December evenings reveal the brilliant winter stars rising over the eastern horizon, and those willing to stay out late are treated to the Winter Hexagon region that is progressing higher and higher in the southern sky. The Winter Hexagon is an asterism comprised of some of the brightest stars in this region of the sky. For the early birds out there, the Winter Hexagon is also visible in the hours leading up to sunrise in the southwestern sky.

This month, a few planets are stretched across the heavens, offering great views throughout the night. In the early evening hours, Jupiter can be found high in the southern sky shining at about -2.5 magnitude, brighter than any star. Jupiter is past its opposition but remains a great telescopic target. Its atmospheric bands, together with its Galilean moons, are always interesting observations. Saturn, in the early evening hours, can be found in the southwestern sky. With the unaided eye, it appears much like a bright, yellow star at about 0.8 magnitude. The rings of Saturn can be easily seen with a backyard telescope and are always a worthy observation. Mars reaches opposition on the 8th and rises at about sunset this month. Its reddish glow is visible throughout most of the night and is a spectacular sight at -1.9 magnitude! Mars is currently making its closest approach to Earth for the year, which makes December the best time to glimpse its features through a telescope.

8: Full Moon

8: Mars at Opposition

13-14: Geminid Meteor Shower Peak

21: December Solstice

21-22: Ursid Meteor Shower Peak

23: New Moon

On the morning of November 8th, I woke up a few hours before the sun rose to prepare for a rare total lunar eclipse. I packed my Canon DSLR camera and 8-inch Newtonian telescope and traveled to a location with a low eastern horizon. I was joined by friends, family, and members of my high school Space and Astronomy Club.

The air was very crisp, and the skies were clear while we awaited totality. We were treated to the winter stars shining overhead and I gave a tour of the sky, reviewing the Winter Hexagon with club members as they discussed predictions of what the eclipse would look like. As totality arrived, the moon became completely engulfed in the earth’s shadow and displayed an orange-red color. Everyone was amazed at how dim the moon had become and took turns viewing it through Springfield STARS Club President, Richard Sanderson’s Dobsonian telescope.

Due to my location, this eclipse was very interesting. The sun rose as totality was still occurring, which caused the moon to become dimmer as the sky was getting brighter. Eventually, the moon faded from view and became invisible to the unaided eye. I hope you all got a chance to observe this rare event because the next total lunar eclipse won’t occur until the year 2025!

My recent observations have continued to include Jupiter and its Galilean moons. I’m working on a project that requires me to make observations of these distant satellites and time occultations of Io, Europa, and Ganymede. This project has taught me much about Jupiter and its moons, and how they interact. I will be continuing these observations for a few more months and look forward to the results.