2024-01-01 15:03:45
Professor of Astronomy at the National Institute for Astronomical and Geophysical Research, Dr. Ashraf Tadros, revealed the most important astronomical events and phenomena for the month of January, most notably the quadrupedal meteors, the “wolf moon,” and conjunctions of planets and stars.
Tadros said, in a statement to the Middle East News Agency today: “The first phenomena of the new year will occur the day after tomorrow, Wednesday, when the Quadrantid meteor shower will illuminate the sky. It is one of the medium meteor showers, as the number of meteors in it reaches 40 meteors per hour, assuming the sky is dark and the atmosphere is clear.”
He added that these meteors are the result of the remnants of an ancient comet known as 2003 EH1, which was discovered in 2003, noting that the flow of these meteors continues annually from January 1 to January 5 and reaches its peak this year on the night of the third and morning of the fourth of January.
He explained that the waning gibbous moon will obscure a number of meteors, especially the faint ones, pointing out that the best time to see meteor showers is after midnight, away from city lights, provided that the sky is clear and free of clouds, dust, and water vapor. He explained that these meteors fall as if they were coming from a constellation. (Bootes) Howling, but it can appear anywhere else in the sky.
He noted that on January 5, the moon will rise in conjunction with the star Spica (the brightest star in Virgo), and this scene can be seen with the healthy naked eye at approximately one in the morning until the scene disappears in the intensity of the morning twilight light due to sunrise. He explained that the Spica star is a variable star whose size is approximately 8 times the size of the sun, its mass is approximately 11 times the mass of the sun, its luminosity is 13.5 times the luminosity of the sun, and it is about 260 light-years away from Earth.
Tadros revealed that a triple conjunction occurred on January 8-9, when the moon rises in conjunction with the planet Venus (the brightest planet in the solar system) as well as with the star Antares (Antares) at approximately five o’clock in the morning. This scene is seen with the healthy naked eye and remains visible until it disappears in intensity. Morning twilight light from sunrise.
He explained that Antares is a red giant star whose mass is 10 times the mass of the sun and is 600 light-years away from us, pointing out that on January 11, the moon will not be visible in the sky all night on that day, marking the beginning of the birth of the new moon, as the moon rises with the sun and sets completely with it, so it will be His bright face faces the sun and his dark face faces the earth.
He stressed that the days of the new moon are considered the best nights during the months of the year, which astronomers greatly prefer to observe faint celestial bodies such as galaxies, star clusters, and the stars of distant constellations. He pointed out that on January 12, the planet Mercury will reach its maximum western elongation from the sun on this day, as the angle between them reaches 23.5 degrees is the best time to view and photograph the planet.
He added that Mercury will rise at approximately 5:15 a.m. and reach its highest altitude in the sky before sunrise, and the planet Venus above and Mars below it will be seen in the same scene.
He explained that the elongation is the apparent angle between the sun and one of the inner planets (Mercury or Venus) when measured from Earth, and the elongation of Venus is greater than the planet Mercury, so Venus is always seen in an easier way and for a longer period than Mercury.
The astronomy professor said that on January 14, the moon will be seen in conjunction with the planet Saturn (the pearl of the solar system), and they will be side by side in the sky immediately after sunset and when night falls on that day, and they will remain visible until the scene begins to set at approximately 8:10 pm.
He added that on January 18, the moon will be seen in conjunction with the planet Jupiter (the giant of the solar system) on that day, as we will see them side by side in the sky immediately after sunset and the onset of night, and they will remain visible until the scene begins to set at approximately 12:50 after midnight.
He pointed out that on January 20, the moon will be visible in conjunction with the Pleiades star cluster (the Pleiades or the Seven Sisters) in Taurus, where we see them side by side in the sky immediately after sunset and the onset of night, and they will remain visible in the sky until the scene begins to set at approximately three o’clock in the morning.
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He explained that the Pleiades is one of the brightest and most famous open star clusters in the northern sky, which is located 440 light-years from Earth. This cluster consists of several hundred stars, but its brightest stars are only 7 that can be seen with the healthy naked eye, and that is why it is called the Seven Sisters.
He continued that on January 24, the moon will be seen on the eastern horizon in conjunction with the star Pollux (the brightest star in Gemini/Twins), where we see them side by side in the sky immediately after sunset and the onset of night, explaining that this scene remains in the sky throughout the night until it begins to set near sunrise. Then it disappears completely in the intense light of the morning twilight.
He revealed the full moon of Rajab on January 25, when the moon’s disk is complete and becomes a fully round full moon on that day. It rises immediately after sunset and remains in the sky throughout the night until it sets with sunrise the next morning, and its luminosity reaches 99.9%. He explained that The moon appears as if it is full from January 23 to 26, and this is because the naked eye cannot easily distinguish the slight decrease in the rotation of the moon’s disk.
He added that this full moon is known to American tribes as the Wolf Moon because at this time of the year hungry wolves gather and howl outside homes. This moon is also known as the Old Moon or the post-Christmas full moon, stressing that it is the time of the full moon. It is the best time to see the terrain, volcanic craters, and meteorite craters on the moon’s surface using binoculars and small telescopes.
He pointed out that on the same day, January 25, the moon will rise on this day, full, in conjunction with the beehive star cluster in Cancer. Because of the difficulty of seeing the beehive star cluster with the naked eye, we recommend using a small telescope, where we can see it next to the moon in the sky throughout the night until the scene disappears in the light. Morning twilight caused by sunrise.
He stated that the Beehive star cluster is located approximately 580 light-years from Earth and is about 600 million years old. It appears as a three-dimensional cloud, as Galileo saw it for the first time using a telescope in 1609 AD, when he was able to see only 40 stars.
He pointed out that on January 27, the planet Mercury will rise in conjunction with the planet Mars at 5:45 a.m. on that day, and the planet Mercury will be bright, as we see the planet Mars directly below it, until the morning twilight light intensifies as a result of the sunrise, and this scene disappears completely.
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