January is the coldest month of the year for us and it's somewhat ironic that there would be so much to see in the sky at the same time. Some of it you could see from a window in a darkened room, but to really see the sky in all its glory, you'll have to be brave and go outdoors. Dress warm and don't stay out too long at a time and you will find the rewards worthwhile!

      Look for Saturn in the southwest sky right after sunset. It's bright and quite obvious and will be the last chance to see it this good for awhile. The ringed planet sets about 10:30 this week and about a half hour earlier each week. The rings are opening up more and making it a really pretty sight in binoculars or telescope. On the night of March 13^th a thick waxing crescent moons is just to the right of Saturn. If you have a hard time locating Saturn, this will make it very easy on that night. Currently Saturn is in the constellation of Pisces the fish just below the celestial equator. The celestial equator is an imaginary line that is a projection of the earth's equator

      The moon is at first quarter January 15^th and is full on the 23^rd. On the mornings of January 28th and 29th, the waxing moon passes by the red planet Mars in the western sky.  Last quarter moon is on January 31^st.

      Mars rises around 11PM in the beginning of the month, and around 9:30 by the end of the month. The red planet is in the constellation Virgo. Mars brightens considerably this month and it is especially noticeable in binoculars and telescopes where surface details being to show by the end of the month. The distance between Mars and the Earth is only one astronomical unit on the night of January 18^th. An astronomical unit is 93 million miles, the average distance between the Earth and the Sun.

    The Big Dipper is low in the north-northeast sky around 7PM. This group of stars is easy to pick out and is often the first one learned by aspiring stargazers. The two end stars in the bowl of the Big Dipper point to the north star, Polaris in the Little Dipper. Contrary to what many people believe, the north star is not very bright and often cannot even be found in areas suffering from light pollution. High in the northern sky, nearly overhead, is Cassiopeia the queen of Ethiopia. Cassiopeia has a distinctive "W" shape if seen when low in the sky, and a distinctive "M" shape when high in the sky, like now.

     The real starry show takes place in the southeast sky. Here, there is a whole handfl of constellations with enough bright stars to dazzle the eyes!

   Orion is the brightest and biggest of them all as well as the easiest to point out. It's stars are also an excellent example of star color. Many people think stars are either white or yellow. Not so! They actually come in a surprising array of colors. The bright lower right star that marks Orion's foot is called Rigel. Rigel is a giant star that is an amazing 55,000 times brighter than the Sun. It is known as a blue-white supergiant star. You can see it's bluish color quite easily. The upper left star in Orion is another supergiant star called Betelgeuse. This star is over 800 times larger than our Sun. It is also a deep red color and truly a beautiful sight to see.

     Above and slightly to the right (west) of Orion is Taurus the Bull. There are two distinctive star groups in this constellation. The Pleiades, or seven sisters are a closely packed group of stars in 
formation. The Hyades is another young cluster of stars more spread out than the Pleiades. The bright yellowish star in Taurus is Aldebaran.

     To the left (east) and slightly below Orion is Canis Major, the greater dog. Sirius is the bright star you see, and is, in fact, the brightest star in the northern hemisphere. Above Canis Major is Canis Minor, the little dog. Actually this constellation only consists of two stars, but one of them is the bright Procyon.

     Soon these constellations will move on and be replaced by others, gone for awhile but to return next winter to grace our skies. Happy Stargazing!

More info on:
Orion            Taurus            Canis Major            Ursa Major            Ursa Minor

Constellations

The Solar System