The Sky This Week for January 30 to February 5

Visible star clusters, asteroid Vesta 4 reaches peak visibility, and other awesome things to look for in the sky this week.

By Richard Talcott

 

Monday, January 30

Two of the finest deep-sky objects shine prominently on January evenings. The Pleiades and Hyades star clusters appear highest in the south in early evening but remain conspicuous until after midnight. The Pleiades, also known at the Seven Sisters and M45, looks like a small dipper to naked eyes. The larger Hyades forms the V-shaped head of Taurus the Bull. Although both look nice with the naked eye, binoculars show them best.

Tuesday, January 31

The waxing crescent Moon forms a tight triangle with Venus and Mars this evening. The stunning trio lies about 30° above the southwestern horizon an hour after sunset. Venus, which shines brilliantly at magnitude –4.7, shows up easily about 5° to the Moon’s right. Although magnitude 1.1 Mars appears the dimmest of the three, it still stands out nicely 2° above the 17-percent-lit Moon. Binoculars capture them all in a single field of view. If you turn a telescope on the planets, Venus spans 31″ and appears 40 percent illuminated while Mars shows a bland disk measuring 5″ across.

Wednesday, February 1

The waxing crescent Moon appears to the upper left of Mars and Venus after sunset. The three objects form a nearly straight line, with our satellite 12° from Mars and 17° from Venus. The Sun now illuminates 26 percent of the Moon’s Earth-facing hemisphere, a noticeable difference from last night.

Saturn rises three hours before the Sun and climbs some 15° high in the southeast by the time morning twilight begins. The ringed planet shines at magnitude 0.5 among the much fainter background stars of Ophiuchus the Serpent-bearer. When viewed through a telescope, Saturn shows a 16″-diameter disk surrounded by a stunning ring system that spans 35″ and tilts 27° to our line of sight.

Thursday, February 2

Jupiter rises around 11 p.m. local time and climbs highest in the south about an hour before morning twilight commences. The giant world shines at magnitude –2.2 against the backdrop of central Virgo, some 4° north of that constellation’s brightest star, 1st-magnitude Spica. Even a small telescope reveals the planet’s 39″-diameter disk and four bright moons. But this morning, viewers get a bonus because the gas giant appears to have a “black eye.” It is actually the dark shadow of Ganymede, the solar system’s largest moon, which crosses Jupiter’s north polar region from 1:51 to 4:25 a.m. EST.

For those who believe in folklore, the fate of winter rests on the shoulders of the groundhog. If the furry rodent sticks his head out of his burrow this morning and sees his shadow, we’ll have six more weeks of winter. But if the weather is cloudy, it means spring is right around the corner. What does this have to do with astronomy? Groundhog Day celebrates one of the four so-called cross-quarter days, which mark the midpoints between the solstices and equinoxes. February 2 falls approximately midway between the winter solstice and the vernal equinox.

Friday, February 3

First Quarter Moon arrives at 11:19 p.m. EST. You can find the half-lit orb high in the south as darkness falls and then watch it sink toward the western horizon throughout the evening hours. The Moon spends the evening hugging the border between the constellations Aries the Ram and Cetus the Whale.

Saturday, February 4

Although asteroid 4 Vesta reached opposition and peak visibility in mid-January, the brightest minor planet of 2017 still shines at magnitude 6.6 and shows up quite easily through binoculars. To find the minor planet, start at magnitude 1.2 Pollux in northern Gemini and then drop 3.6° due south to magnitude 3.6 Kappa (k) Geminorum. Vesta lies 0.6° north and a touch west of Kappa this evening.

Sunday, February 5

The waxing gibbous Moon lies just east of the 1st-magnitude star Aldebaran this evening. Depending on where in North America you live, the gap appears to be between 1° and 3° in early evening and grows a bit more than 0.5° every hour thereafter. Aldebaran represents the eye of Taurus the Bull and appears to mark one tip of the V-shaped Hyades star cluster. In reality, Aldebaran lies only about half as far from Earth as the cluster does.

Source

Astronomy Magazine

Your Daily Sun & Moon Data for Monday, January 30th

The Sun
Sun Direction: ↑ 130.85° SE
Sun Altitude: 18.77°
Sun Distance: 91.579 million mi
Next Equinox: Mar 20, 2017 5:28 am (Vernal)
Sunrise Today: 6:58 am↑ 111° Southeast
Sunset Today: 5:17 pm↑ 249° West
Length of Daylight: 10 hours, 19 minutes

 

The Moon
Moon Direction: ↑ 102.64° ESE
Moon Altitude: 3.25°
Moon Distance: 236554 mi
Next Full Moon: Feb 10, 20176:32 pm
Next New Moon: Feb 26, 20178:58 am
Next Moonset: Today8:16 pm
Moon Phase for Jan. 30th: Waxing Crescent
Illumination: 7.5%

 

Source

timeanddate.com

IMBOLC

 

So the skies rumbled and the snows came,
And everywhere down through the centuries of this gray night,
Came women gathering to pray,
And to sink their hands into the dark earth.

They gathered seeds and prepared them for planting,
They meditated in the icy darkness,
And they celebrated the lambing of the first ewe,
To hasten spring.

And when through the earth they felt the stirring,
They sang songs encouraging the tiny seeds to grow.

In the dark, wet soil you can smell their work still;
They are digging along beside us. Listen!

The north wind carries their song across the snow,
This Imbolc night.

As the Earth prepares for Spring,
Wise women gather in circles to await the promise of new life,
And to sing praises for the green earth.

And so do we, here now,
This year, and every year.

Welcome Imbolc!

Astronomy Picture of the Day

Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer.

2017 January 25

Cassini’s Grand Finale Tour at Saturn
Image Credit: NASA, JPL-Caltech

 

Explanation: Cassini is being prepared to dive into Saturn. The robotic spacecraft that has been orbiting and exploring Saturn for over a decade will end its mission in September with a spectacular atmospheric plunge. Pictured here is a diagram of Cassini’s remaining orbits, each taking about one week. Cassini is scheduled to complete a few months of orbits that will take it just outside Saturn’s outermost ring F. Then, in April, Titan will give Cassini a gravitational pull into Proximal orbits, the last of which, on September 15, will impact Saturn and cause the spacecraft to implode and melt. Cassini’s Grand Finale orbits are designed to record data and first-ever views from inside the rings — between the rings and planet — as well as some small moons interspersed in the rings. Cassini’s demise is designed to protect any life that may occur around Saturn or its moons from contamination by Cassini itself.

Save

A winding river of stars called Eridanus

Here’s the real River Po as captured at sunset by EarthSky Facebook friend Marco Mereu, in February 2013. Thank you Marco!

Bottom line: Can you find the long, meandering river of stars called Eridanus in your sky? Be sure to look from a dark location.

Planet Tracker

Moon in Capricorn

Jan 24, 2017 to Jan 27, 2017

 

Maybe you noticed. Things have gotten more serious with the Moon in Capricorn. No-nonsense suits around the office. Discussions about rules, disciplines, hard work and respect. Virtues that make employees squirm and bosses feel lonely. Structure-everybody hates it until something unruly occurs. Physics says a vast and wild emptiness dances between the molecules in a chair. But we don’t fall in due to the structuring thought in wood, respecting our need for a solid place to sit. That’s Capricorn in your life, structures that support. Its energy inspires your achievements and fears (funny how both can be motivating). Face a fear today. Be the authority in something. Devise a business plan. Recognize that diligence is nothing more than keeping what you want in mind. Strategize with a wise old one. And do something especially nice this Moontime for your skin, bones or knees.

 

The Words of Confucius

If you look into your own heart, and you find nothing wrong there, what is there to worry about? What is there to fear?

Consulting the Psychic Eight Ball Oracle

Query: How will the month of February be?

Oh, brother, I did say “wacky” didn’t I?

Your Charm for Today

Today’s Meaning:
This aspect of your life will be strongly influenced by a person who is determined, forceful, emotional, intuitive, powerful, passionate, exciting and magnetic. This person is probably an acquaintance you made at work.

General Description:
Eighth sign of the Zodiac, Oct. 24th to Nov. 23rd. Ruling by the planet Mars; correct metal, Iron. Those born under scorpio were believed to be energetic, strongly determined, persistent, and thorough in their undertakings, with inflexible will-power, of magnetic personality, affable, just, affectionate, and powerful convicting speakers. The Scorpio gems aare the Aquamarine and Beryl. The Aquamarine has always been reverenced in the East as all emblem of purity, and was given at marriage for increasing mutual love. In Rome worn for cheerfulness, curing distemper and internal complaints; by mariners to protect them from sickness and danger at sea.

Your MahJong Tile for February

Red Dragon
Symbol: Center
The Red Dragon tile is indicative of success and the fulfillment of your goals.

Your Ancient Symbol Card for Today

Death

Death is definitely not a card to shy away from. It does not foretell your impending doom. However it does suggest a period of change and the turbulence that often comes with it are on the horizon. We may not always welcome change, but invariably we must change to grow. Sometimes we have to shed some of the comfortably of who we are today to embrace the adventure of who we will be tomorrow. Death is the prophecy of such times.

As a daily card, Death tells you that changes need to be made in order for you to move smoothly along your life’s journey. When seen as a daily card, it is likely the changes indicated are on the order of “minor adjustments” in your day to day routine.