January 2009
Skywatchers’ Guide for January 2009
HIGHLIGHTS: Venus is especially prominent this month as our evening planet (the ‘evening star’) above the southwestern horizon. The Quadrantid meteor shower is predicted to peak for western North America at 6 a.m. MST, making it an ideal year to view the shower for western North America.
PLANETS
The brilliant planet Venus continues to move higher above the southwestern horizon in the evening twilight this month. White Venus is the brightest star like object normally ever seen in the sky. The two normally brightest planets visible from Earth, Venus and Jupiter, have gradually moved farther apart in the sky from their earlier pairing last month, with Jupiter sinking into the glare of the Sun. Venus starts January about 30 degrees above the west-southwestern horizon about 45 minutes after sunset, and creeps slightly higher each evening, reaching 35 degrees above the southwestern horizon at that time by January 30. On the evening of January 29, the 3-day-old waxing crescent Moon is loosely grouped below Venus, in the western evening twilight. The Moon will lie above Venus the following evening.
Bright Jupiter was paired with brilliant Venus during the first week of December 2008 in evening twilight but the gas giant is now barely visible near the southwestern horizon, 30-45 minutes after sunset, and then only early in January. During the first few days of January 2009 Jupiter is visible starting 30 minutes after sunset as a fairly bright white star-like object, about 5-7 degrees above the southwestern horizon from southern Arizona. Jupiter continues to fade somewhat, especially as it nears the southwestern horizon. Jupiter is loosely paired with dimmer Mercury on January 1/2, and is lost in the glare of the Sun (becoming invisible to the naked eye) after January 7.
Mercury continues its wonderful apparition this month, but, as is usually the case, it won’t be easy to find. Mercury is best visible January 1-4, starting 30-45 minutes after sunset, when it’s brightest and highest. To find it look for a fairly bright star like object of brighter than zero magnitude the first few days of January, far below brilliant Venus, but above brighter Jupiter. Mercury is eight degrees above the southernwestern horizon from January 1-4 but dims each evening this month. It becomes increasingly difficult to find after January 10 and is lost into the glare of the Sun by January 14.
Saturn rises earlier and creeps higher above the eastern horizon this January. The rings of Saturn are becoming razor thin, as we see them increasingly edge-on from planet Earth. In early January Saturn rises around 11 p.m. but rises by 9 p.m. in late January. Look for Saturn in early January in the morning twilight high overhead as a 1st magnitude star-like object, 90 minutes to one hour before sunrise. Saturn is found in the constellation Leo the Lion, well below and east its bright star Regulus. The 20-day-old waning crescent Moon is found well below and nearest Saturn in our sky on Thursday morning, January 15.
Faint Mars is now lost in the glare of the Sun until it reappears as a dim object in the February morning sky.
Visitors to Flandrau’s 16-inch telescope should note that due to the low position of planets in the evening sky only Venus is briefly visible at the end of this month in the telescope after it opens at 7 p.m. The telescope normally closes at 10 p.m.
Finally, remember that in spotting planets there is a general rule: ’stars twinkle, planets don’t’. This is because stars are point sources of light; therefore starlight is easily disturbed and shifted by air currents in the Earth’s atmosphere. However when looking at Mercury right now, note that it may appear to twinkle somewhat; however, this twinkling is of a slower nature than the bright stars.
A GOOD YEAR FOR THE QUADRANTID METEOR SHOWER!
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Stargazers who brave the cold may get a good view this year to see the little known Quadrantid Meteors in the pre-dawn hours of Saturday morning, January 3. The Quadrantids have a short peak or spurt of activity that lasts for just a few hours at best. This year the peak is predicted to occur at 6 a.m. Mountain Standard Time (5 a.m. Pacific Standard), ideal for western North America. In addition, the 6 day old waxing Moon sets around 11:20 p.m. on January 2 making 2009 an to ideal year for viewing his early morning meteor shower from the Desert Southwest. Although not as good as the Perseids in August, or the Geminids in January, the Quadrantids can still put on a respectable show. Meteor watchers, warmly dressed and with ample supplies of hot chocolate, should seek out a dark sky several miles away from city lights and scan the sky starting at midnight from high in the south and east to overhead. To see the highest number of meteors (about 20-45 per hour or more), you’ll need to look after 2 a.m., and until dawn in dark skies. Early rises can catch the shower for an hour before dawn starting at around 5:15 a.m. Quadrantid meteors appear to originate from an area of the sky below the Big Dipper: To see the most meteors look anywhere around the Big Dipper and overhead after 2 a.m., and anytime afterwards until dawn.
JANUARY EVENING STARS
 This sky chart shows the eastern sky at 9 p.m. in early January, at 8 p.m. in mid-January and at 7 p.m. in late January. |
In early January look in the east for the bright stars of winter to rise around 8 p.m. Orange Betelgeuse, the shoulder of Orion the Hunter, shines left of Orion’s 3 glittering belt stars. The Gemini Twins, the bright stars Castor and the slightly brighter Pollux twinkle left of Orion. An hour later, by 9 p.m., the bright star Procyon (whose name means “Before the Dog”) is newly risen in the east. From Tucson’s latitude, the Dog, – that is the “Dog Star” Sirius– the brightest star in all the heavens, rises almost at the same time as Procyon, so Procyon’s name isn’t so true this far south. Watch for brilliant Sirius to flicker different colors dramatically when low in the sky, a wonderful sight in binoculars. The flickering is due to earth’s atmosphere.
MOON PHASES
The January first quarter Moon will occur on Saturday evening, January 3.
The January Full Wolf Moon, the closest full Moon this year, rises on the evening of Saturday, January 10 and sets on the morning of Sunday, January 11. NASA states that this “perigee Moon” is 14% wider and 30% brighter than lesser Moons we’ll see later this year that are farther away. A good place near Tucson, Arizona to view this Moon rise at sunset above the east-northeastern horizon is from Mt. Lemmon, on Geology Vista (just past Windy Point). For more information from NASA click here.
The January last quarter Moon occurs on Sunday morning January 18. The January 2009 new moon will occur on Monday, January 26.
Note: Additional information can be accessed by phone at Flandrau Science Center’s Astronomy Newsline at (520) 621-4310 or as a menu option at 621-S-T-A-R.
Graphics done using Starry Night Pro and Adobe Photoshop. To purchase Starry Night Enthusiast go to http://StarryNight.com.