Corvus and Crater

admin — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 07:00:24 +0000

First thing this morning our bathroom was bright with diffused light from the blinds that had been filled with moonlight from the west. I put on a thick jacket and pair of Ugg boots and wandered outside. Looking up I was spoilt. The moon was indeed throwing her weight around and this can sometimes make for imperfect stargazing, but the cold air was clear enough that between the first glow of dawn in the east and the moon’s light in the west there were riches to choose from. Gemini, Leo and Virgo were high in the sky. The dark spaces between them were punctured with Saturn and the reddish Mars. In the east another tinge of red was clear in the form of Arcturus. (It was less than two months ago that I was wondering at Arcturus and Bootes in the western evening sky.) Low in the southern sky were Corvus, the Crow, and Crater, the Cup, two constellations that I have not seen for a long time. If that were not enough, a satellite passed from north to south overhead to cap it all off.

Arcturus

admin — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 05:03:19 +0000

Last night, looking west through some tree branches, I took this picture of the orange star, Arcturus. It is one of the five brightest stars in the night sky and is part of the constellation Bootes. It is in fact the brightest star in the northern half of the celestial sphere.

It is navigationally interesting because of its declination or ‘celestial latitude’. At 19 degrees north it passes overhead a lot of major cities, including Honolulu, Mumbai and Mexico City.

The easiest way to find Arcturus is to follow the the handle of the Plough on its curved path away from the ’saucepan’. The star that can just be seen in the top right of the photo is the end of the saucepan handle.

The Natural Navigator» bootes

Corvus and Crater

Arcturus