As of: January 29, 2024, 12:35 p.m
By: Tanja Banner
Comments
Press
Split
The stars of the February sky tell of the changing seasons and distant galaxies.
Watch the dance of Sirius and the arrival of the lion.
Munich – Knowledge of the starry sky makes it possible to determine the current season.
In February, the winter hexagon, which consists of the bright stars Kapella, Aldebaran, Sirius, Rigel, Procyon and Pollux, has already moved significantly to the west.
Although the winter constellations such as the striking Orion are still visible, the first spring constellations are already appearing in the east.
At the forefront of this movement is the constellation Leo, considered the main constellation of the spring sky, appearing in the southeast.
The constellation Gemini, which represents the two brothers Castor and Pollux from Greek mythology, can be seen in the sky high in the south.
The two brightest stars in the constellation, also called Castor and Pollux, are usually quite noticeable in the sky.
In February, the star Sirius cannot be overlooked.
This brightest star in the night sky appears in the east in the early evening and flickers tirelessly and brightly in the sky.
This is partly due to the brightness of Sirius - the bright starlight has to break through the atmosphere.
Since Sirius is relatively low in the sky, the air turbulence is greater - the star sparkles and even seems to dance.
Starry sky in February: Open star clusters offer a great sight
For those exploring the sky with binoculars in February, the open star clusters Pleiades (M45) and Hyades offer impressive motifs.
The open star cluster Praesepe (Latin for nativity scene, M44) can also be seen in the constellation Cancer.
In English-speaking countries, this star cluster is called the “Beehive” because it is teeming with stars in binoculars.
In fact, M44 contains about 300 stars located about 600 light-years from Earth.
However, only 50 of the brightest stars are visible in binoculars.
There is a lot to see in the starry sky.
(Symbolic image) © IMAGO/Gala Martínez López
The spiral nebula M51, also known as the Whirlpool Galaxy or Whirlpool Galaxy, awaits observation in the constellation of Hounds.
With a telescope (from ten inches) the spiral shape can be clearly seen.
M51 is about 25 million light-years from Earth.
Star occultation in February: Moon covers 40 Arietis - observable in binoculars
A remarkable event will take place in the sky on February 15th, visible even with simple binoculars: the bright star 40 Arietis will be covered by the Moon.
Uwe Pilz from the Association of Star Friends (VdS) explains this phenomenon to
merkur.de
from
IPPEN.MEDIA
: “The entry occurs at the dark edge of the moon and is therefore easy to observe.
It’s nothing to the naked eye, but the smallest binoculars are enough.”
My news
Dark object discovered in space: “Whatever it is, it’s exciting news” read
When the next full moon will be in the sky - read the list with all the dates for 2024
Exoplanet K2-18b: Has the James Webb Telescope discovered signs of life?read
Why do dogs wag their tails but wolves don't? read
Which planet is closest to Earth?
The answer is harder than expected to read
How high is the risk of earthquakes in Germany?
An expert calls the most vulnerable region reading
At 7:12 p.m. the moon begins to obscure the star.
For about an hour, 40 Arietis, a star in the constellation Aries, disappears behind the moon before becoming visible again on the opposite side.
“The exit at 8:19 p.m. is more difficult to observe; a telescope would be better here,” advises Pilz.
“But even in binoculars, after a quarter of an hour you can see the star very close to the moon’s disk.”
Planets and the full moon can be seen in the sky in February
At the time of the star occultation, the moon is in the waxing phase, but is not yet a crescent.
The full moon will not be in the sky until February 24th.
In February, some planets are also visible in the night sky, but fewer than before.
Although Mercury was visible at times in January, it is not visible in February.
Venus, on the other hand, remains visible in the morning sky, although not as long or as clearly as in previous months.
It will disappear from the sky in March and only reappear as an evening star in August.
On February 22, Venus meets the red planet Mars in the sky, but this encounter cannot be observed.
This is partly because Mars is still too close to the sun.
The red planet will not appear in the sky until the end of May and will become more visible as the year progresses.
Jupiter, on the other hand, can be seen less and less in the evening sky.
While a few months ago it could be observed all night long, in February it is only visible in the first half of the night.
In May, the largest planet in our solar system will disappear from the evening sky, only to reappear in the morning sky in June.
Saturn cannot be seen in the sky at all in February
Saturn won't be visible in the sky at all in February - it won't appear in the morning sky again until March.
The two ice giants Neptune and Uranus are not visible in the sky with the naked eye.
Uranus can be spotted in the constellation Aries in the evening hours using binoculars or a telescope.
Neptune, on the other hand, can hardly be tracked down in February, even with aids.
The editor wrote this article and then used an AI language model for optimization at her own discretion. All information has been carefully checked.
Learn more about our AI principles here
.