November 2011 Celestial Calendar & Observing Notes c/o Dave Mitsky

[Big Dipper]

November 2011 Celestial Calendar & Observing Notes courtesy of Dave Mitsky (calendar data also reproduced in our forum calendar).

All times, unless otherwise noted, are UT.

11/2 Mercury and Venus are 2 degrees apart at 0:00; First Quarter Moon occurs at 16:38

11/3 The Lunar X (Purbach or Werner Cross), an X-shaped illumination effect involving various rims and ridges between the craters La Caille, Blanchinus, and Purbach, is predicted to occur at 2:16

11/4 Neptune is 6 degrees south of the Moon at 8:00

11/5 Asteroid 29 Amphitrite (magnitude 8.7) is at opposition at 2:00; the peak of the Southern Taurid meteor shower (5 to 10 per hour) occurs at 23:00

11/6 Daylight Saving Time (DST) ends today

11/7 Uranus is 6 degrees south of the Moon at 2:00

11/8 The Moon is at apogee, subtending 29' from a distance of 406,177 kilometers (252,387 miles), at 13:00

11/9 Jupiter is 5 degrees south of the Moon at 19:00; Venus is 4 degrees north of the first-magnitude star Antares (Alpha Scorpii) at 20:00; Neptune is stationary at 21:00

11/10 Mars is 1.4 degrees north of the first-magnitude star Regulus (Alpha Leonis) at 4:00; Mercury is 1.9 degrees north of Antares at 5:00; Full Moon, known as the Beaver or Frost Moon, occurs at 20:16

11/11 Mercury is at its greatest heliocentric latitude south today; asteroid 68 Leto (magnitude 9.6) is at opposition at 5:00

11/12 Asteroid 40 Harmonia (magnitude 9.4) is at opposition at 4:00; asteroid 1 Ceres is stationary at 6:00; the peak of the Northern Taurid meteor shower (5 to 10 per hour) occurs at 16:00

11/13 Mercury and Venus are 2 degrees apart at 5:00; asteroid 30 Urania (magnitude 9.6) is at opposition at 10:00

11/14 Mercury is at greatest eastern elongation (23 degrees) at 9:00

11/18 The peak of the Leonid meteor shower (20 per hour) occurs at 4:00; Last Quarter Moon occurs at 15:09

11/19 The Curtiss Cross, an X-shaped illumination effect located between the craters Parry and Gambart, is predicted to occur at 5:52; Mars is 8 degrees north of the Moon at 10:00

11/21 Asteroid 115 Thyra (magnitude 9.6) is at opposition at 22:00

11/22 Saturn is 7 degrees north of the Moon at 22:00

11/23 The Moon is at perigee, subtending 32' from a distance of 359,651 kilometers (223,502 miles), at 23:00

11/24 Mercury is stationary at 10:00

11/25 New Moon (lunation 1100) occurs at 6:10; a partial solar eclipse visible from most of New Zealand, Tasmania, Antarctica, and southern South Africa reaches maximum at 6:20

11/26 Mercury is 1.7 degrees south of the Moon at 10:00

11/27 Venus is 3 degrees south of the Moon at 4:00

11/28 Asteroid 15 Eunomia (magnitude 7.8) is at opposition at 20:00

11/29 Venus is at aphelion today

11/30 Mercury is at the ascending node today

Edmund Halley, William Herschel, Harlow Shapley, and Edwin Hubble were born this month.

The peak of this year’s Leonid meteor shower is partially compromised by a waxing Moon. The first photograph of a meteor was taken on November 26, 1885.

The Moon is 5.7 days old and resides in Sagittarius on November 1 at 0:00 UT. The Moon reaches its greatest northern declination on November 13 (+22.6 degrees) and its greatest southern declination on November 26 (-22.6 degrees). Longitudinal libration is at a maximum of +7.7 degrees on November 1 and +7.1 degrees on November 29 and a minimum of -6.9 degrees on November 17. Latitudinal libration is at a maximum of +6.8 degrees on November 19 and a minimum of -6.9 degrees on November 5. Browse Web Page Redirection for IOTA for information on lunar occultations. Visit Saber Does The Stars saberdoesthestars for tips on spotting extreme crescent Moons. Times and dates for the lunar light rays predicted to occur this month are available at Lunar Sunrise/Sunset Crater Rays

The Sun is located in Libra on November 1 at 0:00 UT. A partial solar eclipse takes place deep in the southern hemisphere on November 25.

Brightness, apparent size, illumination, distance from the Earth in astronomical units, and location data for the planets and Pluto on November 1: Mercury (magnitude -0.3, 5.4", 84% illuminated, 1.24 a.u., Libra), Venus (magnitude -3.8, 10.6", 94% illuminated, 1.57 a.u., Libra), Mars (magnitude 1.1, 5.9", 90% illuminated, 1.58 a.u., Leo), Jupiter (magnitude -2.9, 49.6", 100% illuminated, 3.97 a.u., Aries), Saturn (magnitude 0.7, 15.6", 100% illuminated, 10.62 a.u., Virgo), Uranus (magnitude 5.8, 3.6", 100% illuminated, 19.28 a.u., Pisces), Neptune (magnitude 7.9, 2.3", 100% illuminated, 29.65 a.u., Aquarius), and Pluto (magnitude 14.1, 0.1", 100% illuminated, 32.65 a.u., Sagittarius).

During the evening, Mercury and Venus can be found in the southwest, Jupiter in the east, Uranus in the southeast, and Neptune in the south. Mars lies in the east and Jupiter and Uranus lie in the southwest at midnight. Mars and Saturn are located in the southeast in the morning sky.

At midmonth, Mercury can be seen during evening twilight, Venus sets at 6:00 p.m. local time, Mars rises at midnight, Jupiter transits at 10:00 p.m. local time and sets at 5:00 a.m. local time, and Saturn rises at 4:00 a.m. local time for observers at latitude 40 degrees north.

Mercury lies within two degrees of Venus for the first half of the month. It’s situated between Venus and Antares on November 9 and November 10. Mercury is at greatest eastern elongation on November 14. The speedy planet decreases rapidly in magnitude as the month draws to an end.

Venus climbs higher into the evening sky this month, increasing in altitude at sunset from 9 to 14 degrees for observers at 40 degrees north. From November 8 to November 11, Venus lies within five degrees of Antares. Venus is three degrees south of a waxing crescent Moon on November 27.

Mars increases in size from 5.9 to 7.0 arc seconds and in brightness from magnitude 1.1 to magnitude 0.7 during November. It passes 1.4 degrees north of Regulus (magnitude 1.4) on November 10 and lies within five degrees of the star for 19 days. By month’s end, Mars rises before midnight.

Jupiter’s apparent diameter decreases from 49.6 to 47.7 arc seconds this month. Its retrograde motion carries it close to the border of Pisces by the end of November. Browse Transit Times of Jupiter's Great Red Spot - Planets - SkyandTelescope.com to determine transits of the central meridian by the Great Red Spot. Data on the Galilean satellites is available at Jupiter's Moons Javascript Utility - Interactive Observing Tools - SkyandTelescope.com

Saturn rises at approximately 3:30 a.m. EST at the end of the month and its ring tilt increases to almost 14 degrees. The first magnitude-star Spica and Saturn are within five degrees of each other for the entire month. For information on the satellites of Saturn, browse Saturn's Moons Javascript Utility - Interactive Observing Tools - SkyandTelescope.com

Uranus is located in western Pisces to the southeast of the Circlet of Pisces. The star HIP417 (magnitude 6.3) lies within a half degree of the slightly brighter Uranus (magnitude 5.8) over the course of the month.

Neptune can be found 1.7 degrees northwest of the fourth-magnitude star Iota Capricorni. It resumes prograde (i.e., eastern) motion on November 9.

Finder charts for Uranus and Neptune appear on page 53 of the September 2011 issue of Sky & Telescope and are posted online at http://media.skyandtelescope.com/documents/Uranus-Neptune-2011.pdf

The dwarf planet Pluto is not a viable telescopic target again until next year.

Asteroid 15 Eunomia moves southwestward through Perseus this month. The minor planet shines at magnitude 7.8 on November 28 and passes by NGC 1499 (the California Nebula) during the final days of November. Asteroids 29 Amphitrite, 68 Leto, 40 Harmonia, 30 Urania, and 115 Thyra also reach opposition this month. The Earth-crossing asteroid 2005 YU55 shines at magnitude 11.2 as it passes 325,000 kilometers (202,000 miles) from the Earth at 6:28 p.m. EST on November 8.

During November, Comet C/2009 P1 (Garradd) shines at sixth magnitude as it glides northwestward through Hercules. A finder chart can be found on page 56 of the November 2011 issue of Sky & Telescope. See Comet Chasing for additional information on Comet Garradd and other visible comets.

Two stars with exoplanetary systems, Upsilon Andromedae (magnitude 4.1) and 51 Andromedae (magnitude 5.5), can be seen this month without optical aid.

The famous eclipsing variable star Algol (Beta Persei) is at a minimum, decreasing in magnitude from 2.1 to 3.4, on November 3, 6, 9, 12, 15, 18, 20, 23, 26 and 29. Consult The Minima of Algol - Variable Stars - SkyandTelescope.com for the times of the eclipses. For more on Algol, see Algol and Algol / Beta Persei 3

The famous pulsating variable star Mira (Omicron Ceti), the Wonderful, remains fairly easy to see without optical aid during November. Click on Mira, Omicron Ceti for further information on Mira.

Seventy binary and multiple stars for November: Otto Struve 514, Alpha Andromedae (Alpheratz), Struve 3, h1947, Struve 19, Struve 24, 26 Andromedae, Struve 40, Pi Andromedae, Delta Andromedae, Struve 47, Eta Andromedae, Struve 79, Beta Andromedae (Mirach), Struve 108, Struve 179, South 404 (Andromeda); 1 Arietis, Struve 178, Gamma Arietis, Lambda Arietis (Mesarthim) (Aries); Struve 3053, Struve 3057, Struve 16, Struve 30, Otto Struve 16, Alpha Cassiopeiae (Schedar), Struve 59, Eta Cassiopeiae, Burnham 1, Struve 70, Otto Struve 23, h1088, Struve 163, Struve 170, Struve 182 (Cassiopeia); 34 Piscium, Struve 8, 35 Piscium, Struve 15, 38 Piscium, 42 Piscium, 49 Piscium, 51 Piscium, 55 Piscium, 65 Piscium, Psi Piscium, Otto Struve 22, Struve 98, Otto Struve 26, Phi Piscium, Zeta Piscium, h636, Otto Struve 30, Struve 122, Struve 132, Otto Struve 31, 100 Piscium, Struve 145, 107 Piscium, h644 (Pisces); h5440, Kappa-1 Sculptoris, h1949, h3442, h3379, Tau Sculptoris, Epsilon Sculptoris (Sculptor); Struve 143, Struve 183 (Triangulum)

Challenge binary star for November: 36 Andromedae

Notable carbon star for November: Z Piscium

Seventy deep-sky objects for November: M31, M32, M110, NGC 252, NGC 404, NGC 752 (Andromeda); NGC 680, NGC 691, NGC 697, NGC 772 (Aries); Cr 463, IC 1747, K14, M103, NGC 129, NGC 133, NGC 146, NGC 185, NGC 225, NGC 281, NGC 278, NGC 381, NGC 436, NGC 457, NGC 559, NGC 637, NGC 654, NGC 659, NGC 663, Tr 1 (Cassiopeia); NGC 40, NGC 188 (Cepheus); NGC 151, NGC 175, NGC 178, NGC 210, NGC 227, NGC 245, NGC 246, NGC 247, NGC 274, NGC 337, NGC 578, NGC 584, NGC 596, NGC 615, NGC 636, NGC 681, NGC 720, NGC 779 (Cetus); NGC 7814 (Pegasus); M76, St 4 (Perseus); M74, NGC 128, NGC 194, NGC 488, NGC 524 (Pisces); NGC 24, NGC 55, NGC 134, NGC 150, NGC 253, NGC 254, NGC 288, NGC 289, NGC 439, NGC 613 (Sculptor); M33, NGC 672 (Triangulum)

Top ten binocular deep-sky objects for November: M31, M33, M103, NGC 225, NGC 288, NGC 253, NGC 457, NGC 654, NGC 663, NGC 752

Top ten deep-sky objects for November: M31, M32, M33, M76, M103, M110, NGC 40, NGC 253, NGC 457, NGC 752

Challenge deep-sky object for November: IC 59 (Cassiopeia)

The objects listed above are located between 0:00 and 2:00 hours of right ascension.