Such a beautiful description of the glory of the night sky, Digs! It was as if I was outside looking at it as well. Thanks for sharing it with us.

I stepped outside last night as well, but I'm getting soft I guess...I'd forgotten what a -20F/-29C windchill feels like. And it'll be -40 when I try to spot Jupiter near the moon tomorrow.

Last night the skies treated our area to a cloudless view, thereby letting us see the Jupiter/Moon conjunction in all its beauty. What a sight! And it is lovely to see the Hunter appearing in the evening sky. For so long I was watching it move across the heavens in the early morning hours, and quite miss it there now, but at least it's with us after supper.

DiGs, your beautiful description above indeed feels like we were right there observing with you. Very evocative!

Puddleglum, have you had time to bring the telescope outside yet this winter season? To be sure, it is trickier with the cold, snow, and ice. I wish our youngest son was home regularly to use his. He's such a whipper-snipper at it, whilst I try and fumble my way through the different settings and lenses, etc.

Oooh yes, 'twas frigid last night when stepping outside to see Jupiter and the Moon so close together—not quite as cold as your area, 'gazer, but not far off, being around -27C/-16.6F with the windchill. But what a sky!

Someone sent me this—a handy, dandy guide of some key astronomical events for this year. For more details, keep up with skyandtelescope.com.

Also, one of our sons emailed this to me earlier today. He isn't sure where it's originally from, as a friend sent it to him without much explanation, but it's kinda fun seeing 'us' from the Mars Rover. I'm curious what the two other bright orbs are. (Or if the entire thing is photoshopped. )

Just wanted to post in here briefly that I've enjoyed watching the moon set through my bedroom window these past few early mornings. Been up feeding the kiddo from 2:30 to 4am.

Watching those early-morning moonsets sounds quite nice, fantasia (except for the losing sleep part!).

Last month I was fortunate to spot Jupiter near the moon before sunset, using binoculars. My brother-in-law also enjoyed this first glimpse of Jupiter in daylight.

Jo, that picture is computer-generated from a planetarium program. It does show a real scene (Jupiter, Venus, and the earth as seen from Mars sometime in 2010) but is not a real picture. But there are pictures of earth as seen from Mars; here is one from Goddard's Flickr account.

The close approach of asteroid 2012DA14 on February 15 is getting some attention in the press and TV - along with some misleading statements. It is not 'huge' (about 50 meters across, about the size of an Olympic swimming pool) and will not be visible in broad daylight (it'll reach magnitude 8 or so, visible in amateur-size telescopes on the night side of the earth, but will be moving so fast it will be a challenge even then).

More info: Asteroid 2012DA14 to Zip Past Earth

Crazy stuff going on today. Russia got hit by quite a meteor. Here's the link Jo posted on her FB page.
http://www.skyandtelescope.com/news/hom ... 79871.html
I think I heard that nobody was killed? Though several people were hurt.

I found a website that I guess will be live streaming the passing of 2012DA14 for anyone who wants to watch. I'm on the wrong side of the earth to go out with binoculars or whatever to see it.
http://cosmiclog.nbcnews.com/_news/2013 ... video?lite

Just wanted to post in here briefly that I've enjoyed watching the moon set through my bedroom window these past few early mornings. Been up feeding the kiddo from 2:30 to 4am.

I remember those days. Well, at least you have the beauty of the night sky to enjoy during those hours.

Thanks for the heads up on that picture, 'gazer. Also, thanks for that link, wow! And how cool you and your brother-in-law saw Jupiter prior to sunset.

That Russia meteor is quite the story ... and visual, amazing! Just glad there weren't any fatalities, but sad that some were hurt, even so.

We have had so much cloud here of late that the night sky seems elusive. Even if there is a break in the early morning or evening hours, clouds inevitably move in again. However, the few times it has been clear, it's so awesome to see that winter sky in all its glory whose starry orbs seem to sparkle far more than in the heat of the summer.

Those are some impressive videos of the Russian meteor strike. Seems everyone has a phone or camera these days. I was most surprised by the multiple sonic booms when it exploded.

I was struck by the irony of this coming so close to the passage of 2012DA14, when so many astronomers were pointing out the fairly small size of that object and that we were safe from it hitting us.

For those in the Northern Hemisphere, little hard-to-see Mercury is putting on a good show in the southwest sky after sunset. Check it out over the next few days. (This is an unfavorable appearance for Southern Hemisphere viewers).

Seems everyone has a phone or camera these days.

I don't know if this is true or not, but I heard that there's so much corruption in Russia (somebody causes and accident and then tries to blame someone else) that pretty much everyone has a dashboard camera to prove their innocence, and that's why so many people caught that meteor on video.

I don't know if this is true or not, but I heard that there's so much corruption in Russia (somebody causes and accident and then tries to blame someone else) that pretty much everyone has a dashboard camera to prove their innocence, and that's why so many people caught that meteor on video.

haha, well, there is a good deal of truth in that

Those are some impressive videos of the Russian meteor strike. Seems everyone has a phone or camera these days. I was most surprised by the multiple sonic booms when it exploded.

my brother-in-law's mother and brother live in that city and they said that all the windows in the building were smashed from the sonic booms. I also have a friend there, this was her account of it (only it's translated so it may sound kinda rough)
"So, we were sitting in school, suddenly there was a bright explosion. We all got up and ran to the windows, and saw a white trail of smoke. We just sat back down at our desks, when there was a loud sort of clap, it got warm and then the window smashed. We all screamed and ran to the door. The rest of classtime we were trying to calm down, most of us ran off home. What can I say, the day was a success." Then she added, "nothing cheers you more, than a morning meteor."

right now, its become everyone's favorite topic for a joke, one of the most popular being then end of the world coming at last, only it was delayed because it was brought by the Russian postal system (which is famous for it's delays )

Back from winter camping with the Scouts this weekend. We had a bonfire Saturday night, and found our well lite by a near-full moon. I went out later to make sure the coals were compleatly out, and was wanting a camera sooooo bad. Ever have one of those nights where you want to be able to just stand there? The moon cast an almost blue light over everything, with the branches of the trees making perfect shadows on the ground.
I could also make out Jupiter near Pleadies, and unless I'm mistaken Mars was nearby as well.
All in all a perfect weekend for winter wandering.

I suspect, Puddleglum, that the object you saw was actually Aldebaran, the reddish eye of Taurus the Bull, rather than Mars (which is hiding close to the glare of the sun at present). Nevertheless, your camping observation sounds wonderful! (Stargazing while camping is one of my favorite ways to enjoy the sky).

"nothing cheers you more, than a morning meteor."

Well-said! I like it.

Thanks for sharing this eye-witness account, wild rose. I enjoyed reading it.

2013 has been touted as a year of potentially exciting comets, with the first, Comet PanSTARRS, due to shine in the western skies after dusk through much of March. But comets are notoriously unpredictable in terms of brightness, and this one may reach only magnitude 2 in the post-sunset twilight a couple weeks from now...still worth looking for, however!

Keep tabs on PanSTARRS here.

wild rose, it's really fascinating to hear the first-hand reports of the meteor from your friends, wow! Love the line, "nothing cheers you more, than a morning meteor."
*chuckles at the Russian postal system funny*

Puddleglum, that sounds like a wonderful camping time. How great you had a clear view to enjoy the glory of the sky.

Ever have one of those nights where you want to be able to just stand there?

Indeed!

Thanks for that link on the comet, stargazer. Here's hoping for a least one clear night during that time so I can attempt to view it. As the western horizon is blocked by trees where we are, I will head over to a local schoolyard, which gives a good viewing of the lower west.

As is usual for this time of year, overcast skies remains quite consistent here, with the odd exception. Next week, however, looks like there may be a chance of those dissipating once or twice.

It's been cloudy here of late as well, jo, with most of February socked in. However, I was able to catch up on the night sky upon leaving Ryadian's house this morning around 1 am - and was treated to the sight of another rather impressive fireball (magnitude -6 or so) lighting up the southern sky (though this morning meteor was nothing like the Russian one ). This American Meteor Society report shows several others in this area also saw it.

Comet PanSTARRS is now dimly visible to the unaided eye for Southern Hemisphere observers. Keep those binoculars handy!

Thank you stargazer, I keep forgetting to bring my starchart whenever I go out with the Scouts. One of these years my brain might catch up with the rest of me.

and was treated to the sight of another rather impressive fireball (magnitude -6 or so) lighting up the southern sky

Verrrrry nice! What a treat those unexpected night sky viewings are.

Comet PanSTARRS is now dimly visible to the unaided eye for Southern Hemisphere observers. Keep those binoculars handy!

I am tickled pink and exceedingly pleased to report that after a week dominated by clouds, the skies were clear all day and evening yesterday so we grabbed this one chance. We were in the city all day, arriving home around 7:45, still a wee bit early to catch the comet. We grabbed our good binoculars at 8:10 and headed out for the schoolyard. Man, the sky was gorgeous with the sun below the horizon and the sky showing so many shades of blue as it faded to black higher up.

For the first few minutes, I panned the sky with no success. Still a bit too light. Last night the comet was two fists down and a bit to the right of the Moon, so we were naturally seeking all around that area. It's tricky to look into the sky with binoculars when there is no object within the viewing field for reference. But as the sky began to darken, I caught a glimpse of something that was soon obviously PanSTARRS and was so excited, I yelled for our daughter to come see (she was in the car warming up ), but in my enthusiasm, I forgot to place where I saw the comet in relation to the trees below. Anyway, I found it again eventually and Nellie and I zeroed in on four groups of trees in the distance so as to gauge more exactly where to look as we slowly raised the binoculars up, in switching them back and forth between us. We were amazed that even in the time it took for Nellie to pass them to me and back to her again, how much PanSTARRS had moved. It was setting quickly! What a sight. That Q-tip fuzzy bit with the tail streaming above it, wow! We stood there, mesmerized, until it set below the tree line. And then we enjoyed the glories of the rest of the night sky.

The Moon was spectacular, with its earthshine being very prominent. And Orion, as always, is a delight and an awe, as his belts points down to Sirius and up to Jupiter. Then beyond, the Pleiades, which is so compact: it has to be the cutest star cluster.

Anyway, if it were not for the clear skies yesterday, we would not have had this wonderful opportunity to see PanSTARRS. I think I woke the neighbourhood when I initially spotted it!

*a link to a helpful and informative skyandtelescope article*