Sky Matters: November is a great month for skywatchers

NOVEMBER is a great month for skywatchers. The skies are at last getting dark and crisp at a reasonable hour and the winter constellations like Orion, which have been teasing us over recent weeks, are now assuming prominence in the night sky.

At this time of the year the Sun sets well below the horizon and ceases to cause any detectable skyglow between the hours of about 5pm and 5 or 6am. The atmosphere is also generally more stable, and observing conditions particularly good after a shower of rain. Look out for Jupiter to the south-east in the morning sky and especially on November 25, when it will be only a few degrees away from a beautiful waxing crescent moon. Earlier in the month, on November 14, the full moon will be the largest “supermoon” of the year, and it’s still not too late to catch the supermoon in October which occurs on the 22nd.

The Leonids’ meteor shower peaks on the nights of November 16 and 17, but the bright moon will make it difficult to observe the fainter meteors. This shower is strongest about every 33 years when the comet that generates the dust for the meteors, called Tempel-Tuttel, returns to the inner solar system. The result can be hundreds to thousands of meteors per hour, which must be one of the finest celestial wonders when it happens. That next peak is 2034, however, and don’t expect too much this year, perhaps 10-15 per hour! It’s always worth remembering that observing with the unaided eye is the best way to see meteors and that meteors can appear anywhere in the sky.