Download SkyMatters Jan-2017 - CIT Blackrock Castle Observatory

SKYMATTERS
Blackrock Castle Observatory www.bco.ie
Download monthly skymatters newsletters from www.bco.ie/skymatters
Jan 2017
Things to watch out for
January 3,4
The Quadrantids meteor shower peaks on the night of 3rd and morning of 4th January. This shower can put on a very good show,
and is usually reliable in terms of activity. Typically 40 meteors per hour can be seen, but this can rise to over 120. The early hours
of the 4th will be the best time for viewing because the first-quarter Moon will have set and the skies should be dark. Don’t be discouraged if you live in a city or town. If you can see some stars you can see some meteors! The Quadrantids are believed to be the
leftover debris from an extinct comet called 2003 EH1 which was discovered in 2003. The comet itself may have broken up as it
passed close to the Sun. Chinese and Korean astronomers observed a bright comet in 1491 that may have been the last fateful
observation of the comet before it was ripped apart. The Quadrantids are named after the constellation Quadrans Muralis, a now
defunct constellation on the borders of Ursa Major, Draco, Hercules and Bootes.
The Earth is closest to the Sun on January 4th. See page 3 of this newsletter for more details.
January 12
The Moon is Full and located on the opposite side of the Earth to the Sun. Full Moon is not the best time to observe the Moon,
however, as there are fewer shadows cast by mountains or craters and therefore less detail to see. In the US this Full Moon is
sometimes referred to as the Full Wolf Moon because with food scarce at this time of the year, wolves would approach camps
more closely in search of food and their howls would be louder and more shrill.
On 12th, the planet Venus is farthest from the Sun in the sky, about 47 degrees away to the East. This is known as Greatest Eastern Elongation and is an excellent time to watch out for the planet. Look for a bright “star” after sunset to the East of the Sun and
that’s Venus. Incidentally, the planet itself is permanently shrouded in cloud, so we never get to see the surface.
January 19
The planet Mercury is a Greatest Western Elongation, meaning it is farthest from the Sun in the sky to the west of the Sun. On 19th
January it will be 24 degrees from the Sun in the morning sky at about 7:45am. It is a challenging object to view even under these
conditions and as always be very careful when looking for objects which are close to the Sun even if the Sun appears to be below
the horizon - it can pop up when you least expect it.
Another bright object in the morning sky is Jupiter, and to the lower left of Jupiter is Mars which now appears very faint.
Skychart for
January
The simplest way to use
the skychart is to find the
North Star (marked on the
chart as Polaris and circled red) in the real sky
and point the pole star on
our skychart in that direction.
The skychart is most correct for about 8 pm in the
middle of January 2017
(or 7 pm at the end of the
month or 9 pm at the beginning of the month).
The constellation Taurus
is highlighted rising on
the eastern horizon. By
early night-time it is high
in the southern sky. The
red star Algol is shown as
a red dot next to Orion’s
shield.
Planets in January
Mercury is a morning planet this month, farthest to the west of the Sun on 19th. It is a challenging object as always and requires a small telescope or binoculars.
Venus is an evening planet and is farthest from the Sun on 12th. It will be very bright and easy to spot. A small telescope will reveal that Venus
is half-illuminated. This tells us that Venus is closer to the Sun than the Earth is and indeed when Galileo first observed this phenomenon in the
17th century it was a crucial observation that proved the Sun, rather than the Earth, is at the centre of our solar system.
Mars is a faint object in the morning sky, rising about 4am. It is to the lower right of Jupiter and evident by its very strong red colour.
Jupiter is a brilliant morning object, rising about 3am and dominating the morning sky. This majestic planet can be seen to the east, but as the
brightest object in the sky it really is difficult to miss.
Saturn remains poorly placed for observing this month as it is lost in the glare of the Sun.
Uranus is close to Zeta and 88 Piscium and just visible in binoculars if you know exactly where to look. Due to its vast distance it is not possible
to see features on Uranus and its surface (if such exists) is permanently covered in cloud.
Neptune is very faint and requires a good telescope and dark skies to pick it out.
Constellation to keep an
eye on in January
The constellation of Taurus is easy to
find using the stars in Orion’s belt. A
line from the belt brings you to the
bright, red star Algol that is part of a V
of stars called the Hyades. Most of
the stars in the Hyades are young—
about 650 million years old—and this
type of configuration is called an
“Open Cluster” because the stars are
relatively far apart.
Farther to the right is the Seven Sisters, or Pleiades, another open cluster
of young stars. The gas from which
they were formed can still be seen in
photographs.
Taurus, the Bull, is seen attacking Orion ,the Hunter, who has a defensive shield of stars held
up to protect him. To the left of Taurus and Orion is Sirius, the brightest star in the sky.
Perihelion
The Earth’s orbit around the Sun is
not circular, but rather slightly elliptical. This means that the Sun-Earth
distance is constantly changing as
we whizz around our parent star at
an average of 107,000 km/h. When
we are farthest from the Sun we
reach a point called “aphelion” and
when we are nearest the Sun the
term is “perihelion”. The difference
between the energy we receive
from the Sun at aphelion and perihelion is about 3%. Such a small
difference is not easy to see (and in
any case NEVER look at the Sun,
EVER) but it can be measured with
The elliptical orbit of the Earth around the Sun means that both our distance and speed change during
the course of the year.
special instruments and it has to be
taken into account when forecasting
the weather. Perihelion occurs at 3:17 pm on January 4th 2017 when the Earth-Sun distance will be approximately 147.1 million km. The
Earth is actually travelling FASTEST around the Sun at perihelion, with a speed of 109,080 km/h
Six months later, on 4th July 2017 the Earth-Sun distance will be at its maximum of 152.1 million km and our speed around the Sun will
be a mere 105,480 km/h. You won’t notice any difference, however!
Space Debris
Website of the month
As we all worry about polluting the Earth, we shouldn’t forget that we are becoming increasingly guilty of polluting space. In 2013, more than 500,000 pieces of space junk
were being tracked by space agencies, ranging in size from 1 - 10cm. Most of these are
the result of the breakup of the rockets that
launch the spacecraft themselves and the
problem is now becoming very concerning
If you ever fancied doing a little
bit of real scientific research,
check out “Zooniverse”. As the
website says: “The Zooniverse is
the world’s largest and most popular platform for people-powered
research”
because the debris is posing dangers to
unmanned spacecraft and astronauts alike.
The Japanese space agency are leading
the charge to remove this debris, and will
There’s lots of possibilities, so
why not try it!
https://www.zooniverse.org
soon be testing a new technology that uses a 700m long tether to grab large pieces
of space debris and dispose of them. The
tether works by being brought close to the
debris and attracting it using an electric
field. Once a number of pieces of debris
have been attached the tether and spacecraft are plunged into the Earth’s atmosphere
where everything is burnt up on entry. A prototype system called the Kounotori Integrated Tether Experiments (KITE) docked with the International Space Station on Dec. 12.
Quote of the month
Astronomy, as nothing else can
do, teaches men humility.
— Arthur C. Clarke, The Challenge of the Spaceship, 1959
Some Upcoming Events at CIT Blackrock Castle Observatory
Junior Space Camp | January 8 | 12:00-13:30
Explore and Experiment with Science! A fun and hands-on workshop for 5-7 year olds.
One Parent must a end, booking is essen"al €10 per child
Cosmos at the Castle & Planetarium Shows | Daily | 11:00, 12:00, 13:30, 15:00, 16:00
Housed in the historic Blackrock Castle da!ng back to 1589, a visit to Blackrock Castle Observatory includes a live
planetarium show with professional astronomers and a self-guided experience through the science exhibit Cosmos
at the Castle. Send a message to Space and inves!gate The Discover Zone!
The ground floor discovery centre also holds stunning audio visual displays and Ireland’s only immersive, interac!ve theatre playing The Comet Chaser game.
Castle Tower Top & Gunnery Tours | Daily | 11:30, 13:00, 14:00,15:30
Blackrock Castle is the oldest surviving structure s!ll in use in the city of Cork; a 16th century fort turned robo!c
observatory and science centre with panoramic views of Cork Harbour. Your tour guide will bring the past, present
and future together and take you on a trip back through the colourful history of Blackrock exploring over 400 years
of Cork Harbour. Tours are included in your admission !cket. Experience our new Journeys of Explora onexhibit.
PUBLIC OPEN HOURS: 10:00 – 17:00 (Mon- Sun)
Christmas opening hours - closed January 1 2017
Phone: 021-4326120 / Email: [email protected]
Blackrock Castle Observatory is operated by Cork Institute of Technology in partnership with Cork City Council.