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Easy Targets

By Lewis McCool �2010

MOON PHASES

Last quarter: Feb. 7, 4:48 p.m.

New: Feb. 13, 7:51 p.m.

First quarter: Feb. 21, 5:42 p.m.

Full: Feb. 28, 9:88 a.m. (Snow Moon)

IN HISTORY

Feb. 1, 2003 – All seven astronauts aboard the space shuttle Columbia die as the craft – unknowingly damaged during launch – disintegrates during reentry.

Feb. 3, 1966 – The Soviet Union’s Luna 9 craft makes the first soft landing on the moon in the Ocean of Storms region and sends back panoramic photos of the site.

Feb. 4, 1906 – Birth date of Clyde Tombaugh, who discovered Pluto on Feb. 18, 1930.

Feb. 5, 1974 – U.S. Mariner 10 probe, en route to Mercury, makes the first close-up photos of Venus.

Feb. 6, 1971 – U.S. astronaut Alan Shepard, commander of Apollo 14, takes the first golf shots on the moon.

Feb. 14, 2000 – Launched in February 1996, the Near-Earth Asteroid Rendezvous (NEAR) Shoemaker spacecraft enters orbit around the asteroid Eros. It landed on the surface of Eros in February 2001.

Feb. 15, 1564 – Birth date of Italian astronomer Galileo Galilei.

Feb. 19, 1473 – Birth date of Polish astronomer Nicholas Copernicus, who theorized that the Earth and other planets revolved around the sun.

Feb. 20, 1962 – Astronaut John Glenn becomes the first American to orbit Earth, completing three orbits in his Project Mercury craft Friendship 7.

Some of the easiest telescopic targets for novice stargazers are ideally situated just after dark in February.

The mighty hunter of Greek mythology, Orion, is high up in the southern sky, placed there by his companion and lover, the goddess Artemis. The constellation is home to the Orion Nebula (M42), perhaps the finest bright nebula of all, and its companion M43. The two are actually the same gas cloud, separated from our perspective by a band of dark gas.

Shining at magnitude 5, M42 can be seen by the naked eye as the wispy center "star" in Orion's sword. It begins to reveal itself as an emission and reflection nebula in binoculars. A telescope reveals more complex components, including four bright stars in the center of the nebula. The energy from these newly formed stars causes the gas clouds to emit light. Professional scopes, including Hubble, indicate that more stars and protoplanetary disks are forming there.

M78, a bright reflection nebula about 6 degrees north of M42, is part of the same gas cloud that's about 1,600 light years away from us.

Also in the neighborhood are open star clusters M35 in Gemini, M36, M37 and M38 in Auriga and the Pleiades (M45) in Taurus. The Crab Nebula (M1) is also in Taurus.

Look for the Andromeda Galaxy (M31) and its companion M110 over in the western sky. The Triangulum Galaxy (M33) is about 15 degrees to the northeast of Andromeda.

These are just a few of the deep-space objects worth a look on these chilly evenings.

Closer to home, Mars is still the dominant planet, and it's ready for viewing in the early evening. Look for it in the eastern sky in the constellation Cancer. Early in the month, it'll be shining at magnitude minus 1.3, nearly as bright as the night sky's brightest star, Sirius (magnitude minus 1.47), about 50 degrees west of Mars.

In late January, Mars and Earth were as close as they'll be for two years. Now Earth is rapidly pulling ahead of Mars and the "Red Planet" will fade considerably by month's end.

Look for the waxing gibbous moon nearby on the 25th.

Although brighter than Mars, Jupiter (magnitude minus 2) is dropping toward the setting sun and will be lost to viewing late in the month. Catch it low in the west just after sunset. Even in twilight, you should be able to pick out its four Galilean moons with binoculars or a small scope.

As Jupiter moves westward, Venus is moving eastward. The two bright planets will be side by side (in conjunction) on the 16th. You'll need an unobstructed view of the western horizon to see the duo about 6 p.m. A crescent moon will hover about 22 degrees above the planets.

Venus (magnitude minus 3.9) continues to rise in the western sky nightly while Jupiter will be lost in the sun's glare.

Mercury (magnitude minus 0.15) will be low in the east in the predawn sky and should be relatively easy to spot before sunrise for the first half of the month.

Saturn (magnitude 0.7) can be found in Virgo, rising about 9:30 p.m. early in the month and about 7:45 by month's end. The waning gibbous moon can be seen nearby on the nights of the 1st and 2nd.