On this date in 1738 Sir William Herschel was born. Herschel discovered the planet Uranus in 1781. You can find Uranus in the constellation Pieces but it will require binoculars.
Astronomy Fact of the Day: November 14, 2017
The star Polaris is currently the North Star. The Earth wobbles on its axis in a motion known as precession. Because of this the star Vega will be the North Star in 12,000 years. You can see Vega in the west around 6 pm.
Astronomy Fact of the Day: November 13, 2017
Tomorrow morning look east for a thin waning crescent moon around 5 am. Just below the Moon you will also see the planet Mars.
Astronomy Fact of the Day: November 12, 2017
On this date in 1980 the Voyager 1 mission made its closest approach to Saturn. Its closest approach to Saturn was about 124,000 km.
Astronomy Fact of the Day: November 11, 2017
The Northern Taurid meteor shower will peak tomorrow morning around 5am. Your best bet to see meteors will be after midnight when the constellation Taurus is high overhead.
Astronomy Fact of the Day: November 10, 2017
Last quarter moon occurs tonight at 8:36 pm which is before moonrise. On average the Moon is about 240,000 miles from us. Tonight it will only be 232,755 miles from Earth.
Night Sky Update For The Week of Tuesday November 7th
This is the Saint Louis Science Center’s NIGHT SKY UPDATE for the week of Tuesday, November 7. All times are given as local St. Louis time (Central Standard Time). For definitions of terminology used in the night sky update, click the highlighted text. Information updated weekly or as needed. Join us for our next star… Continue reading
Astronomy Fact of the Day: November 09, 2017
Tomorrow morning NASA will launch NOAA’s Joint Polar Satellite System-1. This is a polar orbiting weather satellite that will monitor global atmospheric, terrestrial and oceanic conditions.
Astronomy Fact of the Day: November 08, 2017
Tonight you will find the constellation Cetus in the south. This is a dim constellation with two bright stars Menkar and Deneb Kaitos. As the year ends you should see another bright star appear between them. This is the variable star Mira.
Astronomy Fact of the Day: November 07, 2017
Tonight if you look east at 10pm you will see the three stars of Orion’s Belt. What appears to be three stars is really about 80. Orion’s Belt is a star cluster called Collinder 70.