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This is the Griffith Observatory Sky Report for the period ending Wednesday, January 8, 2014. Here is what’s happening in the skies of Southern California:
The brightest planet, Venus, becomes difficult to find after sunset as its separation from the sun draws to a minimum on January 11. Look for it low in the west-southwest at sunset. Venus sets at 6:35 p.m. on the 7th.
The second brightest planet, Jupiter, appears opposite to the sun on the night of the 5th, and is visible all night long. Located against the backdrop of Gemini the Twins, Jupiter rises above the horizon in the east-northeast at sunset, is overhead at midnight, and sets in the west-northwest at sunrise. The long hours of visibility allow a telescope-equipped observer to see all of the planet’s cloud features come into view during the course of the night because of the planet’s short, 10-hour-long rotation period. Steadily held binoculars are sufficient to reveal Jupiter’s four largest moons.
The crescent moon, less than two days old, enters the evening sky, close to Venus, on Thursday the 2nd. On following nights it appears higher in the sky and reaches first-quarter phase on the 7th. The moon will set at 12:19 a.m. on the 8th.
Orange planet Mars, in Virgo the Maiden, is best seen at the start of dawn when it crosses the meridian in the south. If the air is steady, a telescope eight-inches in diameter used at high magnification will reveal the white north polar cap and dusky markings on the planet’s ochre disk. Mars will appear to more than double its current size when earth and Mars swing past each other in April.
The yellow planet Saturn is in Libra the Scales, about 30 degrees to the east of Mars and equals Mars in brightness. At dawn, Saturn appears highest, 50 degrees above the southeast horizon. A telescope will show the northern face of the Saturn’s spectacular ring system tilted 22 degrees in our direction.
According to the Jet Propulsion Laboratory Horizons on-line calculation system, we will be nearest to the sun, at perihelion, on the 4th at 3:59 a.m., PST. The center of the earth will then be 91,406,673 from the sun’s center, 1,549,134 miles closer than the average distance, and 3,099,787 miles closer than we will be on July 3rd, when we are at aphelion, the most distant point from the sun that we reach on earth’s elliptical orbit. These figures change slightly from year to year due to the constantly changing displacement caused by the gravity of the moon and other planets.
The Quadrantid meteor shower should reach its peak on the morning of Friday the 3rd. While the peak of the brief shower, which can produce more than 100 meteors per hour, is likely to occur after sunrise, some experts calculate that the peak may happen as early as 6:00 a.m., so the west coast may see increasing meteor activity before dawn starts at 5:30 a.m. Named after an obsolete constellation, the Quadrantids appear to stream from a point 51 degrees high in the northeast, between the handle of the Big Dipper and the constellation Bootes the Herdsman.
Free views of the sun during the day and of the moon, planets, and other celestial objects at night, are available to the public in clear weather through Griffith Observatory’s telescopes Tuesday-Sunday before 9:30 p.m. Check our website for our schedule. The next public star party on the grounds of Griffith Observatory, hosted by the Los Angeles Astronomical Society, the Sidewalk Astronomers, and the Planetary Society, will take place on Saturday, January 11.
From Griffith Observatory, I’m Anthony Cook and I can be reached at griffithobserver@gmail.com.