Hi everyone, our sidewalk astronomers are all visiting family (or
working or traveling) this first quarter moon weekend, so we won't be
setting up telescopes in Pasadena or Monrovia Friday or Saturday night.
There is plenty to see if you step outside and look up! I've been
exchanging emails with one of our loyal Monrovia/Duarte telescope
viewers over the last week. Jack has been looking up, wondering the name
of this star or that planet. It's been fun to exchange emails with
him. We are so thankful for our Sidewalk Astronomy family, both those
with and without telescopes.
So, in lieu of telescopes on the sidewalk, and thanks to Jack's
questions, here are some pointers to great views you can see tonight,
and for the next month.
In the evening sky, you can't miss Jupiter alongside (to the left of)
bright red Aldebaran, the brightest star in the constellation Taurus the
bull. Aldebaran is classified a K star -- an orange giant, and is one
of the brightest stars in our sky. Look east to see them both, you can't
miss Jupiter, and now you know something about that pretty star to the
right of Jupiter! Now look above these two. Do you see the Pleiades
star cluster?
Jack asked me what the bright star an out-stretched hand away from
Jupiter is called. To the left of Jupiter, is Capella, the brightest
star in Auriga. It's a G stellar classification "yellow" star 10 times
the diameter of our G classified Sun! But that's not the star Jack was
viewing. He was noticing a brilliant white star rising above the
building obscuring his eastern horizon, and to the right of and below
Jupiter at about 10 p.m.
I stepped out in my jammies at 10 p.m. to see. It was Rigel! The knee of
the great constellation Orion was rising above my building obscuring
eastern horizon, too. Rigel is the brightest star in the constellation
Orion and the sixth brightest star in the sky! Through binoculars, you
may see it's companion. Rigel is a blue-white Class B super-giant
117,000 times as luminous as our sun!
Here's a star chart for 9:30 p.m. tonight - and the next month.
http://img.whiteoaks.com/jane/Public/Starchart_11_22_930pm_east.jpg
Now, if you are up before sunrise tomorrow morning, and have a clear
view to the east, you'll see bright Venus, Saturn below, and Mercury, if
you can see clear down to the southeast horizon. Here's a star chart for
you morning stargazers:
http://img.whiteoaks.com/jane/Public/Starchart_11_22_930pm_east.jpg
I bet many of you know the little acronym for stellar classification
OBAFGKM - or Oh, Be A Fine Girl/Guy, Kiss Me. If not, here's what those
letters and colors mean:
http://www.astronomygcse.co.uk/AstroGCSE/New%20Site/Topic%203/o_b_a_f_g_k_m…
Our next sidewalk astro weekend will most likely be Dec 21/22, so we may
run into the same travel/work/family comes first scenario with our
telescope wranglers. If you wander down to our sidewalk corner at Myrtle
and Lime streets over the next month, you'll see a whole bunch of new
"stars" of many stellar classifications, draped on trees, and
everywhere. If we miss next month too, we'll return once those
artificial stars are put away for another year, and instead, I'll
regale you with a bad poem, a new starchart, and wish you the most
happiest winter solstice season. :-) Jane
--
Jane Houston Jones
Monrovia, CA
What's Up Podcast for Sept: Observe and wink at the moon
On Youtube:http://is.gd/kPUtSx
Twitter:http://twitter.com/jhjones /CassiniSaturn /otastro
My Blog:http://jane.whiteoaks.com/
Yosemite Videohttp://www.youtube.com/user/yosemitenationalpark?feature=watch
