Here is the transcript for my podcast about how to see the Venus and Mars, open cluster M38, and spiral galaxy NGC 1365.
Check out the Astronomy.com's interactive star chart to see an accurate map of your sky. It'll help you locate some of this week's key targets. Astronomy magazine subscribers have access to a slew of cool functions with StarDome PLUS.
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Hello, I’m Astronomy magazine Senior Editor Michael Bakich. Each week, I highlight three different night-sky targets for you to see:
- One object you can find without optical aid or through binoculars
- One object to find with a small telescope
- One deep-sky object to find with an 8-inch or larger telescope for you avid astronomers
Spectacular pair
This week’s naked-eye object is a planetary duo you can’t miss if you look toward the southwest after sunset. Venus and Jupiter dominate that part of the sky as its two most brilliant points of light. In fact, if your observing site is dark enough, Venus can cast a shadow.
Venus currently glows at magnitude –4.1, and Jupiter comes in at a respectable –2, still far brighter than any star.
On Thanksgiving night, the pair lies 4° apart. That angular distance matches the width of two of your fingers held at arm’s length. The gap between the two planets narrows to only 2° by month’s end.
That’s as close as they’ll get. On December 1, they widen a bit to 2.1° apart. But another object joins them that night. Look for the ultra-thin crescent Moon about 3° from Venus. Add a nice foreground to this scene, and you can capture a great image with your camera.
**Editor's note: For more information about how to observe the Jupiter and Venus spectacle, read Venus joins Jupiter after sunset.**
Two clusters for the price of one
This week’s small telescope target is one of many great open star clusters in Auriga — M38. It’s the westernmost of the three Messier clusters in this constellation.
Through a 4-inch telescope, you’ll spot some three dozen stars in an area 20' across. Although this region’s background is rich, the cluster stands out well. Crank up the magnification, and you’ll identify several nice chains of stars.
Just 0.5° south of M38 lies NGC 1907. Together, these clusters appear like a poor version of the Double Cluster in Perseus. NGC 1907 contains 25 stars, but a 4-inch will show about a dozen within a 4' span.
Belly up to the bar
This week’s deep-sky object is one of the sky’s finest barred spiral galaxies, NGC 1365. Barred spirals form a fascinating class of celestial objects. Unfortunately, this one lies in the southern constellation Fornax the Furnace, fully one-third the way from the celestial equator to the south celestial pole.
You’ll need an 8-inch telescope to spot NGC 1365’s arms, but it’s the galaxy’s core and bar that really stand out. Crank up the magnification, and notice how the bar appears dimmer near the core than it does farther out.
The brighter arm extends northward from the bar’s west end. The other arm, only slightly fainter, appears somewhat blotchy. Scanning it carefully through larger telescopes and magnifications above 200x reveal the huge star-forming regions within it.
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Previous episode: Alpha Persei Association, open cluster M103, and spiral galaxy IC 342
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