The Kudzu Files

Will Mars Look As Big As The Moon?

It's BAAAAAAACK!!!! That stupid email about Mars looming in our night sky like a big ol' 'nuther Moon is making the rounds again. No! It won't happen!! It can't happen!!!

No, not at all. Or, mostly not at all. This began in 2003, when Mars really did make the closest approach in modern human history. But it still just appeared as a bright red star. The original information was meant for stargazers, not really the general public. Through a telescope, at a magnification of 35 power, Mars would appear through the telescope to be about the same size as the Moon with the naked eye (not through the telescope). Comprehendo? The first time it came around, I think it was an honest misunderstanding. Second time, in 2005, might have been another honest misunderstanding. Third time? I sorta think people are deliberately sending this around.

If Mars ever got close enough to appear naked eye as big as the Moon, like this has led some folk to believe, the gravitational disruption would end human civilization and change Earth's orbit. Bad news, worse than Bush getting a third term.

I wrote about this last year, when it didn't even have the decency to come around at the right time (Mars is on a roughly 2-year close approach cycle thing).

But we like the Moon!

Layers Of Night Descending

This was the sunset I watched Wednesday while I was waiting to see Comet McNaught. Being alone on that hilltop, watching this, was a very peaceful time.

Comet McNaught Again

After going out Monday and Tuesday evening and failing to see the comet, I went back out yesterday armed with some information a friend had sent me. I realized that I was going out too late for my latitude - farther north, in the 40-latitudes, it's higher in the sky, although it's never been very high, lower than Venus. So I realized I had been going out too late, arriving at my chosen spot - a hilltop northwest of town with a great view of the western horizon - around 5:45, when the sky was getting decently dark. Last night, I got there an hour earlier, watched the sun go down (which was a great experience in itself, I need do that more often), and around 5:15 began looking for the comet. At 5:35, I found it, using my 10x50 binoculars. Very low - maybe 7 degrees above the horizon, in a fading pink sky. But the comet was so bright that I could see it naked eye, once I knew where to look. I got a better view using my 80mm f/5 refractor - a bright central head, with two fairly short but wide and bright tails. I tried taking a few pictures, which I'll post later if they come out (I was using my old Pentax SLR, not digital). It's a nice comet, worth being late for dinner with a few friends. "Yes", I told them, "you are less important than a comet". Friends come to town every year or two, comets less often. This one was worth seeing.

Comet McNaught

For those in the mid-northern latitudes, if you have a clear view of the western horizon, look just after sunset today. In the southwest you'll see Venus, very bright. If you look to the north of Venus, you should be able to see Comet McNaught, which might be much brighter even than Venus (comets tend to be a bit unpredictable). It's only going to be there for the next few days before it heads south.

Addendum: I drove out tonight to a hilltop with an excellent view of the western horizon. Venus was shining brightly in a clear sky fading from purple to black. But no comet. I think I was looking too far north and too high in the sky. So I'l try again tomorrow night,or maybe in the morning on my walk.

How Much Is Pluto Worth?

Unless you've been, well, out past the orbit of The Planet Formerly Known As Pluto (actually, out past the orbit of the Pluto-Charon double solar system object), you're probably aware that Pluto is no longer a planet. Those fun-loving cosmic tricksters at the International Astronomical Union pulled it's membership to the Planetary Club a few weeks back. What prompted this, you might ask. You might say "Xena". In 2003, a team of German astronomers discovered an object 3.5 billion miles from the sun, with an orbit of about 560 years. It was assigned the cute little name of 2003UB13. They have a rule for these things. But the rule also allows it to have a happier name, so this was called Xena. Potential Trouble For Pluto #1 arose when the diameter of Xena was calculated to be 1864 miles. Pluto's diameter is around 1150 miles. Pluto was a planet, Xena not so much. But Xena was bigger. Potential Trouble For Pluto #2 came when Xena was discovered to have a moon, which was named Gabrielle. Things with moons, under the paradigm then in force, were called planets.

In the months between the discovery of 2003UB13, aka Xena, and this past August, things got increasingly sticky for Pluto. Nobody wanted to call Xena a planet - well, some people did, those who have been hoping for a tenth planet for decades - but most astronomers didn't want to give it the keys to the Planetary Club liquor cabinet, because it's becoming apparent that there could be hundreds of objects like Xena (and Pluto) floating around out past Neptune. You think it was hard to come up with a mnenomic for nine planets, try coming up with one for 372 planets! And in the case of Xena, apparently Gabrielle actually orbits around the planet, whereas with The Planet Formerly Known As Pluto and its little moon Charon, the orbital center is at a point in space between them. Sticky!

So, this past August, the IAU decided to just boot Pluto from the club rather than enlarge the member's lounge to accomodate any number of rabble. It's a bitter blow, no doubt, to the little Cosmic Overachiever who had been lording it over his fellow rocklets in the Kuiper Belt. It's value dropped immediately. How much? $38.95, but more on that later. Today, as if to rub it in Pluto's face just a bit more, 2003UB13 got a spiffy new name - Eris, named for the Greek goddess of discord. Very appropriate, really. And Gabrielle? Gabrielle was renamed Dysnomia, the spirit of lawlessness. They may regret that if the Kuiper Belt Liberation Front begins hurling rogue comets and meteors at us.

So back to the $38.95. How exactly did I determine that Pluto was worth less than a ticket to see Trans-Siberian Orchestra? Well, Sky & Telescope magazine sells books. One of their books was called "The New Solar System". Published in 1998, it had the latest info on our sun and its planets. All nine of them. It included all the neat stuff found by the Mars probes up until that point, the latest Jupiter and Saturn missions. On all nine planets. It sold for $39.95. Today, you can buy it from them for $1. And that $38.95 price drop is purely because Pluto got exposed as just another small solar system object. They'll call it a dwarf planet, sure, but that's just until they build the new fence just outside the orbit of Neptune. Which itself is just a tiny chunk of rock surrounded by an enormous amount of swirling gas. Not so different from Congress. And the mnenomic thing? Kottke.org held a contest for a new one. Here's the winning entry:

My! Very educated morons just screwed up numerous planetariums

The runners-up:

Many Very Earnest Men Just Snubbed Unfortunate Ninth Planet

My vision, erased. Mercy! Just some underachiever now

Most vexing experience, mother just served us nothing!

All that, for $38.95. I'm not sure it was worth it. (I bought 3 copies, maybe it was).

Interview With Clyde Tombaugh

A Kudzufiles exclusive - you won't see this anywhere else. Following the news that Pluto had been demoted, I interviewed Clyde Tombaugh, the discoverer of the ninth planet, which we now know he didn't discover.

KF: Mr. Tombaugh, I'm sure you've heard by now that the International Astronomical Union has decided that Pluto, which you discovered in 1930, is not a planet after all, but is just a "dwarf planet". How does that make you feel?

CT: Well, I'm sure they had their reasons. I'm sure they gave the matter very serious deliberation, before deciding they way they did.

KF: Would you have preferred that instead of removing Pluto's status as a planet, the IAU had instead decided to add Ceres, Charon, and 2003UB₃₁₃ as planets?

CT: Well, Ceres is only half the size of Pluto; I'm not sure it should have been inlcuded. And Charon revolves around Pluto, how could it be a planet? 2003UB₃₁₃, that's what messed up the whole thing. Pluto was fine, sitting out past Neptune, most of the time anyway, not bothering anybody. It gave a sense of closure, the period at the end of the solar system. Now what? We're supposed to see Neptune as the last stop on the solar trolley? It just doesn't seem proper. I found Pluto because calculations showed that Neptune was being influenced by something further out!

KF: But astronomers now say that those calculations were in error, because the mass of Neptune was incorrect. Voyager 2 showed us that. Using the correct mass for Neptune, there are no orbital disturbances.

CT: They can say that. But if it was an error, how did I find an orbiting object right where it should have been? What are the chances that it was just coincidentally where it was? Percival Lowell was a pretty smart man, and he nailed it's position.

KF: Well, he expected it to be much bigger.

CT: Bigger, schmigger, It was there, man!

KF: Your wife Patricia said today that if you were still alive, you would understand and accept what they did.

CT: Patricia didn't sit up all those nights looking at photographic plates! DO YOU KNOW HOW COLD IT CAN BE IN FLAGSTAFF IN FEBRUARY, AT NIGHT??

KF: She said "Clyde would have said, 'Science is a progressive thing and if you're going to be a scientist and put your neck out, you're apt to have it bitten upon'"

CT: Back and forth, back and forth, over and over. None of these little jerks were there. What the hell do they know? Most of them never even look through a telescope, just sit in front of computers in nice warm rooms. Pluto was mine!

KF: You seem upset by all this.

CT: Well how would Newton feel if somebody just decided gravity didn't exist? This was what I was known for. Nobody cares about asteroids, and that's basically what they're saying Pluto is. I found fourteen asteroids, does anybody remember me for that? No! Pluto. Pluto was what I did. Now what will they say on Wikipedia? That Clyde Tombaugh discovered fifteen asteroids? Did I mention it was cold? Back and forth, over and over?

KF: Do you have any final thoughts?

CT: Damn that 2003UB₃₁₃.

NO! NO! NO! NO! NO!!!!! MARS IS NOT COMING THIS SUMMER!!!

Got this in an email? Chris was the first of many who sent this to me.

The Red Planet is about to be spectacular!

This month and next, Earth is catching up with Mars in an encounter that will culminate in the closest approach between the two planets in recorded history. The next time Mars may come this close is in 2287. Due to the way Jupiter's gravity tugs on Mars and perturbs its orbit, astronomers can only be certain that Mars has not come this close to Earth in the Last 5,000 years, but it may be as long as 60,000 years before it happens again.

The encounter will culminate on August 27th when Mars comes to within 34,649,589 miles of Earth and will be (next to the moon) the brightest object in
the night sky. It will attain a magnitude of -2.9 and will appear 25.11 arc seconds wide. At a modest 75-power magnification

Mars will look as large as the full moon to the naked eye . Mars will be easy to spot. At the beginning of August it will rise in the east at 10p.m. and reach its azimuth at about 3 a.m.

By the end of August when the two planets are closest, Mars will rise at nightfall and reach its highest point in the sky at 12:30a.m. That's pretty
convenient to see something that no human being has seen in recorded history. So, mark your calendar at the beginning of August to see Mars grow
progressively brighter and brighter throughout the month. Share this with your children and grandchildren.

NO ONE ALIVE TODAY WILL EVER SEE THIS AGAIN

There's only one problem. IT'S FRIGGIN' WRONG!!! For starters, the close approach it talks about happened in 2003. That part, at least, is accurate. It was the closest approach in 60,000 years. THREE FREAKING YEARS AGO!!!!! It did not, and will not, appear as large as the full moon. It was a very bright red star at that time (and again last summer when it had another close approach). But it was still 69 million kilometers away. If Mars appeared in our skies as large as the full moon, it would be the last thing we ever saw - the resulting gravitational effect of a body that large so close to the earth (one million kilometers or so) would first raise tides to unimaginable heights, and then gradually begin tearing the earth apart. Life as we know it would have ceased before that happened, and it would have been an unpleasant end. Very unpleasant.

The "as big as the full moon" was a misunderstanding of the original information - through a telescope at 75 power, Mars did appear about the same size as looking at the moon without a telescope. That's it. No huge red planet lurking in our skies like a deranged mutant Campbell's Tomato Soup blimp. In fact, this graphic shows the positions of Earth and Mars relative to the Sun now:

Not that Earth is on one side of the Sun, while Mars is way way way on the other side. Earth is 93 million miles from the Sun. Mars is about 160 million miles from the Sun. Allowing for the fact that they're not on exact opposite side, Earth and Mars are still about 250 million miles apart. That's a bunch more than 35 million! A bunch more!! So stop sending these freaking emails!!

What was the Star?

Other than the Virgin Birth, perhaps the most significant aspect of the Christmas story is the Star of Bethlehem. For many Christians, it's enough to simply believe there was a magical event in the skies. But there is nothing about the story to deny the possibility that this was a natural event, one that was perhaps interpreted by some as having supernatural meaning. And if you look at astronomical happenings in the period around 3-2 BC, there are several possibilities. Maybe the most likely concerns the planets Jupiter and Venus. From August 3BC through the winter and spring of 2BC, Jupiter (known as the King planet) had danced with the star Regulus (as it was known by the Romans, meaning "Regal"), or Sharu as it was known to the Babylonians, meaning "King". Because of the way the outer planets (Mars out to Pluto) move in relation to the Earth, at certain times these planets will appear to move slowly backwards through the sky over a period of several weeks, then move forward again. So over a period of several months, Jupiter caught up to Regulus, passed it, appeared to turn around and pass it going the other way, the passed it again, each time passing very close to the star, and even appearing to merge with it. It would have followed this with a conjunction (conjunction is the apparent meeting of two astronomical objects) with the planet Venus (known as the Mother planet) on June 17, 2BC, also very near the star Regulus, and visible primarily in the Middle East.

Stop for a moment and think about how bright Venus often appears in the morning or evening sky. It shines with a clear, white light, and is the brightest object in the sky except for the Sun and Moon. Jupiter is generally the next brightest object (after Venus). These two appearing to merge would have created an extremely bright evening star, and given that the astrologers (or magi) of the time constantly read the skies for portents of the future, it is easy to imagine this being interpreted as the birth of a king, and it's position in the sky would have steered those in the area we know as Iraq and Iran towards the west. I'm not saying this was definitely the Star of Bethlehem. There were other possible astronomical events in the period from about 6BC until 1 or 2 AD that could also qualify. I'm just pointing out that there were things happening around this time that were fairly rare, and would certainly have been noticed by those who watched the skies. And so I leave you with a simple Merry Christmas, Peace, Goodwill to men and women everywhere.

December's Night Skies

December begins the period we think of as winter's skies. We talk about how the stars are so much brighter in winter, and we think it's because the skies are clearer, more transparent, in cold weather. The reality is much simpler - there are just more bright stars visible in winter. So, what's up in December?

Start with one of the two most recognized constellations in the skies: Orion. The Belt and Sword of Orion are easily seen this month, almost due south at mid-month. The middle star in the belt looks just a little fuzzy if you're not using telescopes or binoculars. Through binoculars or even a small telescope, it's revealed as the great Orion Nebula. The brightest star in Orion, on the left shoulder, is called Betelgeuse. It's actually a variable star - while it's always bright, it's light varies slightly. So that while it's classified as the brightest star in Orion, Rigel, to the lower right of the Belt and Sword, is sometimes just a bit brighter. Here's a great photo and constellation map of Orion - be sure to move your mouse over the photo!

Below and to the left, or east, of Orion is a very bright star. That's Sirius, the brightest star in our skies. It's in the constellation Canis Major, the "Greater Dog" - Orion is accompanied by two hunting dogs (although Canis Minor is more difficult to find).

One last constellation note - as Christmas approaches, you may notice, fairly low in the northwest, a pattern of stars in the shape of an upright cross. That's Cynus, the Swan. But it's better known as the Northern Cross, and December is it's last bit of visibility until summer. Catch it early in the evening - by 9 PM, it's too low to be seen from most locations.

There's not really much in the way of planets this month - Saturn is rising in the east, but it's better left for January. There is a meteor shower the night of December 13-14, the Geminids - so named because they generally originate from the area near the constellation Gemini, just to the east of Orion. If you want to see meteors, stay up until well after midnight or wake up in the early morning for the best chances. The Moon will reappear on the evening of December 14, low in the west after sunset - although you can see a think sliver of the just-past-New Moon in the late afternoon of the 13th if you have a clear western horizon. So, take a break from Christmas shopping and partying for a few minutes some night, and take look up. And if you have any questions, post them in the comments for this post, and I'll do my best to answer them.

Remembering The Stars

When I was ten, I would look up at the night sky from my home in the outskirts of Jackson, Mississippi, and see a sky full of stars. Their magic captivated me - I would often arise in the middle of the night and sneak out with my telescope, for the chance to spend a few extra minutes under the stars. Through the years, those stars never lost their magic. Even without a telescope, I spent many hours watching the grand procession of the constellations and planets across the sky as the seasons changed. As the years went by, other interests and responsibilities took time away from stargazing. Then, about fifteen years ago, my wife gave me a telescope for Christmas, and this was followed soon afterward by a move to a suburb of Jackson, a small town with the dark skies I remembered from my youth. My passion for astronomy was rekindled. But over the next few years, I began to take notice of changes in the skies. Not the appearance of new stars, but the gradual disappearance of old ones. The town in which I lived was growing rapidly, and as it grew, I noticed that the sky was becoming brighter. There was a glow along the horizons, low and fairly dim at first, but soon spreading over a third of the sky. Where once I could see all seven stars of the Little Dipper, now I could rarely see more than three or four. What had happened? It was a phenomenon known as light pollution. As stores and restaurants were built along the highway about one-half mile to my west, stray light from unshielded or poorly shielded fixtures in parking lots, on storefronts, and along the road combined to create a glow that scattered across the sky, blotting out the fainter stars. Familiar figures in the night sky, such as the Big Dipper and Orion, faded and became difficult to recognize as the fainter stars in the constellation could no longer be seen. The backyard that ten years earlier was a gateway to the universe was now captive to lights from two grocery stores, two drugstores, three fast-food restaurants, two banks, and a service station. This is a common occurrence in many parts of the United States today. As we push suburbia further into the countryside, the lights of the many conveniences we need or want follow – lights to advertise our favorite businesses, show us the road ahead, or give us a sense of security. We've become more afraid of the dark than ever, even when it can be shown that all those floodlights often give a false sense of security. And the wasted energy is incredible. All those fixtures are pouring out all that light, not just down where it's needed, but to the side and up into the air. Lower wattage bulbs, in shielded fixtures that illuminate only what's beneath, are both more efficient and more effective. And the result of this is that we've become disconnected from the night sky. Everytime there's a major power outage, police stations, television stations and weather offices receive hundreds of calls asking about the strange cloud overhead. It's the Milky Way, folks. It can't hurt you. Turn off some of those lights sometime. Pull up a chair and just wait a little while. It'll be worth the time, I promise. And over the coming months, I'll be posting some things to help you look, just in case you decide you like what you've seen.

Emerson the Stargazer

"To go into solitude, a man needs to retire as much from his chamber as from society. I am not solitary whilst I read and write, though nobody is with me. But if a man would be alone, let him look at the stars. The rays that come from those heavenly worlds, will separate between him and what he touches. One might think the atmosphere was made transparent with this design, to give man, in the heavenly bodies, the perpetual presence of the sublime. Seen in the streets of cities, how great they are! If the stars should appear one night in a thousand years, how would men believe and adore; and preserve for many generations the remembrance of the city of God which had been shown! But every night come out these envoys of beauty, and light the universe with their admonishing smile."

Excerpted from “Nature“, by Ralph Waldo Emerson

Space Stuff

We left more than an American flag behind on the Moon.... nothing really surprising, but there's more there than you might expect.

While all the attention is focused on Saturn, those little Mars rovers just keep on chugging along.

And in the category of really forgotten space things, Voyager I is now 8,330,000,000 miles from Earth, or about 90 Astronomical Units (the AU is the mean distance from the Earth to the Sun). Pioneer 10 has been traveling in space longer than Voyager I, but Voyager is traveling faster, and exceeded Pioner 10 in distance a few years ago. We are still in contact with Voyager, barely, but Pioneer went out of contact in April of 2002. Still, 30 years of transmitting back to Earth wasn't a bad feat.

Mars!!

Lots of talk about Mars right now. Closest approach in 60,000 years. Which is true, of course, but from some comments/questions I've gotten from friends, they seem to have gotten the impression that it's going to be huge the next few nights and then go away. So here's a few facts to settle things down a bit:

First, it's true that this is the closest approach in 60,000 years. Why? Here's a term for you: "perihelic opposition". Perihelion is the term for the closest approach of a planet to the sun on it's eliptical orbit. Opposition is the term used to describe the Earth and another planet being in a straight line drawn out from the sun. The significance, for planets outside the Earth's orbit, is that this is the brightest we see that planet, because we're seeing the full face of the planet. Perihelic opposition means that this lineup is occurring at the time the other planet is making it's closest approach to the sun. IOW, it's about as close to Earth as it ever gets. And that's what's happening now.

However: it took several months for this alignment to occur, during which time Mars was nicely visible (although in the early morning hours). And Mars will continue to be visible for several months, this time in the evening hours, as the Earth and Mars slowly move apart. So, enjoy the show now. Find somebody with a telescope, and look through it. But come back again a few times during the fall, Mars will still put on a good show.