[1]Our galaxy, the Milky Way. Credit: NASA
Here are the monthly sky watch highlights. Each month, we share the wonders of the universe to help you explore the night sky from your own backyard. (Note: Times listed below are ET.)
April 2013
by Bob Berman, as featured in
The Old Farmer's Almanac [4]
The Moon meets Jupiter in the west on the 14th. This is the final month for easy viewing of the Giant Planet, which has now faded to magnitude -2.0 but is still the brightest "star" in the heavens. The Moon comes extremely close to the blue star Spica on the 24th and then passes to the lower right of Saturn on the 25th. Both rise at around nightfall. Saturn, with its rings now beautifully "open" (meaning not tilted edgewise to us), has its opposition of the past 6 years. Visible through any telescope, Saturn lights up the otherwise dim constellation of Libra.
Sky Map April 2013
Sky Maps courtesy of Jeff DeTray. Love astronomy? Visit Jeff's site at AstronomyBoy.com [5]
April Sky Map Coming Soon!
Sky Map for March 2013: Click to View PDF [6]
.png "March 2013 Sky Map")
[6]
Sky map produced using Chris Marriott's Skymap Pro [7]
Explore the sky night from your own backyard. A printable black and white map is provided below!
Click for Printable Sky Map (PDF) [8]
Just click, print, and bring outside!
.jpg "Mother's Day -- Gifts Save up to 44%")
[9]
- Sky Watch [10]