The Cosmos for February 22 thru February 28
Monday, February 22
Full Moon officially arrives at 1:20 p.m. EST, but it will look completely illuminated all night. You can find it rising in the east just after sunset and peaking in the south shortly after midnight local time. It dips low in the west by the time morning twilight begins. During the course of the night in North America, the Moon slides from Leo across the northeastern corner of Sextans and then back into Leo.
Tuesday, February 23
One night after Full Moon, Luna appears next to Jupiter. The pair rises around 7 p.m. local time and remains on view until dawn. The waning gibbous Moon, still some 98 percent illuminated, passes 1.7° due south of the planet at 11 p.m. EST. Once our satellite moves away later in the week, take some time to observe Jupiter by itself. The giant planet shines at magnitude –2.5, which makes it the sky’s brightest point of light until Venus rises shortly before dawn. The best time to view Jupiter through a telescope is when it climbs highest in the south around midnight. The planet’s spectacular disk spans 44″ and shows at least two parallel dark belts in its dynamic atmosphere. Jupiter is near its best for the year right now, reaching opposition two weeks from today.
Wednesday, February 24
Comet Catalina (C/2013 US10) currently glows around 9th magnitude and appears nice through 6-inch and larger telescopes. The comet resides in the rather barren northern constellation Camelopardalis the Giraffe, which remains on view all night from most of the Northern Hemisphere but appears highest during the early evening hours. If you target Catalina before the Moon rises tonight, you’ll find it just 0.5° from planetary nebula NGC 1501, which lies next to the picturesque string of stars known as Kemble’s Cascade.
Thursday, February 25
The next two weeks offer an excellent chance to see the zodiacal light. From the Northern Hemisphere, late winter and early spring are great times to observe this elusive glow after sunset. It appears slightly fainter than the Milky Way, so you’ll need a clear moonless sky and an observing site located far from the city. Look for the cone-shaped glow, which has a broad base and points nearly straight up from the western horizon, after the last vestiges of twilight have faded away. The Moon stays out of the early evening sky until March 10.
Friday, February 26
One of the sky’s largest asterisms — a recognizable pattern of stars separate from a constellation’s form — occupies center stage on February evenings. To trace the so-called Winter Hexagon, start with southern Orion’s luminary, Rigel. From there, the hexagon makes a clockwise loop. The second stop is brilliant Sirius in Canis Major. Next, pick up Procyon in the faint constellation Canis Minor, then the twins Castor and Pollux in Gemini, followed by Capella in Auriga, Aldebaran in Taurus, and finally back to Rigel.
The Moon reaches apogee, the farthest point in its orbit around Earth, at 10:28 p.m. EST. It then lies 251,894 miles (405,383 kilometers) from Earth’s center.
Saturday, February 27
Mars rises shortly after midnight local time this week and climbs some 30° high in the south by the time morning twilight starts to paint the sky. The Red Planet shines at magnitude 0.3 and dominates the dim stars of its host constellation, Libra the Scales. When viewed through a telescope, Mars appears 8″ across and should display a prominent north polar cap.
Sunday, February 28
Saturn is an easy object to find in the southeastern sky during the early morning hours. It rises along with the background stars of southern Ophiuchus, a region that rises by 2 a.m. local time and climbs nearly 30° above the southern horizon by the time twilight begins. Shining at magnitude 0.5, the planet appears slightly dimmer than Mars, which lies about 20° to its upper right. A telescope reveals Saturn’s 16″-diameter disk surrounded by a beautiful ring system that spans 37″ and tilts 26° to our line of sight.
Neptune is in conjunction with the Sun at 11 a.m. EST. The distant planet is hopelessly lost in the solar glare but will return to view before dawn in April.
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