With Jupiter and Saturn leading the way each evening, you can use this month’s Sky Tour podcast to track down some lesser-known constellations — and the most distant celestial object that you can see with just your eyes!
Full Moon came and went on October 28th, and New Moon falls on November 13th, so that means the two middle weeks of this month will be free of strong moonlight.
Not long after sunset, look for brilliant Jupiter low in the east after evening twilight. On the night of November 2nd, the King of Planets reaches opposition, meaning it’s almost exactly opposite the Sun in the sky. Jupiter rises when the Sun sets, and vice versa. The other bright evening planet is Saturn, and it’s been in view for some time. You’ll find Saturn by itself, more or less, above the southern horizon.
And I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention that Venus continues to put on a real show in the morning sky before sunrise. And if you had to pick one morning to get up early for a look, do that on Thursday, November 9th, when Venus will be joined by a thin crescent Moon. And they’ll be very close together, separated by less than the tip of your pinky finger. It’ll be a stunning sight!
After it gets dark — look high in the southeast for a giant diamond in the sky that’s about the size of your outstretched hand with your fingers spread wide apart. Skywatchers the world over know this as the Great Square, representing the chest of Pegasus, the flying horse. Now, the square itself is easy enough to see, but you might have trouble visualizing it as part of a horse. For one thing, the horse is flying upside down. Another thing is the constellation doesn’t represent a complete animal — just the front half!
If your skies are reasonably dark, you should be able to make out the Circlet of Pisces, a lovely little pentagon of stars hanging directly under the Great Square. And you can look past Pegasus’s nose to the right, by about the width of your clenched fist, to reach Delphinus, the Dolphin. Like the Circlet, it’s fairly faint, but if you can see it at all, it’s sure to catch your eye — a tiny diamond with a tail extending down and to the right. Go one fist farther to the right, and you’ll chance upon another small constellation called Sagitta, the Arrow. And its four main stars really look like one, with the brightest of them marking the point.
There’s much more going on in November’s evening skies, and you’ll get more stargazing tips when you stream or download this month’s of our long-running Sky Tour astronomy podcast. (Hint: This month’s episode guides you to the most distant celestial object visible just by eye!) So if you’ve never listened to Sky Tour before, give it a try!