STAR CHARTS & SKY SPOTTER, Stardome Observatory and Planetarium
STAR CHARTS & SKY SPOTTER
Check the Stardome website each month to download free star charts for night sky exploring. These charts help beginners recognise the major landmarks of the night sky and follow the motions of the bright planets. There's also the monthly Sky Spotter update (below) which tells you what's visible for the current month, and the Sky Guide for a three-month overview of the planets and their positions. Click the month to download the pair of star charts – one looking east, the other west. Only the most prominent constellations are shown. |
March 2022
April 2022
May 2022
HOW TO USE THE STAR CHARTS
The star charts show two views of the night sky for each month. One view shows the western sky and the other shows the eastern sky. A small piece of the northern and southern sky is not shown so that we can show you a better scale for the charts. Each chart will match the sky at the times given in the table on each page.
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SKY SPOTTER
MAY 2022
A total lunar eclipse occurs below our horizon on May 16th. The partial stage of the eclipse will continue from moonrise until 5.55 p.m. See here for exact times and phases. Constellation Orion sets earlier as the evenings pass. As it sets, the ‘pot’ lies due west with its handle (Orion’s sword) pointing south. To Orion’s right, the Gemini twins Castor and Pollux, set in the northwest. Above Orion, brilliant Sirius marks the collar of Canis Major (the big dog). To Sirius’ right is Procyon of Canis Minor (the small dog), and further right, roughly north, is Leo (the Lion). A sickle shaped pattern of stars marks its head with Leo’s brightest star Regulus atop. To the lion’s right, high in the sky approximately northeast, lies the twisted quadrilateral of Corvus (the crow). The crow soars above white Spica of Virgo (the maiden). Below her, orange Arcturus of Bootes (the herdsman) twinkles early in the evening. Further right, south of east, the bold winter constellation Scorpius rises. At its heart is Antares, a red giant star, its name meaning ‘rival of Mars’. Below the Scorpion’s tail, standing on its handle, the ‘teapot’ asterism of Sagittarius (the archer) is just rising. Above Scorpius, in dark skies, the many stars of Lupus (the wolf) and Centaurus (the centaur) can be seen, the latter extending over Crux (the southern cross). By the end of May, Crux is getting close to its zenith, high in the south. In the hours before dawn Saturn, Mars, Jupiter and Venus are well placed north of east. Saturn rises first and by 6 a.m. is high in the sky with the others below and to its right. On the morning of the 1st Venus and Jupiter are separated by just ¼ degree. As the days pass Venus drops away and Jupiter ascends, the latter meeting Mars early on the 30th. The Moon forms a lovely trio with Mars and Jupiter on the 25th then catches Venus on the 27th. The eta-Aquarids meteor shower peaks in the early hours of the 6th with its radiant just to the left of Mars. See here for an interactive meteor shower map. |
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SKY GUIDE AUTUMN
MARCH, APRIL, MAY 2022
As the Autumn nights get longer and cooler some new landmarks of the night sky come into view. During March, early in the night, Canis Major (the great dog) and Orion (the hunter) are well placed for viewing and well-worth exploring with binoculars. High in the north there are three bright stars in a line. These stars make up the ‘Belt of Orion’ - also known to us in Aotearoa as Tautoru. They are one of the most distinctive landmarks of the night sky. Extending the line of the belt stars upward and to the right you will find Sirius, the brightest star in the night sky. Extend the line down and left from the belt and you will find the orange star, Aldebaran, the brightest star in the constellation Taurus. Continue that line further and you will find the beautiful star cluster, the Pleiades – known to us in Aotearoa as Matariki – but be sure to look in March and April, as Matariki will be hidden by the Sun in May. Back at Orion’s Belt, identify the bright stars Rigel (white) and Betelgeuse (reddish) which, in early Autumn, are above left and below right of the belt, respectively. Those two bright stars, together with two slightly fainter ones enclose most of Orion with the belt being in the middle. A small line of fainter stars above and left of the belt marks Orion’s sword. One of these ‘stars’ is the magnificent Orion Nebula (M42), the closest massive star forming region to us. It is a stunning sight even in backyard telescopes. In the south-eastern sky, Scorpius, also known as Maui’s fishhook, is seen rising around midnight in March. By the month of May, it will be rising in the early evening just as Orion is setting, Thus, Scorpius will become the dominant feature of our evening sky until spring. Further south, Crux, Carina and Centaurus are also major features of our autumn and winter skies. During March, Canopus of Carina is high overhead. Canopus, or Atutahi, was a key guide star used by the Polynesian voyagers and today it is used to guide interplanetary spacecraft. In May, Canopus will be found in the southwest while Crux (the Southern Cross) will be high in the south-eastern sky. This is a very rich stellar region to explore with binoculars. The densest region of the Milky Way will rise with the scorpion’s tail later in autumn while the Magellanic Clouds (dwarf galaxies) remain quite nicely placed just west of south. VISIBILITY OF THE NAKED EYE PLANETSThis autumn our evening skies are devoid of naked eye planets. Instead, they grace the morning sky in the hours immediately before sunrise. The Moon sweeps by in the closing days of each month and there are some spectacular conjunctions and lovely planetary alignments in April and May. MERCURYThe best opportunities to observe Mercury are in early March before sunrise low in the eastern sky. It passes by fainter Saturn on March 3rd then quite quickly slips into the Sun’s glare over the following weeks. It returns to the evening sky from mid-April to mid-May, but these appearances will not be so favourable. VENUSVenus is brilliant in the pre-dawn eastern sky and is well placed for viewing for the entire season. Throughout March it serves as a signpost for much fainter Mars. It reaches its highest altitude in the morning sky on March 26th then slips by Saturn over the following days. Venus has a very close encounter with Jupiter on May 1st. MARSDuring March Mars is visible in the pre-dawn sky in company with Venus. It has a close encounter with Saturn on April 5th/6th and an equally close pairing with Jupiter on May 30th. JUPITERJupiter rises just ahead of the Sun from late March. It rises steadily earlier as the weeks pass and meets brighter Venus on May 1st. This will be a very close and spectacular conjunction. Jupiter forms a nice pairing with fainter Mars on May 30th. SATURNIn early March Saturn is faintly visible low in the east just before sunrise. By late May it is rising before midnight. Saturn meets Mercury, which is brighter, on March 3rd. It encounters Venus on March 30th, and then Mars on April 5th. |
