January Calendar by Dave Mitsky

All times are UT (subtract 5 hours and when appropriate 1 calendar day for EST)

1/1 The Great Red Spot (GRS) transits Jupiter's central meridian (CM) at 08:30
1/2 The Earth is at perihelion - 147,099,111 kilometers distant from the Sun (98.3% of its average distance) - at 01:00
1/3 The GRS transits Jupiter's CM at 10:09; the Quadrantid meteor shower (40 or more per hour) peaks at 12:00; maximum lunar libration of 7.8 degrees occurs at 17:00; Last Quarter Moon occurs at 17:46
1/4 The Moon passes 0.4 degree south of Jupiter at 02:00
1/5 Ganymede is eclipsed by Jupiter's shadow at 9:16; Ganymede reappears from eclipse at 12:07
1/6 The GRS transits Jupiter's CM at 07:39
1/7 Comet C/2004 Q2 (Machholz) passes 2 degrees to the west of the open cluster M45 (the Pleiades); Titan (magnitude 8.3) lies south of Saturn; the Moon passes 3 degrees south of Mars at 19:00; the Moon passes 1.3 degrees north of the first magnitude star Antares at 20:00; Mars passes 5 degrees north of the first magnitude star Antares at 21:00
1/8 Jupiter reaches western quadrature; Saturn crosses north of its ascending node; the GRS transits Jupiter's CM at 9:17
1/9 The Moon passes 5 degrees south of Mercury at 02:00; the Moon passes 5 degrees south of Venus at 03:00; minimum lunar libration of 6.3 degrees occurs at 15:00
1/10 The Moon is at perigee, subtending 33'31" from a distance of 356,572 kilometers (221,562 miles), at 10:07; the GRS transits Jupiter's CM at 10:55; New Moon (lunation 1015) occurs at 12:03
1/13 The Moon passes 4 degrees south of Uranus at 08:00; the GRS transits Jupiter's CM at 08:25; Saturn shines at -0.4 magnitude and subtends 20.6" when it reaches opposition at 23:00
1/14 Mercury passes 19' south-southwest of Venus at 01:00
1/15 Maximum lunar libration of 8.2 degrees occurs at 01:00 UT; the GRS transits Jupiter's CM at 10:03
1/16 Comet C/2004 Q2 (Machholz) passes through the Perseus I galaxy cluster
1/17 The First Quarter Moon occurs at 06:57
1/18 The GRS transits Jupiter's CM at 07:33; asteroid 14 Irene (magnitude 10.9) passes 5' south of the bright variable star Delta Librae in the morning
1/20 The GRS transits Jupiter's CM at 09:11
1/21 Minimum lunar libration of 6.3 degrees occurs at 17:00
1/22 The GRS transits Jupiter's CM at 10:49
1/23 Titan is south of Saturn; the Moon is at apogee, subtending 29'24" from a distance of 406,445 kilometers (252,533 miles), at 18:53
1/24 The Moon passes 5 degrees north of Saturn at 08:00
1/25 The GRS transits Jupiter's CM at 08:19; Full Moon (known as the Ice Moon, the Moon After Yule, the Old Moon, and the Wolf Moon) occurs at 10:32
1/27 The GRS transits Jupiter's CM at 09:57
1/28 Asteroid 14 Irene (magnitude 10.8) passes 7' south of Beta Librae (magnitude 2.6), commonly known as Zubeneschamali
1/31 The Moon passes 0.9 degree south of Jupiter at 11:00

Times and dates for the lunar light rays predicted to occur this month
are available at http://www.lunar-occultations.com/rlo/rays/rays.htm

Mercury shines at -0.5 magnitude as it makes a close approach with Venus on January 12 and 13. It remains within 1.5 degrees of Venus during the first half of January and drops out of sight as the month draws to an end.

Brilliant Venus (-3.7 magnitude) is located, along with Mercury, low in the southeast prior to sunrise.

Mars is still small (4.2") and dim (+1.6 magnitude) in early January as it journeys through Scorpius to the left of Antares and to the upper right of Mercury and Venus.

Best seen in the early morning Jupiter is located in Virgo and at -2.0 magnitude is almost twice as bright as the brightest star, Sirius.

Saturn comes to opposition on January 13 and consequently is visible the entire night. Its rings subtend 46.7" and display a tilt of 23 degrees. On January 26 and January 27 Saturn passes through the open cluster NGC 2420 in Gemini.

Comet C/2004 Q2 (Machholz) may peak in brightness at approximately fourth magnitude, or slightly brighter, in early January. On January 7 the comet passes just to the west of the Pleiades as it heads through Taurus and then Perseus on its way to becoming a north circumpolar object.

Asteroid 8 Flora travels just 1 degree north of Saturn sometime between January 15 and January 20. Asteroid 532 Herculina (magnitude 8.9) passes 1 degree south of the first magnitude star Pollux around January 31. On January 23 both asteroids are south of seventh magnitude field stars.

One hundred and five binary and multiple stars for January: Omega Aurigae, 5 Aurigae, Struve 644, 14 Aurigae, Struve 698, Struve 718, 26 Aurigae, Struve 764, Struve 796, Struve 811, Theta Aurigae (Auriga); Struve 485, 1 Camelopardalis, Struve 587, Beta Camelopardalis, 11 & 12 Camelopardalis, Struve 638, Struve 677, 29 Camelopardalis, Struve 780 (Camelopardalis); h3628, Struve 560, Struve 570, Struve 571, Struve 576, 55 Eridani, Struve 596, Struve 631, Struve 636, 66 Eridani, Struve 649 (Eridanus); Kappa Leporis, South 473, South 476, h3750, h3752, h3759, Beta Leporis, Alpha Leporis, h3780, Lallande 1, h3788, Gamma Leporis (Lepus); Struve 627, Struve 630, Struve 652, Phi Orionis, Otto Struve 517, Beta Orionis (Rigel), Struve 664, Tau Orionis, Burnham 189, h697, Struve 701, Eta Orionis, h2268, 31 Orionis, 33 Orionis, Delta Orionis (Mintaka), Struve 734, Struve 747, Lambda Orionis, Theta-1 Orionis (the Trapezium), Theta-2 Orionis, Iota Orionis, Struve 750, Struve 754, Sigma Orionis, Zeta Orionis (Alnitak), Struve 790, 52 Orionis, Struve 816, 59 Orionis, 60 Orionis (Orion); Struve 476, Espin 878, Struve 521, Struve 533, 56 Persei, Struve 552, 57 Persei (Perseus); Struve 479, Otto Struve 70, Struve 495, Otto Struve 72, Struve 510, 47 Tauri, Struve 517, Struve 523, Phi Tauri, Burnham 87, Xi Tauri, 62 Tauri, Kappa & 67 Tauri, Struve 548, Otto Struve 84, Struve 562, 88 Tauri, Struve 572, Tau Tauri, Struve 598, Struve 623, Struve 645, Struve 670, Struve 674, Struve 680, 111 Tauri, 114 Tauri, 118 Tauri, Struve 730, Struve 742, 133 Tauri (Taurus)

Challenge binary star for January: 14 Orionis (Orion)

Seventy deep-sky objects for January: B26-28, B29, M36, M37, M38, NGC 1664, NGC 1778, NGC 1857, NGC 1893, NGC 1907, NGC 1931 (Auriga); IC 361, Kemble 1, NGC 1501, NGC 1502, NGC 1530, NGC 1569 (Camelopardalis); NGC 1507, NGC 1518, NGC 1531, NGC 1532, NGC 1535, NGC 1537, NGC 1600, NGC 1637, NGC 1659, NGC 1700 (Eridanus); IC 418, M79, NGC 1832, NGC 1888, NGC 1964 (Lepus); B33, Cr65, Cr69, Cr70, IC 434, M42, M43, M78, NGC 1662, NGC 1973-75-77, NGC 1981, NGC 1999, NGC 2022, NGC 2023, NGC 2024, NGC 2112 (Orion); Be11, NGC 1491, NGC 1496, NGC 1499, NGC 1513, NGC 1528, NGC 1545, NGC 1548, NGC 1579, NGC 1582, NGC 1605, NGC 1624 (Perseus); DoDz3, DoDz4, M1, Mel 25, NGC 1514, NGC 1587, NGC 1647, NGC 1746, NGC 1807, NGC 1817 (Taurus)

Challenge deep-sky object for January: IC 2118 (Eridanus)

__________________
Chance favors the prepared mind.
De gustibus non est disputandum.
Never attribute to malice that which can be adequately explained by stupidity.

Thats great, but does anyone know where I can find a calender for the big events of 2005 (lunar eclipses, comets etc), rather than a detailed night-by-night calender like this (dates to put in the diary)? Thanks

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Astronomy for Beginners.com
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There are the yearly almanac editions that Sky & Telescope and Astronomy Magazine publish, the RASC Observer's Handbook, Guy Ottewell's Astronomical Calendar, Patrick Moore's Yearbook of Astronomy, and the expensive The Astronomical Almanac for the Year 2005: And Its Companion the Astronomical Almanac Online (Astronomical Almanac for the Year).

At least one online site, the NASA/JPL Space Calendar, covers the entire year:
http://www2.jpl.nasa.gov/calendar/

Dave Mitsky

__________________
Chance favors the prepared mind.
De gustibus non est disputandum.
Never attribute to malice that which can be adequately explained by stupidity.