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Ephemeris: 12/11/25 – The constellation of the guy with the goats
This is Ephemeris for Thursday, December 11th. Today the Sun will be up for 8 hours and 51 minutes, setting at 5:02, and it will rise tomorrow at 8:11. The Moon, at last quarter today, will rise at 12:53 tomorrow morning.
The first constellation of winter is in the northeastern sky, called Auriga the charioteer. It’s to the upper left of Orion and directly left of Taurus. Auriga actually never really quite leaves us, because its brightest star, Capella is the star that never leaves us even in the heat of summer, Though for most of us it’s in the trees in the north. Auriga is a pentagon of stars with the Capella on top. Just right of Capella is a thin triangle of three faint stars, an asterism or informal constellation called the Kids, baby goats. Capella is their mother. For some reason they are all held by a charioteer, who is shown without his chariot. Ptolemy, last of the great Greek astronomers called Auriga the coachman. If so, he did have room for the goats.
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: 12/08/2025 – Hyades, half sisters of the Pleiades
This is Ephemeris for Monday, December 8th. Today the Sun will be up for 8 hours and 54 minutes, setting at 5:02, and it will rise tomorrow at 8:08. The Moon, 3 days before last quarter, will rise at 9:19 this evening.
At 8 o’clock this evening the constellation of Orion the hunter is still in the act of rising with one leg still stuck in the snow. What is above him is the constellation of Taurus the bull. His face is a letter V of stars or as a letter A, is the star cluster called the Hyades. In Greek myth the stars are the half sisters of the Pleiades, which are right above them. The Hyades star cluster is very special. They don’t look as splashy as the Pleiades which are younger and still have their hot blue white stars. However, the Hyades are much closer, a third as far as the Pleiades. In fact they’re close enough to be measured by trigonometry using Earth’s orbit as the base of a triangle, before satellites. Which was critical in measuring distances beyond the solar system.
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: 12/04/2025 – Orion survives a full moon
This is Ephemeris for Thursday, December 4th. Today the Sun will be up for 8 hours and 59 minutes, setting at 5:02, and it will rise tomorrow at 8:04. The Moon, at full today, will rise at 4:24 this evening.
While the full moon overpowers most stars, the bright stars of winter persist. This is even true with tonight’s supermoon, a bit larger and brighter than average. Nowhere in the sky is there a concentration of bright stars as there is in the winter sky. I know it’s not winter yet, but if you stay up late enough, say 10 PM, all the winter stars will be in the sky. Last to rise is the brightest star of all, Sirius. And by 10 o’clock will be low in the southeast. Jupiter has joined the winter stars this year, outshining them all. As a constellation the mighty hunter Orion is easiest to spot on a full moon night, containing seven very bright stars, with three bright stars in a straight line as his belt, which most folks find as his most distinctive feature.
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: 11/21/2025 – Finding Taurus the bull
This is Ephemeris for Friday, November 21st. Today the Sun will be up for 9 hours and 21 minutes, setting at 5:09, and it will rise tomorrow at 7:49. The Moon, 1 day past new, will set at 5:36 this evening.
Low in the east at 8 this evening and below the beautiful Pleiades star cluster is Taurus the bull. His face is a letter V shape of stars lying on its side, the star cluster Hyades, which in Greek Mythology were the half-sisters of the Pleiades, with the bright orange-red star Aldebaran at one tip of the V as its angry bloodshot eye. Aldebaran is actually about halfway between us and the cluster. The Pleiades star cluster is in his shoulder. Taurus is seen charging downward at that hour, the rising constellation of Orion. Taurus in Greek mythology was the form the god Zeus assumed when he carried off the maiden Europa. Europa’s still with him as a moon orbiting Zeus’ Roman counterpart, the planet Jupiter.
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: 11/18/2025 – What other cultures see in the Pleiades
This is Ephemeris for Tuesday, November 18th. Today the Sun will be up for 9 hours and 27 minutes, setting at 5:11, and it will rise tomorrow at 7:45. The Moon, 2 days before new, will rise at 7:22 tomorrow morning.
Let’s look at how some other cultures saw the Pleiades, the star cluster that is seen in the eastern sky these evenings. To the Anishinaabe native peoples around here, the Pleiades is the “Hole in the Sky” or the seven stones that are heated for the sweat lodge ceremony. To the Kiowa, these were sisters who were whisked up into the sky from the top of Devil’s Tower in Wyoming, where they were threatened by a huge bear. An Iroquoian legend has seven daughters who danced all day and were drawn into the sky, along with a black bear who danced with them. One daughter heard her mother’s call and fell back down to the Earth. In Norse mythology, these were the goddess Freya’s hens.
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: 11/17/2025 – More about the Pleiades
This is Bob Moler with Ephemeris for Monday, November 17th. Today the Sun will be up for 9 hours and 29 minutes, setting at 5:12, and it will rise tomorrow at 7:44. The Moon, 3 days before new, will rise at 6:16 tomorrow morning.
Around 8 in the evening the marvelous small star group called the Pleiades, or Seven Sisters will be in the eastern sky. Most people can see six stars, but they’re called the Seven Sisters, so the story has come up about the Lost Pleiad. It was said that her star was dimmed because she married a mere mortal. In Greek mythology the Pleiades were the daughters of the god Atlas and Pleione. By 9 PM the hunter Orion is rising in the east to chase the Pleiades across the sky until dawn. The word Pleiades is related to the Greek word for sail, and in ancient times the sailing season in the Mediterranean Sea started with the heliacal * rising of the Pleiades at dawn in mid-spring.
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.
* Heliacal Rising – The first appearance in the morning of a celestial body after disappearing in evening twilight.
Addendum
Ephemeris: 11/04/2025 – The Persephone Period starts tomorrow
This is Bob Moler with Ephemeris for Election Day for some, Tuesday, November 4th. Today the Sun will be up for 10 hours and 1 minute, setting at 5:26, and it will rise tomorrow at 7:26. The Moon, 1 day before full, will set at 7:41 tomorrow morning.
Tomorrow the daylight hours drops below 10 hours. This begins something which has been called the Persephone Period. It is named after the Greek goddess Persephone, goddess of spring, who is abducted by Hades the god of the underworld to be his bride. When he did, all the vegetation on the earth began to die. So he had to allow her to appear above ground for a part of the year so that the vegetation and the grain would grow. So the Persephone Period is the time when she is in the underworld. It lasts from now to early February. That may have worked for a country like Greece around the Mediterranean, but we have harsher weather here. It takes a much longer time for spring to arrive.
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: 10/23/2025 – Finding Perseus the hero
This is Ephemeris for Thursday, October 23rd. Today the Sun will be up for 10 hours and 35 minutes, setting at 6:44, and it will rise tomorrow at 8:10. The Moon, 2 days past new, will set at 7:21 this evening.
About a third the way from the east northeastern horizon to the zenith at 9 p.m. and below the letter W shaped constellation of Cassiopeia the queen is Perseus the hero. It’s kind of an odd shape for a hero, To me it looks kinda like the cartoon roadrunner. To those who’re mathematically inclined its shape is also like the Greek letter pi on its side. It’s two brightest stars are Mirfak and Algol the demon star, the still winking eye of Medusa. Look at the area around Mirfak with binoculars and a large group of stars just below naked eye visibility will appear. It’s called the Alpha Persei Association. That’s because Mirfak is also known as Alpha Persei. The group is about 560 light years away, which are farther away than the Pleiades, which is below and to the right of them.
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: 10/21/2025 – Finding Andromeda
This is Ephemeris for Tuesday, October 21st. Today the Sun will be up for 10 hours and 41 minutes, setting at 6:47, and it will rise tomorrow at 8:07. The Moon is new today, and won’t be visible.
Tonight at 9:00 PM Saturn is in the southeast, with the Great Square of Pegasus above and to the left. Off the leftmost star of the Great Square, called Alpheratz, are two curved lines of stars to the left and a bit below, and slightly diverging. They might be mistaken for the hind legs of the horse, which is flying upside down. It’s another constellation, that of Andromeda the Princess, daughter of Cassiopeia, the W shaped constellation to the upper left. Andromeda was rescued by hero Perseus which is another constellation left of her, which we’ll get to later on this week. Andromeda’s claim to scientific fame is the large galaxy located there, the Great Andromeda Galaxy, probably the farthest thing one can spot with the naked eye.
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
Andromeda is part of the Great Star Story of Autumn. My take on it is linked Here.
Ephemeris: 10/16/2025 – The Anishinaabe saw a Moose where Pegasus is
This is Ephemeris for Thursday, October 16th. Today the Sun will be up for 10 hours and 55 minutes, setting at 6:55, and it will rise tomorrow at 8:01. The Moon, 3 days past last quarter, will rise at 3:57 tomorrow morning.
High in the southeast at 10 PM is the constellation officially called Pegasus the flying horse. The front part of his body is a pattern of stars we call the Great Square of Pegasus, and he’s flying upside down, quite an aerobatic horse. His wings are not seen in the stars, however his neck and head, up to his nose is, along with his front legs. The Anishinaabe peoples of this area call it Mooz, from which we get our word moose. He’s right side up, facing the west. His head is where we see the front legs of Pegasus, and his antlers are above it where there is another official constellation made of faint stars called Lacerta, which is a lizard. Not everyone sees the same figure in the stars.
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
Bob Moler's Ephemeris Blog 