The Sky This Week from November 17 to 24: Look up for the Leonids

Friday, November 17
The Leonid meteor shower, which brings remnants of Comet 55P/Tempel-Tuttle streaking by our skies, peaks in a single day tonight and early tomorrow morning. Bathe meteors seem to originate from some extent within the Sickle of Leo, which outlines the large cat’s head and types a sample of stars that appears like a backwards query mark. This area rises shortly earlier than midnight, after the waxing crescent Moon has set. Step exterior late and keep up into the early-morning hours of the 18th as Leo rises ever larger to view essentially the most bathe meteors. Late-night observers out earlier than midnight ought to look east close to Gemini, Orion, and Taurus — these constellations precede Leo by the sky and are more likely to be the place essentially the most bathe meteors are seen earlier than the Lion rises.

The Leonids’ most charge is predicted to achieve round 10 meteors per hour, although this assumes the radiant is straight overhead on the zenith. As a result of that gained’t be the case for observers whereas the sky is darkish, you may anticipate barely fewer meteors, however nonetheless a noticeable bump from the two to three per hour of the sporadic background charge. Plus, meteor streams are unpredictable and small flurries of capturing stars can happen. Leonid meteors are additionally significantly fast-moving, capturing by the sky at some 43.5 miles (70 kilometers) per second, typically leaving lengthy, brilliant trails that may persist for tens of minutes.

Dawn: 6:47 A.M.
Sundown: 4:42 P.M.
Moonrise: 11:25 A.M.
Moonset: 8:24 P.M.
Moon Section: Waxing crescent (21%)
*Occasions for dawn, sundown, moonrise, and moonset are given in native time from 40° N 90° W. The Moon’s illumination is given at 12 P.M. native time from the identical location.

Saturday, November 18
Mars is in conjunction with the Solar at 1 A.M. EST; the Purple Planet will stay out of sight for the remainder of the 12 months.

Tonight, the waxing crescent Moon rises round midday and units shortly earlier than 10 P.M. native time. Earlier than then, flip your telescope on Mare Tranquillitas, in any other case often called the Sea of Tranquillity, which incorporates the touchdown web site for the well-known Apollo 11 mission that first noticed males stroll on the Moon.

We’re searching for a buried, virtually “ghostly” function referred to as Lamont, situated within the western portion of Tranquillity. Researchers suppose that is the remnant of a long-ago affect basin that has since been flooded with lava, leaving solely the very highest elements of the rim seen. All we are able to see right this moment are concentric ridges that look virtually like wrinkles within the flatter flooring of the darkish “sea.” Observe specifically the small crater Arago to Lamont’s northwest — this affect got here a lot later. To Arago’s fast north is a wierd “bump” within the panorama that betrays the presence of a volcanic dome.

The Moon’s options usually appear to alter day by day because the Solar strikes within the lunar sky. Lots of the subtler particulars seen on this area tonight will likely be almost invisible by tomorrow in case you return to look and examine, because the Solar will likely be larger overhead as lunar day makes its method throughout the nearside.

Dawn: 6:48 A.M.
Sundown: 4:41 P.M.
Moonrise: 12:10 P.M.
Moonset: 9:39 P.M.
Moon Section: Waxing crescent (31%)

Sunday, November 19
Early risers can catch a gorgeous sight as brilliant Venus sits close to the beautiful double star Porrima in Virgo the Maiden this morning. The pair rise collectively round 3 A.M. native time and are greater than 25° excessive 90 minutes earlier than dawn.

The 2 are simply 2° aside, with Venus sitting straight under (southeast of) Porrima within the sky. Venus is way brighter — magnitude –4.3 — whereas Porrima seems as a single level of sunshine shining a a lot fainter magnitude 2.7. One other 12.5° straight under Venus is Spica, Virgo’s brightest star at magnitude 1.

Pull out a telescope and take a look at Venus first. The planet spans some 19″ and is 63 % lit, displaying a gibbous face. Subsequent, drift upward to Porrima to look at its two elements, almost twin stars of comparable brightness and coloration. They’re each younger stars some 1.4 instances the mass of the Solar. The 2 stars at the moment are roughly 3″ aside — fairly shut however resolvable in most scopes. The celebs have a extremely elliptical orbit that lasts almost 170 years and their final shut strategy was in 2005. They’re now rising farther aside. Cautious observers can report their positions over the course of a few years and spot a particular distinction with time.

Dawn: 6:49 A.M.
Sundown: 4:41 P.M.
Moonrise: 12:47 P.M.
Moonset: 10:54 P.M.
Moon Section: Waxing crescent (42%)

Monday, November 20
First Quarter Moon happens at 5:50 A.M. EST. Just a few hours later, the Moon passes 3° south of Saturn at 9 A.M. EST. Neither of those occasions are seen, however you may as an alternative catch the pair within the south after sundown this night, the place they float collectively in sparse southern Aquarius.

By this night, the Moon sits to the decrease left of Saturn and the 2 are roughly 5.5° aside, although the gap will rely barely on the time of evening you look. Saturn, at magnitude 0.8, isn’t significantly faint, however nonetheless is perhaps a bit laborious to select by eye with the brilliant Moon so shut by. You need to be capable of choose the planet up simply in binoculars or a telescope, although, and benefit from the one-of-a-kind ring system for which it’s so well-known. Saturn’s rings at the moment stretch roughly 40″ throughout, simply over twice as huge because the face of the planet itself. They’re tilted some 10° to our line of sight, exhibiting off their northern face.

A number of of the planet’s moons are clustered round it, although the fainter satellites is perhaps harder to identify within the moonlight. Brightest is Eighth-magnitude Titan, which lies simply over 1.5′ west-southwest of the planet’s heart tonight. Dimmer moons that could be seen in bigger apertures or astrophotos embrace Tenth-magnitude Tethys, Rhea, and Dione; the previous lies simply southwest of the planet’s limb, south of the rings, whereas Dione is shut and barely southwest and Rhea is farther and barely northwest of the planet.

Dwarf planet 1 Ceres reaches conjunction with the Solar at 11 A.M. EST, rendering it invisible for now.

Dawn: 6:51 A.M.
Sundown: 4:40 P.M.
Moonrise: 1:17 P.M.
Moonset: —
Moon Section: Waxing gibbous (54%)

Tuesday, November 21
The Moon reaches perigee, the closest level to Earth in its orbit, at 4:01 P.M. EST. At the moment, our satellite will sit 229,795 miles (369,819 km) away.

Jupiter’s moon Ganymede places on present early this morning, with observers within the western half of the U.S. profitable the lottery for the very best views of the whole occasion. Let’s begin within the Midwest round 4 A.M. CST, when Jupiter is simply 12° excessive within the west. By a telescope, you’ll see that Ganymede sits near the planet’s northwestern limb. In the meantime, Europa is seen alone to Jupiter’s east, whereas Io sits closet to the planet to the west, with Callisto farther out on the identical facet.

Round 4:10 A.M. CST, Ganymede lastly begins to vanish, first mixing with the limb earlier than it winks out over the course of about 10 minutes. This is usually a fascinating course of to look at. Simply over an hour later, at 5:30 A.M. CST — when Jupiter may be very close to the horizon within the Midwest — the moon reappears off the northeastern limb, having crossed behind the polar area.

However there’s a catch — Ganymede is barely seen for one more 24 minutes earlier than it disappears once more, this time into Jupiter’s lengthy, darkish shadow, which stretches out behind the planet. It takes one other two hours for Ganymede to reappear this time, coming out from the darkness some 20″ from the planet’s limb round 5:37 A.M. PST. Observe that by this time, Jupiter is kind of low for even the West Coast, so observing Ganymede’s reappearance is perhaps a problem — however a rewarding one.

Dawn: 6:52 A.M.
Sundown: 4:39 P.M.
Moonrise: 1:44 P.M.
Moonset: 12:09 A.M.
Moon Section: Waxing gibbous (65%)

Wednesday, November 22
The Moon continues alongside the ecliptic, now passing 1.5° south of Neptune at 3 A.M. EST. Once more, the pair isn’t seen presently however as an alternative might be seen within the night sky after darkish. An hour after sundown, Neptune is already 40° excessive, situated proper on the border between Pisces and Aquarius. The Moon has moved on considerably, now roughly 9° east of the planet, which is definitely a assist if you wish to find the distant ice giant in your optics, as this brilliant supply of sunshine is not less than a bit farther from our goal.

To seek out Neptune, first discover the Circlet of Pisces, an asterism of seven stars in far western Pisces that types a roughly oval form. From magnitude 4.5 Lambda (λ) Piscium, the southeasternmost star on this sample, drop 5° due south to land on the distant planet. Neptune, which glows a comfortable magnitude 7.7, isn’t seen to the bare eye even below darkish circumstances, so will want binoculars or a telescope to identify. It ought to seem as a barely “flat” blue-gray star with a diameter of simply 2″ — it gained’t look fairly pointlike, however extra like a tiny disk.

Heading again as much as the Circlet, it’s also possible to examine certainly one of its most original stars: 19 Psc (additionally referred to as TX Psc), the Circlet’s easternmost star. This Fifth-magnitude sun seems a deep purple coloration, because of plentiful carbon in its ambiance. TX can be a variable star and incorporates technetium in its ambiance — a component not naturally discovered on Earth, because of its quick half-life.

Dawn: 6:53 A.M.
Sundown: 4:39 P.M.
Moonrise: 2:08 P.M.
Moonset: 1:22 A.M.
Moon Section: Waxing gibbous (75%)

Thursday, November 23
It’s not Thanksgiving with out some turkey! Though there’s no official deep-sky object bearing this hen’s title, some observers prefer to think about the well-known Orion Nebula (M42) because the Great Turkey Nebula.

To see in case you can spot this cosmic fowl, you’ll have to let Orion the Hunter rise above the horizon. Wait till not less than 9 P.M. native time and it is best to spot the three stars that type the straight line of Orion’s Belt some 15° or larger within the east. Begin on the lowest star — that’s magnitude 1.7 Alnitak — and look simply over 3.5° south-southwest, or to its decrease proper. You might even see it a fuzzy patch of sunshine with the bare eye in case you’re in a darkish location: That’s the Orion Nebula. It may be simply seen with binoculars or any telescope as a gauzy, brilliant glow surrounding a number of tightly packed brilliant stars — these are the Trapezium Cluster, birthed from the clouds of gasoline and dust that make up the nebula. These large suns at the moment are beginning to sculpt the clouds with the extraordinary winds they blast out.

Take a while to review the nebula and its form. Does it appear to be a Turkey to you? The “head” is a hooked cloud alongside the northern edge, with the massive, spherical physique and fanned-out tail extending to the south. For those who can’t see sufficient element on the eyepiece, think about taking {a photograph}, which is able to collect extra mild than your eye is able to bringing in to higher spotlight the clouds’ form extra sharply. And even in case you don’t see the Nice Turkey Nebula, M42 continues to be one of many highest deep-sky sights you may catch to prime off a superb night of household and feasting.

Dawn: 6:54 A.M.
Sundown: 4:38 P.M.
Moonrise: 2:31 P.M.
Moonset: 2:33 A.M.
Moon Section: Waxing gibbous (84%)

Friday, November 24
Let’s cap off the week with a famously “demonic” star. Algol in Perseus is the constellation’s 2nd-magnitude beta star; it’s a well known variable with a companion that crosses in entrance of it each 2.87 days like clockwork. When this happens, Algol fades from its ordinary magnitude of two.1 all the way down to magnitude 3.4 for simply 10 hours at a time earlier than brightening to regular once more.

Tonight is a chance to catch Algol at that minimal, which it reaches at 2:44 P.M. EST and lasts for the aforementioned 10 hours. So, Algol ought to seem at its faintest for a lot of the night, earlier than slowly beginning to brighten once more within the early-morning hours of the twenty fifth.

To seek out Algol, look excessive within the east after darkish, the place Perseus lies simply to the higher left of the V-shaped face of Taurus the Bull and the brilliant cluster of stars often called the Pleiades. As soon as you discover Algol, it can appear to be a single level of sunshine in binoculars or telescopes — its companion is just too faint to see, so the second star’s presence is barely apparent when it passes in entrance of the seen part and dims it.

The easiest way to check Algol at its faintest and brightest is to take a look at the celebrities round it — significantly Mirfak, additionally cataloged as Alpha (α) Persei. (Take a look at our star chart for assist figuring out it.) When it’s shining usually (i.e., brightest), Algol’s magnitude roughly matches that of Mirfak. However when it’s eclipsed, as it’s tonight, Algol is notably fainter. Are you able to see the distinction between the 2 stars tonight? Come again tomorrow and examine once more. They need to seem a lot nearer in brightness!

Perseus incorporates a number of different cosmic wonders price a glance — try Astronomy contributing creator Phil Harrington’s November column to extra absolutely explore the constellation Perseus.

Dawn: 6:55 A.M.
Sundown: 4:38 P.M.
Moonrise: 2:57 P.M.
Moonset: 3:46 A.M.
Moon Section: Waxing gibbous (92%)

Sky This Week is delivered to you partially by Celestron.