Planet Gazing May 4, 2008
This came through one of my homeschooling groups. I just wanted to pass it on!
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3 planets are in our evening sky this May, so if you have a telescope in a closet somewhere, it’s time to dust it off and enjoy some pleasant spring time stargazing.
If you don’t have a telescope try to find an observatory in your area that has public viewing nights. Saturn is at its best of the year right now, but it is losing its rings. Due to the tilt of Saturn’s axis we will view the rings edge on next year. As we get into summer the skies will fill with humidity and be less clear and dark.
The planet that is afraid of the dark, Mercury can be spotted low in the west just after sunset. On May 6 use binoculars to find the 2-day old Crescent Moon. Mercury will be the “star” below and to the left of it. Mercury will be highest in the west on May 13 when it sets 2 hours after the Sun. A telescope will reveal it to look like a tiny First Quarter Moon!
Mars is the reddish-orange “star” next to The Twins at the beginning of May. You can watch it move away from The Twins all month. Check it out with binoculars on May 21-23 when it will be moving through the Beehive Star Cluster.
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[...] More work on their basic books and finishing up subjects. We will also be doing a lot of planet gazing this month and planning a field trip to Amicalola Falls. I will see if anyone wants to carpool to [...]