November 1, 2022 At 7 pm tonight, the Moon and Saturn are found in the southern sky appearing 4.5° apart. The Moon will exhibit a waxing gibbous phase with roughly 58% of the lunar disk illuminated. The sky as it will appear tonight at 7 pm. The Moon and Saturn are visible to the south.… Continue reading
Astronomy Fact of the Day: October 31, 2022
October 31, 2022 The tradition of Halloween stems from our ancestors’ interests in tracking the seasons. Traditionally, Halloween marked the start of the dark half of the year in the northern hemisphere. This was seen as the start of winter. The day we call the winter solstice was originally considered mid-winter. Today Halloween is a… Continue reading
Astronomy Fact of the Day: October 30, 2022
October 30, 2022 On this date in 1938, Orson Wells broadcasted “The War of the Worlds” over the radio and caused a panic as people believed Martians were invading. Looking to the east around 10 pm, you will see Mars in the constellation Taurus. The east-northeastern sky as it will appear tonight at 10 pm.… Continue reading
Astronomy Fact of the Day: October 29, 2022
October 29, 2022 The Celtic tradition Samhain is the basis for the modern tradition of Halloween. Astronomically, Samhain occurred when the Pleiades star cluster was visible overhead at midnight. If you go outside tonight at midnight, you will find the Pleiades just about overhead. Due to precession, the timing has shifted but it is still… Continue reading
Night Sky Update: October 28 – November 5, 2022
This is the Saint Louis Science Center’s NIGHT SKY UPDATE for the week of Friday, October 28, 2022. Information updated weekly or as needed. Times given as local St. Louis time which is Central Daylight Time (CDT). 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: October 28, 2022
October 28, 2022 Tonight at 8:30 pm, you will find the planet Saturn in the constellation Capricornus. Capricornus is one of the 12/13 zodiac constellations that the planets wander through when viewed from Earth. Saturn takes roughly 29.5 year to wander through the zodiacal constellations. The southern sky as it will appear tonight at 8:30… Continue reading
Astronomy Fact of the Day: October 27, 2022
October 27, 2022 Tonight at 8 pm, you can find the Pleiades star cluster rising in the east. Also called Messier 45, the Pleiades is an excellent open star cluster to look at through binoculars. With the unaided eye, most will see 6 or 7 bright stars. Through binoculars, you can see well over 40… Continue reading
Malachite
Malachite – Collected from Zaire, Africa. During the latter part of the 19th and into the early 20th century, Victorian Christmas Lights (also called Christmas Fairy Lamps) like this purple hobnail example, were popular decorations throughout the US. Candles were placed inside these ornamental glass lamps, and they were typically hung with wire outside the… Continue reading
Astronomy Fact of the Day: October 26, 2022
October 26, 2022 Missouri born astronomer, Edwin Hubble categorized galaxies into 3 main types including: spiral, elliptical, and irregular. Our galaxy, the Milky Way is a barred spiral galaxy. Neighboring galaxy Messier 31 is a spiral galaxy which can be found over head at 10 pm in the constellation Andromeda. These images show examples of… Continue reading
Astronomy Fact of the Day: October 25, 2022
October 25, 2022 Today, a partial solar eclipse will occur. A Solar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes between the Earth and Sun. When this happens, if the Sun, Moon and Earth are in alignment, the Moon will appear to occult the solar disk. Sadly, it will not be visible from St. Louis as it… Continue reading