Rigel
Sirius
Canis
Major
Canopus
Achernar
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Procyon
BLOG – scobbers.blogspot.com
Betelgeuse
Aldebaran
JUPITER
Auriga
Pollux
Castor
8th Jan
Pleiades
WEBSITE - www.science.edu.sg/events/Pages/Stargazing.aspx or bit.ly/scob_scs
16thJan
January 2014 Moon Dates
1st Jan
8th Jan
New Moon
(Not Visible)
1st Quarter
Half Moon
16th Jan
24th Jan
Last Quarter
Full Moon
(Low in the East) Half Moon
(1am-8am)
31st Jan
New Moon
(Not Visible)
Stars of the month (January) – Taurus, Orion & Sirius
High in the sky are the constellations Taurus the Bull and Orion the Hunter. Taurus’ best objects
include the bright orange star Aldebaran (the Follower) and the star clusters Pleiades and Hyades.
Orion is one of the most distinctive groups of stars in the sky. Its brightest stars include red
supergiant Betelgeuse (shoulder) and blue-white supergiant Rigel (foot). Orion is well known for
having three stars in a straight line, Orion’s belt.
1
Bright Planets
Mercury – Not visible, hidden in the Sun’s glare.
Venus – Not visible, hidden in the Sun’s glare.
Mars – Visible only from 1am onwards.
Jupiter – Visible throughout early evening, beside between Procyon, Castor
and Pollux.
Saturn – Visible early morning 3:30am-6:30am, in the Eastern part of the
sky.
2
Moons of Jupiter
Every Friday evening at SCOB, see Jupiter’s four biggest moons, Io, Europa,
Ganymede and Callisto in the following positions:
Fri 3rd Jan
3
Europa
Ganymede
Io
Callisto
Fri 10th Jan
Europa
Io
Ganymede
Callisto
Sirius
Fri 17th Jan
1. M45 – The Pleiades (Seven Sisters)
Europa
Callisto
Ganymede
A loose grouping of stars next to the bright star of Aldebaran. One of the closest star clusters
to the Sun (150 light-years away). Requires binoculars.
Io
Ganymede
Europa
Callisto
Io
Europa
Fri 31st Jan
Ganymede
A large and bright cluster of young white-blue stars. Try and spot the 7 brightest members
using only your eyes. Use binoculars to experience its full glory!
2. The Hyades
Io shadow transit 9pm – 10pm
Fri 24th Jan
Callisto
Located towards the South East of
Orion’s belt is the brightest star in
the sky, Sirius (scorching), belonging
to the constellation Canis Major. Its
brightness causes it to twinkle more
than other stars as its light passes
through our atmosphere.
3. M42 – The Orion Nebula
A large, diffused nebula (hydrogen gas cloud) and one of the best objects in the sky! Our eyes
can see it as a hazy speck, a short distance from Orion’s belt. Binoculars can show more of the
nebula. A telescope reveals the small cluster of stars (the Trapezium) at its heart. These hot,
young stars are responsible for illuminating of the gas cloud that surrounds them.
FACEBOOK - “SCOB – Science Centre OBservatory”
Procyon
BLOG – scobbers.blogspot.com
Aldebaran
Auriga
Capella
Castor
Pollux
Rigel
Canis
Major
Canopus
WEBSITE - www.science.edu.sg/events/Pages/Stargazing.aspx or bit.ly/scob_scs
Regulus
Betelgeuse
15th Feb
Achernar
Stars of the month (Feb) – Orion & Orion Nebula
February Moon Dates
7th Feb
15th Feb
23rd Feb
Betelgeuse
Bellatrix
“arm/shoulder”
1st Quarter
Half Moon
Full Moon
Last Quarter
Half Moon
(1am-8am)
“female warrior”
Bright Planets
Mercury – Not visible, hidden in the Sun’s glare.
Venus – Visible in the East 6am-7:30am.
Mars – Visible in the East from 12am midnight.
Jupiter – Visible throughout early evening from 7pm-3am, beside
the stars of Gemini.
Saturn – Visible in the East early in the morning from 2am.
Moons of Jupiter
Every Friday evening at SCOB, see Jupiter’s four biggest
moons, Io, Europa, Ganymede and Callisto in the following
positions:
Fri
7st
Feb
Ganymede
Europa
Io
Callisto
Fri 14th Feb
Callisto
Io
Ganymede
Europa
Fri 21st Feb
Ganymede
Io
Europa
Callisto
Fri 28th Feb
Ganymede
Callisto
Io
Europa
In February’s night sky, Orion the Hunter, is
located directly overhead.
Orion’s seven brightest stars can easily be
seen in Singapore’s light-polluted sky.
Betelgeuse (alpha Orionis) is a massive red
supergiant that varies in brightness. Bellatrix
(gamma Orionis) is blue giant star. Its name
means “female warrior”, indicating that Orion
may not have always been seen as a male
hunter. Bellatrix is the closest of Orion’s stars
(243 light-years away). Rigel (beta Orionis) is
a large bluish-white supergiant star, which
becomes the brightest star in Orion when
Betelgeuse occasionally fades.
On Orion’s Belt, Alnilam (epsilon Orionis) is
the closest and brightest of the three.
Orion contains many stars and deep sky
objects, which are visible through binoculars
or a telescope.
The Orion Nebula (M42) is a large cloud of
gas (mainly hydrogen) that contains a cluster
of young stars. It appears as a tiny bright
speck to the naked eye.
The diagram on the right illustrates the view
of the Orion Nebula through a telescope.
The tight group of four stars is known as the
Trapezium (theta Orionis).
Surrounding the Trapezium is part of the
hydrogen gas cloud, which is being
illuminated by the energy from the
Trapezium stars.
A number of other stars within and in front
of the nebula are also visible.
Orion’s Belt
Mintaka
Alnilam
Alnitak
Orion Nebula
(M42)
Rigel
“foot”
Saiph
“sword”
Magnified view of
Orion Nebula
(M42)
0
BLOG – scobbers.blogspot.com
Rigel
Capella
FACEBOOK - “SCOB – Science Centre OBservatory”
Aldebaran
Procyon
Sirius
Castor
Pollux
Regulus
Betelgeuse
17th Mar
Canopus
WEBSITE - www.science.edu.sg/events/Pages/Stargazing.aspx or bit.ly/scob_scs
8th Mar
Achernar
Stars of the month (March) – Gemini, Leo, Cancer, Canis Major
March Moon Dates
8th Mar
17th Mar
24th Mar
Full Moon
(9pm-7am)
1st Quarter
Half Moon
Last Quarter
Half Moon
(3am-8am)
31st Mar
New Moon
(not visible)
Bright Planets
Mercury – Visible very low in the east before sunrise from 6pm.
Venus – Visible before sunrise from 5pm in the east.
Mars – Rises in the east after 10pm, near the star Spica (Virgo).
Jupiter – Visible until early morning between Castor (Gemini) and
Betelgeuse (Orion).
Saturn – Visible from 12am-7am, in constellation Libra.
The March sky contains many of the brightest stars in the sky, most notably Sirius, the brightest of all
stars. Between Sirius and the 1st magnitude stars of Betelgeuse, Castor, Pollux, Procyon and Regulus
lie many hidden star clusters and asterisms (star patterns) such as The Sickle in Leo and the head of
Hydra the snake.
1) Castor – a multiple star, made up of 6 tightly grouped stars. Most telescope can see two white stars
and a smaller red dwarf star.
2) M35 – a large open cluster of over 200 stars arranged in curved chains, 2800 light-years away.
Best viewed through binoculars or telescopes using low magnification.
3) M44 – The Beehive Cluster (Praesepe) A swarm of about 50 stars in the heart of the constellation
Cancer, over 500 light-years away. Best viewed through binoculars.
4) M67 – A more distant, fainter open cluster in Cancer, containing 200 stars.
5) M48 – large, triangular-shaped open cluster of 80 stars, located on the edge of the constellation
Hydra. Visible through binoculars, 2000 light-years away.
6) M41 – large, bright open cluster of 80 stars, 2100 light-years away.
Moons of Jupiter
1
Every Friday evening at SCOB, see Jupiter’s four biggest moons,
Io, Europa, Ganymede and Callisto in the following positions:
Fri 7th Mar
Callisto
Ganymede
The
Sickle
Castor “first twin”
Pollux
2
x
“second twin”
3
x
Io
Europa
Regulus
“King/Prince”
Betelgeuse
x4
“shoulder”
Fri 14th Mar
Ganymede
Io
Procyon
Europa
“before the dog”
Callisto
Vernal Equinox
Fri 21st Mar
Callisto
Io
Europa
Ganymede
Fri 28th Mar
Ganymede
Io
Callisto
Europa
20th Mar 00:57 SGT
The day in which the Sun is
directly above the Equator.
In Singapore, this results in the
highest position of the Sun in
the sky at noon at 1:12pm.
Sunrise is at 7:09am
x
5
Sirius “scorching”
x
6
Canopus
Rigil Kentaurus
(a Centauri)
Sirius
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Regulus
MARS
Spica
15th Apr
Aldebaran
Pollux
Castor
Capella
FACEBOOK - “SCOB – Science Centre OBservatory”
Procyon
Arcturus
WEBSITE - www.science.edu.sg/events/Pages/Stargazing.aspx or bit.ly/scob_scs
SATURN
Betelgeuse
Rigel
Stars of the month (April) – The Argo Navis (Carina, Vela, Puppis)
April Moon Dates
7th Apr
15th Apr
1st Quarter
Half Moon
Full Moon
22nd Apr
29th Apr
Last Quarter
Half Moon
(3am-6am)
New Moon
(Not visible)
The constellations Puppis, Vela and Carina form the ancient star pattern of the Argo Navis, representing
the sailing ship from an Ancient Greek legend. Canopus is the second brightest star in the sky, known in
China as “Old Man of the South” for its southern location and sometimes red appearance in hazy or cloudy
conditions.
The asterism (star pattern) False Cross is sometimes confused for the Southern Cross (Crux), located near
to the east.
Lying close to a dense part of our Galaxy, The Milky Way, several star clusters can be found when scanning
21
the area with binoculars.
x
x
1) & 2) M46 & M47 – Two faint open clusters, east of bright
Sirius “scorching”
star Sirius. M47 is the closer and brighter of the two. Small
telescope maybe required.
3
Bright Planets
Mercury – Not visible, hidden in Sun’s glare.
Venus – Visible in the east before sunrise from 5am.
Mars – Visible throughout the night, near the star Spica.
Jupiter – Low in the west at sunset, visible until 10pm.
Saturn – Rising from the east in constellation Libra.
3) M93 – Faint wedge-shaped star cluster over 3000 lightyears away but visible through binoculars.
4) IC2391 – Large open cluster of 50 stars surrounding the
star Omicron Velorum. Best viewed using binoculars.
Moons of Saturn
Every Friday evening at SCOB, see Saturn’s biggest moons, Titan (Ti),
Rhea (R), Dione (D), Tethys (Te), Enceladus (En) in the following
positions:
Fri 4th April
D
En
Te
Ti
Fri 11th April
Te
R
4
x
x x
9 8
5
x
Canopus
(old man of the South)
Ti
En
Fri 18th April
Te
Ti
En
10
D
8) Eta Carinae Nebula (NGC 3372) – a gas cloud surrounding the explosive variable star Eta Carinae.
Several more stars are visible through binoculars and telescopes.
R
9) NGC3532 – A large, bright open cluster containing more than 100 stars forming an elliptical shape,
1300 light-years away.
Fri 25th April R
En
D
5), 6) & 7) IC2581,
NGC3293 & NGC3114
Three fainter open star
clusters
located in
front of the rich spiral
arm of the Milky Way.
Binoculars and small
telescopes required.
6
7x
R
D
x
Te
Ti
10) IC2602 (The Southern Pleiades) Large open cluster of around 60 stars surrounding star Theta Carinae.
Easy to spot with binoculars .
Spica
Rigil Kentaurus
(a Centauri)
Pollux
Castor
Big Dipper
FACEBOOK - “SCOB – Science Centre OBservatory”
Regulus
15th May (after
9pm)
Canopus
BLOG – scobbers.blogspot.com
Sirius
MARS
Procyon
Arcturus
WEBSITE - www.science.edu.sg/events/Pages/Stargazing.aspx or bit.ly/scob_scs
SATURN
7th May
Stars of the month (May) – The Big Dipper (Ursa Major)
May Moon Dates
7th May
21st May
15th May
29th May
Phad
1st Quarter
Half Moon
Last Quarter
Half Moon
(4am-8am)
Full Moon
(8pm-6am)
New Moon
(not visible)
Bright Planets
Mercury – Not visible, hidden in Sun’s glare.
Venus – Visible in the east before sunrise from 5am.
Mars – Along an arm of Virgo, near the star Spica.
Jupiter – Low in the west at sunset, visible until 10pm.
Saturn – Rising from the east in constellation Libra.
Merak
Alkaid
Alioth
“thigh”
“leader of mourners”
“horse/tail”
“flank”
Megrez
Mizar
“tail base”
“groin/girdle”
Alcor
“horse”
Dubhe
“bear”
Towards North
Star (Polaris)
Saturn Opposition – 11th May
Brightest and biggest view of Saturn for 2014 (Magnitude +0.27)
Every year, Earth (which is closer to the Sun) begins to move in
front of Saturn, resulting in an alignment of Earth and Saturn with
the Sun. This known as an opposition as Saturn and the Sun become
directly opposite each other, as seen from Earth.
SUN
v
v
EARTH
DISTANCE:
~1,277 million km
SATURN
(IN OPPOSITION)
The Big Dipper is one of the most famous asterisms (star patterns) throughout history. In some
places of the Northern Hemisphere, its seven brightest stars can be seen all year round. Further
South near the equator, it is only visible for a few months.
Merak and Dubhe are known as The Pointers, pointing directly to the North Star Polaris (not
visible from Singapore).
The Dipper is part of a much larger star pattern – the constellation Ursa Major (Greater Bear),
although it had a variety of meanings in many cultures. Most common is that of a bear or a
ladle/dipper used for scooping water. Other representations include a plough, an ox or horse
pulling a plough and three mourners standing beside a funeral pyre. The names of the stars come
from Arabic phrases indicating the different meanings.
The stars Merak, Phad, Megrez, Alioth, Mizar and Alcor are approximately the same distance from
Earth (80 light-years) moving together as a large star cluster (The Ursa Major Moving Cluster).
Dubhe and Alkaid are more distant and are not part of this cluster.
Objects of Interest:
Mizar & Alcor – two very close stars. A good test of eyesight. Easily viewed through binoculars.
Alcor is the further of the two. Mizar is actually multiple stars containing several more stars. A
telescope shows three, including Alcor.
13th June
Rigil Kentaurus
(a Centauri)
BLOG – scobbers.blogspot.com
Spica
Antares
Leo
Coma
Berenices
Arcturus
FACEBOOK - “SCOB – Science Centre OBservatory”
MARS
Regulus
SATURN
WEBSITE - www.science.edu.sg/events/Pages/Stargazing.aspx or bit.ly/scob_scs
6th June
Stars of the month (June) – Centaurus and Crux
June Moon Dates
6th June
13th June
1st Quarter
Half Moon
Full Moon
20th June
Last Quarter
Half Moon
(2am-7am)
27th June
New Moon
(Not visible)
Northern (Summer)
Solstice
Bright Planets
Mercury – Not visible, hidden in Sun’s glare.
Venus – Low in the east before sunrise, from 5am.
Mars – Right above our heads near to the star Spica
(Virgo) throughout the night.
Jupiter – Low in the west, visible only until 8.30pm in
constellation Gemini.
Saturn – Visible throughout the night near to
constellation Libra.
21st
Every Friday evening at SCOB, see Saturn’s biggest moons, Titan (Ti),
Rhea (R), Dione (D), Tethys (Te), Enceladus (En) in the following
positions:
Fri 6th June
En
Ti
Te
R
D
R
Fri 13th June
D
Ti
Te
En
June 18:51 SGT
The day in which the Sun
reaches it northernmost point
in the sky.
In Singapore, this results in
the lowest position of the Sun
towards the north at noon
1:06pm. Sunrise is at 7am.
Moons of Saturn
6
x
5
x
1
Alpha Centauri
(Rigil Kentaurus)
“Centaur’s foot”
x
Hadar
2
4
3
x
“ground”
The constellations of Centaurus and Crux are easy to identify on a clear night. These are
great for observing with binoculars as they lie directly in front of one of the richest parts
of our Galaxy (The Milky Way).
1) Alpha Centauri – closest star to our Sun (4.25 light-years away). A triple star system. A
telescope reveals two bright yellow stars similar to The Sun. The third star (proxima centauri),
a faint red dwarf, is difficult to find although it is the closest of the three.
2) The Jewel Box (NGC4755) – a bright open cluster of 50 stars including star Kappa Crucis.
Visible through binoculars, best seen through a telescope using low magnification. Some stars
appear red, orange and blue in colour.
3) Alpha Crucis (Acrux) – the brightest star in Crux. A double star (bluish-white) when viewed
through a telescope .
Fri 20th June
Ti
D
T
En
R
Fri 27th June
4) NGC 3766 – a sparkling star cluster containing about 100 stars. Can be seen with binoculars.
R
5) NGC 5460 - a large open cluster of 40 stars visible through binoculars or small telescopes.
Te
D
En
Ti
6) Omega Centauri (NGC5139) – The largest Globular Cluster, a dense ball of 100,000 stars or
more. Appears as a hazy patch through binoculars. Telescopes at low magnification may
resolve individual stars. 17,000 light-years away.
8th July
Rigil Kentaurus
(a Centauri)
5th July
Antares
Hadar
BLOG – scobbers.blogspot.com
MARS
Spica
SATURN
FACEBOOK - “SCOB – Science Centre OBservatory”
Regulus
Arcturus
Altair
WEBSITE - www.science.edu.sg/events/Pages/Stargazing.aspx or bit.ly/scob_scs
12nd July
2nd July
July Moon Dates
5th July
12nd July
19th July
Stars of the month (July) – Scorpius
27th July
7
6
5
Full Moon
(8pm-6am)
1st Quarter
Half Moon
(6pm-12am)
Last Quarter
Half Moon
(1am-8am)
New Moon
(not visible)
Antares
“Anti-Mars”
Bright Planets
1
Mercury – Low in the east at sunrise, visible 6:30am-7am.
Venus – Low in the east at sunrise, visible 6:30am-7am.
Mars – Visible throughout early evening beside star Spica, until
1am.
Jupiter – Not visible, hidden in the Sun’s glare.
Saturn – Visible throughout early evening beside stars of Libra, until
2am.
Moons of Saturn
Every Friday evening at SCOB, see Saturn’s biggest moons, Titan (Ti),
Rhea (R), Dione (D), Tethys (Te), Enceladus (En) in the following
positions:
Fri 4th July
Fri
11th
Ti
D
En
Te
Shaula
Scorpius is one of the easiest constellations
to identify with its distinctive curved chain of
stars representing the tail and sting of a
scorpion.
The bright star Antares is the 6th brightest
star in the night sky and one of the largest
stars known to exist. Being a red supergiant it
is similar in appearance to the planet Mars,
therefore one meaning of its name is as a
rival of Mars.
“tail”
4
x
3
Scorpius is full of deep sky objects and bright
stars as it lies in front of the heart of our
Galaxy (The Milky Way). It is well worth
viewing through binoculars.
Objects of interest:
1) M6 (Butterfly Cluster) – beautiful open star cluster arranged in curved chains like the wings of a
butterfly. Visible through binoculars, best through a telescope using low magnification.
2) M7 – large, triangular open cluster of about 70 stars. Close to M6 and other star clusters.
3) Zeta Scorpii – Double star, orange and blue/white colour, unrelated (do not orbit each other).
More visible through telescope.
En
R
Fri 18th July
2
x
“Claws”
R
July
Ti
x
Graffias
Te
4) NGC6231 – a bright open star cluster of 100 stars. Located near to Zeti Scorpii. Binoculars may
reveal more star clusters in the surrounding area.
D
5) Omega Scorpii – unrelated double star. Easy to spot using binoculars.
D
Ti
T En
e
6) Nu Scorpii – a quadruple star (double-double), four stars in one. Binoculars only show two stars.
Large telescope and high magnification would be needed to see all four.
R
Fri 25th July
7) Graffias (Beta Scorpii) – bright unrelated double star, best seen with a telescope. Both are bluishwhite in colour.
Te
Ti
R
En
D
Antares
4th Aug
Spica
8th Aug
30th Aug
1st Aug
BLOG – scobbers.blogspot.com
Rigil Kentaurus
(a Centauri)
MARS
Arcturus
FACEBOOK - “SCOB – Science Centre OBservatory”
SATURN
Altair
WEBSITE - www.science.edu.sg/events/Pages/Stargazing.aspx or bit.ly/scob_scs
11st Aug
August Moon Dates
4th
11st Aug
Aug
17th Aug
Neptune opposition
29th Aug (mag 7.64)
25th Aug
Earth moves into alignment
with Neptune. Around this
time Neptune appears at its
brightest, however it is still
too dim to be seen with the
naked eye. It is best viewed
after 11pm.
1st Quarter Full Moon Last Quarter New Moon
Half Moon (8pm-6am) Half Moon (not visible)
(6pm-12am)
(1am-8am)
Bright Planets
Mercury – Low in the east at sunrise, visible 6:30-7am.
Venus – Not visible, hidden in the Sun’s glare.
Mars – Visible throughout early evening beside stars of Libra, until
12am.
Jupiter – Low in the east at sunrise, visible 6:30-7am.
Saturn – Visible throughout early evening beside stars of Libra, until
12am.
Moons of Saturn
Every Friday evening at SCOB, see Saturn’s biggest moons, Titan (Ti),
Rhea (R), Dione (D), Tethys (Te), Enceladus (En) in the following
positions:
Fri 1st August
D En
R
Te
Ti
Fri 8th August
Ti
Te
Fri 15th August
D
Te
En
R
D
R
En
Ti
Fri 22nd August Ti
D
En
R
Fri 29th August
R
En
Te
D
Ti
Te
Stars of the month (Aug) – Scorpius & Sagittarius
Located directly in front of the centre of our Galaxy,
The Milky Way, the constellations Sagittarius and
Scorpius contain many star clusters and nebulae (gas
clouds).
Graffias
“Claws”
5x
8x
6x
7x
Antares
“Anti-Mars”
1
x
2
x
Shaula
“tail”
4
x
3
Objects of interest:
1) M6 (Butterfly Cluster) – beautiful open star cluster arranged in curved chains like the wings of a
butterfly. Visible through binoculars, best viewed through a telescope using low magnification.
2) M7 – large, triangular open cluster of about 70 stars. Close to M6 and other star clusters.
3) Zeta Scorpii – Double star, orange and blue/white colour, unrelated (do not orbit each other).
More visible through telescope.
4) NGC6231 – a bright open star cluster of 100 stars. Located near to Zeti Scorpii. Binoculars may
reveal more star clusters in the surrounding area.
5) M25 – a bright open cluster of about 30 stars, visible through binoculars and small telescopes.
6) M20 & M21 - The Trifid Nebula – a faint gas cloud located close to star cluster M21 containing
about 70 stars. Both are visible in low magnification telescopes although M21 is more obvious.
7) M8 – Lagoon Nebula – a bright gas cloud surrounding star cluster NGC6530. Visible through
binoculars and telescopes. Has a dark patch through the centre.
8) M22 – a large, bright globular cluster. A compact ball of thousands of stars. Bright, hazy
appearance in binoculars. Low magnification telescopes reveal its elliptical shape.
Antares
2nd Sept
Rigil Kentaurus
(a Centauri)
BLOG – scobbers.blogspot.com
Mercury
Spica
SATURN
5th Sept
MARS
FACEBOOK - “SCOB – Science Centre OBservatory”
Arcturus
Altair
WEBSITE - www.science.edu.sg/events/Pages/Stargazing.aspx or bit.ly/scob_scs
9th Sept
September Moon Dates
2nd Sept
9th Sept
16th Sept
1st Quarter
Full Moon
Half Moon
中秋節
(6pm-12am) (8am-6am)
Stars of the month (Sept) – Summer Triangle
24th Sept
Last Quarter New Moon
Half Moon (not visible)
(1am-8am)
Bright Planets
Mercury – Not visible, hidden in the Sun’s glare.
Venus – Not visible, hidden in the Sun’s glare.
Mars – Visible throughout early evening beside stars of
Scorpius, until 11pm.
Jupiter – Low in the east at sunrise, visible 5:30am-7am.
Saturn – Visible throughout early evening beside stars of
Libra, until 11pm.
The day in which the
Sun is directly above the
Equator.
In Singapore, this results
in the highest position
of the Sun in the sky at
noon at 12:57pm.
Sunrise is at 6:54am
Moons of Saturn
Every Friday evening at SCOB, see Saturn’s biggest moons, Titan (Ti),
Rhea (R), Dione (D), Tethys (Te), Enceladus (En) in the following
positions:
Fri 5th September
D
Ti
Te
En
R
En
Ti
Fri
19th
织女
“eagle”
牛郎
2
x
4
3
x
1
The three stars belong to three separate
constellations: Cygnus, Aquila and Lyra. The names
of the stars come from Arabic phrases referring to
birds such as eagles and swans.
In Chinese culture Vega is Zhi nu 织女(weaver
girl/fairy)and Altair is Niu lang 牛郎 (cow herder).
They represent a young married couple who
become separated when 织女 is taken back to
heaven. Deneb represents the “magpie” bridge
across which the couple may meet once a year on
the 7th day of the 7th Lunar month, Qi Xi 七夕
Deneb (Chinese Valentine’s Day), which in this year
“tail”
occurred on 2nd August.
2) Coathanger Asterism (Brocchi’s Cluster) – A small group of 10 stars in the shape of a coat hanger.
Requires binoculars or small telescopes. Located in the faint constellation of Vulpecula.
Te
D
September
Vega
“swooping/landing”
Altair
Objects of Interest:
1) Delphinus – a small constellation (star pattern) representing a Dolphin. Visible to the naked eye
and binoculars.
R
Fri 12nd September
Deneb, Altair and Vega are three bright, 1st
magnitude stars that form the Summer Triangle.
The Summer Triangle is first seen rising in the East
during summer in the northern hemisphere each
year. It remains in the night sky until late November.
Autumnal Equinox
23rd Sept 10:29 SGT
3) Dumbbell Nebula (M27) – a Planetary Nebula, gas cloud formed from the other layers of a dying
star. Appears as a faint misty ellipse when using low magnification.
En
D
Te
Fri 26th September
R
Ti
4) Albireo (Beta Cygni) – a colourful double star, yellow and blue in colour. Requires telescope.
R
Ti
En
Te
D
Achernar
BLOG – scobbers.blogspot.com
Antares
Fomalhaut
MARS
FACEBOOK - “SCOB – Science Centre OBservatory”
Altair
Deneb
WEBSITE - www.science.edu.sg/events/Pages/Stargazing.aspx or bit.ly/scob_scs
8th Oct
Stars of the month (Oct) – Cap. Aqu. Fomal. Arch.
October Moon Dates
2nd
Oct
1st Quarter
Half Moon
(6pm-12am)
8th
Oct
16th
24th
Oct
Oct
31st
Sadalmelik
Oct
1 “luck of king”
Sadalsuud
Full Moon Last Quarter New Moon 1st Quarter
Half Moon
(8pm-6am) Half Moon Deepavali
(1am-8am) (not visible) (6pm-12am)
“luck of lucks”
2
Algedi
“goat/kid”
Bright Planets
Mercury – Not visible, hidden in the Sun’s glare.
Venus – Not visible, hidden in the Sun’s glare.
Mars – Visible throughout early evening beside stars of Scorpius, until
10pm.
Jupiter – Low in the east at sunrise, visible 3:30am-7:30am.
Saturn – Very low in West at sunset, visible 7:00pm-7:30pm.
Fomalhaut
“fish’s mouth”
Total Lunar Eclipse – 8th October
Eclipses occur during an alignment of the Sun, Earth and Moon, resulting
in the Sun’s light being blocked and a shadow being cast on either the
Earth or the Moon.
The location of an eclipse depends on the Earth’s position and tilt, the
time, duration and precision of the alignment.
Lunar Eclipse happens when the Full Moon moves directly behind the
Earth. The Moon becomes covered by Earth’s shadow. It always occurs at
night.
•4:15pm – 9:33pm SGT
•Mid-eclipse 5:14pm-8:34pm
•We can observe the eclipse
during moonrise (6:52pm)
SUN
EARTH
MOON
Achernar
“river’s end”
Uranus opposition
8th Oct (mag 6.05)
Earth moves into
alignment with Uranus.
Around this time Uranus
appears at its brightest,
however it is still too
dim to be seen with the
naked eye. It is best
viewed after 11pm.
Many of October’s stars are associated with
water and the coming of the rainy season.
The constellation Aquarius represents the
pouring of water from a jar. The names of
its two brightest stars (Sadalmelik and
Sadalsuud) come from the Ancient Middle
East and refer to the luck and favour of the
rains, bringing life after a hot and dry
summer.
Likewise, Capricornus represents a mythical halfgoat/half-fish creature (Mergoat). The bright star
Fomalhaut is the mouth of the southern fish, while
Achernar signifies the end of a faint constellation
known as Eridanus the river. Finally, the stars of Grus
were named after a Crane, the long-necked water bird.
Sadly, most of these stars are faint and difficult to see
in Singapore’s brightly lit sky.
Objects of interest:
1) The Water Jar – an asterism (star pattern) made up
of four stars representing the water jar of Aquarius.
Best viewed through binoculars.
2) Algedi (Alpha Capricorni) – a multiple star consisting
of two pairs of stars all visible in small telescopes.
25th Nov
Achernar
BLOG – scobbers.blogspot.com
Deneb
Vega
FACEBOOK - “SCOB – Science Centre OBservatory”
Altair
Aries
Fomalhaut
MARS
Pleiades
3rd Nov
WEBSITE - www.science.edu.sg/events/Pages/Stargazing.aspx or bit.ly/scob_scs
Aldebaran
7th Nov
Stars of the month (November) – Pegasus and Andromeda
November Moon Dates
7th Nov
14th Nov
22nd Nov
29th Nov
Look northwards to find the bright stars of Pegasus and Andromeda, two constellations that were
named after an ancient legend involving a flying horse (Pegasus) and a princess (Andromeda).
Full Moon
(8pm-6am)
Last Quarter
Half Moon
(1am-8am)
New Moon
(not visible)
1st Quarter
Half Moon
(6pm-12am)
Sadly, our bright Singapore sky prevents us from seeing the full extent of these northern
constellations. The most obvious part are the 4 stars forming a giant square shape (The Square of
Pegasus).
One of these 4 stars also forms the start of Andromeda. From this star (Alpheratz), trace an
imaginary curved line towards the east and find the other bright stars forming the backbone of the
Princess.
Bright Planets
Mercury – Not visible, hidden in the Sun’s glare.
Venus – Not visible, hidden in the Sun’s glare.
Mars – Visible throughout early evening beside stars of Sagittarius,
until 10pm.
Jupiter – Visible early morning 2am-7am, near to star Regulus (Leo).
Saturn – Not visible, hidden in the Sun’s glare.
3
1x
Leonids Meteor Shower – 17th & 18th November
Every year on specific dates, the Earth travels through several areas
of debris left over from a comet or passing asteroid. This debris
consists of rock or ice particles similar to grains of sand. As Earth
collides with these particles, they streak through the atmosphere and
burn up, resulting in bright flashes. These bright flashes are
commonly known as “shooting stars” or more accurately, meteors.
The highest rate of meteors usually occurs between 2am-5am.
Brightly lit, urban environments like Singapore will see significantly
less meteors.
During Leonids meteor shower, the estimated rate of meteors is
about 40 per hour. The meteors appear to start from Leo, visible at
the east direction.
Here are some hidden treasures within Pegasus and Andromeda,
which you might like to find with a pair of binoculars or a telescope
and hopefully a clear sky:
1. M31 – The Andromeda Galaxy.
Dazzling under the darkest conditions, you might see its fuzzy looking core through binoculars or
a telescope at low power in a clear, moonless Singapore night sky.
2. Gamma Andromedae (Almach)
A beautiful double star. One star is golden yellow and the other blue. Requires a telescope to be
seen.
3. Triangulum
A small constellation of 3 faint stars in a distinctive triangle shape. Can be seen with the naked
eye or binoculars.
25th Dec
BLOG – scobbers.blogspot.com
Rigel
Achernar
MARS
FACEBOOK - “SCOB – Science Centre OBservatory”
Altair
Pleiades
Orion
Aldebaran
Betelgeuse
Fomalhaut
Sirius
Canopus
29th Dec
13th Dec
Cetus
WEBSITE - www.science.edu.sg/events/Pages/Stargazing.aspx or bit.ly/scob_scs
6th Dec
Stars of the month (December) – Taurus, Perseus & Auriga
December Moon Dates
9th
3rd Dec
New Moon
(not visible)
Dec
17th Dec*
1st Quarter Full Moon
Half Moon (8pm-6am)
(6pm-12am)
25th
Dec
Last Quarter
Half Moon
(1am-8am)
Looking Eastward, the most obvious objects will be the bright
orange star of Aldebaran (the follower) in Taurus and the brilliant
white star Capella (female goat) in Auriga.
Bright Planets
Mercury – Not visible, hidden in the Sun’s glare.
Venus – Not visible, hidden in the Sun’s glare.
Mars – Visible throughout early evening beside stars of Capricornus,
until 10pm.
Jupiter – Visible early morning 12am-7am, near to star Regulus (Leo).
Saturn – Not visible, hidden in the Sun’s glare.
Southern (Winter) Solstice – 22nd Dec 07:03 SGT
The day in which the Sun reaches its
southernmost point in the sky. In Singapore, this
results in the lowest position of the Sun towards
the south at noon 1:03pm. Sunrise is at 7:01am.
Facts about Mars
•
•
•
•
•
Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun in our Solar System, and
the second smallest planet.
It was named after the Roman god of war. The Greek counterpart
is Ares.
Its reddish appearance is due to the presence of iron oxide
compound in its soil.
It is much smaller than the Earth – in fact, its size is around 15 per
cent of the Earth in terms of volume!
Currently it hosts five spacecrafts: three orbiting ones – Mars
Odyssey, Mars Express and Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. Two
land rovers are Opportunity and Curiosity.
Taurus, Auriga and nearby Perseus,
contain a wealth of beautiful star clusters,
well worth searching for in clear, moonless
skies (see below for more details).
1. M45 – The Pleiades (Seven Sisters)
A large and bright cluster of young white-blue stars. Try and spot the 7 brightest members using
only your eyes. Use binoculars to experience its full glory!
2. The Hyades
A loose group of stars next to the bright star of Aldebaran. One of the closest star clusters to
the Sun (150 light years away). Requires binoculars.
3. Perseus Double Cluster (NGC 869 & NGC 884)
Two large clusters lying close together in our Galaxy. Must use binoculars but can be tricky to
find in our urban sky.
4. Alpha Persei/Melotte 20 Cluster
This large, loose cluster surrounds and includes the supergiant star of Alpha Persei (Mirfak), the
brightest star in Perseus. Find it with binoculars or telescopes at low power.