Sky & Telescope - January 2024 - 47

+30°
+40°
+10°
+20°
0°
LIBRA
-10°
Mercury
Mars
Venus
-30°
-40°
SAGITTARIUS
SCORPIUS
10 am
8 am
Spica
Jan 7
Antares
6 am
4 am
4
CORVUS
HYDRA
CANIS
MAJOR
2 am
Midnight
10 pm
8 pm
CAPRICORNUS
Fomalhaut
LOCAL TIME OF TRANSIT
6 pm
4 pm
2 pm
-30°
-40°
The Sun and planets are positioned for mid-January; the colored arrows show the motion of each during the month. The Moon is plotted for evening
dates in the Americas when it's waxing (right side illuminated) or full, and for morning dates when it's waning (left side illuminated). " Local time
of transit " tells when (in Local Mean Time) objects cross the meridian - that is, when they appear due south and at their highest - at mid-month.
Transits occur an hour later on the 1st and an hour earlier at month's end.
THURSDAY, JANUARY 18
The best conjunction that's not in the
morning sky this month occurs when
the Moon meets up with Jupiter this
evening. The two will be close together
and high in the south as darkness falls.
The earlier you look and/or the farther
east you are, the closer they'll appear.
For observers on the East Coast, the
gap between the pair will be less than
3°, but by the time twilight fades on
the West Coast, the Moon will be an
additional 1½° farther from the planet.
You'll have no trouble spotting Jupiter
Moon
Jan 15
Dusk, Jan 12 - 15
45 minutes after sunset
well before full darkness arrives - it
shines brightly at magnitude -2.5. Big
Jove is well past opposition (which
occurred back in early November) and
is now a prime, early-evening target for
telescope enthusiasts. Meanwhile, the
Moon is a waning gibbous just one day
past first-quarter phase.
SATURDAY, JANUARY 27
This is a date worth circling on your calendar
since there are treats to be enjoyed
in both the predawn sky and in the evening.
Let's begin with the morning stuff.
Set an early alarm and you'll be
rewarded with the opportunity to see
two planets just a hair away from each
Jan 25 - 27
Around 8 pm
Moon
Jan 14
Saturn
Moon
Jan 13
Fomalhaut
LEO
Regulus
Moon
Jan 12
Moon
Jan 27
Moon
Jan 26
Moon
Jan 25
other. The duo in question is Mercury
and Mars - two planets briefly meeting
as they head in opposite directions.
Mercury shines at magnitude -0.2 as it
sinks lower each day. Meanwhile, Mars
is just now emerging from the Sun's
glare as a 1.3-magnitude ember. The
Red Planet is just beginning an apparition
that culminates in January 2025
when it reaches opposition once again.
However, this dawn conjunction will
be a tricky one to see. You'll need an
unobstructed horizon towards the eastsoutheast
and binoculars or a small telescope.
Optics will not only help fish the
pair out of brightening twilight but also
make it much easier to see dim Mars
next to gleaming Mercury. And they're
close - just ¼° (half a Moon diameter)
separates them.
While you're up, shift your gaze
toward the western horizon and take a
moment to appreciate the first part of
a two-part event. At dawn, the waning
gibbous Moon is positioned some 4½°
right of Regulus, the brightest star
in the constellation Leo, the Lion. It's
a fine sight, but what makes it really
interesting is what happens roughly
14 hours later. Part two of this event
occurs in the evening when the Moon
and Regulus rise in the east-northeast.
Now, in a neat bit of celestial symmetry,
the Moon sits roughly 4½° to the lower
left of the star.
Looking Southwest
Looking East
¢ Although not a " morning person, "
even Consulting Editor GARY SERONIK
will be up at dawn this month.
sk yand tele scope .o r g * JANUARY 2024
47
Sirius
ERIDANUS
18h
16h
Vega
HERCULES
AQUILA
14h
BOÖTES
Arcturus
Jan 1
OPHIUCHUS
VIRGO
LEO
Regulus
CANCER
Procyon
ORION
Rigel
EQUATOR
Neptune
CETUS
Jan 14
Saturn
AQUARIUS
-10°
TAURUS
Betelgeuse
0°
12h
RIGHT ASCENSION
25 -26
10h
8h
Castor
Pollux
GEMINI
Jan 21 Pleiades
ARIES
Uranus
Jupiter
PEGASUS
17 PISCES
+20°
+10°
6h
4h
2h
0h
22h
CYGNUS
+30°
+40°
DECLINATION
L
C
E
C
I
T
P
I

http://skyandtelescope.org

Sky & Telescope - January 2024

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Sky & Telescope - January 2024