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February 2010
As one planet leaves the evening lineup, another continues to shine brightly this month. Early in the month, Jupiter is quite low in the west as night falls. The planet is bright, but it is so low in the sky that you need a clear horizon to pick it out. Over in the east, though, Mars is already well up in the sky, shining with a steady orange glow. It soars high across the south during the night. It fades a bit during the month, however, so it's not quite as eyecatching at month's end.
This Week's Stargazing Tips
February 9, 2010
The Orion Nebula is a giant stellar nursery -- a cocoon of gas and dust that has given birth to thousands of stars. It is in the south on winter evenings. The nebula is a faint smudge of light just below the three bright stars that mark Orion’s Belt.
February 10, 2010
Betelgeuse, the bright orange star that marks the shoulder of Orion, the hunter, is high in the southeast at nightfall, above the band of three stars that marks Orion’s Belt. Over the past decade, Betelgeuse has shrunk by about 15 percent, but astronomers are not sure why.
February 11, 2010
Rigel, the brightest star of Orion, marks the hunter’s foot. It is to the lower right of Orion’s Belt early this evening. Rigel is a blue supergiant, so it is much bigger and heavier than the Sun. It also is thousands of degrees hotter, so it shines blue-white.
February 12, 2010
Harry Potter fans may boo when they hear its name, but one of the stars of Orion is nothing to sneer at. It is one of the hottest, brightest stars in the neighborhood. Bellatrix forms Orion’s right shoulder. As night falls, it is directly above Orion’s Belt.
February 13, 2010
An obscure cat pads through the northern sky at this time of year. Known as Lynx, it stands high in the northeast in early to mid evening. It’s about halfway between the outer stars in the bowl of the Big Dipper and the bright “twins” of Gemini.
February 14, 2010
The Big Dipper stands straight up from the northeastern horizon a couple of hours after sunset, with the bowl above the handle. Line up the two stars at the top of the bowl and follow them to the left to Polaris, the North Star.
February 15, 2010
Look for a very thin crescent Moon low in the southwest shortly after sunset this evening. As the sky grows darker, you may see the entire lunar disk. The dark gray portion of the disk is illuminated by "earthshine" -- sunlight reflected off Earth's surface.
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