It’s not a constellation, but it’s easy to identify. Overhead we find Perseus, followed by Auriga, with the bright star Capella. To the west we see the square of Pegasus approaching sunset, followed by Andromeda. It is the star Procyon in the constellation Canis Minor. From the “belt” towards Betelgeuse go towards Gemini, Sirius, Procyon and the star in the left-south corner of Orion, Betelgeuse, form a triangle called the “winter triangle”. To the left of Sirius, about the same height as the stars of Orion, is a bright star with three more smaller in brightness above. Use Orion’s belt to find other stars in its extension in the lower left you will come across the star Sirius, and in the upper right you will come across Aldebaran in Taurus. It is Sirius, the brightest star in the sky, in the constellation Canis Major.In the upper right are three other bright stars, arranged in a straight line, which are part of the constellation Orion.If you look closely you will see that they are framed by four other stars, all tracing the shape of Orion the hunter.The two brightest stars in Orion are Betelgeuse and Rigel, to the upper left and lower right of the belt. It reaches high in the sky, almost overhead, around 9 pm, and sets around 5 am. On January 2, Mercury was at its shortest distance from the Sun, at 46 million km. On January 4, the Earth is at its shortest distance from the Sun (perihelion), 147 million km away. On January 7, Mercury is opposite the Sun.ĭuring the winter months, a very bright star can be seen towards the southern horizon. It is visible almost all night and is very bright. You find it towards the east, just as it is getting dark. The star names approved by the International Astronomical Union (IAU) are Alnilam, Alnitak, Bellatrix, Betelgeuse, Hatysa, Meissa, Mintaka, Rigel, Saiph, and Tabit. Mars looks as good as it did in December. The constellation Orion contains 10 formally named stars. It is Jupiter, 800 million km away from us, another world, totally different from ours and much bigger. Jupiter is high in the sky just after dusk and sets around 10:30 p.m., so you have plenty of time to see it.Īround 7pm look for a bright ‘star’ high in the sky and show it to your children and neighbours. Expand the side bar to adjust the time and date. The two planets will approach each other between January 21 and 23. The wheel below shows the entire sky that is visible from Virginia Beach. Look at Venus and then at the top left where a non-blinking star should be seen. Its easy enough to say what a star is: one of those bright pointy things that twinkle in the night sky. Saturn is in the same direction as Venus, but is much less bright. The period of good visibility will start in late winter and last until summer. Even though it can’t yet be seen in a night sky, Venus is easily distinguishable even when the sky is still bright. Look to the southwest near the horizon at about 5 pm (but no later than 6 pm) and you will see Venus as a bright star. At the moment it is far from us, but every day it is closer and can be seen better in the sky. In the evening, 30 minutes after sunset, in the same direction, Venus is visible. The Moon passes by Mars on the evenings of January 2, 3 and 4.
On January 6th and 7th the Moon will rise as the Sun sets and set as the Sun rises.
#Stars in the sky full#
The Full Moon will occur on January 7 (at 1:08). Sirius is the brightest star visible in the sky during this period, according to the astronomical calendar published by the Admiral Vasile Urseanu Observatory. Immediately after sunset, Venus and Saturn can be seen, and Jupiter and Mars remain in the sky for several hours. Energy from nuclear fusion radiates outward from the center of the burgeoning star, and gradually halts the gas cloud’s collapse.In the evening sky, one can see four planets, Venus, Saturn, Jupiter and Mars. When the gas reaches about 10 million K (18 million ☏), hydrogen nuclei begin to fuse into helium nuclei, and the star is born. The cloud’s material heats up as it falls inward under the force of its own gravity. Where do stars come from?Īccording to current star formation theory, stars are born as clumps within gigantic gas clouds that collapse in on themselves. Nuclear fusion reactions in its core support the star against gravity and produce photons and heat, as well as small amounts of heavier elements. But just what is a star, exactly?Ī star is a luminous ball of gas, mostly hydrogen and helium, held together by its own gravity. Stars are the topic of countless poems, stories, and nursery rhymes alike. We see them on most clear nights as tiny, twinkling pinpricks of light in the sky. Heres our stargazing guide to what you can see in the night sky tonight.
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