January 4, 2023 Today, the Earth reaches perihelion. This is when we are closest to the Sun. Earth is at its greatest distance from the Sun in July. This point in Earth’s orbit is called aphelion. Ice haloes like the one seen here are caused by ice crystals in the atmosphere refracting and reflecting light.… Continue reading
American Crow
American Crow, Corvus brachyrhynchos Have you ever seen a white crow? Most of us think that crows are black, which is true, however some of them have problems with pigment disposition and show white in their plumage. A rare number of crows are all white, like this one, because of a gene mutation called albinism.… Continue reading
Astronomy Fact of the Day: January 3, 2023
January 3, 2023 The Quadrantid Meteor Shower peaks tomorrow. Your best chance to see meteors is from 1 am to 6 am. This is when the radiant for the Quadrantids is rising in the northeast. This meteor shower is named after a defunct constellation called Quadrans Muralis. The radiant is now found in the constellation… Continue reading
Astronomy Fact of the Day: January 2, 2023
January 2, 2023 Looking northeast around 10 pm, you will find the Big Dipper beginning to rise. By 5:30 am it will be seen due north. If you watch this famous asterism through the night, it will circle around the pole star Polaris. This behavior is called circumpolar. Big Dipper seen overhead in the north… Continue reading
Night Sky Update: December 30, 2022 – January 7, 2023
This is the Saint Louis Science Center’s NIGHT SKY UPDATE for the week of Friday, December 30, 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: January 1, 2023
January 1, 2023 Today is the first day of the year. The reason we celebrate the start of the year on January 1, has to do with a choice made in ancient Rome. January is named for the Roman god Janus. He was perceived as the god of beginnings. He is often depicted with two… Continue reading
Astronomy Fact of the Day: December 31, 2022
December 31, 2022 The star Polaris is currently the North Star; however, that won’t always be the case. The Earth wobbles on its axis in a motion known as precession. Because of this wobble, Earth’s axis points at different stars over periods of thousands of years. In about 12,000, the summer star Vega will be… Continue reading
Astronomy Fact of the Day: December 30, 2022
December 30, 2022 In our solar system, planets closer to the sun are called inferior. Planets that are further from the sun are called superior. Superior planets are always at their best during what is called opposition. This is when they are closest to Earth for the year. Mars reached opposition earlier this month and… Continue reading
Astronomy Fact of the Day: December 29, 2022
December 29, 2022 This morning at 4:33 am, there was a conjunction of the Moon and Jupiter. A conjunction occurs when two objects share the same right ascension – the astronomical equivalent of longitude. The two will still appear close in the sky this evening at sunset, with Jupiter approximately 5° east of the Moon. … Continue reading
Astronomy Fact of the Day: December 28, 2022
December 28, 2022 On this date in 1955, Walt Disney and Wernher von Braun first televised their episode of Disneyland titled Man and the Moon. This was the second episode in a three-part series about space. This episode explored historic cultural representations of the Moon as well as the possibility of future lunar missions. It… Continue reading