| 4 |
Moon
near Spica
(morning sky) at 5h UT. |
| 4 |
Mars
3.2° NNE of Beehive cluster (M44)
at 20h UT (midnight sky). A nice sight in binoculars or a
telescope. Mag. -1.2. |
| 5 |
Last
Quarter Moon
at 23:48 UT. |
| 7 |
Moon
near Antares
(morning sky) at 21h UT. |
| 8 |
Alpha
Centaurids meteor shower
peaks at 5h UT. Favorable year for a sometimes major southern
shower. About 6 meteors/hour but can peak at up to 25/hour.
Produces bright, fast meteors. Active Jan 28 to Feb 21. Best
observed in the pre-dawn hours.
• The
Alpha & Beta Centaurids (Gary Kronk)
• Meteor
Shower Calendar (IMO)
• Meteor
Shower Calendar 2010 (PDF) (IMO) |
| 13 |
Moon
at apogee
(farthest from Earth) at 2h UT (distance 406,540 km; angular
size 29.4'). |
| 14 |
New
Moon
at 2:51 UT. Start of lunation 1078.
• Lunation
Number (Wikipedia) |
| 14 |
Venus,
Jupiter and Moon
within a 5° diameter circle at 22h UT (Caution: only 9° East
of Sun). |
| 17 |
Venus
0.54° SSE of Jupiter
at 2h UT (Caution: only 9° East of Sun). Mags. -3.9 and -2.0. |
| 21 |
Moon
near the Pleiades
(evening sky) at 21h UT. |
| 22 |
First
Quarter Moon
at 0:42 UT. |
| 25 |
Moon
near Pollux
(evening sky) at 14h UT. |
| 26 |
Moon
near Mars
(evening sky) at 2h UT. Mag. -0.7. |
| 26 |
Moon
near Beehive cluster (M44)
(evening sky) at 13h UT. |
| 27 |
Moon
at perigee
(closest to Earth) at 22h UT (357,829 km; 33.4'). |
| 28 |
Moon
near Regulus
(midnight sky) at 0h UT. |
| 28 |
Jupiter
at conjunction
with the Sun at 11h UT. Passes into the morning sky (not
visible). |
| 28 |
Full
Moon
at 16:38 UT.
• Full
Moon Names (Wikipedia) |
|
The
Zodiacal Light
is caused by sunlight reflected off meteoric dust in the plane
of the solar system. Choose a clear, moonless night, about 1-2
hours after sunset, and look for a large triangular-shaped glow
extending up from the horizon (along the ecliptic). The best
months to view the Zodiacal Light is when the ecliptic is almost
vertical at the horizon: March and April (evening) and
October-November (morning); times reversed for the southern
hemisphere.
• Zodiacal
Light (Wikipedia)
• Astronomy
Picture of the Day (APOD)
• Photographing
the Zodiacal Light (Weatherscapes) |
| 30 |
Moon
at perigee
(closest to Earth) at 9h UT (356,593 km; 33.5'). |
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