Looking toward the southwestern horizon shortly after sunset you will see two reddish stars within the field of view
of your binoculars and certainly with the unaided eye. One of these is the 'Red Planet' Mars and the other is the reddish colored Antares
the brightest star in the constellation of Scorpius the Scorpion. Note that the name Scorpius is the one used in Astronomy, while Scorpio
is the name used in Astrology. Mars regularly passes by the stars of the scorpion about every two years and at times coming very close to Antares.
And given their close similarity in color and brightness and the regularity of their pairing may have been the reasoning behind the naming of the
star as Antares. Loosely translated the first three letters, 'Ant', are from the prefix meaning against, or anti. The remaining four letters, 'Ares',
is the name of the Greek God of war, Ares, and is their name for the planet Mars.
The Orionid Meteor shower reaches its peak on the mornings of Saturday and Sunday the 20th and 21st. Best viewing is looking
toward the east after midnight and before sunrise. Look for the stars of Orion - most find Orion from the 3 bright stars forming his belt. Look to the
left from the belt stars for the bright reddish star Betelgeuse (pronounced 'beetle juice') that represents Orion's right shoulder. A little further to
the left from Betelgeuse is the radiant, the area where the meteors or shooting stars will seem to be radiating outward from.
All annular meteor showers, like the Orionids, and the more well-known August Perseids, are named for the constellation the
radiant is located within. Meteor showers are the result of several factors including the reaction between the comet's dirty, icy surface with the Sun's
radiant energy and the orbital path the Earth and comets follow around the Sun. All comets leave behind clumps or clouds of comet debris, their surface material, as they come closer to the Sun's heat energy. Some of this comet debris is left along the Earth's orbital path such that the Earth regularly passes through these debris clouds. As the Earth passes through the debris the small bits of rock enter the Earth's atmosphere and as they heat from friction and melt they glow briefly appearing as streaks of light. Some meteors leave a bright glowing trail, called a train, for a few moments. The Orionids average around 20 meteors per hour so while they are not active as other meteor showers they do put on a good show.
Venus and Jupiter as well as the 6 or so bright stars making the 'winter circle' are part of the morning skies this month so while
you are out watching for shooting stars see if you can pick them out. If you are a scout working toward an Astronomy achievement award find these stars a
nd their associated constellation and you have basically completed the requirements!
