What's Up in the Night Sky

May 2014 - Vol. 18, No. 5

This Month's Night Sky - NOTE: The next paragraph describes the sky as it appears at 10 pm EST (11 pm EDT) near mid- month. The sky also looks this way at 11 pm EST (midnight EDT) during the beginning of the month and at 9 pm EST (10 pm EDT) by month's end.

As May brings the lengthening days, the hours of nightly observation decrease as well, it is always with a bit of sadness that we say good-bye to the Winter and Spring constellations, Gemini, Leo, and Virgo. The early evening presence of Arcturus, the second brightest star in the northern sky, reminds us that the bright star clouds of the Milky Way will soon be brightening up those dark evenings when the Moon is small enough to allow us to truly enjoy those galactic treasures. As the evening turns to morning, the bright stars of the summer triangle follow until just before sunrise, the Milky Way is at the zenith, high overhead. Long twilight hours come to the northern hemisphere.

MERCURY bright in the early evening, will delight northern observers early in the month. VENUS is close to the horizon for observers in the N. hemisphere. JUPITER located in the constellation of Gemini, sets by midnight. MARS still strong after opposition last month, will be close to the double star Gamma Virginis on the 6th. Watch as the red planet continues to grow dimmer as Earth pulls away from it. It opens the month at -1.2 magnitude and ends at 0.7! SATURN at opposition on May 10 is visible all night. Observe early this month under dark skies if you wish to take a last look at the galaxies in the Virgo cluster.

Review how to determine Angular Measurement.

Calendar of Events

NOTE: For those observers not in the ET zone, convert the calendar times to your zone's time by subtracting one hour for CT, two for MT and three for PT. Don't forget to adjust for Daylight Savings Time when necessary by subtracting one hour from your planisphere's time. Dawn and dusk times must also be corrected. See your local newspaper, TV news, or cable TV's Weather Channel for sunrise and sunset times. Unfortunately some of these events may occur during daylight hours in your area.

DATE	EVENT
01	Aldebaran 2.0 deg S. of Moon.
04	Jupiter 5.5 deg N. of Moon.
06	Eta Aquariid meteor shower, up to 60 per hour may be seen at the zenith from a dark site. Best observing is after midnight, watch for meteors on Tuesday morning. The Moon is at apogee.
08	Regulus 5.2 deg N. of the Moon
10	Saturn at opposition. Look for Saturn between Alpha and Beta Librae.
11	Mars 3 deg N. of the Moon.
12	Spica 1.7 deg S. of the Moon.
14	Saturn .6 deg N. of the Moon, occultation in Australia, New Zealand and Antarctica. The Moon joins Saturn in Libra!
15	Venus 1.3 deg S. of Uranus.
16	Venus at aphelion.
18	Moon at perigee.
21	Mars stationary.
23-24	Look for meteors left over from the passing of comet LINEAR, radiating from a spot near the Pole Star, Polaris. This is not an official shower but observations may soon prove there is a standing shower.
25	Venus 2 deg S. of the Moon. Look for this pair one hour before sunrise!
30	Mercury 6 deg N. of the Moon.

Lunar Almanac for May 2014

Phases of the Moon	Phase and Date(s)	Best viewed before local midnight
	New 28	Deep Space Objects
	1st. Qtr 7	Planets & Moon
	Full 14	Moon
	Last Qtr 21	Deep Space & Planets

Jewels of the Night: M81 and M82 in Ursa Major

May nights call attention to the northern constellation of Ursa Major, especially to observers in the northern hemisphere. Ursa Major is the constellation of the bear, but some folks only recognize the stars in this constellation that make up the asterism called, "The Big Dipper". In the northern Spring, the bowl of the Dipper is tipped over toward the ground, sometimes thought to bring rain! This constellation is also known as the Plough, or Charles Wain, hinting that the constellation is reminiscent of a chariot or wagon. In any case, the constellation of the Bear is a north circumpolar that appears to "wheel" around the sky as it turns every night.

There is much to be said about this great constellation that holds its position near the north galactic pole of the Milky Way, in a very dark part of the sky. This month's almanac will focus on two nearby galaxies that have held amateur astronomers' attention since they were discovered by the German astronomer J. Bode. These galaxies are just under 12 million light years away, yet they are among the closest galaxies outside of the Local Group. The larger galaxy in the pair, M81 has a magnitude around 6.9 and its fainter companion shines around 8.4. They are a mere 38' apart, making them visible in binoculars as a striking pair. Small telescopes will show the bright nucleus of the large spiral M81 while large telescopes and CCD images will bring out details in its spiral arms.

The smaller galaxy, M82, has the nickname of the Cigar Galaxy. Even small telescopes revealed its tortured, elongated appearance. If its appearance wasn't enough, the Cigar galaxy was found to be a radio source in the early days of radio astronomy, making it the object of intense astronomical studies. Careful observations revealed a faint link between M82 and it's companion M81 that was verified by Hubble Space Telescope and others. The close encounter(s) between M81 and M82 trigger intense episode(s) of star formation. Earlier this year, a supernova was spotted in M82 by a team of astronomers at the University of London

These two cosmic jewels keep astronomers coming back for more!

--See You Under the Stars!
Astra for Astra's Almanac