During my long walks home from the pub, my mind and gaze usually wander towards the heavens. Therefore I thought others may be drawn to the night sky and contemplation of our place in the Universe. So I introduce another new monthly blog entry: it shows maps of the October 2007 northern hemisphere night sky, and other interesting things to look out for.
At this time of year the Milky Way can be seen arching overhead, with the brightest section plunging down to the south and then south-west as the evening progresses. Sitting high across this faint band of light are three bright stars that form the Summer Triangle. The top-left star of the trio is Deneb, the leading star of Cygnus, the Swan. Off to its right is the brightest member, Vega, in Lyra, the Harp. Finishing off the triangle lower down is Altair, the main star of Aquila, the Eagle.
MercuryOur innermost planet is off to the right of the Sun, and too low on the horizon to be seen in the evening skies for most of the month. Day by day, it closes in on the Sun and inferior conjunction happens on the 24
th. This is the moment when the planet passes between the Earth and the Sun.
You may catch a glimpse of Mercury during the last few days of the month, when it'll be close to Spica, the leading star in Virgo, the Maiden.
VenusVenus is low in the south-east in the mornings. At a magnitude -2.5, it will be an unmistakably brilliant beacon of light.
On the 7
th, Venus, Regulus (the leading star in the constellation of Leo, the Lion) and Saturn will sit in a nice triangle. On the same day, the Moon occults (moves in front of) Regulus in the brightening dawn sky, at 6.15am
On the 16
th, Venus moves directly underneath Saturn too, so there's plenty going on for this planet over the month.
Mars
Mars has risen by 11pm from the north of east. It's high in the south at dawn, and easy to spot. Look for it in the constellation of Gemini, the Twins all month. At magnitude -0.1, it will look like a fairly bright red star.
On the 4
th, the planet moves just below M35 a fine star cluster at the feet of the Twins so it's worth a look in binoculars or a small telescope. The Moon is to the left of the planet late evening on the 2
nd and then again on the 31st.
JupiterThis Jovian giant can be found low in the south-west after sunset. At the start of the month you have a couple of hours to see the planet, as it moves slowly through the constellation of Ophiuchus, the Serpent Bearer. At the end of September it sets more than an hour earlier.
SaturnThe ringed planet is hanging in the east at dawn, in the constellation of Leo, the Lion. There are several chances to find Saturn easily: super shiny Venus is close by between the 11
th and 18
th, while the Moon sits off to the right on the 7
th.
Meteor Showers
October is the time for the
Orionids. The date to see the maximum number of 'shooting stars' is on October 21st, when, with good skies, you may see up to 25 meteors per hour. The Moon is a waxing gibbous on this night, but its light will be only a slight nuisance - it moves down towards the south-west whist the meteors appear over from the east.
Phases of the Moon
New Moon: 11
thFirst quarter: 19
thFull Moon: 26
thLast quarter: 3rd
Last Wednesday Mr. H and myself met in town with the intention of re-reviewing several pubs along Commercial Road. Our first stop was Wetherspoons, but that was as far as our pub-crawl got. The reason for this abrupt change of plan was the fact that several Guest Ales were on sale and all for £1.29 per pint. It was a night like this a few years ago that the seeds for the HM Pub Guide were sewn. Therefore, we thought we would try something new; so we would like to introduce a new feature to the Pub Guide- Reviews of Guest Ales.
