index

Welcome to this issue of
Qué tal in the Current Skies

Here you will find useful observing information about the visible planets, our Moon and other moons, the Sun, as well as various 'things' celestial. Among these web pages you will find monthly star maps for either the northern or southern hemisphere that are suitable for printout. Animated images are utilized to illustrate celestial motions such as orbital motions of the planets, and other solar orbiting objects, or apparent and real motions along the ecliptic and the local horizon. Regular features include plotting the monthly positions of the visible planets using heliocentric coordinates; following moon phases; conjunctions; the sun's apparent motion and the Earth's real motion along the ecliptic.
Scroll down for more web site information, resources, and a link to the previous month issue.

scroll down

Volume 24 Issue 12
December 2018

Month at a Glance:
This month
Click here for the month at a glance calendar.

6:50 am CST on 22 December: Jupiter and Mercury in close conjunction

Carhenge - Alliance, Nebraska

Mercury is visible over the eastern horizon in the hour or so before sunrise. Watch for a close conjunction with Jupiter on the morning of the 21^st and 22^nd.

Venus is hard to miss this month as a very bright 'morning star' over the eastern horizon at sunrise.

Mars is visible over the southern horizon at sunset and will be visible untile it sets around midnight.

Dwarf Planet Ceres rises about 2 hours before the Sun rises and is within a few degrees from the inner planet Venus.

Jupiter reappears as a morning planet but is low over the horizon before sunrise for most of the month.

Saturn Saturn is too close to the Sun this month as it moves toward solar conjunction at the end of this month.

Star Maps and More
Visit bobs-spaces for regular updates on what is up.

Contact Me

E-Mail Starwalk
-.-. .-.. . .- .-. ... -.- .. . ...

Previous Issue

Click on this link to read the Previous Issue of Qué tal? in the Current Skies

Credits and Privacy

Click here to read the Privacy Statement for this web site (I don't bite!!), and about this web site and me.

December Sky Calendar
03. Mars at Eastern Quadrature Waning Crescent Moon Near Venus and Spica 05. Waning Crescent Moon Near Mercury 06. Mars Near Neptune 07. New Moon 09. Thin 1.5-day young Waxing Crescent Moon Near Saturn 10. Moon at Descending Node 12. Moon at Apogee: 251,765 miles (405,177 km) 13. Mars and Uranus at Heliocentric Conjunction		14. Geminid Meteor Shower Waxing Crescent Moon Near Mars and Neptune 15. Mercury at Greatest Western Elongation First Quarter Moon 18. *Sun Enters* the Astronomical Sign of Sagittarius the Archer 20. Waxing Gibbous Moon Near Aldebaran 21.Close Mercury and Jupiter Conjunction December Solstice 5:23 pm EST (22:23 UT) Sun *Does not* enter the astrological sign of Capricornus		22. Mercury Near Antares Jupiter Near Antares Full Moon Ursid Meteor Shower 23. Venus near Dwarf Planet Ceres 24. Moon at Perigee: 224,352 miles (361,060 km) Moon at Ascending Node 25-26. Moon Near Regulus 29. Last Quarter Moon 30. Waning Crescent Moon near Spica

Above the Solar System at 10 day Intervals

Heliocentric Coordinaes

Name	December 02	December 12	December 22
Mercury	094^o 10'	150^o 19'	193^o 14'
Venus	091^o 38'	107^o 49'	124^o 13'
Earth	069^o 44'	079^o 54'	090^o 04'
Mars	024^o 04'	030^o 01'	035^o 53'
Ceres	284^o 55'	286^o 47'	286^o 39'
Jupiter	244^o 23'	245^o 10'	245^o 58'
Saturn	280^o 35'	280^o 53'	281^o 11'
Plot planet positions using polar graph paper that you can download from this web site - or at that web site create your own.

Above the Terrestrial Planets at 10 day Intervals

Local Time CST (UT-6)

Lee's Summit, MO

Some Astronomy Web Links

Click here.

Credits and Privacy

Click here to read the Privacy Statement for this web site (I don't bite!!), and about this web site and me.