The Night Sky October 2019
An often forgotten and rare phenomenon that occurs this month is the appearance of Zodiacal Light. If you are up early in the first half of this month, look towards the East over Bolton Abbey. You may be lucky enough to see a faint pyramid of glowing light. I’ll be on the hunt for it too as I have never seen it myself. It is our sun’s light reflecting off tiny particles or cosmic dust in space. Also known as a false dawn, it is a very eerie light that can only be seen in a dark country night sky such as ours.
It is best to catch it at the beginning of the month before the increasing phase of the Moon spoils the show.
The Full Moon on the 13th of this month is called the Hunter’s Moon. It is named after Herne the Hunter, who leads his dogs across the heavens as they yelp across the early winter sky. In reality, it will probably be the wild geese migrating from the likes of Embsay Reservoir to warmer climes.
Halley’s Comet.
As the month progresses and the moon fades, there will be a chance to see another light show in the form of a meteor shower caused by one of the most famous comets of all, Halley’s Comet. I remember watching Halley’s Comet in 1986. It wasn’t the most impressive of displays but historically it seems to turn up at key times. The first known observation was 239 BC, returning every 75 years and next projected to return in 2061. Currently, it is still heading outward into deep space from its last visit until November 2023. Then it will fall back towards the sun and fly past again. Some people have linked its appearance to the Star of Bethlehem, the defeat of Attila the Hun and it is depicted on the Bayeux Tapestry. Good news for William but clearly regarded as a bad omen for Harold! Each year the Earth passes through the route the comet has made countless times, bumping into the dust and remnants it has left as it repeatedly crosses our orbit. Sometimes the streaks that light up the sky are drowned out by moonlight, but not this year because in the early hours of 22nd and 23rd the moon will be well out of the way. The stream of debris is called the Orionid meteor shower. Look out just before dawn to get the best views. They will seem to originate from Betelgeuse, the top left-hand star of Orion.
Planet Feast
At the end of the month, looking South West in the early evening, you will be able to see Saturn, the crescent Moon, Jupiter and a very bright Venus on your right. Just popping above the horizon close to Venus is Mercury.
As if that wasn’t enough, Uranus will be visible with the naked eye, half-way up the sky in the South East. Uranus will come the closest to Earth on the 27th but is still quite faint. This is a great chance to spot five planets all at once.
The clocks go back an hour on October 27th at 2am as British Summer Time (BST) ends.
Comments