¡Sky Watch!
by Jim Walker
 
9:00 PM, May 19, 2001
      Saturn has just dropped below the horizon in the WNW, and will drop progressively lower during the rest of the year.  Jupiter is about 12 deg above the horizon, shining brightly at mag -2.0.  Mercury is near by, about 17 deg above the horizon, shining at mag -0.3.  For comparison, Sirius, in the WSW is the brightest star in the sky at mag -1.6.  Aldebaran, near the WNW horizon, glows a golden yellow, at mag 1.1.  Capella, to the NE of Aldebaran, is a prominent white star at mag 0.2.  Remember, negative magnitudes are brighter!
      The Beehive, M44, is a naked-eye open cluster (on a good night) well above Orion, nearly 60 deg above the horizon.  Old farmers used to say it was a sign of rain if you couldn't see the Beehive on a reasonably clear night without obvious clouds.
      Old friend Orion has one foot (Rigel) below the horizon, and will soon be gone entirely, nebula, belt, Betelgeuse, and all.  Not until next fall will he rise high enough in the east to show us his nebula once again at a decent altitude above the horizon.
      M13 is a magnificent globular cluster in Hercules, lying off the chart in the ENE.  As the year progresses, M13 will rise higher and higher in the early evening.  Omega Centauri, the larges globular in the sky, will also become visible in the south as the summer wears on.

You can print a copy of this star chart so you can take it outside.

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