By E. Jay Sarton Jr.
In these days when the astronomy news describes black holes, dark energy and extra-solar planets, many astronomy enthusiasts have simply forgotten the joy and excitement of star watching in their own backyards.
When you think of it, the very same stars that people see in the sky tonight were observed by the likes of Galileo and Einstein, or Julius Caesar and Shakespeare. The night stars give us a timeline into the past stretching all the way back to the dawn of history.
One hundred years ago, many people in Maine, be they farmers or mariners, knew the sky like the back of their hands. These people did not need a calendar to tell what month it was, they just noted what stars were visible after sunset and they knew. Today, few people can even find the Big Dipper. So what happened?
Simply speaking, the expanding brightness of streetlights, automobiles, and buildings has virtually canceled out the starry sky for most city dwellers in America. Though it may surprise some people, Maine has the darkest night sky conditions on the eastern seaboard and a few miles outside of Maine’s cities, our sky is gorgeous. In our Lakes Region the water reflects the stars’ brightness and the trees screen out the horizon lights from the larger towns.
Like most of Maine’s natural treasures, people just need a good map to find their way around the night skies. Libraries are prime sources for star maps that anybody can learn to use. An excellent Web site for constellation charts is hosted by Michigan State University – www.pa.msu.edu/abrams/SkyCalendar. Portland’s Southworth Planetarium at the University of Southern Maine is another wonderful astronomy resource for learning the night sky; visit ww.usm.maine.edu/~planet/schedule.htm.
June Sky Calendar
For millennia, constellations have been the signposts in the heavens. In June, Ursa Major, the great bear, arches majestically overhead in the early evening and cannot be missed. Because of its easily recognizable “big dipper” shape, Ursa Major is the best known star group in America. Anyone with normal eyesight can see the second star in the handle, Mizar, as a double star. Ursa Minor, with the North Star at the end of its handle, lies below the Big Dipper. Without a dark sky and a good star map, however, the North Star-Polaris is difficult to locate without using the Big Dipper’s stars as a guideline. With some practice, though, anyone can become a competent stargazer and find their way around the sky like an expert.
Also visible in June, the planet Venus dominates the sky in the west. As the brightest night-time object, Venus looks like the landing light from a plane and has been responsible for more UFO reports than any other astronomical object. Venus is so bright that it can be seen before the sun sets if you know where to look for it. Venus will at its brightest this year in June.
So don’t wait, turn off that computer, get out there, and start looking at Maine’s fantastic night skies; here is a list of key celestial events for this June. Happy stargazing!
June 1-3: Venus near bright stars Castor and Pollux in Gemini
June 17-18: Moon near Venus and Saturn-spectacular!
June 19: Moon very near bright star Regulus in Leo
June 22: First quarter Moon in Virgo
June 28-29: Venus and Saturn very close together-awesome!
June 30: “Strawberry’ full Moon in Sagittarius
Caption: Ursa Major, a.k.a. Big Dipper, rides high in the June sky.
Send questions/comments to the editors.
