Archive
Ephemeris: 07/02/2026 – Finding Ophiuchus, the celestial snake handler
This is Ephemeris for Thursday, July 2nd. Today the Sun will be up for 15 hours and 30 minutes, setting at 9:31, and it will rise tomorrow at 6:02. The Moon, 3 days past full, will rise at 11:26 this evening.
The red star Antares shines in the south at 11 p.m. In the constellation of Scorpius. In the area of sky above and a little to the left lies a large constellation of faint stars called Ophiuchus, the serpent bearer. The constellation shape is like a large bell, which reminds me of the head, shoulders and arms of a fellow that’s holding the large snake across his body, hip high. The serpent he’s holding is Serpens, the only two-part constellation in the heavens. The head rises to Ophiuchus’ right, toward Hercules, and the tail extends up to the left, toward Aquila the eagle. In Greek myth, Ophiuchus represents the great physician Aesculapius, educated by the god Apollo, and the centaur Chiron, who is found in the stars as Sagittarius, now rising below and left of him.
The astronomical event times given in this blog are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (Lat 44.7° N, Long 85.7° W; EDT, UT – 4 hours) unless stated otherwise. Times will be different for other locations.
Addendum
Ephemeris: 06/04/2026 – Finding Lyra the harp
This is Bob Moler with Ephemeris for Thursday, June 4th. Today the Sun will be up for 15 hours and 24 minutes, setting at 9:23, and it will rise tomorrow at 5:58. The Moon, halfway from full to last quarter, will rise at 12:57 tomorrow morning.
Halfway up the sky in the east at 11 PM, one can find a bright star just above a small, narrow, but very distinctive parallelogram of stars. They are the stars of the constellation Lyra the harp. The bright star is Vega, the 5th brightest nighttime star. To the Romans, the star Vega represented a falling eagle or vulture. Apparently they never made the distinction between the two species. It is a pure white star and serves as a calibration star for color and brightness. In the evening, it is the top-most star of the Summer Triangle. The harp, according to Greek mythology, was invented by the god Hermes. The form of the harp, in the sky, is as he had invented it: by stretching strings across a tortoise shell. Hermes gave it to his half-brother Apollo, who in turn gave it to the legendary musician Orpheus.
The astronomical event times given in this blog are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (Lat 44.7° N, Long 85.7° W; EDT, UT – 4 hours) unless stated otherwise. Times will be different for other locations.
Addendum
Ephemeris: 05/15/2026 – Orion flees the evening sky as Scorpius rises
This is Ephemeris for Friday, May 15th. Today the Sun will be up for 14 hours and 49 minutes, setting at 9:04, and it will rise tomorrow at 6:13. The Moon, 1 day before new, will rise at 5:34 tomorrow morning.
Orion the winter constellation is just about gone from our spring skies. Only the top part of his club is left in the west as evening twilight fades. Rising in the southeast at the same time is his nemesis the constellation Scorpius the scorpion. According to Greek mythology, Orion was killed by a giant scorpion. And that scorpion of course was Scorpius. It was sent by the goddess of the earth Gaia. Orion, the mighty hunter, had boasted that he could kill any creature. So this was his final comeuppance. In that battle he was killed by the sting of that scorpion. And that is why Scorpius and Orion can never be in the sky at the same time. Orion won’t venture into the evening sky until Scorpius is long gone in late autumn.
The astronomical event times given in this blog are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (Lat 44.7° N, Long 85.7° W; EDT, UT – 4 hours) unless stated otherwise. Times will be different for other locations.
Addendum
Ephemeris: 05/12/2026 – Finding the constellations of Virgo and Libra
This is Ephemeris for Tuesday, May 12th. Today the Sun will be up for 14 hours and 43 minutes, setting at 9:01, and it will rise tomorrow at 6:16. The Moon, 3 days past last quarter, will rise at 4:16 tomorrow morning.
As skies darken look to the south, below the bright star Arcturus, high in the southeast, and left and below Leo the lion, in the southwest, to the constellation of Virgo the virgin with its bright star Spica in the south. Other than Spica, Virgo contains only dim stars. It’s quite large, extending to the upper right, and to the left of Spica. Virgo represents two goddesses. The Greek harvest goddess Persephone, whose Roman name is Ceres, which is the root of our word cereal, is one. The bright star Spica is the ear of wheat that she’s holding in her hand. Some see her standing at an odd angle, I see her reclining. Virgo also represents Astraea the goddess of Justice, with her scales, the constellation Libra, at her feet low in the southeast.
The astronomical event times given in this blog are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (Lat 44.7° N, Long 85.7° W; EDT, UT – 4 hours) unless stated otherwise. Times will be different for other locations.
Addendum
Ephemeris: 05/08/2026 – The story of Boötes and Ursa Major
This is Ephemeris for Friday, May 8th. Today the Sun will be up for 14 hours and 33 minutes, setting at 8:56, and it will rise tomorrow at 6:21. The Moon, 1 day before last quarter, will rise at 2:55 tomorrow morning.
Appearing in the eastern sky at 10 p.m. tonight is the kite shaped constellation of Boötes the herdsman. The bright star Arcturus is at the bottom of the kite which is horizontal to the left, pointed to by the arc of the handle of the Big Dipper, higher in the east. The Big Dipper is the hind end of the constellation Ursa Major, the Great Bear. In one story, Boötes represents a young hunter named Arcas, son of Callisto, a beautiful young woman who had the misfortune of being loved by god Zeus. Zeus’ wife, Hera, found out about the affair, and since she couldn’t punish Zeus, turned the poor woman into a bear. Arcas, many years later, unaware of why his mother disappeared, was about to kill the bear when Zeus intervened and placed them both in the sky, where he continues to chase her across the sky nightly.
The astronomical event times given in this blog are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (Lat 44.7° N, Long 85.7° W; EDT, UT – 4 hours) unless stated otherwise. Times will be different for other locations.
Addendum
Ephemeris: 05/07/2026 – A constellation of a real person: Coma Berenices
This is Ephemeris for Thursday, May 7th. Today the Sun will be up for 14 hours and 30 minutes, setting at 8:55, and it will rise tomorrow at 6:22. The Moon, 2 days before last quarter, will rise at 2:28 tomorrow morning.
High in the south-southeast at 10:30 p.m. is a tiny and faint constellation of Coma Berenices, or Berenice’s Hair. In it are lots of faint stars arrayed to look like several strands of hair to the naked eye. The whole group will fit in the field of a pair of binoculars, which will also show many more stars. Berenice was a real queen, whose husband, the Pharaoh Ptolemy III, was away at war. Those were the days when the Greeks ruled Egypt. She offered her golden tresses to the gods for the king’s safe return. The hair, was placed in a temple. However, the offering disappeared when the king returned. Later, the constellation of Coma Berenices has been made to commemorate the queen’s sacrifice.
The astronomical event times given in this blog are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (Lat 44.7° N, Long 85.7° W; EDT, UT – 4 hours) unless stated otherwise. Times will be different for other locations.
Addendum
Ephemeris: 04/13/2026 – How the Greeks saw the constellation Leo
This is Bob Moler with Ephemeris for Monday, April 13th. Today the Sun will be up for 13 hours and 23 minutes, setting at 8:25, and it will rise tomorrow at 7:00. The Moon, 3 days past last quarter, will rise at 5:35 tomorrow morning.
The constellations that we know are mostly those that come from the Sumerians and other civilizations who lived around what is now modern day Iraq. They were adopted and adapted by the ancient Greeks, and to us. Foremost of these was Leo the lion, seen high in the south-southeastern sky at 10 PM. It is easily found by imagining the bottom of the Big Dipper leaks. It will drip on the back of Leo, with its distinctive backward question mark as his front with his head and mane. To the Greeks he was the Nemean Lion, whose coat was impervious to arrows or spears. Heracles (Hercules) was able to kill it by first stunning it with a club then strangling it with his bare hands. It was the first of his Twelve Labors.
The astronomical event times given in this blog are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (Lat 44.7° N, Long 85.7° W; EST, UT – 5 hours) unless stated otherwise. Times will be different for other locations.
Addendum
Ephemeris: 02/16/2026 – The Dog Star
This is Bob Moler with Ephemeris for President’s Day, Monday, February 16th. Today the Sun will be up for 10 hours and 31 minutes, setting at 6:12, and it will rise tomorrow at 7:39. The Moon, 1 day before new, will rise at 7:51 tomorrow morning.
The second-brightest star-like object in the evening sky is Sirius, also known as the Dog Star. It also is the brightest nighttime star in our skies period. Tonight at 9 p.m. it’s located in the southern sky. The Dog Star name comes from its position at the heart of the constellation Canis Major, the great dog of Orion the hunter. The three stars of Orion’s belt tilt to the lower left to Sirius. Sirius means ‘Dazzling One’, because of its great brilliance and twinkling. Its Egyptian name was Sopdet, and its first appearance in the dawn skies around July 20th signaled the flooding of the Nile, and the beginning of the agricultural year. The relationship of the heliacal rising of Sirius and the seasonal or tropical year lasted from about 2900 BCE to the start of the Common Era. Sirius owes much of its brilliance to the fact that it lies close to us, only 8.6 light years away.
The astronomical event times given in this blog are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (Lat 44.7° N, Long 85.7° W; EST, UT – 5 hours) unless stated otherwise. Times will be different for other locations.
Addendum
Trivia Note
The Greeks invented the term “Dog days of summer” for the hottest days of July because they thought that Sirius added its intensity to the heat of the Sun to make it hotter out. So why doesn’t Sirius help warm our winter nights? Just asking.
Ephemeris: 01/12/2026 – How to find the twins of Gemini
This is Ephemeris for Monday, January 12th. Today the Sun will be up for 9 hours and 6 minutes, setting at 5:24, and it will rise tomorrow at 8:17. The Moon, 2 days past last quarter, will rise at 4:08 tomorrow morning.
Another famous winter constellation is Gemini. The constellation of Gemini the Twins is visible halfway to the zenith in the east, at the top and left of Orion the hunter, at 9 pm. The namesake stars of the two lads, are the two bright stars at the left end of Gemini, and are high and are due east. Castor is on top, while Pollux is below. From them come two lines of stars that outline the two, extending horizontally toward Orion. Currently, Jupiter in its retrograde motion is situated level with Pollux at 9 PM. Pollux is left of the much brighter Jupiter. In Greek mythology the Gemini twins were half brothers, Castor was fathered by a mere mortal, while Pollux was fathered by Zeus, but were born together as twins. When Castor was killed during the quest for the Golden Fleece, Pollux pleaded with Zeus to let him die also, so Zeus placed them together in the sky.
The astronomical event times given in this blog are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (Lat 44.7° N, Long 85.7° W; EST, UT – 5 hours) unless stated otherwise. Times will be different for other locations.
Addendum
Ephemeris: 12/18/2025 – Orion and Scorpius
This is Ephemeris for Thursday, December 18th. Today the Sun will be up for 8 hours and 48 minutes, setting at 5:03, and it will rise tomorrow at 8:16. The Moon, 1 day before new, will rise at 8:22 tomorrow morning.
The wonderful constellation of Orion the hard luck hunter is seen rising in the east as twilight fades. According to one Greek myth he was killed by the sting of a giant scorpion, thus he can only rise after the summer constellation of Scorpius the scorpion sets in the southwest, and he must set as the scorpion rises on early spring evenings. By 9 pm, he is located in the southeast. His three belt stars are nearly vertically arranged in a line and equally spaced. They point down to the horizon, at the brightest nighttime star Sirius which rose 13 minutes before. The belt stars lie within a large rectangle of stars tilted to the left. His shoulders and knees. The top left star is the bright red Betelgeuse. The bottom right star is blue-white Rigel.
The astronomical event times given in this blog are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (Lat 44.7° N, Long 85.7° W; EST, UT – 5 hours) unless stated otherwise. Times will be different for other locations.
Addendum
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