Jupiter (brightest), Saturn (to the left), and the Milky Way over the Saskatchewan River and the ... [+]
If you get clear weather this week then you’ve hit the celestial jackpot.
That’s because not only is there a meteor shower about to peak, but a “great conjunction” of planets—the best for 800 years—is now visible.
On Monday, December 21, 2020, Jupiter and Saturn will appear closer to each other than for nearly 400 years. It’s around 800 years since they were so easily visible.
Though right now, and for the rest of December, they will appear to be super-close in the post-sunset night sky.
It’s called a “great conjunction” because Jupiter and Saturn are the two largest planets in the Solar System, and to the naked eye they’ll look like a single bright star.
However, on the evening of December 21 and into the early hours of December 22 the Ursids meteor shower 2020 will also strike. Though not a particularly strong meteor shower you can expect to see a few “shooting stars” if you go out stargazing this week.
All on the exact date of the December solstice, which signals the first day of winter in the northern hemisphere and the first day of summer in the southern hemisphere.
How about that for a brilliant way to end the stargazing season? Here’s what you need to know.
The trio of (L to R) Saturn, Mars and Jupiter in conjunction in the dawn twilight, taken from home ... [+]
How, when and where you can see the ‘great conjunction’ 2020
It’s being called the “Christmas Star,” but the “great conjunction” is all about planets, not stars. Just 0.1º apart—a fifth of the diameter of the full Moon—this is the closest Jupiter and Saturn have come to each other since a great conjunction in 1623 and the best since 1226. The two largest planets in our solar system, Jupiter and Saturn will look like two bright stars that are almost touching, as seen by the naked eye.
It will all happen just after sunset in the southwestern sky on December 21, 2020 and will take place low to the horizon. There can be no wasted time because the two planets will sink below the horizon about two hours after sunset.
How to see the "Great Conjunction."
Find out the exact time of sunset where you are and be somewhere with a good view low to the southwest horizon about 45 minutes after sunset. You will see Jupiter emerge in the twilight followed by Saturn to its upper-right.
In binoculars or a wide-field telescope the two planets will still appear close to each other. If you do have a telescope with high magnification it should reveal the spectacular sight of the rings of Saturn, the cloud belts of Jupiter and four of Jupiter’s moons (Ganymede, Europa, Callisto and Io) all in the same field of view.
That will be a historic sight indeed. It’s a view that most humans can never hope to have in their lifetime.
A trio of meteors over the Chiricahua Mountains in southeast Arizona, with Orion and the winter ... [+]
How, when and where you can see the Ursid meteor shower 2020
Although you can see “shooting stars” from the Ursid meteor shower at any time between December 17-26, 2020, the event peaks on the night of December 21/22, 2020. The Moon will be close to first quarter so will set about midnight, which is the best time to get outside looking up.
Expect to see between five and 10 “shooting stars” per hour if you have a clear, dark sky away from light pollution. “We call them shooting stars when we’re being cute around children, but they're really just specks of dust that are burning up in the atmosphere,” said Dr. Jackie Faherty, Senior Scientist and Senior Education Manager jointly in the Department of Astrophysics and the Department of Education at the American Museum of Natural History. “You need a nice, clear sky with no light pollution—and no “giant light bulb” Moon in the sky—to see fainter meteors.”
The name “Ursids” comes this meteor shower’s radiant point in the constellation of Ursa Minor—the ... [+]
The Ursids meteor shower is the result of dust left in the Solar System in the wake of comet 8P/Tuttle, which enters the inner Solar System every 13 years and is due back in August 2021.
The name “Ursids” comes from this meteor shower’s radiant point in the constellation of Ursa Minor—the little bear—but its “shooting stars” can appear anywhere in the night sky. Facing generally north is a good idea, though the streaks will appear longer to the east and west and they radiate out from Ursa Minor.
Wishing you clear skies and wide eyes.
Read Again https://www.forbes.com/sites/jamiecartereurope/2020/12/18/how-when-and-where-you-can-see-christmas-star-planets-then-shooting-stars-on-the-solstice-this-week/Bagikan Berita Ini
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