May Observing
by Dawn Davies
The weather in Texas may be yelling summer, but the skies are still spring and they are putting on quite a show. Mars, Venus and Saturn continue to dazzle in May. Some bright magnitude stars also shine brilliantly in the evening sky. Sirius, the brightest, has dipped below our horizon. Other big hitters such as Arcturus in Bootes, Capella in Auriga and Procyon in Canis Minor have replaced it. Vega, the fifth brightest star in the night sky, once again graces the night sky: it is one third of the summer triangle and foreshadows the hotter months to come.
The deep spring months bring an abundance of astronomical displays to our eyepieces, including the Eta Aquarid meteor shower peak, slightly hindered by the bright moon this month. A unique element of the night sky begins to emerge this month. The green star visible in the constellation Libra, close to the southern horizon, is Beta Librae, also known as Zuben el Chamali or the Northern Claw.
If you are an observing astronomer working toward your pins and certificates May is a great month to start the AL’s Constellation Hunter list. Seventy-five percent of the constellations on the list are visible this month, leaving just nine to view by the end of the year. If you are looking to complete your lunar list look no further than May 6 when the Moon will be full and at perigee. This will be the closest Full Moon to the earth in the past 100 years.
Should your travels mid-month take you westerly keep your protected eyes out for the annular solar eclipse on May 20.
All these events build up excitement for the night sky and are a great segue into June when we welcome the Venus Transit.
6 May full moon & moon at perigee
12 May last quarter moon
19 May moon at apogee
20 May new moon
28 May first quarter moon