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Posts Tagged ‘Lepus the hare’

Ephemeris: 01/13/2026 – Orion is too preoccupied to notice Lepus the hare

January 13, 2026 Comments off

This is Ephemeris for Tuesday, January 13th. Today the Sun will be up for 9 hours and 8 minutes, setting at 5:26, and it will rise tomorrow at 8:17. The Moon, 3 days past last quarter, will rise at 5:13 tomorrow morning.

Orion, the central winter constellation is seen in the southern sky this evening. He is a hunter, as artists depict him, however, he is preoccupied with the charge of Taurus the bull from the upper right. At Orion’s feet, and unnoticed by him is the small constellation of Lepus the hare. It’s very hard to see a rabbit in its dim stars: however, I can see a rabbit’s head ears and shoulders. A misshapen box is the head and face of this critter facing to the left. His ears extend upwards from the upper right star of the box, and they bend forward a bit. Two stars to the right of the box and a bit farther apart hint at the front part of the body. Others see a whole rabbit facing the other direction, with additional stars to depict his long ears.

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

The constellation Lepus the hare seen looking southeast in four frames at 9 PM EST, in mid-January.
The constellation Lepus the hare seen looking southeast in four frames at 9 PM EST, in mid-January. The stars with no connecting lines, the lines as I’ve learned to see them, a more modern way to see them, and the constellation art provided by Stellarium. Take your pick, or invent your own, there’s no right way. The stars at the tips of the ears on the modern version are 4th and 5th magnitude, lost on all but the darkest of nights. Created using Stellarium and GIMP.

Categories: Constellations, Ephemeris Program, Observing Tags: , ,

Ephemeris: 02/04/2024 – The rabbit at the feet of Orion

February 6, 2024 Comments off

This is Ephemeris for Tuesday, February 6th. Today the Sun will be up for 10 hours and 1 minute, setting at 5:57, and it will rise tomorrow at 7:55. The Moon, 3 days before new, will rise at 6:44 tomorrow morning.

The constellation of Orion the hunter is in the south in the evening, and he seems to be preoccupied with the charge of Taurus the bull to his upper right. Unnoticed by him and below him is a small constellation called Lepus the hare, made of very dim stars. Good luck trying to make a rabbit out of those stars. In the constellation art that comes with the free application Stellarium. It displays the sky like a planetarium. The artistic constellation of the figure of Canis Major, Orion’s large hunting dog seems to be taking notice of Lepus and is beginning to chase it Lepus the hare is a nice addition to the tableau presented in the winter sky. Stellarium-web.org is a web based version of Stellarium that doesn’t have to be installed on your device.

The astronomical event times given are for the Traverse City/Interlochen area of Michigan (EST, UT –5 hours). They may be different for your location.

Addendum

Orion is facing off Taurus the bull. Beneath the Orion's feet is Lepus the hare.
In the southern winter sky the constellation Orion is facing off Taurus the bull. Beneath the Orion’s feet is Lepus the hare. With the planetarium program Stellarium’s art we see that Canis Major, Orion’s larger hunting dog, appears to be chasing Lepus. Created using Stellarium, LibreOffice and GIMP.
Categories: Constellations, Ephemeris Program, Mythology, Observing Tags: , , ,