This Week’s Sky at a Glance, 2020 April 18 – 25 ~by Curt Nason
In April we can start a long goodbye with the winter constellations. Orion and Taurus are setting together, which makes it easier to imagine their eternal battle. The bull is protecting the Pleiades (Seven Sisters) from the amorous advances of Orion, who is about to strike a downward blow to the bull’s head with his upraised club. The bull’s long horns, one tip of which is the bottom left star of Auriga (Elnath – officially the second brightest star of Taurus), are not to be taken lightly. It is difficult to tell which of the two combatants is more keratinous.
The winter constellations of Auriga and Gemini are still up past midnight but Rigel, in the knee of Orion and the low point of the Winter Circlet of bright stars, is setting around 10 pm. Sometimes these constellations are enhanced with planets, since Taurus and Gemini are part of the ecliptic. Venus crossed the Pleiades a fortnight ago and it is moving through Taurus toward Elnath. Next month it will approach near that horn tip and wisely start reversing its course. With the Pleiades sinking in the western twilight, through a thicker layer of our atmosphere, they, like other stars, will twinkle more. I have a pleasant memory of seeing them with binoculars when they were low in the west, flickering wildly like candles in a breeze. I had the urge to make a wish and blow them out.
This Week in the Solar System
Saturday’s sunrise in Moncton is at 6:26 am and sunset will occur at 8:11 pm, giving 13 hours, 45 minutes of daylight (6:33 am and 8:14 pm in Saint John). Next Saturday the Sun will rise at 6:14 am and set at 8:20 pm, giving 14 hours, 6 minutes of daylight (6:21 am and 8:23 pm in Saint John).
The Moon is new on Wednesday and, for a binocular challenge, try to spot the 21 hour crescent Moon after sunset Thursday. Venus continues to rule the evening sky, setting soon after midnight. In the morning sky Mars has pulled well eastward of Saturn, while Saturn and brighter Jupiter are within the field of view of most binoculars. Wednesday and Thursday mornings are the best times to catch a few shooting stars from the Lyrid meteor shower. They emanate from near the bright star Vega, which is high in the sky on those moonless mornings this week.
With astronomy meetings and outreach on hold, there are many educational astronomy websites such as Heavens Above to fill in your time. You can catch the local Sunday Night Astronomy Show at 8 pm and view archives of previous shows.
Questions? Contact Curt Nason.