Look up! What's going on in the November night sky?
Keep your eyes on the skies!
No less than three separate meteor showers brighten our night skies throughout the month of November, and one — the Leonids — may put on a show unlike anything we've seen in years.
The cycle of the Moon lines up quite well for this month as we slip into November. The New Moon takes place during the day on the 1st. By the night of the 2nd, we should see a thin crescent Moon just above the western horizon after sunset, and from there, the Moon will rise later and later, and climb higher in the sky each night for roughly the first half of the month.
The Moon will reach its First Quarter — when its "right" side is lit and its "left" side is dark — on the 8th. The Full Moon occurs on the night of November 15-16, which is not very well-timed for other events in the sky. However, this will be the last of the supermoons we'll see until October of next year. The Last Quarter Moon — when the "left" side of the Moon is lit and the "right" side is dark — will happen on the night of the 22nd to 23rd.
Watch for the brightest planets in the sky throughout the month, as well.
During twilight, after the Sun has set, look to the west. Venus will appear as the ‘evening star’ there each night, visible just above the western horizon. In particularly, look for it near the thin Crescent Moon on the night of November 4. This planet will likely be the brightest "star" in the sky every evening this month, however it sets fairly quickly each night as well.
Saturn will be up at this same time, visible in the south after sunset each night. The ringed planet is a bit dimmer these days, as its rings are slowly 'disappearing' from view by next spring. Don't worry, though, they'll gradual return and brighten the planet afterward. Saturn is not as easy to pick out among the stars as some of these other bright planets. The easiest way to find it is to look for the star in the southern sky that isn't 'twinkling'.
Jupiter is also in the sky each night, rising along with the constellation Orion after sunset and crossing to the west by dawn. The planet reaches Opposition — the point when Earth is directly between it and the Sun — on the night of December 7. This also just happens to be when Jupiter is closest to Earth for the year. As such, Jupiter will be getting brighter in the sky each night up until then.
This simulation of the night sky shows Venus, Saturn, and Jupiter arrayed from horizon to horizon. Although this particular image depicts the night of November 23, the three planets will be in this rough configuration across the sky for the entire month. (Stellarium)
Mars can also be spotted rising in the late evening every night, roughly four hours after Jupiter, and will follow a similar course across the sky. While not as bright as Venus or Jupiter, Mars can usually be seen in all but the most light polluted skies, and tends to stand out due to its distinct orange colour. Watch for this planet to also become brighter and brighter in the sky each night, as we approach Mars Opposition in January 2025.
Finally, the only other planet visible in the sky without the aid of binoculars or a telescope this month is Mercury. Being the closest planet to the Sun, Mercury spends most of its time 'lost' to sight in the light of day, or at least dawn or dusk.
However, for those with a clear view of the southwestern horizon, with no trees, buildings, or other obstructions in the way, turn your eyes in that direction each night this month. It will be challenging to pick out from twilight for the first week or so, but from around the 10th through the 24th of November, you may be able to spot Mercury just above the horizon between around 5:30 and 6 p.m., local time, each evening.
A month of meteor showers
A total of three meteor showers reach their peaks during the month of November.
The first to peak is the Southern Taurids, on the night of November 4-5. Their name comes from the fact that the meteors from this shower appear to originate from the constellation Taurus, and they have a slightly more southerly focus. This means that the shower tends to produce a slightly better show in the sky for those farther to the south. However, even for Canadians, we can still see about five meteors per hour from this, or one every 10 minutes or so.
The second shower to peak is the Northern Taurids — the "twin" of the Southern Taurids — which occurs on the night of the 11th to 12th. Like the Southern Taurids, this meteor shower is also fairly weak, and typically delivers five meteors per hour during its peak.
The twin Southern and Northern Taurids meteor showers peak on November 4-5 and 11-12, respectively, and are fairly weak showers overall. (Stellarium/Scott Sutherland)
The Southern and Northern Taurids are referred to as "twin" meteor showers, not only because their radiants are so close in the sky, but also because they very likely originate from the same source. Right now, two known objects are currently counted as being the likely sources of these two meteor showers — Comet 2P/Encke for the Southern Taurids and asteroid 2004 TG10 for the Northern Taurids. However, based on the characteristics of the showers and the orbits of the two objects, it is thought that 2P/Encke and 2004 TG10 may be two leftover pieces from a single large comet that broke apart long ago.
The Moon will be passing through its 'gibbous' phases — between First Quarter and Full — during the second week of the month. As such, this will not be particularly good time for viewing meteors. However, even so, there could be something interesting happening in the hours between midnight and dawn on the 14th.
According to the International Meteor Organization, astronomers have predicted a potential meteor outburst for that morning. Early on November 14, Earth is predicted to pass through a trail of debris from Comet Tempel-Tuttle (the source of the Leonid meteor shower). This same trail produced a meteor storm back in 2001, when thousands of meteors were reported throughout the night.
Unfortunately, there's no telling exactly how much material is in this trail, or how big that material is, until we actually pass through it. Expectations are that it will only produce slight uptick in the normal number of meteors (maybe 10-20 per hour?), and anything we see will be rather faint. However, if observers can find a patch of dark sky, away from urban light pollution, and keep the Moon out of their direct line of sight, they may catch a few extra falling stars in the hours before sunrise. Besides, there is always the chance that this outburst will deliver even more than what is predicted!
Following this, the Leonid meteor shower will resume its normal 'build up' towards its peak, which will happen on the night of November 16-17.
The radiant of the Leonid meteor shower, as it will appear on the night of the peak, on November 16-17. The best time to view the Leonids is in the hours after midnight on the night of November 16, with the shower becoming better towards dawn as the radiant climbs higher in the sky. (Stellarium/Scott Sutherland)
Occurring just one night after the Full Moon, the Leonids peak is not very well-timed this year.
Typically, observers can see between 15-20 Leonids per hour during the shower's peak. With the light from the Moon shining in the sky, though, we can expect maybe half that number.
That still equates to around one meteor every 5-6 minutes, so if you have some time that night and can get away from light pollution, it's still worth checking out.
(Thumbnail image from the Weather Network UGC gallery courtesy Graham Fielding Photography)
