Download star chart - Ontario Science Centre

THE CONSTELLATIONS
S *T* A* R
CH ART
The star groups linked by lines are the constellations
created by our ancestors thousands of years ago as a
way of mapping the night sky. Modern astronomers still
use the traditional names, which give today’s stargazers
a permanent link to the sky myths and legends of the
past. This season look for the Summer Triangle formed
by the three bright stars Deneb, Vega and Altair. Each
star marks the location of a separate constellation:
Cygnus the swan, Lyra the lyre and Aquila the eagle.
Find them high overhead during the mid-summer
months.
FOR SUMMER
July/August
* 2014 *
THE PLANETS
OBSERVING HIGHLIGHTS
MERCURY is best seen in the eastern
pre-dawn sky in mid-July.
JULY 5 * First-quarter Moon; Moon 1° from Mars and 2° from Spica
*
VENUS drops closer to the Sun this
summer as it shines brightly in the
morning sky.
*
MARS can be seen in the southwest
evening sky this summer, dimming from
magnitude 0 to 0.6.
*
JUPITER is missing in action for most of
the summer but will be making its return
in the dawn sky in August.
*
SATURN is visible low in the southwest
evening sky as a 0.5-magnitude “star” in
Libra.
OBSERVING TIP:
Need a night-sky friendly flashlight?
Cover a flashlight's lamp with brown
or red paper to dim its light and
preserve your night vision.
MOON PHASES
JULY 12 The first of this year’s Supermoons a.k.a. a perigee moon;
During this full Moon, the Moon will be at its closest point in its orbit
around Earth
JULY 28 Southern Delta Aquariid meteor shower peaks; Not always the
best to see from Canada but at least the Moon will set early this night
AUG 10 * Second Supermoon of the year; This will be the largest full Moon of the year as the
Moon will only be 356,896km away from the Earth
AUG 12 Perseid meteor shower peaks; Unfortunately, the Moon will be bright and high in the
sky
AUG 18 * Conjunction between Venus and Jupiter; These two planets will look like they are very
close to each other in the early morning sky
AUG 18 * Waxing Moon 2° from Mars and 3° from Saturn in a tight triangle low in evening sky
*Impressive or rare event
SPACE STATION SIGHTINGS
As the space station orbits the Earth, sunlight reflects off of its giant solar arrays.
From Earth, it appears as a bright object moving high across the night sky. Visit
www.heavens-above.com to get a list of upcoming ISS passes over your community.
Full
JULY 12 (7:25 a.m.),
AUG 10 (2:10 p.m.)
New
JULY 26 (6:42 p.m.)
AUG 25(10:13 a.m.)
*FREE ASTRONOMY EVENTS AT THE OSC*
August 9th, 10 a.m. – 12 p.m.: Solar Observing: Spot sunspots and solar flares through specially filtered telescopes. TELUSCAPE
Check our calendar for more details:
www.ontariosciencecentre.ca
OUR CHART SHOWS the major stars, planets and constellations visible
from Canada and the northern United States within one hour of these times:
EARLY JULY: 11:30 P.M.; LATE MAY: 10:30 P.M.
EARLY AUGUST: 9:30 P.M.; LATE JUNE: DUSK
NORTH
WEST
W
N
N
E
EAST
S
E
W
S
Download our most recent star chart:
www.ontariosciencecentre.ca/tour/default.asp?demoid=75
SOUTH
Cartography and design by Roberta Cooke. Base chart data derived from maps drawn by Roy Bishop for the Observer’s Handbook, published by The Royal Astronomical Society of Canada.
ROTATING NIGHT SKY: During the night, the Earth’s rotation on its axis slowly
shifts the entire sky. This is the same motion that swings the Sun on its daily eastto-west trek. The rotational hub is Polaris, the North Star, located almost exactly
above the Earth’s North Pole. Everything majestically marches counter-clockwise
around it, a motion that becomes evident after about half an hour.
TO USE THIS CHART: Hold the chart in front of you and rotate it so the direction
you are facing (N,S,E,W) is at the bottom of the chart. The edge of the chart
represents the horizon; the overhead point is at centre. On a moonless night in the
country, you will see more stars than are shown here; deep in the city, you will see
fewer. The ecliptic line is the celestial pathway of the Moon and planets. The star
groups straddling this line are known as the zodiac constellations. The Moon is
shown for selected dates.
Prepared for the Ontario Science Centre by SkyNews,
the Canadian Magazine of Astronomy & Stargazing. SkyNews.ca
SkyNews.ca 1-866-759-0005