40th Fife Scout Troop
Astronomer Badge

 NOVEMBER NEWS

THE SKY IN NOVEMBER

The Planets

Jupiter is still very visible this month, shining brightly in the South after it gets dark. Try looking at it with binoculars.  If you are steady enough you should be able to see two or more of its biggest moons.
Saturn is visible to the east of Jupiter. It appears slightly yellowish and is in an area which has few other bright stars.  Through binoculars you should see that this is a disc where a star looks more like a pin dot.

The Stars

Pegasus the Flying Horse is almost overhead this month.  Look for the large square of stars.
Ursa Major the Great Bear is visible all year round.  It looks like a giant saucepan with a long handle.  It can be found to the North West this month and is quite low.
Cassiopeia the Queen is almost directly overhead this month.  This constellation looks like a giant letter W in the sky.
 

Other Interesting things to look for:

Meteors this month sees the return of the Leonid meteor shower, between Nov 15th and 20th (peak at 18/19th) and this year is likely to be the best one for at least 33 years.  Meteor showers occur when the Earth passes through the debris left by a passing comet, we see all the bits burning up as they hit the Earth's atmosphere as streaks of light across the sky.  The comet associated with the Leonids was back earlier this year and we should have more debris than usual to give us an amazing show.
Andromeda Galaxy If you have binoculars give this one a try.  Use the chart on the first page to locate it. You should see a fuzzy, misty patch of light in the sky.  Say hello to one of our closest neighbours, only 2.2 million light years away.
 

Badgework

Merak and Dubhe are to be found in one of the above constellations. Find them and find out why they are important.

Find out what the Celestial Equator and the Ecliptic are.

How far is a light year?

Do some investigating about the first Moon landings.
 

Diary remember to keep your diary up to date. All it needs is a good Half Hour outside but don't let it interfere with your school work. I don't want blamed for you falling asleep in class.

***Clear Skies***
     ***Lorna***