By Astronomer Jim
Stars In February, with a focus on Orion and Taurus
The big deal this month isn’t planet viewing but instead to observe the stars! Some of the brightest constellations in the sky and some of the sky’s most famous objects will be visible.
The constellation of Orion, the hunter, will be visible the entire month, due south after dusk. Orion has several noteworthy star objects:
- The red giant star Betelgeuse is in the top left side of Orion. It is the 10th brightest star in the sky but has been strangely oscillating in brightness in recent years. Some scientists believe that Betelgeuse could explode sometime soon (within one hundred or a few thousand years) and become a super nova! It is reddish in color and is about 400 times bigger than the sun!
- Rigel is diagonally across Orion from Betelgeuse and is also very bright. It is a blue-white star, which means that it is brighter and younger than Betelgeuse. Rigel is really comprised of four separate stars. If astronomers are correct, Rigel will turn into a supergiant star and ultimately explode, possibly leaving a neutron star or a black hole! But that will be many millions of years from now.
- The belt of Orion, comprised of three stars, is easy to see with the unaided eye.
- Dangling from Orion’s belt is a sword and within that sword is the famous “Great Nebula,” M42. Within the Great Nebula, new stars are always being manufactured. A new one ignites every few million years! For stars, that is a frequent occurrence! Even with binoculars, you can see a small glowing cloud in Orion’s sword—that is M42!
In the poster to the left from Walmart: Betelgeuse is the yellowish star to the top left in Orion. The three-star belt of Orion is visible, as well as the sword dangling under the belt. The sword contains Orion’s “Great Nebula.” To the upper right of the picture is the yellow star of Aldebaron in Taurus. To the immediate right of Aldebaron is the Hyades star cluster, an open congregation of stars. To the upper right of the picture are The Pleiades, wrapped in a foggy glow of their own nebula.
- The constellation of Taurus the Bull is to the right (east) and above Orion. In mythology, Orion is fighting Taurus. Taurus is a constellation of the zodiac, which means that the paths of the planets, the moon, and sun appear to go through Taurus. Of interest to observers without a telescope, there are two sky wonders that reside in Taurus:
- On the back of Taurus the Bull is the cluster of stars called the “Seven Sisters” or “The Pleiades.” It is easily visible as a cluster of stars in Taurus, but differentiating the stars isn’t easy. A person with excellent eyesight can make out 5 or 6, but finding all 7 is hard! With binoculars, all 7 stars are easy to see. With a telescope, there are many more!
- At the base of the horns of Taurus is the yellow bright star Aldebaron. Immediately to the right of Aldebaron is a large open star cluser called “The Hyades.” Several stars in The Hyades are visible to the unaided eye.
Planets and Moon In February, 2022
- Venus, Mars, and Mercury are all in the early morning sky, near the SE horizon the entire month. On February 5th, they will be an interesting trio, somewhat close together. Very bright Venus will be in a crescent phase, with its phase just barely visible with binoculars. To the right and below Venus will be reddish and much dimmer Mars. To the left and below the other two will be dim Mercury.
- On the night of February 9th, there will be a lunar occultation! That means that the moon will appear to eclipse (to cover-up) a star. However, the star is dim and just barely visible in a dark sky. With binoculars, you should be able to see this event in the Portland area—but this star is very dim. The dark edge of the moon (on the left side on this night) will be moving toward Kappa Tauri and will cover up the star at about 8:30 pm PST. Begin looking for the star no later than 8:20 pm so you can see it before the moon covers it up!
- On the night of February 13th, the gibbous moon (that means about 3/4 full) will be close to Castor and Pollux, the two brightest stars in Gemini. This will be easy to see without any binoculars—all three in a row!
- In the early dawn of February 26th, the moon will just pass slightly below Antares, the brightest star in the constellation of Scorpius.
- Jupiter and Saturn will not be visible this month, their orbits taking them into close alignment with the sun.