Draco Guards the Celestial Pole

Photo of 1970 Greek stamp featuring Heracles and the serpent-dragon courtesy 123rf.com

The constellation Draco, the Dragon, can be see throughout the night tonight in the northern sky.  This has been an important constellation for over 4,000 years, when it was believed the celestial pole was the doorway between mortals and eternity, and Draco was the guardian of the celestial pole.  For more information about Draco click here.  For a previous entry on this blog about Draco click here.What did you learn today?

Norma in the Sky

Photo of modern square level courtesy 123rf.com

Depending on where you live on Earth, you may be able to see the constellation, Norma, in tonight's sky.  Being a musician and opera-lover, I immediately wondered if it had anything to do with Bellini's opera by the same name, but no, it does not.  The full name of this constellation used to be Norma et Regula, which means "the level and the square", and this refers to carpenters' tools.  For more information click here and click here.  What did you learn today?

Almanacs Through The Ages

Photo courtesy 123rf.com

Almanacs go back to the Ancient Greeks and Romans.  The earliest Roman almanac, the "dies fasti", listed days when legal business should and should not be conducted.  For more information click here.  What did you learn today?

Hunting Bears in the Sky

Photo courtesy 123rf.com

Bootes (boo-OH-teez) is the most ancient of all constellations.  Depending on the society, he either hunts or protects the bears, Ursa Major and Ursa Minor, as he follows them around the North Pole.  Bootes is visible in the northern hemisphere spring and summer, and crosses the meridian on June 15.  For more information click here.  What did you learn today?

Venus Over The Sun

Photo of Venus courtesy 123rf.com

Today Venus will come between Earth and the Sun.  The last time this happened was 2004; the next time it will happen will be 2117.  This occurs in pairs eight years apart, and the pair-occurances are over 100 years apart.  For more information click here and click here.  What did you learn today?

Still No Cloud Apps...

Photo courtesy 123rf.com

I've written before about wanting a cloud identification app for Kindle Fire--and there still isn't one, but I've found another cloud & weather book to download that has fabulous pictures to help in identifying clouds.  The book is a Peterson guide book, which are very good books.  I have several Peterson guide books in my backpack that I take hiking so that I can identify mammals, insects, birds, butterflies, etc.  Click here to get the Peterson First Guide to Clouds and Weather.  What did you learn today?

7,000 Years of Eclipse History!

Photo courtesy 123rf.com

Click here for a NASA website that includes 7,000 years of eclipse history, as well as information on today's eclipse.  What did you learn today?

A Centaur, A Dog, and Two Bears

Photo courtesy 123rf.com

Tomorrow at 9:00 P.M. in the Northern Hemisphere, you should be able to see the constellations Centaurus and Canes Venatici.  Canes Venatici is the hunting dog used to hunt the bears in the constellations Ursa Major and Ursa Minor.  For more information click here.  What did you learn today?

The Musical Instrument in the Sky

Photo courtesy 123rf.com

There is a constellation that is a musical instrument:  Lyra.  For information on the history of the lyre as well as the constellation click here.  I looked this up because Jessica T., one of my piano students, wrote a story about a constellation that was a piano.

What did you learn today?

A Little Dog and A Flying Fish--Tonight!

Photo of Canis Minor courtesy SeaSky.org


Photo of Volans courtesy SeaSky.org

In the northern hemisphere, tonight is prime time viewing for Canis Minor (Little Dog) and Volans (Flying Fish).  Canis Minor appears to be standing on the back of Monoceros (the Unicorn), and Volans resembles a flying fish when seen from the side.

For more information click here.  What did you learn today?

Look Up and Identify!

Photo of altocumulus clouds courtesy invectis.co.uk

One of the things I disappointedly learned today is there are no cloud identification apps for Kindle Fire (Android).  However, there is a great little book that can be downloaded for a little over $7.00 U.S. that will meet all your cloud identifying needs:  Cloud Collector's Handbook, by Gavin Pretor-Pinney. 

The thing I wanted to learn today is the clouds that I saw two days ago and that I was trying to identify are altocumulus clouds.  For more information click here and click here.  What did you learn today?

Tonight: Gemini & Monoceros

Photo of Gemini courtesy SeaSky.org


Photo of Monoceros courtesy SeaSky.org

The constellations Gemini and Monoceros crossed the meridian at 9:00 P.M. on February 20, so they are still good for prime viewing tonight.  For more information click here.

It's a Great Dog Night Tonight!

Photo courtesy SeaSky.org

Canis Major, Great Dog, is a constellation that can be seen in both hemispheres tonight.  It contains Sirius (which means "scorching", and is also known as the Dog Star), which is the brightest star in the night sky.  For more information click here.

Camelopardalis: The Giraffe

Photo courtesy SeaSky.org

Tonight the constellation, Camelopardalis (Latin for "Giraffe"), crosses the meridian.  I didn't know about this constellation.  It was first named Camel, then later changed to Giraffe.  During February the northern hemisphere can see it upside down; it is right-side up in summer.  For more information click here.

Chinese Year 4710

Moon phases:  New, First Quarter, Full, Third Quarter
Photo courtesy 123rf.com

We are now in day two of Chinese year 4710.  The Chinese use a lunar calendar (although in business they usually use the Gregorian calendar like most of the rest of the world), and the first of every month is the darkest night of the month, or the night with the new moon.  For more information click here and click here.

The First Photograph of the Moon

The earliest extant photograph of the moon:  Draper, John W., “First Astronomical Photograph - Draper's Moon Daguerreotype,” Greenwich Village History, accessed January 6, 2012, http://aphdigital.org/GVH/items/show/119.

On this day in 1839, French photographer Louis Jacques Mandé Daguerre (1789–1851) took the first photograph of the moon.  This photograph was burned in the March 8, 1839 fire that destroyed Daguerre's laboratory.  The photograph was actually a daguerreotype, an early method of photography named after Louis Daguerre.  During this photographic process a silver-coated copper plate is treated with iodine vapor.  Prior to this invention, pictures of the moon for texts and articles had to be drawn by hand.

My favorite moon photos are those with astronauts walking around, because they make me imagine what that might feel like.  What are your favorite moon photos?

Christmas Night Sky

Photo of constellation Perseus courtesy 123rf.com

Tonight in the northern hemisphere you can see the constellations Horologium and Perseus.  What a great way to spend a beautiful Christmas evening.  For more information click here.

What will you and your family do on Christmas evening?

Tonight: Fornax!

Hubble photo of Ultra Deep Field in Fornax Constellation courtesy SOS.NOAA.gov













Photo of the constellation Fornax courtesy Chandra.Harvard.edu

Tonight in the northern hemisphere you may be able to see the three-star constellation Fornax--unfortunately it will be an overcast, rainy night where I live, so I won't be able to see it.

The fornax is a chemical furnace, or combustion furnace, created by French chemist Antoine Laurent Lavoisier (1743-1794).  He named the furnace after Fornax, the Ancient Roman goddess of bread and baking.  French astronomer Nicolas Louis de Lacaille (1713-1762) created the three-star constellation in 1752, and named it Fornax in honor of his friend, Lavoisier.

Did you see Fornax tonight?  Have you seen it before?  What was it like seeing it tonight?

Aries and Hydrus Tonight

Photo courtesy FreeImagesLive.co.uk


Photo courtesy ClipArtPal.com

Tonight in the northern hemisphere you can see two constellations:  Aries and Hydrus.  Aries was known as the Ram not only in Greek mythology, but also to the Babylonians, Egyptians, and Persians.  Hydrus was created by Dutch astronomers in the 16th century.  For more information click here and click here.

Did you see either or both of these constellations tonight?

Look Up to See Triangulum!

Photo courtesy Scientific-Web

In tonight's sky in the northern hemisphere, you may be able to see the constellation Triangulum, which is Latin for triangle, the shape of this constellation.  It's one of the original 48 constellations listed by Ptolemy (90-168).  Ptolemy authored treatises on math, geography, and astronomy.  For more information, click here.

Did you see this constellation tonight?