Tonight In The Sky February 2012

Mercury will be invisible early in the month. It will go behind the Sun on the 7th. It may be visible about a week later very low on the western horizon shortly after sunset. It will climb higher and be more visible for the rest of the month. On the 22nd a very thin crescent Moon will be 5º to Mercury’s right making it easier to find. Mercury appears white in color.

Venus will be in the southwestern sky just after sunset all month. It will be blazing at magnitude -4.2 at midmonth and hard to miss. It will be climbing higher in the sky all month. Very late in the month it will set after 9PM. During the month Venus will shrink in phase slightly but grow in diameter slightly. Venus is so bright that it will probably better to target it through your telescope during the twilight, before it gets completely dark. Venus shines white in color.

On the evening of the 9th the much dimmer Uranus will be 0.3º from Venus. This will be a good time to look for the often hard to spot Uranus. The two planets will be in the same vicinity from the 3rd to the 15th. Since Venus is still climbing and Uranus is sinking, Uranus will be above Venus from 3rd to the 8th and below Venus after the 9th. Uranus will be much dimmer than Venus at magnitude 5.9. Look for its aquamarine color.

Mars will be a must target this month. It is nearly at opposition which means it will be nearly at its closest, biggest and brightest in two years. Mars will brighten from magnitude -0.5 to magnitude -1.2 this month. This short time around opposition is often the only time many observers look at Mars since the rest of the time it is too far away and too small to see details. Mars has many details on its surface to look for. One detail to look for is its northern polar cap which should be visible (if the cap is there and not melted off yet).

The best time to observe it will be around midnight when it will be highest in the sky. Mars will be in Leo but it should not be hard to find. Mars’ brightness and red-orange color will set it apart from any stars in the area.

Jupiter will still be a great target this month. It will be sitting pretty high in the sky as it gets dark. It is still nearly at its biggest and brightest of the year. It will be bright at magnitude -2.3. Jupiter will be easy to find. Just look generally due south as soon as it as it gets dark. It will be higher in the sky and further east than the brighter Venus. Jupiter will be large enough to show detail through even a small telescope. With its banded surface and four easily visible moons, Jupiter is usually a great telescope target. Jupiter shines white in color.

Saturn will be in Virgo. It rises around midnight. This puts it more than halfway up in the southeast sky just before it starts to get light. This means the best time to observe it would be an hour or so before it gets light. It will climb higher as the month goes on. It will be shinning brightly at magnitude 0.5. It will sit around 7º from Spica. Saturn’s famous rings will be tilted open around 15º. This is as wide as they have been for years. Saturn appears yellowish in color.

Uranus will be only a marginal target for observing in the early evening this month. It will be starting to fade into the southwest glare. It will be easy to spot through binoculars and from a dark site it will possible to spot it with just your (good) set of eyes. The best time to observe it will be just as it gets dark when it will be in the sky in the southwest. Uranus sits south of Pegasus in southern Pisces very close to the ecliptic and the celestial equator.

Using the constellation Pegasus can help to spot Uranus. Locate the big square shape in Pegasus then find the two eastern stars that define the square (Algenib and Alpheratz). An imaginary line going south through these stars, at about the same distance apart as these two stars, and slightly to the southwest, you should see Uranus. Binoculars will help a lot.

There will be a much easier way to find Uranus this month using the very bright Venus. On the evening of the 9th Uranus will be 0.3º from Venus. The two planets will be in the same vicinity from the 3rd to the 15th. Since Venus is still climbing and Uranus is sinking, Uranus will be above Venus from 3rd to the 8th and below Venus after the 9th. Uranus will be much dimmer than Venus at magnitude 5.9. Around the 9th both planets will be in the same binocular field of view. Look for the aquamarine color of Uranus.

Neptune will be close to the Sun to see this month. It will be officially in conjunction with the Sun on the 19th.

Pluto will impossible to see this month. Always a difficult target, it will be sitting very low in the eastern horizon just before dawn.