Happy New Year everyone. I don’t think it’s 2021! Happy birthday to my 1971 graduates from North Smithfield High School. Perhaps later this year, we will be able to mark this milestone in our lives. For now, I’ll focus on some of the celestial events for 2021. We’re always at the mercy of Southern New England’s local weather, but I hope when the skies are clear you’ll make it outside to experience on a few beautiful Mother Nature events.
We are lucky that the sky gods gave us a reasonable meteor shower for the northern hemisphere sky viewers to start the new year. On the night of January 2-3, the peak of the Quadrantid meteor shower occurred. These fast-shooting stars explode across the sky at 25.5 miles per second. Usually blue in color, the Quadrantids can appear anywhere in the sky, but their radiant point (the area of the sky from which the meteors originally came) is not far from the last star, Alkaid, of the Big Dipper’s hand. From midnight to morning, this area of sky rose higher and higher above the northeast horizon.
While a Quadrantid meteor shower can produce up to 100 meteors at maximum, it was likely that 60 meteors per hour would be less under a moonless sky.
Also, on January 2, the Earth was at perihelion – closest to the Sun for the year. Why, then, is this time of year usually so cold for us in New England? The northern hemisphere where we are located is filtered away from the Sun because the Earth’s orbital axis is still located in space in its solar orbit. Here is a short video update on the topic: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NweLxtmnzv4. Head to the southern hemisphere if you want to bask in the more direct rays of the sun.
For those who get up early, in the first week of January you can still see brilliant Venus low in the southeastern skies before sunrise. Venus will soon be inaccessible as it moves closer to the Sun from our vantage point in space. Venus returns to the very low evening sky after sunset in the northwest in early June.
The innermost planet of the solar system, Mercury, is only visible when it moves away from the Sun as it can be seen from Earth. We see Mercury in the eastern skies before sunrise, or in the western skies after sunset. These events are called elongations. Some elongations are better than others.
On January 24, Mercury will appear low in the southwestern skies within 10 degrees of the horizon in the late afternoon. Another evening expansion takes place on the night of May 17, about 12 degrees above the northwest horizon at the end of the evening as well. For early risers there is a morning extension on October 25, when Mercury will appear about 10 degrees above the southeast horizon. These dates will give you the best chance of getting a glimpse of this hellish world (unless you were lucky enough to see it move across the face of the sun on November 11 last).
Do you remember where you stored your eclipse sunglasses after the Aug. eclipse. 21, 2017? Well, I give you advance notice to find them in preparation for the June 10 solar supply part. This event will be something special, as the eclipse is already in progress as the sun rises in the morning. You need an unobstructed view of the northeast horizon to see the beginning of this event. The sun is visible, looking over the horizon, at around 5:15 am. When the sun clears the horizon completely two minutes later, 53 percent of the sun ‘s surface is already covered by the Moon. A moderate or maximum eclipse occurs at 5:32 am when 72 percent of the sun’s surface is obscured. After that time the Moon moves away from the Sun and the eclipse ends at 6:31 am. From start to finish for us in Rhode Island, the duration of this eclipse will be approximately one hour and 17 minutes. I will provide a more extensive article on the details, including warnings on how to watch it safely, in my June column.
In addition, another eclipse is to be seen locally in 2021, but this time there is a lunar eclipse in part. Shortly after midnight on the morning of November 19, the Full Moon of the Beaver shines through the Earth’s dark shadow. The eclipse will begin at 1:20 am EST with the Moon high in the sky, 64 degrees above the southern horizon. The center of an eclipse, or when most of the lunar surface is immersed in the shadow eclipse, occurs at 4:20 am and 97% of the lunar disk is cut. After that hour, the Moon will begin to slip out of the Earth’s shadow. For us here, the Moon will sit under the northwest horizon at 6:50 am before the end of the eclipse. This eclipse occurs with the Moon inside the Taurus constellation. Before the eclipse begins you may see the star assemblages of Hyades and Pleiades above and to the left of the moon. As the brightness of the Full Moon decreases as it enters the shadow of the Earth, watch for these star assemblages appear as if someone were making a small change. I will provide more information in my column in November.
I am a little hopeful that the local observatories will be able to resume public observation sessions later this year. Frosty Drew has remained open under the strict COVID-19 discount protocols. See their website for details. However, while the other viewpoints are closed, visit their websites for a wealth of celestial information.
Some of the topics highlighted in this column can be covered in depth as the date of an event approaches.
Please cut and save the following chart showing the prospects for 2021 meteor shots. These displays of shooting stars only need your eyes, dark skies, and patience to enjoy.
Keep your eyes on the skies for 2021 and always.
Before you know it, I’ll be writing my ambitions column for 2022!
Stay safe and stay healthy.
The author has been involved in the field of observational astronomy in Rhode Island for over 35 years. He serves as historian Skyscrapers Inc., the second oldest amateur astronomical society in the United States.