The Night Sky in May 2007

Sunrise and Sunset Times for the UK

	Edinburgh Sunrise Sunset		Manchester Sunrise Sunset		London Sunrise Sunset
May 01	05:29	20:50	05:34	20:38	05:32	20:23
May 15	05:02	21:16	05:09	21:01	05:09	20:44
May 30	04:40	21:40	04:50	21:22	04:52	21:04

To find out today's sunrise and sunset times for where you are, click here

Phases of the Moon (May 2007)


Full Moon Wednesday 2nd	Last quarter Thursday 10th	New Moon Wednesday 16th	First quarter Wednesday 23rd

Click HERE to see the phase of the Moon on each day of the month.

What's happening in the May night sky?

The days are drawing out noticebly and it's scary to think that we will reach the Summer Solstice (or longest day) in just over a months time. The late sunsets mean that you will have to stay up well into the evening to be in with a chance of getting a clear view of the night sky. If you do, then you may catch one of the following monthly highlights.

Maps of the current night sky can be seen by clicking HERE

May 22nd - Lunar Occultation of Jupiter

Saturn Occultation

Observers in the south of the UK will have the chance to see an occultation of the planet Saturn by the first-quarter phase Moon. An occultation occurs when a more distant object, such as a star or planet, passes behind a close object like the Moon. Although Saturn will move behind the Moon during daylight (around 8:11pm), it will re-emerge around 20 minutes after sunset (around 9:18pm)

Because sunset times vary across the country, observers in the north will struggle to witness the reappearance of the ringed planet due to the brightness of the sky. Even those in the south (below Birmingham) may need to use binoculars or a small telescope to see any of the action. These occultations only occur a couple of times a year, so it may be worth a look if you have good weather.

What are the planets up to?

Click HERE and start the Electric Orrery to see where all the planets are today in relation to each other.

Mercury - starts the month lost in the glare of the Sun as it passes superior conjunction (other side of Sun to Earth) on the 3rd of May, and soon after emerges as an evening object. By the months end, Mercury will remain above the western horizon for around two hours after sunset, giving us all a good chance of seeing it with the naked eye.

Venus - is the brightest planet and will remain an evening object right through until August 2007 as it slowly catches us up on its inside orbit. In early May it can be found high above the western horizon for around 4 hours after sunset, setting just after midnight. Things don't change much during the month, with Venus setting no more than 30 mins after midnight. Because of its brightness, there is little chance of missing Venus on a clear evening, outshining everything in the Western sky.

Mars - will remain a morning object for some time to come. At the start of the month, Mars rises in the east around 90 minutes before sunrise, increasing to 2 hours by the end of the month as we continue to catch it up on our inside track. Mars is fairly easy to identify by looking for a reddish star shining more steadily (i.e. not twinkling as much) than the others. In another month or so, Mars will become a suitable target for the Liverpool Telescope again.

Jupiter - rises in the east-southeast around 11.30 pm and can be found low above the southern horizon close to 3.30 am. These times moves forward a couple of hours by the end of the month, with the gas-giant rising around sunset. Jupiter makes a good target to observe for the next few months using Go Observing, although June will provide the best opportunity.

Saturn - remains a good target for planetary observations, but continues to decrease in size and brightness as we move slowly away on our inside orbit. Saturn can be found high above the southwest horizon shortly after sunset and sets in the west close to 3.00 am. This moves forward to 1.00 am by the end of the month as we continue to move away. Why not use the Electric Orrery to see how Earth and Saturn move apart.

Constellation of the month

Each month, a new constellation is highlighted for you to identify in the night sky.

This month, we are going to look above the southern horizon just after sunset to see if we can find the constellation of Leo (the Lion). Leo is one of the few constellations that almost resembles its name with the lion's head and mane appearing to the top right.

May Night Sky

The most prominent star in Leo is Regulus, which occupies the front knee location. Regulus is a hot blue-white star, some five times bigger than the Sun and only a mere 90 light years away. Leo is well known for containing many bright galaxies, one of which is the barred spiral galaxy M95 (shown below). As the name suggests these are spiral galaxies that have a central bar-shaped structure comprised of stars. Bars are found in about half of all spiral galaxies and astronomers think that our own galaxy, the Milky Way, has a bar structure near the galactic centre. If you would like to learn a little more about the different types of galaxies, then follow this link.

M95 Barred Spiral Galaxy

Mythology: Leo

Hercules' first labour was to kill the Nemean lion, a fierce beast who descended to Earth from the Moon in the form of a meteor and ravaged the countryside of Corinth. The lion had hide so tough that neither spear nor arrow nor any other weapon could pierce it. So well known was the beast that Hercules had no trouble finding its lair, a cave with two entrances. As Hercules approached, the lion showed itself and Hercules sped an arrow toward its heart. The arrow merely bounced off and fell to the ground. Hercules now knew that arrows or spears were useless against the beast. He then sealed off one of the entrances to the cave and pursued the lion inside through the other entrance. So great was his strength that Hercules seized the lion and strangled it to death by ramming his fist down its throat. He then flung it over his shoulder and returned to show King Eurystheus that he had fulfilled his first labour. The cowardly king was terrified at the sight of the beast and fled. Hercules then skinned the lion and used its tough hide as a protective shield.

So angry was Hera (Queen of the Gods) at Hercules' success that she raised the soul of the lion high into the sky, where today he can be seen as the constellation Leo, the Lion.