Sun rises at 6:33am
Sun sets at 5:37pm
Moon phase: first quarter phase, waxing towards full
Moon rises at 1:02pm
Moon sets at 1:36am
We are almost at the Winter Solstice, December 22, which marks the longest night of the year and shortest day for those located north of the equator. On this day, residents of at the Arctic Circle won’t see the sun at all. Farther north than that, there are quite a few “dark days” where the sun never rises! Our tropical location means we hardly notice these annual shifts unless we study the skies for subtle signs.
For instance, if you observe the sun rise and sun set daily from the same vantage point, you will see that the sun rises and sets farther south in the next few days than at any other time of the year. Directions of shadows cast by the sun can also be an indicator of these changes in the position of the earth in the solar system as it travels around the sun in a 365-day-long orbit. Starting next Wednesday, the days will be getting longer and the sun will appear to shift to the north slightly. These trends will continue until the summer solstice in June.
Early evening
Looking west-southwest after sunset, the planet Mercury is visible from about 6:00pm until about 6:50pm. Evening Constellations include Altair the eagle with its bright star Altair, which is headed below the western horizon by 7:30pm. About that time, turn around and face east to observe the rising group of our now familiar constellations: Taurus, Orion and the Pleiades.
To the left of Orion, we see the twin stars Castor and Pollux that mark the heads of the Gemini brothers. To the left of Taurus, we see Auriga the goat herder, who holds the bright star Capella in his arms, signifying a young goat. High overhead are Cassiopeia, the queen on her throne (a pattern that resembles a sideways W), Andromeda the princess stands next to her mother and beside Perseus, the hero. These constellations are so high up, you can strain your neck looking for very long – a chaise lounge is to be recommended.
The small constellation Tucana, the toucan, stands directly on the southern horizon from 6:30 until 8:30pm. As with most constellations of the southern hemisphere, this one is new to most of us.
Early morning
The Ursid meteor shower, which will probably be at its best on the night of December 22, will fight with the light from the waxing moon, but you never know, it’s worth a gaze to see if you catch the sight. The faint streams of falling stars will radiate out of the northern horizon in the vicinity of the Little Dipper and the north star. The evening hours of December 22 until pre-dawn hours of December 23 promise to be the best viewing. This particular meteor shower has been observed for only a single century, while the Geminids which we looked for last week have been well known for a millennium. The Ursids (meaning bear, another name for the dipper) were discovered by an amateur sky watcher, like one of us, in 1900.
The planet Saturn is just climbing into view in the morning sky. It’s quite low in the southeast at dawn tomorrow and looks like a moderately bright star. The giant planet will climb into much better view by year’s end.
Christmas night
After the presents, the food and the football, find a moment to enjoy the full moon with those you love. It will be bright and clear, weather permitting, the first time in decades we have had a full moon on Christmas night!
If you are out later on in the week, each star rises about four minutes earlier each day than written here, and the moon rises 50 minutes later.
