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| Waxing Crescent Moon - Taken Feb 5, 2014 |
This past week the astronomy class was fortunate to go out viewing
twice. Despite the cold, most students appreciated being able to see the
waxing crescent Moon, Jupiter, and the Perseus Double Open Cluster
through the telescope. The details that non-full moons offer when observing them through telescopes bring to light the ruggedness and topography on the surface of the Moon; it is not smooth! Being able to see the crater shadows, have a sense of their depth, and making out the highlands is worth it. In my opinion, the coolest part of viewing a crescent through a telescope is the high craters and mountains that get illuminated by the Sun in a shadowed area.
This observation was amongst the first evidence that the lunar surface was not a perfect orb.
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Jupiter taken with Nikkon D5100 using a 180 mm camera lens.
Feb 3, 2014 (This image was not taken through a telescope!)
Notice some of the moons in this image! |
While Orion is still dominating the winter night sky, Jupiter is stealing the show for the time being. It has shifted slightly in its position in the constellation of Gemini, and perhaps it's only my imagination but it seems to get brighter every time we go out viewing. One of the major changes we see in Jupiter is its 4 major moons. the position of these moons changes drastically in a matter of days, and it was nice to see that change between Monday and Wednesdays lab. It is always a good idea to note the locations of these moons in your sky journals every time we look at Jupiter through the telescope.
The weather has been discouraging many of us from spending time stargazing, but don't let it take away from the enjoyment. It's only a matter of time before it starts warming up and we get to finally make our way to the soccer field, out usual observing location. Until then, keep looking up!
Clear Skies,
SHH
