dipper@utastro.UUCP (Debbie Byrd) (10/16/85)
The moon sometimes hides bright stars from our view. More on some upcoming occultations of Antares -- after this. October 16 The Moon, Antares, and Saturn Shortly after sundown tonight, the slender crescent moon appears low in the southwest -- between two bright objects. The golden object on your right as you face the moon is the planet Saturn. That reddish point of light to the left of the moon is the star Antares. Check out the moon, Saturn and Antares tonight -- then look again after sundown on Thursday. On Thursday the moon will have moved to the east of Antares on the dome of the sky. Then both the planet and the star will be to the right of the moon. Each month the moon traces out a slightly different path against the background stars. Sometimes the moon moves directly in front of certain stars along our line of sight. It blocks their light from our view. When one celestial object blocks our view of another celestial object -- that's called an occultation. In 1986 the moon will begin an interesting series of occultations of the star Antares. Next March the moon will occult Antares. It will pass in front of the star and briefly block its light from view. Then for the next five years the moon will occult Antares every month -- as our sister world moves in its orbit to a position between the Earth and the star. These occultations are especially interesting because Antares is such a bright star -- the fifteenth brightest star in the sky. We won't be able to see all the occultations from North America. But tonight and Thursday night you can enjoy a view of Antares near the crescent moon -- in the southwest just after twilight. Script by Diana Hadley. (c) Copyright 1984, 1985 McDonald Observatory, University of Texas at Austin