November 2014 - Monthly Guides

[stevend]

1. Space Junk (good for Lunar) http://danspace77.com/2014/11/01/space-junk-november-2014/

2. Arkansas Sky Observatory (just another excellent guide) http://www.arksky.org/index.php?pid=238

3. Dave Mitsky's guide from cloudynights.com; reproduced in full below:

November Celestial Calendar by Dave Mitsky

All times are UT (subtract five hours and, when appropriate, one calendar day for EST when DST ends)

11/1   Mercury is at greatest western elongation (19 degrees) at 13:00
11/2   Neptune is 5 degrees south of the Moon at 4:00; Daylight Saving Time (DST) ends at 6:00
11/3   The Moon is at perigee, subtending 32'29" from a distance of 367,878 kilometers (228,589 miles), at 0:00; Mercury is 5 degrees north of the first-magnitude star Spica (Alpha Virginis) at 6:00
11/4   Uranus is 1.3 degrees south of the Moon, with an occultation occurring in northern Greenland and Iceland, at 18:00
11/5   Mercury is at its greatest heliocentric latitude north today; the peak of the Southern Taurid meteor shower (5 to 10 per hour) occurs at 17:00
11/6   Full Moon, known as the Beaver or Frost Moon, occurs at 22:23
11/7   Venus is 8 degrees south of the Moon at 1:00; Jupiter is stationary at 16:00
11/8   Mercury is at perihelion today
11/12 The peak of the Northern Taurid meteor shower (5 to 10 per hour) occurs at 10:00
11/14 Last Quarter Moon occurs at 15:15; Jupiter is 5 degrees north of the Moon at 18:00
11/15 The Moon is at apogee, subtending 29'33" from a distance of 404,336 kilometers (251,243 miles) at 2:00; asteroid 6 Hebe (magnitude +8.0) is at opposition at 18:00; the Curtiss Cross, an X-shaped illumination effect located between the craters Parry and Gambart, is predicted to occur at 20:43
11/16 Mars is at its greatest heliocentric latitude south today; Neptune is stationary at 11:00
11/17 The peak of the Leonid meteor shower (15 to 20 per hour) occurs at 23:00
11/18 Saturn is in conjunction with the Sun at 9:00
11/22 Venus is at the descending node today; New Moon (lunation 1137) occurs at 12:32
11/26 Mars is 7 degrees south of the Moon at 10:00
11/27 The Moon is at perigee, subtending 32'19" from a distance of 369,827 kilometers (229,800 miles), at 23:00
11/28 Mercury is at the descending node today
11/29 Neptune is 4 degrees south of the Moon at 9:00; 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 9:14; First Quarter Moon occurs at 10:06

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

The first photograph of a meteor was taken on November 26, 1885.  The minor planet/comet 2060 Chiron or 95P/Chiron was discovered by Charles Kowal on November 1, 1977.

The peaks of the minor Southern and Northern Taurid meteor showers take place on November 5th and November 12th respectively.  These streams form part of the complex associated with Comet 2P/Encke.  Moonlight compromises the peaks of both of the showers.  The Leonid meteor shower occurs on the morning of November 17th, with a waning crescent Moon being a minor hindrance.  Leonid meteors are debris from the periodic comet 55P/Tempel-Tuttle.  Due to their high speed (71 kilometers or 44 miles per second), the Leonids produce a greater percentage of fireballs than most meteor showers.

Information on Iridium flares and passes of the ISS, the Tiangong-1, the X-37B, the HST, and other satellites can be found at http://www.heavens-above.com/

The Moon is 8.1 days old, is 60.2% illuminated, and resides in Aquarius on November 1st at 0:00 UT.  The Moon reaches its greatest northern declination on November 9th (+18.6 degrees) and its greatest southern declination on November 24th (-18.6 degrees).  Longitudinal libration is at a maximum of +5.5 degrees on November 9th and a minimum of -5.2 degrees on November 21st.  Latitudinal libration is at a maximum of +6.8 degrees on November 11th and a minimum of -6.7 degrees on November 25th.  Visit http://saberdoesthes...does-the-stars/ for tips on spotting extreme crescent Moons and http://www.curtrenz.com/moon06.html for Full Moon data.  Times and dates for the lunar light rays predicted to occur this month are available at http://www.lunar-occ...o/rays/rays.htm

The Sun is located in Libra on November 1 at 0:00 UT. 

Brightness, apparent size, illumination, distance from the Earth in astronomical units, and location data for the planets and Pluto on November 1: Mercury (-0.6, 6.9", 55% illuminated, 0.97 a.u., Virgo), Venus (magnitude -4.0,  9.7", 100% illuminated, 1.72 a.u., Libra), Mars (magnitude +0.9, 5.5", 90% illuminated, 1.69 a.u., Sagittarius), Jupiter (magnitude -2.1, 36.4", 99% illuminated, 5.42 a.u., Leo), Saturn (magnitude +0.5, 15.3", 100% illuminated, 10.90  a.u., Libra), Uranus (magnitude +5.7, 3.7", 100% illuminated, 19.25 a.u. on November 16th, Pisces), Neptune (magnitude +7.9, 2.3", 100%  illuminated, 29.76 a.u. on November 16th, Aquarius), and Pluto (magnitude +14.2, 0.1", 100% illuminated, 33.41 a.u. on November 16th, Sagittarius).

During the evening, Mars is in the southwest, Uranus is in the southeast, and Neptune is in the south.  Jupiter lies in the east, Uranus in the southwest, and Neptune in the west at midnight.  Mercury is located in the east and Jupiter in the south in the morning sky.

At midmonth, Mercury is visible during morning twilight, Mars sets at 8:00 p.m. local time, and Jupiter rises at 11:00 p.m. and transits at 6:00 a.m. local time for observers at latitude 40 degrees north.

Mercury undergoes its finest morning apparition of the year for northern hemisphere observers during the first half of the month.  It reaches greatest western elongation on November 1st.  The speedy planet is at its greatest heliocentric latitude north on November 5th and the descending node on November 28th.  By month’s end, Mercury dims to magnitude -0.9.

Venus will not be readily visible again until early December.

Mars is located low in the southwest during the early evening this month.  It lies 0.6 degree north of the third-magnitude star Lambda Sagittarii (Kaus Borealis) on November 3rd.  On that date, Mars is two degrees west-southwest of the bright globular cluster M22 and five degrees east of M8, the Lagoon Nebula.  The Red Planet passes 0.8 degree south of M22 on November 6th.  It lies seven degrees south of the waxing crescent Moon on November 26th.  Mars shrinks to 5.1 arc seconds in apparent size and dims to magnitude +1.0 by end of the month, at which point it is some 20 degrees from Lambda Sagittarii.

Jupiter’s apparent diameter increases slightly to 39.7 arc seconds and its brightness to magnitude -2.2 over the course of the month.  Jupiter is situated five degrees north of the Moon on November 14th.  Click on http://www.skyandtel...watching-tools/ or consult page 51 of the November issue of Sky & Telescope to determine transit times of the central meridian by the Great Red Spot.  Data on Galilean satellite events is available at http://www.skyandtel...watching-tools/ and on page 52 of the November issue of Sky & Telescope.

Saturn sets less than one hour after sunset at the start of the month.  The Ringed Planet is 1.5 degrees north of Venus on the evening of November 12th.  Saturn is in conjunction with the Sun on November 18th and is not observable again until early December.

Uranus is in retrograde in Pisces.  The seventh planet is located within one degree of the sixth-magnitude K-type star 96 Piscium throughout November and is closest to it at mid-month.

Neptune resumes prograde or direct motion on November 16th.  It can be found 0.9 degree west of the fifth-magnitude star Sigma Aquarii during November.

See http://www.curtrenz.com/uranep.html for additional information on Uranus and Neptune and page 51 of the November issue of Sky & Telescope for help on identifying some of their moons.  

Finder charts for Uranus and Neptune can be found on page 51 of the September issue of Sky & Telescope and at http://d366w3m5tf081...eptune_2014.pdf

Pluto is located 3.7 degrees north of Mars on November 10th.  The dwarf planet heads eastward through Sagittarius during November, passing 22 arc minutes south of the fifth-magnitude star 29 Sagittarii on November 19th.

For more on the planets and how to locate them, see http://www.nakedeyeplanets.com/ and http://www.astronomy...g/?page_id=1367

Asteroid 6 Hebe travels westward through northern Eridanus this month.  The large main-belt asteroid shines at magnitude +8.0 when it reaches opposition on November 15th and passes one degree to the north of the fourth-magnitude star Delta Eridani on November 21st and November 22nd.  For information on this year’s bright asteroids and upcoming asteroid occultation events respectively, consult http://www.curtrenz.com/asteroids and http://asteroidoccultation.com/

Comet C/2013 A1 (Siding Spring) travels northeastward through Ophiuchus and Serpens Cauda this month.  This comet faded considerably last month prior to its historic close flyby of Mars on October 19th and may be very difficult to observe.  Comet Siding Spring passes just east of the fourth-magnitude star Omicron Serpentis on November 15th.  For additional information on comets visible in November, browse http://cometchasing.skyhound.com/ and http://www.aerith.ne...t/future-n.html

A wealth of information on solar system celestial bodies is posted at http://www.curtrenz.com/astronomical

Eyes on the Sky, a weekly astronomy report, can be seen at

Click on http://astrocast.tv/ and

for informative videos on astronomical events taking place this month.

Some deep-sky highlights for the month are discussed at http://www.astronomy...g/?page_id=1373

Free star maps for November can be downloaded at http://www.skymaps.com/downloads.html and http://www.telescope...thly-Star-Chart

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 3rd, 5th, 8th, 11th, 14th, 17th, 20th, 23rd, 26th, and 28th.  Consult http://www.skyandtel...watching-tools/ and page 51 of the November issue of Sky & Telescope for the eclipse times.  For more on Algol, see http://stars.astro.i.../sow/Algol.html and http://www.solstatio...ars2/algol3.htm

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)

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.