Tuesday, December 6
Early-morning observers will simply spot the brightest star within the sky, Sirius, sinking within the southwest a number of hours earlier than daybreak. Usually drawn depicting the nostril of the Large Canine, Canis Main, Sirius is a blazingly brilliant A-type star with a tiny white dwarf companion, typically referred to as the Pup.
Canis Main itself is dwelling to quite a few deep-sky objects, from galaxies to star clusters. We’ll focus in on the latter this morning, as the brilliant Moon makes galaxies tougher to see.
NGC 2354 is positioned simply 1.5° east-northeast of 2nd-magnitude Delta (δ) Canis Majoris within the again half of the canine. With an built-in magnitude of 6.5, even a small scope (4 inches or so) ought to present a pleasant view with a number of dozen stars. If you happen to can bump up your aperture, you’ll deliver out extra suns. The cluster seems fairly giant, spanning 20′ in diameter, with an oval-shaped darkish void stretching from north to south close to the middle.
Dawn: 7:08 A.M.
Sundown: 4:34 P.M.
Moonrise: 3:32 P.M.
Moonset: 5:41 A.M.
Moon Part: Waxing gibbous (98%)
Wednesday, December 7
The Moon passes 0.5° north of Mars at 11 P.M. EST, simply minutes earlier than our satellite’s phase reaches Full at 11:08 P.M. EST. You’ll discover the pair excessive within the southern sky at the moment, nestled among the many stars of Taurus the Bull and about 7° southwest of Elnath, which sits on the tip of one in every of Taurus’ two horns.
Just a few hours earlier, although, most places within the U.S. (except the East and Gulf coasts) will see the Moon occult, or cross in entrance of, Mars. Within the central U.S., the planet slips out of view behind the Moon round 9 P.M. CST, reappearing roughly 60 minutes later. You will discover the precise instances of the occasion’s begin and finish out of your location at www.lunar-occultations.com/iota/planets/1208mars.htm.
The December Full Moon can be referred to as the Chilly Moon. Due to its path via the sky at the moment of yr, it is going to stay above the horizon from round 4 P.M. this afternoon till almost 8 A.M. tomorrow morning. (Be aware the moonset time listed for right now is the time the Moon units early this morning after rising within the afternoon on the sixth).
Because the final Full Moon of the yr, you’ll wish to get out and test it out — and in addition observe Mars’ location so close by. The Crimson Planet lastly reaches opposition tomorrow morning, so we’ll be again right here in only a few hours (or just stick round in a single day!) to benefit from the Crimson Planet at its peak for the yr.
Dawn: 7:09 A.M.
Sundown: 4:34 P.M.
Moonrise: 4:07 P.M.
Moonset: 6:45 A.M.
Moon Part: Full
