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Posts Tagged ‘Robert Frost’

11/28/2016 – Ephemeris – The Hyades the star cluster in the face of Taurus the bull

November 28, 2016 Comments off

Ephemeris for Monday, November 28th.  The Sun will rise at 7:57.  It’ll be up for 9 hours and 7 minutes, setting at 5:04.  The Moon, 1 day before new, will rise at 7:45 tomorrow morning.

Rising in the east now is the bright star Aldebaran an orange star that’s at one end of the sideways letter V of stars that is the head of Taurus the bull.  Above it is the jewel-like Pleiades or Seven Sisters star cluster.  There’s more to Taurus, like it’s freakishly long horns and front part of its body.  But you can say you’ve seem Taurus, if you can spot his face.  That V of stars is actually a star cluster called the Hyades, and in Greek Myth were the half-sisters of the Pleiades, also fathered by the god Atlas.  Both the Hyades and Pleiades are being pursued by Orion, which as Robert Frost put it is throwing a leg over the eastern horizon at 8 to 9 pm.  He isn’t the only one following the Pleiades, the name Aldebaran means “The Follower”.

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

Addendum

the Hyades, Taurus, Orion and the Pleiades

An animation showing the Hyades, Taurus, Orion and the Pleiades. Created using Stellarium and GIMP.  Click on image to enlarge.

Closeup of the Hyades and the Pleiades

Closeup of the Hyades and the Pleiades. Created using Stellarium.

Categories: Constellations, Ephemeris Program, Observing, Star Clusters, Star Names Tags: , , , , ,

11/30/2015 – Ephemeris – Orion Rising

November 30, 2015 Comments off

Ephemeris for Monday, November 30th.  The Sun will rise at 7:58.  It’ll be up for 9 hours and 5 minutes, setting at 5:04.   The Moon, 3 days before last quarter, will rise at 10:12 this evening.

We have a few hours of darkness tonight before the Moon comes up.  In the east the central winter constellation Orion the hunter throws a leg over the horizon between 8 and 9 p.m. as Robert Frost told in his poem Star-Splitter.  The upright rectangle that is his body on January evenings is tilted to the left as he rises, with bright red star Betelgeuse at the top left of the rectangle, his shoulder.  At the opposite corner is blue-white Rigel, a knee.  In the center of the rectangle is a line of three stars nearly vertically aligned, which represents Orion’s belt.  Above Orion is another bright orange star at one end of a letter V shape of stars.  That’s Aldebaran the angry eye in the face if Taurus the bull who apparently is none to happy with Orion.

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

Addendum

Orion Rising

Orion Rising at 8:30 p.m. (3 1/2 hours after sunset) on November 30th. Created using Stellarium.

“You know Orion always comes up sideways.
Throwing a leg up over our fence of mountains,
And rising on his hands, he looks in on me
Busy outdoors by lantern-light with something
I should have done by daylight, and indeed,
After the ground is frozen, I should have done
Before it froze, and a gust flings a handful
Of waste leaves at my smoky lantern chimney
To make fun of my way of doing things,
Or else fun of Orion’s having caught me.
Has a man, I should like to ask, no rights
These forces are obliged to pay respect to?”
 From Robert Frost’s The Star-splitter.
Categories: Constellations, Ephemeris Program Tags: , , , , , , ,