Bright objects gather before dawn October 6
Print Me Email to FriendTonight's Sky for Thursday, Oct 01 2009
Before dawn Saturday morning, you’ll find several bright stars, planets and the moon gathered in the direction of the constellation Leo. They will shine like diamonds in the sky.
Look first for the waning crescent moon in the east. As you make your way to the horizon, Venus will also catch your eye. It is the second-brightest object in the night sky, after the moon. Nearby Venus is Regulus, one of the brightest stars in the sky and the brightest star in the constellation Leo. The brighter object to the lower left of Regulus is the planet Saturn.
Now think about an imaginary line that runs through our skies. This line is called the ecliptic, and all the planets, the sun, moon and zodiacal constellations all lie more or less along this line. In other words, think about the sun’s path across the sky, from east to west each day. The sun’s path defines the ecliptic on our sky’s dome. Start at today’s gathering of objects in the east, and – in your mind’s eye – extend this line from the star Regulus and past the right side of the moon, to almost overhead. Although it’s not shown on today’s chart, that’s where you’ll find another planet, Mars.
Remember to catch a glimpse of Saturn in a telescope over the next year. The rings will appear edge-on to us in 2009.
this is really bitchin’
This is really cool. the info. can be really useful when laying on the roof!! lol we have seen many shooting stars, satern, venus, and mercury!!
Listening, as I do each weekday morning to KBAQ, I learned of this beautiful event. I’ve been watching it since 5:00 am this morning (PST). It’s spectacular and also fun to know exactly what planet and star that I am gazing at. Another thing, the announcer said that it is possible to see the earth’s reflection on the dark side of the moon, and I did see that as well, it was faint but you can definitely see it this morning! Thank you for letting us know about the show!
i couldnt see it,it was too cloudy:(