February 2016 Sky
- Posted by OCastronomy
- On February 1, 2016
- 0 Comments
- Aldebaran, Beehive cluster, Jupiter, Mars, Mercury, Pleiades, Regulus, Saturn, Spica, Venus, Zodiacal Light
February 2016 Sky
| 1 | Last Quarter Moon at 3:28 UT. |
| 1 | Moon near Mars (87° from Sun, morning sky) at 10h UT. Mag. +0.8. |
| 3 | Moon near Saturn (60° from Sun, morning sky) at 19h UT. Mag. +0.5. |
| 6 | Moon near Venus (30° from Sun, morning sky) at 7h UT. Mag. -4.0. |
| 6 | Moon near Mercury (26° from Sun, morning sky) at 16h UT. Mag. 0.0. A good opportunity to view this elusive planet. |
| 7 | Mercury at greatest elongation, 26° west of Sun (morning sky) at 1h UT. Mag. 0.0. |
| 8 | New Moon at 14:39 UT. Start of lunation 1152. • Lunation Number (Wikipedia) |
| 11 | Moon at perigee (closest to Earth) at 3h UT (364,360 km; angular size 32.8′). |
| 13 | Mercury 4.0° E of Venus (25° and 29° from Sun, morning sky) at 3h UT. Mags. -0.1 and -4.0. |
| 15 | First Quarter Moon at 7:46 UT. |
| 15 | Moon near the Pleiades (evening sky) at 14h UT. • The Pleiades (Wikipedia) |
| 16 | Moon very near Aldebaran (evening sky) at 6h UT. Occultation visible from Hawaii, Philippines, Taiwan. • Occultation of Aldebaran (IOTA) |
| 20 | Moon near Beehive cluster (evening sky) at 17h UT. • Beehive Cluster (Wikipedia) • M44: The Beehive Cluster (APOD) |
| 22 | Moon near Regulus (midnight sky) at 12h UT. |
| 22 | Full Moon at 18:20 UT. |
| 24 | Moon near Jupiter (165° from Sun, morning sky) at 3h UT. Mag. -2.5. |
| 26 | Moon near Spica (morning sky) at 23h UT. |
| 27 | Moon at apogee (farthest from Earth) at 3h UT (distance 405,383 km; angular size 29.5′). |
| 29 | Leap Day added to February so this year is 366 days long. |
| 29 | Moon near Mars (morning sky) at 20h UT. Mag. +0.8. |
| The Zodiacal Light is caused by sunlight reflected off meteoric dust in the plane of the solar system. Choose a clear, moonless night, about 1-2 hours after sunset, and look for a large triangular-shaped glow extending up from the horizon | |
| (along the ecliptic). The best months to view the Zodiacal Light is when the ecliptic is almost vertical at the horizon: March and April (evening) and October-November (morning); times reversed for the southern hemisphere. • Zodiacal Light (Wikipedia) • Astronomy Picture of the Day (APOD) • Photographing the Zodiacal Light (Weatherscapes) |
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| February 2016 Sky All times Universal Time (UT). USA Eastern Standard Time = UT – 5 hours. | |
