Observation

Observation 

Throughout this week it has been incredibly difficult to make many observations due to the dense fog and rain that has alternated back and forth. The moon phases for this week have gone from third quarter last Saturday through waning crescent this week, anticipating a new moon for next week. Learning about Carina this week in class I leaned that its First Magnitude star, Canopus, is the second brightest star in the night sky and is a winter constellation making it visible during this time of the year. 

APOD 3.7

Photoed above is Praesepe the Beehive cluster, 600 light years away, also known on the star chart as M44. Compared to the sun, M44 is about 600 million years old and is thought to have been born with the star cluster Hayades from the constellation Taurus which we have recently learned about in class through constellation quizzes. M44 is an open cluster that spans about 15 light years across, holding 1,000 stars and covers about 3 full moons in the constellation Cancer. M44 is an easily identifiable night sky object that can be seen without any tools and contains hot blue main sequence stars that are seen within the photo above.

Astronomer Resources- Willem de Sitter

http://www.phys-astro.sonoma.edu/BruceMedalists/deSitter/

http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/546850/Willem-de-Sitter

http://www.nndb.com/people/209/000168702/

APOD 3.6

Pictured above is the Tarantula Nebula located in the Large Magellanic Cloud, a small galaxy that orbits the Milky Way galaxy. Named for its spidery appearance, this nebula is about 1,000 light years across and is shown here closest to its true colors. It is near the sight of a close, recent supernova and surrounds NGC 2070, a star cluster containing some of the brightest, most massive stars known which would be explanation for the recent supernova; considering massive stars have short lifespan and die young. 

APOD 3.5

The photo above exhibits a descriptive look at a constellation we have recently learned about have been tested on in class: Auriga the Charioteer. Known for its misc. trait 'The Kids', this picture features 2/3: M36 and M38. To the right is the Flaming Star Nebula, also known as IC 405. Auriga is also known for its named star Capella which is unfortunately not pictured above. The boundary to the lower left corner is where Taurus the Bull, another well known constellation, would be found if the picture was imaged to a broader range.

Observations

Throughout the week it's been hard to see much of anything through the foggy and cloudy night skies which have turned into dense mornings. The first quarter moon was fully presented 1/6 and will now begin phasing into the waxing gibbous and soon the full moon which should take place in one week on 1/14. Hopefully next week will prove clearer and better viewings.

APOD 3.4

The image above exhibits spiral galaxy NGC 2683, a galaxy thought to be similar to our own Milky Way due to its, probable, shared trait of having a bar across the center. Part of the constellation Lynx, commonly known as the Cat, this photo pictures the galaxy as an edge-on view where it is easy to see the visible dust and space clutter which spirals around the outer barriers of its stellar pull.