December Astronomy Highlights

Dec. 5: Crescent Moon near Venus: 5-6 a.m.

Dec. 13/14: Geminid meteor shower, all night

Dec. 22: Winter solstice at 1:08 a.m.

Dec. 23: Full Moon near Mars, all night

Dec. 28: Moon near Saturn after 11 p.m.

When I was 8 years old, I discovered astronomy on a clear New England Christmas night when I looked out my bedroom window and saw three bright stars in a row rising over a neighbor’s house.

Thinking of Christmas, I named these stars the “Three Kings.” The following summer I went outside to look for them and I was surprised when I could not locate them in the sky. Wanting to know why, I asked my town librarian to help me and she showed me the astronomy section at “525” on the Dewey Decimal system. My life changed forever on that day when I discovered astronomy. Checking out “The Friendly Stars” by Rey, I soon discovered that the three stars were Orion’s Belt, and that Orion was only visible in the winter. Each Christmas I am reminded of that defining experience as I look out at the wonderful Maine stars.

Constellation of the Month: Orion

Chances are if you can find any other constellation after the Big Dipper, you know Orion. Because of its position straddling the equator of the sky, Orion can be seen by virtually all people on Earth; as a result various cultures have created different myths to describe the seven bright stars that make up this brilliant constellation.

To the ancient Greeks, these stars were the fearless hunter who was the son of Neptune, god of the oceans. Myths recall that Orion boasted that he could and would kill all the animals on Earth if he wanted to. Horrified, Gaia, goddess of the Earth, sent a scorpion to sting and kill Orion and protect the environment. Those were the days…

To the ancient Egyptians, Orion was Osiris, the god of light; to the Chinese he was Tsan a great general, to Amazon tribes the stars were an enormous alligator, and to the Chinook Indians the stars marked a canoe. But for peoples of the northern latitudes Orion was often known as the “snow giant” who arrived in December to issue in winter storms and departed in March as spring arrived.

To astronomers Orion is known for the fiery red super-giant star Betelgeuse and the sparkling bluish giant star Rigel, marking the shoulder and kneecap respectively. Betelgeuse is 430 light years away and one of the largest stars in the Milky Way and Rigel at 770 light years is one of most massive stars in the Galaxy. Both stars will almost certainly explode into supernovas and die out as black holes over the next few million years.

In addition, there is a faint smudge of light under the belt called the Great Nebula in Orion. This glowing interstellar cloud of hydrogen is currently the birth place of hundreds of new stars. Though it can be seen with the unaided eye, this nebula is a more impressive sight in binoculars or a telescope. I urge you to go out on the next clear night and find the snow giant, the most beautiful of all constellations.

Events for December

This December, the planet Venus is the “morning star” to those who rise early enough (6 a.m.) to see it. On the morning of Dec. 5, the thin crescent moon will pass near Venus and make a noteworthy conjunction.

The planet Mars is close to the Earth now and is therefore the brightest star-like object in the evening sky. Easily found in Gemini to the left of Orion, Mars is distinctly reddish and will show faint markings and even a polar cap through a large telescope. Saturn enters the evening sky this month and makes a nice grouping with the Moon on Dec. 28 after it clears the tree line about 11 p.m. Enjoy the holidays with friends, family, and clear skies!

Jay Sarton lives in Gray and works at USM’s Southworth Planetarium.