Scheduled air date: 2001 Nov 19-25
On the night of November 26, the planet Mars will be about three-quarters of a
degree from the planet Uranus. Even though Uranus is 7.5 times the
diameter of Mars, it is more than 16 times farther and much fainter. While
it is possible to see Uranus with the unaided eye, this will be a good time to
use binoculars or a telescope to find it.
(Shown about an 90-minutes after sunset for mid-Northern latitudes. Inset
simulates a binocular view of the region around Mars.)
On the night of November 30, the Full Moon will occult—or cover—the
ringed planet Saturn as seen from Mexico and the southeastern two-thirds of the
United States! Check your local newspaper for viewing information in your
area, or see details on the International
Occultation Timing Association's site at www.lunar-occultations.com/iota/1201sat.htm.
(Main image shown about an hour after sunset for mid-Northern latitudes.
Inset shows the Moon's position at one-hour intervals near the time of
occultation.)
If you wish to view illustrations for other episodes, please see our Star Gazer Illustrated directory.
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Illustrations on this page were created using
TheSky Astronomy
Software, an advanced desktop planetarium program designed for Windows. Copyright © 1999-2006 by Software Bisque, Inc. |