Bob Moler's Ephemeris Blog

Ephemeris for Thursday, December 6th.  The sun will rise at 8:05.  It’ll be up for 8 hours and 57 minutes, setting at 5:02.   The moon, at last quarter today, will rise at 1:10 tomorrow morning.

Low in the east southeast at 9 p.m. is the constellation of the giant hunter Orion.  Above him is Taurus the bull.  His face is a letter V shape of stars lying on its side, the star cluster Hyades,  with the bright orange-red star Aldebaran at one tip of the V as its angry blood-shot eye, but actually about half way between us and the cluster.  Jupiter is complicating this this year, appearing in Taurus.  Orion is depicted in the sky facing, with club in one hand and a shield in the other, the approaching and in some depictions charging Taurus.  The Pleiades star cluster is in his shoulder.  Taurus in Greek mythology was the guise the god Zeus when he carried off the maiden Europa.  Europa’s still with him as the intriguing satellite orbiting Zeus’ Roman equivalent the planet Jupiter.

Times are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan.  They may be different for your location.

Addendum

Taurus and Orion in the east at 9 p.m. December 6, 2012. Created using Stellarium.