Archive
05/03/11 – Ephemeris – The constellation Virgo
Tuesday, May 3rd. The sun rises at 6:30. It’ll be up for 14 hours and 19 minutes, setting at 8:49. The moon is new today, and won’t be visible.
Tonight in the sky: to the left of the constellation of Leo the lion, which lies in the south southwest at 10 p.m. is the next constellation of the zodiac: Virgo the maiden, seen in the south southeast. Virgo is a large constellation of a reclining woman holding a stalk of wheat. The bright star in the center of the constellation, Spica, is the head of that spike of wheat; and as such ruled over the harvest in two of Virgo’s guises as the goddesses Persephone and Ceres. The planet Saturn is also in Virgo this year to the right of Spica. Virgo is also identified as Astraea the goddess of justice. The constellation of Libra, the scales, is found just east of her an hour later, only being half risen at 10 p.m. Early Christians saw Virgo as the Virgin Mary.
* Times are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan. They may be different for your location.
Addendum
Virgo at 10;30 p.m. May 3, 2011
05/02/11 – Ephemeris – The “Planet Jam”
Monday, May 2nd. The sun rises at 6:31. It’ll be up for 14 hours and 16 minutes, setting at 8:48. The moon, 1 day before new, will rise at 6:21 tomorrow morning.
This month there will be a great gathering of planets in the morning sky, I call it a planet jam, kind of like a traffic jam. But these four planets are nowhere near each other, but just lined up to our sight. Unfortunately the group is too close to the sun and in the bright twilight to easily spot. The farther south you are the better the view. By south I mean south of the equator. Venus and Jupiter will be the easiest to spot, and by the end of the month Jupiter will break out of the group to become easily visible. Yesterday Jupiter passed Mars and within one day during the night of May 10th and 11th Venus will be in a tight group with Jupiter and Mercury. That morning might be the best time to spot Mercury. That’s half an hour before sunrise.
* Times are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan. They may be different for your location.
Addendum
Planet Jam May 2011 animation
30 minutes before sunrise Eastern time is U.T. minus 4 hours. It’s perhaps a good thing I can’t ass the twilight glow. It’d drown out the planets.
Bob Moler's Ephemeris Blog 