The night sky: November 2012

With the dark nights now upon on us, the starry sky remains dominated by the Great Square of Pegasus & the nearby constellation of Andromeda. Look out for M31 (Mag +3.4) the great galaxy in Andromeda which is easily visible in a pair of 10 x 50 binoculars, as is M33 (Mag + 5.7) in the star pattern of Triangulum.

Also, the Milky Way is at its best arching high over-head from east to west with its numerous star clusters & nebulae, while the Winter constellations are rising in the east: Orion (The Hunter), Gemini (The twins), Taurus (The bull) and Aurigae (The Charioteer). This means that the beautiful star cluster of the Pleiades M45, (The seven sisters) is reasonably high up in the eastern sky, which is always a lovely sight in binoculars.

Look out for the ‘W’ of the constellation Cassiopeia high over-head, which lies in a dense part of the Milky Way; and the Plough asterism (Ursa Major) lying almost on its back close to the northern horizon.

The brilliant planet Venus is visible in the south-eastern sky before dawn 2 ½ hours before sunrise, and lies in the constellation of Virgo. It remains a brilliant morning star throughout November shining at magnitude -3.9. By the end of November Venus rises around 2 hours before the sun, and remains a splendid sight. On the morning of November 27^th the ringed planet Saturn will be only 0.6 degrees north of Venus as it reappears in the dawn sky.

The giant planet Jupiter lies in the constellation of Taurus (The bull), and is visible throughout the night in the south-eastern sky just after sunset. Jupiter looks like a bright yellow ‘star’ of magnitude -2.8. Binoculars will show the planet’s four major moons: Io, Europa, Ganymede & Callisto, as they move around the planet in their daily journey. A telescope will begin to show the planet’s horizontal cloud belts

SKY DIARY 

Nov 01th 08:41 - Hyades 3.7°S of The Moon
Nov 02th 01:05 - Jupiter 1.4°N of The Moon
Nov 06th 19:38 Last Quarter of Moon
Nov 11th 19:55 - Spica 1.4°N of The Moon
Nov 12th 20:47 (universal time) - Saturn 5.0°N of The Moon
Nov 13th 17:08 (local time) New Moon

Nov 13th 17:11 Eclipse of Sun
Invisible from current location
Eclipse type: Total, Central
Eclipse begins
Nov 13 19:37(UT) 04°28'S 150°11'E
Greatest eclipse
Nov 13 22:29(UT) 39°57'S 198°42'E
Eclipse ends
Nov 14 00:45(UT) 22°12'S 262°28'E

 

 

Nov 14th 10:18 - Mercury 0.2°S of The Moon
Nov 16th 09:42 - Mars 3.2°S of The Moon
Nov 16th 23:18 - Pluto 0.4°N of The Moon

Nov 17th 11:49 Mercury at inferior conjunction
Nov 20th 09:31 First Quarter of Moon
Nov 21st Brilliant Venus is in line with Saturn & Mercury in the southeast at dawn
Nov 27th 05:12 - Saturn 0.6°N of Venus
Nov 27th 17:24 - Pleiades 5.0°N of The Moon
Nov 27th Brilliant Venus lies below the fainter planet Saturn low in the east at dawn 

Nov 17th Meteor shower Leonids
Parent body Comet Temple-Tuttle
Radiant at maximum: RA 10h 12m, Dec +21°
Meridian passage 01:33, altitude 59°
Active dates Nov 14 - Nov 21
Average zenith hourly rate at maximum 20+
Moon illumination 11%
Moonrise 05:20, Moonset 13:49(local time)

Nov 28th 09:34 Eclipse of the Moon
Eclipse type: Penumbral
Middle of eclipse: Nov 28 09:34

Nov 28th 09:46 Full Moon
The Moon rises in the east around sunset and is the smallest of 2012. It is called the  “Beaver moon,”  which according to North American weather folklore, is the first full moon which occurs in November. The moon may also be called the Frost moon or the Frosty moon.

By Richard Pearson