One of the highlights this months is the planet MARS, getting higher and higher above the eastern horizon. If you have binoculars, its great to try and use them to spot MARS this month. The red planet is steadily moving past the open star cluster known as the Beehive Cluster (M44) in Cancer. See diagram for details:
The constellation of Orion is very high and bright in the sky at the moment.
Orion’s seven brightest stars can easily be seen in Singapore’s light-polluted sky.
Betelgeuse (alpha Orionis) is a massive red supergiant that varies in brightness. Bellatrix (gamma Orionis), is blue giant star. Its name means “female warrior”, indicating that Orion may not have always been seen as a male hunter. Bellatrix is the closest of Orion’s stars (243 light years away).Out of Orion’s Belt, Alnilam (epilson Orionis) is the closest and brightest of the three. Rigel (beta Orionis) is a large blueish-white supergiant star. Sometimes it becomes the brightest star in Orion, when Betelgeuse occasionally fades.
Scanning Orion with binoculars or a telescope can reveal many more stars and wonders.
One of the most famous deep sky objects in Orion is the Orion Nebula (M42)
The Orion Nebula is a large cloud of gas (mainly hydrogen) part of which has collapsed to form young white stars.
It is visible to our naked eyes as a tiny speck below Orion’s belt. Binoculars show a hazy glow around a tight cluster of stars.
The diagram below illustrates the view of Orion Nebula through a telescope:
The tight group of four star is known as the Trapezium (theta Orionis).
Surrounding the trapezium is part of the hydrogen gas cloud, which is being illuminated by the energy from the Trapezium stars.
A number of other stars within and in front of the nebula are also visible.
The Orion Nebula is a large cloud of gas (mainly hydrogen) part of which has collapsed to form young white stars.
It is visible to our naked eyes as a tiny speck below Orion’s belt. Binoculars show a hazy glow around a tight cluster of stars.
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