November 21, 2022 On this date in 1783, the first free flight carrying a human occurred in Paris, France in a hot air balloon made of paper and silk. The balloon carried two men, Jean François Pilâtre de Rozier and the Marquis Francois Laurent d’Arlandes, to an altitude of at least 500 feet and traveled… Continue reading
Astronomy Fact of the Day: November 20, 2022
November 20, 2022 Tomorrow morning the Sun rises at 6:49 am. A very thin waning crescent moon will be visible before sunrise around 5 am. The Moon, which is 3 days away from new moon, can be found to the East near the bright star Spica. The thin waning crescent moon as it will appear… Continue reading
Night Sky Update: November 18 – November 26, 2022
This is the Saint Louis Science Center’s NIGHT SKY UPDATE for the week of Friday, November 18, 2022. Information updated weekly or as needed. Times given as local St. Louis time which is Central Standard Time (CST). For definitions of terminology used in the night sky update, click the highlighted text. If relying on times… Continue reading
Astronomy Fact of the Day: November 19, 2022
November 19, 2022 On this date in 1969, Apollo 12 landed on the lunar surface. While Command Module Pilot, Richard F. Gordon, remained in lunar orbit, Commander Charles Conrad and Lunar Module Pilot Alan Bean landed the lunar module on the Moon. They spent approximately 31 hours on the lunar surface before returning to the… Continue reading
Astronomy Fact of the Day: November 18, 2022
November 18, 2022 Tonight at midnight, the Pleiades star cluster (M45) will be visible directly overhead in the constellation of Taurus the Bull. Although best seen from a dark location, many of the stars in this cluster are bright enough to observe from the city. This is an open star cluster filled with hot blue… Continue reading
Astronomy Fact of the Day: November 17, 2022
November 17, 2022 The Leonid meteor shower peaks this evening at approximately 6 pm. This shower is active from November 6 to November 30 and is produced by dust left behind by comet Tempel-Tuttle. At its peak, the Leonids are expected to produce approximately 15 meteors per hour. Viewing from the city will limit the… Continue reading
Astronomy Fact of the Day: November 16, 2022
November 16, 2022 Getting away from city lights is important to see the night sky at its best. From the equator an observer can see about 9,000 stars with the unaided eye. At mid-latitudes the number is only 6,800. Scientists think the Milky Way galaxy may have as many as 400 billion stars. While Missouri… Continue reading
Astronomy Fact of the Day: November 15, 2022
November 15, 2022 On this date in 1630, German astronomer Johannes Kepler died. On the same date in 2018 – 388 years later – the Kepler Space Telescope was officially retired and deactivated with a “goodnight” command sent from the mission control. The telescope, which was named after the scientist, focused on discovering Earth-sized planets… Continue reading
Astronomy Fact of the Day: November 14, 2022
November 14, 2022 On this date in 1930, American astronaut Edward ‘Ed’ Higgins White II was born. White served as an astronaut on both the Gemini and Apollo missions. He was the first American to walk in space, which he did during the Gemini 4 mission. White died in 1967 because of a fire during… Continue reading
Astronomy Fact of the Day: November 13, 2022
November 13, 2022 Tonight it is possible to find the Moon approximately 1.7° south of the bright star Pollux. Pollux is the brightest star in the constellation Gemini the Twins. This star currently lies too far north of the ecliptic to be fully occulted by the Moon. The sky as it will appear tonight at… Continue reading