The Moon occasionally relocates front of all of the Solar Systems planets, consisting of Mars. Credit: Sergio Scauso
The Moon sweeps previous Jupiter two times this month, and in fact covers Mars completely, in an event called an occultation, on December 7. The occasion is noticeable throughout the U.S., except for the Southeast and East Coast, where the Moon will graze closely past Mars.
December 1– Look in the southwest this night to find the Moon just a couple of finger-widths apart from the brilliant world Jupiter.
December 7– Full moon
December 7– The Moon occults, or covers up, Mars tonight. In the U.S., Mars slips behind the Moon for viewers everywhere outside the East Coast and Southeast, where the Moon will appear to just hardly graze past Mars. Inspect your preferred stargazing app or site for the timing of the disappearance and reappearance of Mars.
December 23– New moon
December 25-31– Check out the Moon and planets at years end. View each evening as the significantly moon slides past Saturn on the 26th and then previous Jupiter on the 28th.
All month– Find the constellation Pegasus high in the south-southwest after dark. Search for bright Jupiter and find the Great Square of Pegasus about 15 degrees above it.
The Moon sweeps previous Jupiter two times this month, and really covers Mars completely, in an event called an occultation, on December 7. December 7– The Moon occults, or covers up, Mars tonight. In the U.S., Mars slips behind the Moon for viewers all over outside the East Coast and Southeast, where the Moon will appear to just barely graze past Mars. Its called a lunar occultation, as the Moon passes in front of, or occults, the Red Planet, Mars. For viewers in the U.S., Mars disappears behind the Moon sometime between about 6:30 and 9 p.m., depending on your place, so check your favorite skywatching app to find the time for your area.
What to try to find in December 2022: Mars disappears, and Pegasus rides to experience. Audiences in the majority of the U.S. and Europe can enjoy Mars slip behind the Moon on December 7, and everybody can find the winged horse constellation Pegasus.
Lunar occultation of Mars. Credit: Andrés Jobacho
Video Transcript:
Whats Up for December? Your evening world highlights, including the disappearance of Mars, and the constellation Pegasus.
The month begins and ends with the Moon going to the giant planets. On December 1st, find the Moon simply a number of finger-widths apart from Jupiter at night sky. From the 25th to the 31st, look to the southwest following sundown to see a significantly full Moon slip previous Saturn and then again past Jupiter. Audiences with a clear view to the horizon will have the ability to look for Venus and Mercury in the fading glow of sunset, simply a few degrees above the skyline.
December 7 brings among those wonderful minutes when the sky changes significantly before your really eyes. Its called a lunar occultation, as the Moon passes in front of, or occults, the Red Planet, Mars. The phenomenon will show up in parts of North America, Europe, and Northern Africa. (Viewers in the Southeast and on the East Coast will see the Moon just graze previous Mars.) For audiences in the U.S., Mars disappears behind the Moon sometime in between about 6:30 and 9 p.m., depending upon your place, so examine your preferred skywatching app to find the time for your location.
Now, the Moon passes in front of worlds in the night sky numerous times each year. In fact, it usually occults Mars itself a minimum of a number of times per year. However each occultation shows up from only a little portion of Earths surface area, so its not extremely typical for any particular spot on Earth to see them regularly.
Of course, the Moon passes in front of stars all the time. If youre in the viewing zone, enjoy this fairly rare chance to see a brilliant world being occulted by the Moon.
Looking high in the southwest sky on December evenings, you can find a constellation called for one of the more fantastical beasts of ancient mythology. Thats Pegasus, the winged horse. In Greek myth, Pegasus rode into adventures with the hero Belaraphon, and later brought the thunderbolts of Zeus himself, who rewarded him by positioning him amongst the stars.
Pegasus is among the biggest of the 88 constellations. Its most prominent function, and the key to discovering it in the sky, is this asterism, or pattern of stars, called the Great Square. These four stars of approximately equivalent brightness form the central part of the horses body.
This December, its easy to locate Pegasus, thanks to brilliant Jupiter. Face southward to find the giant world about midway up the sky, with the Great Square starting about 15 degrees to the north of it.
Pegasus is a beneficial constellation for stargazers, as its a great starting place for discovering your way to other functions in the night sky. The constellation itself consists of a variety of dazzling deep-sky things, including globular cluster M15, and the twisted galaxies of Stephans Quintet. With this year waning, heres hoping you look for the winged stallion Pegasus, as you consider what brand-new adventures wait for in the next year.
Here are the stages of the Moon for December.
The stages of the Moon for December 2022. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
Stay up to date with all of NASAs missions to explore the planetary system and beyond at nasa.gov. Im Preston Dyches from NASAs Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and thats Whats Up for this month.