Sky Wise

The Eskimo Nebula

Photo:  Nasa, StScI, Hubble Space Telescope

The picture you see here is of the Eskimo Nebula.  It's a common sight at this time of year if you have a decent telescope and clear skies.  Of course, what you will see in the eyepiece doesn't do justice to the image you see here.  Resembling a face in a parka, the Eskimo was first catalogued by astronomer William Herschel way back in 1787.  It's a beautiful  nebula that shows us the outer gaseous layers that have blown off a dying star many thousands of years ago. 

Star Chart by Starry Night Pro copyright IMAGINOVA

The Eskimo Nebula can be found a little below the constellation Gemini,  which can be seen in the south every evening at this time of year.  It's a small object that take up only about 1/50th of a degree of our sky.  It can't be seen with the naked eye and is best viewed in a medium to large format telescope.

Now, if only we could get the clouds to part for us again!

Sky Treasures in Winter

Images Created in Starry Night software copyright IMAGINOVA

Note -click on the sky charts for a full size version.

The winter holds many of the sky's greatest treasures.  You will find the brightest nebula in the northern skies, the closest star outside our solar system, glorious open star clusters which look like diamonds on a field of velvet.  There's a lot to see and it's worth braving the cold. Orion, the mighty hunter is perhaps the most recognized pattern of stars after the Big Dipper.  Unlike the Big Dipper, Orion is in fact a constellation -the Big Dipper is actually part of a constellation known as Ursa Major or "The Great Bear".  Look for Orion rising in the east and traveling across the sky each night.  It's home to the Orion Nebula, also known as M42.  This nebula is beautiful; visible to the naked eye in dark skies, a "wow" object in binoculars and a "that's incredible" object in telescopes. 

Taking a look to the left of Orion, we eventually come upon Cancer, the crab.  Cancer is a fairly dim constellation but it is home to another inter sting object, the Beehive Cluster or M44.  The Beehive is an "open" cluster of stars which also can be seen in dark skies with the naked eye -as a fuzzy star.  Pick up a pair of binoculars and they will resolve into dozens of individual stars filling your eyes.  It's beautiful and yes it does remind you of a swarm of bees.  Many people I know who previously could not see the Beehive Cluster with the naked eye have found them easily, once they located this cluster in their binoculars.

To the left of the Beehive Cluster and the constellation Cancer, you can catch the beautiful planet Saturn.  It has moved from last year's location in the constellation Gemini.  Look for Saturn to appear as a fairly bright star-like object just to the right of Leo.  Our friendly lion seems to be chasing Saturn across the sky as it rises each evening in the east. Look for the stars that form the backward question mark which represents Leo's head.  Saturn is a little to the right.  I can't say enough about this planet.  Saturn is the object that impressed me so much that I started buying telescope equipment.  To this day when I show the planet to guests at my scope, they cannot believe what they see.  Even a modest telescope will show Saturn's beautiful rings and one or two moons.  Larger telescopes bring out all sorts of detail.  It is truly impressive and worth taking a look.  If you have the opportunity to see this gem it is an absolute must.

A FREE public stargazing opportunity takes place this Friday evening, January 26th, from 7 PM to 10 PM at the Garnet B. Rickard Recreation Complex, in Bowmanville -weather permitting of course.  The Rickard Rec. Complex is located at the corner of Hwy 2 and Hwy 57, a few minutes east of Oshawa.   For more information please visit the website of the Durham Region Astronomical Association. 

See the Space Station

Photo Credit:  NASA

We (Southern Ontario) have another chance to see the International Space Station on January 19th.  Early risers can catch it rising in the west at 6:55 in the morning, just before the sun comes up.  The ISS will climb into the north-northwest -it's highest point about 35 degrees above the horizon within two minutes.  By 7 AM when the station is decending into towards the north-eastern horizon, the show is over.

The International Space Station recieved extra large solar panels recently, making it a brighter object to see in the sky.  When the angles are just right, the space station reflects enough light that it rivals the brilliant planet Venus in our darkened skies.  Tomorrow's show isn't quite that bright but it should be noticeable.

Numerous opportunities exist this week for early risers to see the ISS from Southern Ontario.  If the weather doesn't co-operate, you can try again and again.  Visit HEAVENS ABOVE to find out for yourself!

A Busy January

Photo Credit:  NASA, STSci

Finally we've had a clear night here and there.  Unlike the Hubble Space Telescope, we Earthbound misfits have to wait for holes in the clouds.  Most of our available clear nights have been during a full moon which made viewing of dim faint fuzzies almost impossible but there have been a few opportunities here and there. 

NASA has announced that the next (final) servicing mission for the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) will launch on September 11th, 2008.  This is great news because the HST can't continue to work properly without it.  There is a lot of great science being done by many Earth-based telescopes.  That being said, it's the images taken by the HST that have captured everyone's imagination over the last decade.

If we have decent skies over the next couple of days we may still be able to see a comet low in the southwest, not too far away from the brightest planet -Venus.  Space.com has a great article on this. Comet McNaught was first seen by Australian astronomer Robert McNaught.  This comet may or may not be the brightest one Earthlings have seen in 30 years depending on how things play out.  I'll  keep you posted.

Picture Credit:  NASA, JPL

A conference of Mars Scientists was held this week in Virginia with much talk about the many upcoming robotic missions to Mars.  So much is being planned but what interests me most is the achievements of the recent missions.  Remember Mars Pathfinder in 1997?  This mission was the basis of the landing systems and rover designs currently running around on Mars (more on that in a moment).  Pathfinder almost didn't make it in one piece.  The high speed parachute was torn to shreds and the lander came down at a higher velocity than planned.  The airbag landing system saved the day and we had our first decent pictures of Mars from the Sojourner rover as a result. 

Photo Credit:  NASA, JPL

The current rovers on Mars are named Spirit and Opportunity.  These intrepid explorers are now reaching their third anniversary on the planet's surface.  Unlike Sojourner which could only travel a few metres, these rovers have covered many kilometres.  The wealth of knowledge they have provided us is incredible.  And oh man, the pictures!

Upcoming missions to Mars will include Phoenix Mars Scout in 2007  which will land and dig for water in one of the martian polar regions and Mars Science Laboratory in 2009 which will study the geology, chemistry and atmosphere or Mars in great detail.  Canada is supplying instrumentation for this mission.

Did you receive a new telescope for Christmas?  The Durham Region Astronomical Association is holding a special "Stargazing for Beginners" seminar on Tuesday January 16th.  Admission is FREE!  Visit the website of the DRAA for more info.

A Little Closer to the Sun

Image created in Starry Night software, copyright IMAGINOVA

January 3rd marks the day our Earth is closest to the sun.  Yes that's right, closest.  Our orbit around the Sun isn't quite circular.  It's slightly elliptical.  Now I know that it sounds peculiar for us to be thinking we're closer to our stellar neighbour right now.  January is cold and we're in the beginning weeks of winter.  Remember though, the lucky folk south of the equator in countries like Australia and South Africa are entering summer right now.  Oddly enough, our position being slightly closer to the Sun doesn't make as much a difference in our climate as does another factor.  The tilt of our polar axis means we get more direct sunlight during our what we refer to as our summer months.
Image created in Starry Night software, copyright IMAGINOVA

See this representation of the Earth?  It's around lunchtime on January 3rd and as you can see, the southern hemisphere is getting more direct sunlight than the northern hemisphere.  Earth's 23.5 degree tilt  puts Brazil and Argentina in more direct sunlight than our Canadian homes at this time of year.  In six months, when we will be on the opposite side of our sun, Canada will be tilted towards the sun and we will bask in the increased energy.