Sky Watch May & June 2009
The Moon and four planets make this time of 2009 an especially interesting period to gaze at the night sky. The Moon is, of course, our closest neighbor in space and the second brightest object in the sky after the Sun. After the Sun sets and the sky begins to grow dark, depending on the date the Moon may be the first object to appear in the night sky. As the sky grows darker, look in the west and the first star-like object to appear will be the planet Saturn. On May 4th, May 31st, and June 27th, you will find the Moon nearby Saturn.
The slowly, the real stars will appear, the brightest ones first. To the west of Saturn will be the bright reddish star Regulus, the heart of Leo, the Lion. To the east of Saturn will be Arcturus and Spica. Arcturus is higher in the sky and Spica more toward the south.
As the Earth continues to turn, the planets and stars will set in the west and new objects will rise in the east. Around 12:30 a.m. the largest of all planets, Jupiter, will rise. Wait an hour or so for Jupiter to climb higher in the sky and you will easily spot this bright planet. Even though Jupiter is the largest of all the planets, it still looks star-like. On May 17th and June 13th you will find that the Moon has joined Jupiter.
Dominating the western sky are seven bright stars that form Orion, the Hunter. Two stars form his shoulders (the bright red Betelgeuse and Bellatrix), two more his knees (Saiph and the very bright Rigel) and three his belt. If you think of Orion facing you, in his left hand (on your right), he holds high his shield of faint stars. High over his head, his right hand (on your left) holds a club also made of faint stars. Orion's shield protects him from Taurus, the Bull. 
Happy New Year! While astronomy has played a role in the development of our calendar (the month is based on one moon, the time from new moon to new moon), astronomically there is really nothing special about January 1st. Perhaps you come down to the islands to escape the cold winter up north. Would it surprise you to learn that the Earth is closer to the Sun on January 4th (only 94,505,000 miles away) than on any other day this year? As the Earth orbits the Sun, its path is not a circle, but an ellipse. Thus, the distance from the Earth to the Sun is not always the same. The Earth is closest to the Sun in January and farthest from the Sun in July. 
Two bright planets dominate the western sky in the early evening. Closest the horizon and brightest is Venus. Venus is the third brightest object in the sky, after the Sun and the Moon. Venus is also the object most reported as an UFO. Sometimes the Earth's atmosphere will make Venus seem to change from white to and then red -- a perfect UFO. Slightly higher in the western sky is a somewhat fainter star-like object, the largest of all the planets, Jupiter. Near the beginning of both November and December the Moon will join these two planets low in the western sky. December 1st will find the three celestial particularly close as seen from Earth. Of course the three objects are not really close to each other, the Moon is about 240,000 miles from the Earth, while Venus and Jupiter are millions of miles away. They just appear to be close together as we seem them.
After a wonderful dinner in the Virgin Islands, go out and look to the southern sky and you will easily spot a bright, yellowish-white, star-like object. This is the largest of all the planets, Jupiter. Just to the west of Jupiter look for a bright red star. The star is Anatares, sometimes called the rival of Mars since they both are bright red.
Being on vacation is in the Virgin Islands is a time to relax and forget about the world beyond the beautiful sandy beaches and warn Caribbean water. But, how about a short vacation astronomy quiz? What is the name of the star closest to the Earth? The Sun! Question two, how far away is the Sun. If you answered 93 million miles (149.7 million km), you are right and wrong. The average distance of the Earth from the Sun is 93 million miles, but that is just the average. The Earth is closest to the Sun on July 4th when the Sun will be some 94.8 million miles (152.6 million kilometer) away.
As another beautiful Virgin Island day dissolves into a wonderful tropical night, high in the western night sky you can look for the red planet Mars. Mars is seen against the background of stars of the constellation Gemini, the Twins. Two bright stars, Castor and Pollux, mark the heads of the twin brothers. 
As another beautiful Virgin Island day dissolves into a wonderful tropical night, high in the western night sky you can look for the red planet Mars. Mars is seen against the background of stars of the constellation Gemini, the Twins. Two bright stars, Castor and Pollux, mark the heads of the twin brothers. 
Since it is winter in the northern hemisphere, most people think the Earth must be farther from the Sun. In fact, on January 2nd the Earth will be at its closest approach to the Sun for all of 2008, about 91,400,000 miles or 147,000,000 kilometers away. 
This time of this year the early evening's western sky above the Virgin Islands is dominated by a bright star-like object. It is not a star at all, but the largest of all the planets, Jupiter. If you look slightly lower in the sky you will find a bright reddish star, but not as bright as Jupiter, this is Anatares, and it marks the heart of Scorpius, the Scorpion. Scorpius is one of the few star groups that looks anything at all like its name suggests. If you look slightly to the east from Antares and even lower near the horizon, you can spot s few stars that form the Scorpion's body and long curved tail.
Looking toward the western horizon just after sunset may give you a glimpse of two planets, the one slightly higher and much brighter is Venus and lower and fainter is Saturn. They both will be setting very shortly after the Sun so they may be hard to see in the glare of sunset. Once the sky grows dark, look high in the southeastern sky and you will easily spot the largest of all the planets, Jupiter. Jupiter looks like a bright star-like object, somewhat yellowishwhite in color.
Once the beautiful Virgin Island Sun has set in the west and the sky begins to grow dark, look toward the western sky and you will easily spot two planets. Closer to the horizon and very bright is Venus. Somewhat higher in the sky is Saturn. While these two planets are millions of miles away from the Earth (and each other), during May-June they will close together as seen from the Earth. Additionally, they will be joined by our closest neighbor in space, the Moon. On May 19th the crescent moon will appear only 1 degree from the planet Venus and then early in the evening of May 22nd the Moon will be seen near Saturn. On the evening of June 30th Venus and Saturn will appear less than one degree from each other.