3/31/2023 0 Comments 2019 january night skychartThe Quadrantids is the only meteor shower that takes its name from a defunct constellation. They could be the best display of shooting stars this year. These bright colourful shooting stars are dust particles from the old comet 2003Eh1. Watch well after midnight when the Moon has set. The first regular meteor shower of the year is the Quadrantids, which can be seen on the night of January 3/4. Jupiter and Saturn are too close to the Sun to be seen this month. Have a look with a good pair of binoculars and compare which is the redder. Mid month, the red planet passes above the red giant star Antares. During January, it tracks from Libra, through the top of Scorpius and into Ophiuchus. Mars is rising in the south east at 4.40am, shinning at magnitude +1.4. Neptune at magnitude +7.9 lies in Aquarius, setting about 9pm.Īmong the faint stars of Pisces, Uranus is on the verge of naked eye visibility at magnitude +5.8, and sets around 1.30am. The innermost planet shines at magnitude –1.0, and sets around 5.45pm. On the last few days of January, you may catch Mercury near the horizon, to the lower right of Venus. At a brilliant magnitude –4.0 the Evening star sets at 7pm at the start of January and at 8.30pm at the end of the month. ![]() Venus opens the year shinning gloriously in the south west after sunset. Above Orion you will see Capella, crowning the constellation Auriga, and nearby Castor and Pollux, the celestial twins in Gemini. You will find to the right of Orion, Aldebaran, the bright red eye of the Taurus the bull. If you use the three stars of Orion’s belt and draw a line to the left it will point to Sirius the Dog Star, the brightest star in the sky. All of the winter constellations can now be seen. The southern part of the night sky is dominated by Orion, which cannot be overlooked. The North Star, of course, will be in its usual position due north. The ‘W’ shape of Cassiopeia is high up in the north-west. Look north-west and the first group you will notice will be Ursa Major, or the Plough, with its tail pointing towards the Horizon. ![]() Caster and Pollux, the celestial twins in Gemini, and glorious Sirius in Canis Major.Īs for the star patterns, what a great month to see them. A bevy of brilliant stars, Bettlegeuse and Rigel in Orion. The New Year begins with a cornucopia of celestial sights, from colourful shooting stars to a glorious Evening star.
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