Starry Night® Times

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Welcome again to our monthly newsletter with features on exciting celestial events, product reviews, tips & tricks, and a monthly sky calendar. We hope you enjoy it!

  • History vs. Starry Night®
    Many Starry Night® owners use the program for historical research, or just to check up on odd things they’ve read. Sometimes there are surprises...
       
  • Starry Night® Apollo
    The only product of its kind that accurately simulates the trajectory of each Apollo mission.
       
  • Constellation in Focus: Taurus
    Four easy targets this month - but "easy" doesn't mean "boring".
       
  • Astrophoto of the Month
    NGC 2264, the Christmas Tree Cluster, captured by W. Garrett Grainger, Jr.

   

History vs. Starry Night®

When I was reading Dava Sobel’s book Galileo’s Daughter, I came across a facsimile of the page in Galileo Galilei’s notebook in which he had recorded his observations of Jupiter’s moons from night to night. It was great fun to set Starry Night® to the dates in the notebook, and see exactly what an accurate observer Galileo had been.

But sometimes there are surprises, situations where Starry Night® seems decidedly wrong. About a year ago we received the following question at the Starry Night® support desk:

January 20, 2007, 03:27 PM
Subject: Accuracy of display

I am reading the recently published book Mayflower by Nathaniel Philbrick, an account of the Pilgrims’ landing at Plymouth Rock (winner of The National Book Award).

On page 238 of the book, the author mentions “On the night of June 26 (1675), a total eclipse of the moon was witnessed all across New England.”

I set Starry Night® to Providence, Rhode Island on this date and it shows a waxing crescent moon setting in the western sky at 8:30 PM I have checked several days before and after the 26th and a year before and after, but still didn't see an eclipse.

Any thoughts?

Thanks,
Terry R.

Whenever a user reports a bug, we have to check it out to see if we can replicate it and, if so, report it to the development team. So I set up my copy of Starry Night® to exactly the same situation, and found that he was right—no eclipse on June 26:

How could Starry Night® be so wrong? I decided to check the next time of Full Moon, which is of course the only time when a total lunar eclipse can occur. I moved forward to the night of Full Moon, July 6, 1675, and there was my eclipse:

So the actual eclipse occurred 10 days later. Very strange! But there was something familiar about that number, and then I remembered this article in the Starry Night® knowledge base:

Does Starry Night® use the Gregorian or Julian calendar for old dates?

Starry Night® uses the old Julian calendar for all dates before Oct. 15, 1582, and the Gregorian calendar for all dates more recent than this. The dates Oct. 5-Oct. 14, 1582 do not exist in Starry Night®, to account for the ten days which were skipped when the new calendar was introduced.

Pope Gregory was knowledgeable in scientific matters. He realized that the Julian calendar had gotten out of synchronization with the actual astronomical seasons, and appointed a commission to study the problem and make recommendations.

Their recommendation was to just drop ten whole days from the calendar, so than October 4 1582 would be immediately followed by October 15 1582. But this adjustment was made almost a century before this eclipse.

However, I also remembered that Pope Gregory’s radical change to the calendar was not universally accepted at first, especially in officially Protestant countries like England.

In fact, it still hasn’t been accepted by parts of the Orthodox Catholic Church even today. Some further research showed that it wasn’t adopted in England (and hence in its American colonies) until 1752, over 75 years after this eclipse.

In England, September 2 1752 was immediately followed by September 14 1752, 11 days being skipped because the Julian calendar had become even more inaccurate by then.

So the mystery was solved, and Starry Night®’s accuracy was vindicated! The eclipse took place on July 6 according to the Gregorian calendar, but the colonists in New England were still operating on the Julian calendar and thought the date was June 26.

If you want to read more about the Julian and Gregorian calendars, there’s a good article here:

You can check this out yourself in Starry Night® by setting the date and time to October 4 1582, 11:59 PM, and advancing the time by one minute. Watch what happens to the date!

Geoff Gaherty
Geoff has been a life-long telescope addict, and is active in many areas of visual observation; he is a moderator of the Yahoo "Talking Telescopes" group.

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Starry Night® Apollo

We are pleased to announce the highly anticipated launch of Starry Night® Apollo. The new software, available for download at StarryNightStore.com, is the only product of its kind that accurately simulates the trajectory of each Apollo mission.

This state-of-the-art simulation program has also integrated astronaut commentary, actual photographs they took from the shuttle and excerpts from original television broadcast coverage adding exciting detail and authenticity to each virtual flight experience.

A total of nine Apollo missions flew to the Moon and back during the 1960’s and 1970’s and the lunar trajectories were calculated by analyzing official archived NASA data.

Leveraging the sophisticated technology powering Starry Night® software, Starry Night® Apollo allows space enthusiasts to view the moon and celestial objects just as they appeared decades ago to emulate the Apollo crew’s complete space travel experience.

“The historic Apollo missions are an indelible part of the American experience and psyche,” said Seth Meyers, who heads up multimedia software development as Vice President and General Manager of Imaginova Studios. “Generations remember Neil Armstrong’s ‘one small step for man,’ and with Starry Night® Apollo, millions of space enthusiasts will be able to vicariously experience these important space missions with precise, true-to-life simulations.”

Software highlights include:

  • Interactive Multimedia SkyGuide Tour of the historic Apollo Lunar Program Accurate
     
  • 3-D models of the Apollo Spacecraft, including Saturn V
     
  • Command Service Module and Lunar Lander Module
     
  • Inbound/Outbound and Ascent/Descent trajectories for authentic reenactment
     
  • Star sightings for simulated spacecraft alignment and guidance
     
  • Inflight photos taken by the astronauts from spacecraft windows
     
  • Ability to zoom in on Earth and the Moon throughout flight
     
  • Real or accelerated flight time experiences

Starry Night Apollo, the newest addition to Imaginova's leading line of Starry Night® astronomy simulation software, can be downloaded for $29.99 at starrynightstore.com/17325.html.

Starry Night® software is compatible with Windows® XP, Windows Vista and Macintosh® OS X 10.3.9 and higher.

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Constellation in Focus: Taurus

Constellation Map: Taurus

Marking the shoulder of The Bull, M45 The Pleiades is perhaps the most beautiful binocular target in the night sky. A telescope with low magnification will bring out a chain of stars running through the middle like a row of pearls.

M1 The Crab Nebula is what remains of a very bright supernova seen from Earth in 1054. It shone so brightly (about four times brighter than Venus) that it was quite visible during daylight hours.

NGC 1514 a nice planetary nebula with a dim outer shell and a bright inner shell; the inner shell has a blobbed appearance.

Aldebaran is the brightest star in Taurus and distinctly orange-hued. The giant star is in the late stage of its life-cycle: having burnt off its hydrogen, it's currently fusing helium into carbon.

Sean O'Dwyer
Starry Night® Times Editor

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Astrophoto of the Month

Astrophoto of the Month

Christmas Tree Cluster - NGC 2264

The diffuse Cone Nebula, so named because of its apparent shape, lies in the southern part of NGC 2264, the northern part being the magnitude-3.9 Christmas Tree Cluster. It is in the northern part of Monoceros, just north of the midpoint of a line from Procyon to Betelgeuse.

Taken on November 16, 2007 in New SMyrna Beach, Florida by W. Garrett Grainger, Jr. Imaging scope was Orion ED80. Camera was Canon Rebel XT - Hap Griffin Modified type 3. 40 x 300s Guided (3 hours 20 minutes) - with and Orion wideband LPR Filter. Acquired with DSLR Focus V3, processed with ImagesPlus Beta and Photoshop CS3.

   

PRIZES AND RULES:

We would like to invite all Starry Night® users to send their quality astronomy photographs to be considered for use in our monthly newsletter.

  • Featured submissions (best of month) will receive a prize of $75 USD.

Please read the following guidelines and see the submission e-mail address below.

  • Format: Digital images in either JPG, GIF or TIFF format.
     
  • Size: 700 pixels wide maximum.
     
  • File size should be less than 2 MB.
     
  • Include a caption: Your full name, location where photo was taken and any interesting details regarding your photo or how you took it. Please be brief.
     
  • Important notes: We may edit captions for clarity and brevity. We reserve the right to not use submissions. In submitting your image or images to Imaginova®, you agree to allow us to publish them in all media—on the Web or otherwise—now and in the future. We'll credit you, of course. Most important, you'll have the satisfaction of sharing your experience with the world!
     
  • Send images, following the above guidelines, to photo@starrynight.com (by sending an image you agree to the above terms, including Imaginova®’s right to publish your photos).
     
  • Please do not send .ZIP files as they will not reach us.

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JAN 2008

Ride along with the Apollo crew on 9 different space missions and relive some of the memorable and important events experienced by the astronauts!
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Free Download
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Mars Observing Guide

Mars Guide

Now is the time to observe Mars. This December, Mars will be in the same position in the sky as it was during the legendary apparition of December 1960, when northern observers experienced some of the best views of Mars ever seen. Our observing guide will help you get the most out of this event.
   

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Pedro Braganca
Content Director,
Starry Night®

   

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Free Download
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Sky Events
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A guided video tour of celestial events visible this month.

  • Click Here to Download

   

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Tips Tricks
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Tips & Tricks
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Enhance the Appearance of 3D Models

If you have a high-end video card, you will notice significant improvement in the rendering of 3D models by increasing the Multisampling value to "High" in the OpenGL preferences dialog box. In Windows, select File-Preferences-OpenGL. On the Mac, select Starry Night Apollo-Preferences-OpenGL.

Pedro Braganca
Content Director,
Starry Night®
   

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Tips Tricks
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Sky Events
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Moon Phases

New Moon:
Jan. 8
6:37 AM

First Quarter:
Jan 15
2:45 PM

Full Moon:
Jan. 22
8:34 AM

Last Quarter:
Jan. 30
12:02 AM

Observing Highlights

Fri., Jan. 4
Quadrantid Meteor Shower Peak, 2 AM

This meteor shower takes its name from a now defunct constellation called Quadrans Muralis, an old astronomical instrument built onto a wall. At the time of peak, the radiant is reasonably well up in the northeastern sky, between Draco and Bootes. There is no Moon to interfere until a couple of hours later. This shower has a short but strong peak, at best for only a few hours, so it is best to observe as close to the time of peak as possible. With the right conditions, 60 or more meteors per hour can be observed.

Sat., Jan. 19
Moon-Mars, 7 PM

The Waxing Gibbous Moon passes just over a degree to the North of Mars, between Taurus and Gemini, high in the eastern sky. From parts of the Arctic and northwestern North America (Alaska and the Yukon Territory), the Moon passes directly in front of Mars in an occultation (eclipse). See the International Occultation Timing Association for details.

Fri., Feb. 1
Venus-Jupiter, 7:35 AM

Bright Venus passes barely a half-degree (the width of the Moon) from Jupiter in the predawn southeastern sky. They are quite low and near the horizon as dawn spreads across the sky.

Planets

Mercury is in the southwest evening sky, getting slightly better as the month progresses up to its greatest eastern elongation on the 22nd. Shortly after that it will decline and be lost by the end of the month.

Venus still rules the predawn eastern sky. It is not as bright and perhaps not quite as prominent as it was several months ago, but it remains un-missable. A think Crescent Moon passes near it on the 4th and 5th.

Mars is slightly past its December prime but still bright and easily found in Taurus. It is in the northeastern heavens at sunset, highest late in the evening, and goes down in the northwest at about sunrise.

Jupiter is in Sagittarius, in the morning sky, but too close to the Sun to be seen easily at the beginning of the month. Observing becomes easier as the month goes on. By the end of the month it is approaching Venus in the southeastern morning twilight.

Saturn is in Leo, rising in the late evening at the beginning of the month (4-5 hours after sunset). By the end of the month is rises only 2-3 hours after sunset and thereafter can be seen the rest of the night. Look for the Moon nearby on the evening of the 24th and before dawn on the 25th.

Dates

Wed., Jan. 2
Earth closest to Sun, 7 PM

The Earth is at perihelion, or closest point to the Sun for 2008. There is nothing in particular to observe, but the fact seems to fly in the face of logic since it seems reasonable that the Earth would be farthest, rather than closest to the Sun during Winter. On this date, the distance to the Sun is about 147,097,000 km (about 91,402,000 miles), compared to about 152,104,000 (94,513,000 miles) in July. The seasons are caused not by variations in distance to the Sun, but rather in the way the Earth towards or away from the Sun.

Fri., Jan. 18
Moon-Pleiades, 2 AM

The Waxing Gibbous Moon passes about a degree (twice its own diameter) from the star cluster known as the Seven Sisters or the Pleiades. This is in the west-northwestern sky.

Mon., Jan. 21
Mercury at greatest eastern elongation, 11:57 PM

Being closer to the Sun than the Earth is, Mercury seems to swing back and forth from one side to the other of our central star. When it is farthest to either side, it is said to be at "elongation." Today it reaches its greatest eastern elongation, about 19 degrees from the Sun. Look for it low in the southwestern sky just as it begins to get dark.

Thursday, Jan. 24
Moon-Regulus, predawn

The Waning Gibbous Moon passes very near the bright star Regulus in Leo, in the western sky before dawn. From Australia, Antarctica and surrounding areas, this is an occultation (eclipse) of the star by the Moon.

Mon., Jan. 28
Mercury stationary, 2 AM

In its oscillations around the Sun, the closest planet has now (apparently) come to a stop, and will reverse directions and fall back toward the Sun, getting slightly closer each day. It will be completely lost from view in a few days, only to reemerge in the morning sky in February.

Wed., Jan. 30
Mars ends retrograde motion, 4:09 PM

Several months ago the Earth "caught up" to Mars in its orbit and passed it. As a result, Mars appeared to begin moving "backwards" in the sky, much as a car appears temporarily to move backwards as you pass it on the highway. This optical illusion is called "retrograde motion." Today Mars ends it retrograde motion and returns to normal, "prograde" motion, which is eastward among the stars.

Fri., Feb. 1
Moon-Antares, predawn

The Waning Crescent Moon passes less than a degree from Antares in Scorpius in the southern sky before dawn. The closest approach comes well after sunrise in North America, but this is visible as an occultation (eclipse) as seen in Australia, New Zealand and Antarctica.

As always, there's more to explore on NightSky.

All times shown are U.S. Eastern Time.
   

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If you publish a space or astronomy Web site or blog, earn extra cash by promoting Starry Night® on your Web site.

Click here to learn more!

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