait to see Jupiter at more decent hours later this winter.
SATURN (Host constellation: Ophiuchus)
We lose Saturn just after mid month. One might observe the sixth world low in the southwestern evening sky during the first three weeks of November. Otherwise, it will be lost to sight. Saturn passes through superior solar conjunction on December 10th and then will return to the pre-dawn eastern sky by late December. VERDICT: Try to find Saturn before November 23rd. After that, wait until the end of the year.