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This is the Griffith Observatory Sky Report through November 25, 2015. Here’s what’s happening in the skies of southern California.
The moon changes from first quarter to full between the 18th and 25th and lights the majority of the nighttime hours. Moonset advances from 11:27 p.m. to 6:06 a.m. through the same period. A traditional name for November’s full moon is the Frosty Moon.
Three bright planets are visible in the eastern sky between 3:30 a.m. and 5:00 a.m., when dawn starts. The brightest and lowest is Venus, while the second brightest and highest of the three is Jupiter. Red-hued Mars is between the two brighter planets. Through a telescope, Jupiter shows bands of clouds as well as its four largest moons. Venus displays a gibbous phase. Mars is on the far side of the sun from us and looks very small through a telescope, but with an eight-inch or larger telescope, high magnification and steady air, the north polar cap and hints of the dark markings of the planet can be seen. The Martian features will become clearer to observers as the distance between Mars and Earth shrinks from 190 million miles to 47 million miles over the next six months.
The International Space Station will pass high above Los Angeles during the dawn on Monday, November 23. Only slightly fainter than blazing Venus, the ISS will cross the sky from northwest to southeast between 5:50 a.m. to 5:56 a.m., PST. It will be highest in the sky, 73 degrees above the southeast horizon and 418 miles away, at 5:53 a.m.
Free views of the sun during the day and of the moon, planets, and other celestial objects at night are available to the public in clear weather through Griffith Observatory’s telescopes from Tuesday through Sunday before 9:30 p.m. Check our website for the schedule. The next public star party on the grounds of Griffith Observatory, hosted by the Los Angeles Astronomical Society, the Sidewalk Astronomers, and the Planetary Society, will take place on Saturday, November 21.
Follow the Sky Report on Twitter for updates of astronomy and space-related events.
From Griffith Observatory, I’m Anthony Cook and I can be reached at griffithobserver@gmail.com