Sky Tips: January 2013
Stargazing Summary
Venus, Jupiter, Mars, and Saturn are all in view as the year starts, with Jupiter dominating the sky for much of the night. Mars drops from view in early evening, with Saturn and Venus in view only in the early morning hours. January's skies offer some of the most spectacular stellar cartography of all, with brilliant Orion, Taurus, Canis Major, and others sparkling through much of the night. Fomalhaut, the lonely "autumn star," disappears in the southwest around month's end.
Radio Program Highlights
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December 31, 2012-January 6, 2013 - Ice balls: The sky objects that have inspired the most fear over the ages are also some of the most beautiful: comets. And they leave beautiful reminders after they've gone. Join us for tales of these astronomical ice balls.
January 7-13: Diamonds: The Moon has a bright companion this week that dazzles like a cosmic jewel, and we’ll have details. And we’ll also talk about real diamonds among the stars, and the cosmic origin of the diamonds here on Earth. Join us for this and more.
January 14-20: The twins: Gemini is in view all night long at this time of year, and we’ll have details on the celestial twins, including the constellation’s brightest stars and a crowded stellar family. Join us for Gemini and more.
January 21-27: Zapped!: An exploding star zapped our young solar system more than four-and-a-half billion years ago, and we’ll have details. We’ll also talk about stars that zap any nearby planets, and space rocks that zap planets and moons.
January 28-31: Distant darkness: The Andromeda galaxy is in the west on winter evenings. We’ll talk about the giant galaxy and the giant black hole in its heart, along with smaller black holes that shine brightly.
January program schedule »
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December 31, 2012-January 6, 2013 - Ice balls: The sky objects that have inspired the most fear over the ages are also some of the most beautiful: comets. And they leave beautiful reminders after they've gone. Join us for tales of these astronomical ice balls.
January 7-13: Diamonds: The Moon has a bright companion this week that dazzles like a cosmic jewel, and we’ll have details. And we’ll also talk about real diamonds among the stars, and the cosmic origin of the diamonds here on Earth. Join us for this and more.
January 14-20: The twins: Gemini is in view all night long at this time of year, and we’ll have details on the celestial twins, including the constellation’s brightest stars and a crowded stellar family. Join us for Gemini and more.
January 21-27: Zapped!: An exploding star zapped our young solar system more than four-and-a-half billion years ago, and we’ll have details. We’ll also talk about stars that zap any nearby planets, and space rocks that zap planets and moons.
January 28-31: Distant darkness: The Andromeda galaxy is in the west on winter evenings. We’ll talk about the giant galaxy and the giant black hole in its heart, along with smaller black holes that shine brightly.
January program schedule »
Hear StarDate every day on more than 300 radio stations nationwide. Find an affiliate »
This Month in StarDate Magazine
Our January/February issue brings you our Sky Almanac 2013. Month by month, the almanac provides skywatching tips, information on star parties and other events nationwide, and highlight the year's anniversaries in the history of astronomy and spaceflight. Don't miss it!
Subscribe today »
Subscribe today »
News from the Observatory
Neal Evans Named AAAS FellowSeven faculty members at The University of Texas at Austin, including Dr. Neal Evans II of the Astronomy Department, have been elected fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). Fellows are chosen annually by their peers to recognize their scientifically or socially distinguished efforts to advance science or its applications.
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The twin spacecraft that compiled this map of the Moon's gravitational field ended their mission last month by crashing into a lunar mountain. The GRAIL mission plotted tiny differences in the Moon's gravitational pull by precisely measuring the distance between the two craft as they were pulled by different parts of the lunar surface.
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