Latest news with #Hyades
The Guardian
07-07-2025
- Science
- The Guardian
Starwatch: Venus will pass through the ‘golden gate' of two star clusters
This week, Venus will pass through the so-called Golden Gate of the Ecliptic. Although the name has risen to prominence with science popularisers in recent decades, its exact origin is unknown. It references two star clusters in the constellation Taurus, the Bull. The Hydes and the Pleiades lie on either side of the ecliptic, which is the plane of the solar system. As such, the sun, the moon and the planets all follow this line in their passage through the sky. The constellations the ecliptic passes through are known as the zodiacal constellations, referred to in popular culture as the signs of the zodiac. The chart shows the view looking east-north-east from London at 3.30am BST in the pre-dawn twilight of 8 July 2025. On this day, Venus will be approaching the 'gate'. On subsequent mornings, the brilliant planet will move across the invisible line between the two clusters and on 12 and 13 July, it will clip the top of the Hyades star cluster, appearing 3 degrees away from the star Aldebaran. Venus will be a brilliant white beacon in the morning sky, contrasting with the blood-red light from Aldebaran, which represents the eye of the bull. The conjunction will also be easily visible from the southern hemisphere.
Yahoo
31-01-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Bright stars to fill the sky in February
You'll find several bright planets, stars and obvious constellations in the February evening sky. The most obvious constellation this month is Orion. To find Orion, face south and look for Orion's Belt. It's made of three moderately bright stars close together in a row and found high in the southern sky. Then look for ruddy Betelgeuse; it's the upper left star in Orion, and bright Rigel is the lower right star of Orion. Going back to Orion's Belt, look for three stars in a row below Orion's Belt. Does that middle star look fuzzy to you? It's a stellar nursery known as Orion Nebula or Messier 42 where stars are being born and you can see it with your unaided eye. What's more, you can use Orion as a sky key to locate other stars and constellations. Starting with the western belt star, draw an imaginary line through the belt stars toward the south and you'll easily spot the dazzling star Sirius. It's the brightest star visible in the Northern Hemisphere. It's in Canis Major. Next, draw a line through the belt stars going in the opposite direction from Sirius, you'll run into an orangish star. That's Aldebaran in Taurus the Bull. It'll be the brightest star among a V-shaped pattern of stars known as the Hyades. It's an open star cluster and marks the face of the bull. Continue your line upward and you'll find another lovely open star. It's the Pleiades, M 45, and appears as a tiny glittering group of stars on the sky. Check it out in binoculars. Also, there's a bright star near the Hyades, that is the planet Jupiter. Then look for the bright star on the bottom or Orion — opposite Rigel. Run a line through it past the left belt star and continue upward until you hit a golden bright star. It's Capella in Auriga the Charioteer. Auriga is kind of a pentagon shape of stars. Binoculars will reveal several nice star clusters among its stars. Going back to the belt stars, draw your imaginary line from the upper right bright belt star, through Betelgeuse and continue until you see two bright stars close together. They are Pollux and Castor, the twin stars of Gemini. You'll quickly notice they are not twins. Pollux is slightly brighter and shines with a white light. Castor is more golden. You might wonder what the third bright star by the twin stars is — that is the planet Mars. This month Mars will make Gemini appear to have triplets instead of twins. The last bright star you can find with Orion is Procyon. Draw a line from the upper right star of Orion through Betelgeuse and the next bright star you'll find is Procyon. It's in Canis Minor and always rises before Sirius. If you look toward the west you'll find the large but dim Great Square of Pegasus. It'll look more diamond shape this time of year, but it's easy to spot. Then facing east, the spring constellations are starting to appear. You can spot Leo near the horizon, look for its Sickle — a pattern of stars that look like a backward question mark — with the bright star Regulus as its punctuation mark Facing north, you can spot the Little Dipper with the five-star M or W shape Cassiopeia nearby. The Big Dipper is hanging by its handle in the northeast. Many people think the cold, crisp air that we have this time of year is why the stars appear so bright. But in reality the winter skies appear brighter because there are simply more bright stars than during any other season. They are stars located in the nearby spiral arm of our galaxy. The last few weeks of February are a good time to look for the zodiacal lights in the evening skies. From a dark site watch for a cone-shaped glow of white light reaching up from the western horizon into Taurus. This glowing light is the reflection from meteoritic dust that fills our solar system. It is best viewed in dark evening skies near the spring equinox appearing as a faint to bright glow over the western horizon. The planetary alignment continues this month. You can't miss brilliant Venus in the western evening sky. The moon pays Venus a close visit on Feb. 1 and they'll make a spectacular sight. Venus will be at its brightest in the evening sky for 2025 on Feb. 14. What a treat, the planet named after the Goddess of Love shining at its brightest on Valentine's Day. High overhead this month you'll find another bright planet, that is Jupiter. It will be among the stars of Taurus the Bull. The moon will float close to Jupiter on Feb. 6. To the east of Jupiter, reddish Mars will shine near the stars of Gemini. Keep an eye on it this month to watch it change position relative to the twin stars of Gemini. The moon will lie near Mars on Feb. 9. Saturn continues fading and slipping closer to the horizon each day. If you have a telescope, check out Saturn's rings soon, and it's the last chance to see the northern side of Saturn's rings until 2038. They are almost edge-on right now and will disappear from our view in mid-March for about a week. However, Earthly viewers will miss this unusual sight that happens roughly every 15 years since Saturn will be too close to the sun to see it then. Saturn will become difficult to spot by month's end and emerge in the morning sky in April. Last but not least, bright Mercury will emerge later in the month and pair up with Saturn on Feb. 24. However, they'll be challenging to spot in the bright evening twilight. Look about 30 minutes after sunset for them. The moon will lie close to Mercury on Feb. 28. Mercury will continue to climb away from the sunset and be at its greatest distance from the sun on March 7-8.
